Loop Brook
A historic trail in the Rogers Pass area is worth an hour of easy hiking. The Loop Brook trailhead is next to the Trans Canada Highway a few kilometres west of the pass.
To avoid avalanche slopes, engineers brought the railroad into the Loop Brook Valley in a double loop (figure 8) shape. The wooden trestles were replaced with concrete and steel ones. The route was abandoned when the Connaught Tunnel was opened in 1916.
The trail climbs to the foot of one of the trestles, then climbs a short hill to the top of the highest trestle on the east side. A line of trestles stretches west across to the Loop Brook Campground. The trail then follows the easy grade of the railbed over to a snowshed, now collapsed.
The route takes us to the second crossing, another line of trestles across the creek, with views of Mount Bonney and Bonney Glacier.
A loop past the campground then takes the hiker back to the first line of trestles and back to the parking area. This is a very nice hike, worth your time.
Any hike is Glacier is worth your time, some of the best in North America. The best hikes of the area are Asulkan Valley, Abbott Ridge, Balu Pass, the Hermit Trail, and Sir Donald (see kamloopstrails.net for most of these), but there are a dozen fine hikes nearby. Camp at Illecillewaet or Loop Brook for a few days and pick some, climbing to the alpine for the rugged wilderness of the Selkirks.
A new video is in the works on YouTube.