Work on a world-class mountain bike trail system for Nakusp has received funding to continue for the next two years.
The Nakusp and Area Bike Society has been promised nearly $650,000 to continue work on the trail system, being built about eight kilometres north of the village.
“It’s overwhelming,” says NABS’s Janis Neufeld, who’s managing the project. “It’s so great, I’m so excited, I did a dance when I got this funding.
“It was a dream come true. I cannot believe how successful we’ve been.”
The funding, from sources ranging from BC Rural Dividends to the Columbia Basin Trust, will allow NABS to hire dozens of people to continue work on the ambitious project. NABS recieved $527,000 in new funding this year, and carried $122,000 over from last year.
The multi-year project, started in 2017, will will eventually see 50 kilometres of trails built through the forest from the top of Mount Abriel to the lakeshore. The track will be accessible to both newcomers, people with disabilities, and expert mountain bikers.
“It is planned to be a world-class destination, that’s been the desire and intent from the start,” says Neufeld. “This was not going to just be a place that would be fun for locals to use. It’s great that we get to use it, but the intent is it’s going to be an attraction for the area that will help support the local economy.”
Last year’s start saw the initial trail loop built on the lower part of the mountain, a seven-kilometer long hiking, running, and mountain bike trail. Among the projects planned for this year is extending the trails in the lower portion of the system, building a 30-site campground, and building an adaptive trail.
It’s that adaptive trail that especially excites Neufeld for this part of the project. It’s a five-kilometre loop with a low grade that’s designed for a wide range of people with various abilities. With both graded slopes, a boardwalk crossing deeper trenches, and a beach at one end, she says it will be the crown jewel of the trails.
“It will follow the lakeshore, right along the lake, with beautiful views as you meander along,” she says. “It will be built so people with a hand-cycle style of bike can ride this trail in its entirety. And the great thing about building it to adaptive standards is it creates a really great beginner’s trail that anyone can use.
“It’s the perfect trail for youth, for kids on run bikes, for families, seniors, anyone who wants to come give it a a try.”
The next two years will see a large part of the project built. Neufeld says the idea is to complete as much of the project as possible.
“The deliverable is to get 14.6 kilometres done in the next two years, but I’m aiming for more like 20, which gets us to about half,” she says. “You don’t know when funding trains will be coming to an end, so that’s why I applied for as much as I did this time. I said, let’s get as much done as we can in the next two years.”
NABS has hired three managers to oversee the actual construction of the trails, and says anywhere from 15-30 people will be hired on a full and part-time basis to do the work. There’s also money for contractors and equipment operators for jobs that can’t be done with muscle power.
While nearly $650,000 may seem like a lot, Neufeld says it’s still a tight budget.
“It’s amazing how quickly it will go,” she says. “We have to be very good stewards of this funding and pinch every penny. And we are still looking for volunteers, because we’re still committed to doing a certain amount of this in-kind, and doing an additional donations and support to truly get us there.”
The project is expected to cost about $1.25 million in total and take five years to complete. Neufeld says it’s daunting, but the dream is to make a facility that will put Nakusp on the biking map.
“When people come to this country, and they hear about B.C. and the Kootenays, they’ll hear ‘Hey, you have to get to the Mount Abriel trail system, it is unreal. You can bike from the top all the way to the lake and camp right there and the trails are the best, so make sure you make your way to Nakusp.’”
“That is what this is all about.”
