Cowichan Valley BC Canada Trail The Cowichan Valley is located on the east coast of Vancouver Island and is a one-hour drive north of Victoria and a 45-minute drive south of Nanaimo. Trail description: The Cowichan Valley Rail Trail forms a section of the Trans Canada Trail, following the Cowichan River from Shawinigan Lake 55 km west to the town of Lake Cowichan then curves back east 30 km to Duncan.The Cowichan Valley Rail Trail received funding for upgrading under the Spirit of 2010 Trail and is complete. Other project partners include Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District and Southern Railway of Vancouver Island. This project was funded by the Capital Regional District, Cowichan Valley Regional District, the Regional District of Nanaimo and Comox Valley Regional District. The Cowichan Valley Trail is open to hikers, bikers and horseback riders that want to experience all of the wonderful views available. From there, the ride was mostly uphill, although being a rail-trail, the grade was generally less than 1%. The northern branch is the Cowichan Valley Rail Trail, which stays on the north of the Cowichan River and ends in Duncan town; the southern branch is the Trans Canada trail, which crosses over to the south side of the Cowichan River and ends at the Kinsol Trestle at Shawnigan Lake. The bypass route will lop off a great deal of Trans Canada Trail, including about 13 km of perfectly pleasant rail trail along Shawnigan Lake, but it uses a combination of fairly quiet roadways, urban trails and a nice ferry ride. Our section runs from the top of the Malahat, north to Shawnigan Lake, west to the Town of Lake Cowichan then north to Nanaimo. The trail is about 122 kilometres long, stretching from the Capital Regional District all the way to the Regional District of Nanaimo. https://www.alltrails.com/.../cowichan-valley-trail-chemainus-rail-to-saltair This project was supported by a Vancouver Island Rail Trail Advisory We started our ride at Glenora Trails Head Park, near Duncan. It is very easy to confuse these when starting from Lake Cowichan. At the north end, it connects to the Cowichan Valley Trail at the NW corner of Shawnigan Lake on Renfrew Road. The Kinsol Trestle is one of the tallest free-standing and most spectacular timber rail trestle structures in the world. May 17, 2010. As much of the trail runs along former railway routes, most of it has gentle grades and is wide and flat, suitable for biking and hiking. The Cowichan Valley, however, in the interior of the island, doesn’t benefit from the temperate ocean breezes in the summer. I have a friend at work named Paul and we share common interests in hockey, great military victories and bike riding. Posted by Feldwebel Hauptmann May 28, 2010 January 15, 2019 Posted in Mountain Biking. Cowichan Valley trail, Lake Cowichan: Address, Cowichan Valley trail Reviews: 4.5/5. So Monday the temperature was in the 90’s. The trail is an old rail grade and as such has no steep or difficult areas and is suitable for all ages and abilities. The Cowichan Valley 8 follows several popular, multi-use trails along the way, including the Galloping Goose Trail, Sooke Wilderness Trail, Cowichan Valley Trail, and Lochside Trail. The Cowichan Valley Rail Trail May 2010. The Kinsol Trestle is one of eight trestles along the Cowichan Valley Trail route and by far the largest and most spectacular. 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