Hi,
has anyone done bikepacking.com's BC trail (https://bikepacking.com/routes/bc-trail/) and can say whether it is suitable for gravel bikes, or only for mountain bikes?
And how does camping in this area work? There seem to be plenty of primitive campsites, usually managed by the province of BC (https://www.sitesandtrailsbc.ca/default.aspx). Do they fill up quickly? Do they require reservations? I'm not sure how to interpret the info I find about them online
Any experiences are appreciated!
Thanks a lot!
by CompetitiveCod3578
5 Comments
The only part of the trail proper i’ve ridden on is the section from Salmo to Cranbrook. It could be done on a gravel but some sections of surface are a bit rough and chunky and would be abusive. The climb up to grey creek pass would be tough with normal gravel gearing (although when I did it I thought the east bound descent was harder due to the abusive nature of the surface)
Many people have tried and has a bad time on the loose gravel of the KVR.
I have done it (hardtail) and wouldn’t do it on a gravel bike unless it fits big tires. I met several riders who did it on gravel bikes so yes possible but there would be a lot of tough sections
I’ve ridden it twice, I would want at minimum 2.2 inch tires. Plenty of camping all over the place. Most of the camp grounds will find you a place of youre a cyclist even if they are full. you don’t need to book ahead of time. You can camp where ever you want on crown land as long as your out of the way.
I did it on a gravel bike last year from Kimberly to Haida Gwaii via Vancouver island. Wild Camping is pretty available in some spots, near castlegar, but we hit up recreation campsites along the way too no reservation needed. Or some private ones like in beaverdell, has a shower too. From there it’s a long day to chute lakes, which has a yurts for rent. You’ll be fine so long as your tires are wide. The sandy section around bankier kinda sucked, and we skipped tulameen because of bridge washouts. You can bus from Princeton to Hope. Have fun!!