If you are on Vancouver Island, near the Cowichan Valley, you should make a stop to discover Kinsol Trestle.
Where is Kinsol Trestle?
This the address of the place you can enter in your GPS:
Glen Eagles Rd, Shawnigan Lake, BC V0R 2W0
There is a small parking for your car, and you will have to walk 15 minutes to get there.
History of Kinsol Trestle
The Trestle, one of the few accessible and visible reminders of early mining and logging industries, brings history to life in such a powerful way. At the end of the 19th century, the race was on to build railways so that lumber and minerals could be more easily shipped. Construction of the Kinsol Trestle started in 1911 when a more efficient way to transport massive, old-growth timber was needed.
Designed by engineers but built by local farmers and loggers, the Kinsol Trestle is one of the tallest free-standing and most spectacular timber rail trestle structures in the world. At 614 feet in length and standing 145 feet above the salmon-bearing Koksilah River, the Kinsol is an incredible structure worth preserving.
The Kinsol Trestle is a dramatic example of how timber railway bridges were built and represents the importance of the railways to the economic development of Vancouver Island. In addition, the Trestle symbolizes the optimism of a new nation.
Although railway companies built hundreds of trestles, the Kinsol Trestle is notable for its size and unique seven-degree curve. This historic railway bridge reminds us of the once-powerful forest industry and the ambition and ingenuity required to overcome substantial geographical challenges.
The Kinsol Trestle, also known as the Koksilah River Bridge, is a structure that is unmatched in the British Commonwealth.
At the turn of the 20th century, the construction of the railways drove British Columbia’s economy through the exploitation of seemingly endless resources, especially the extraction of timber from the dense forests of Vancouver Island. The demand for lumber was sky–high in Europe, and the race was on to deliver the goods.
The Canadian Northern Pacific Railway (CNPR) began work on the Vancouver Island line on February 18, 1911. Unfortunately, its ambitious owners Sir William Mackenzie and Sir Donald Mann were soon debt-ridden, and the line was taken over in 1917 by the federally owned Canadian National Railway (CNR).
Although CNPR resumed construction in 1918, the railway had been downgraded in importance from a mainline to a logging railway.
A carpenter carved a unique number into each post of a timber “bent,” and the builders used the numbers to identify its position in the Trestle.
The town of Kinsol served a community of fifty people, and this vibrant community developed around the logging mills.
The Kinsol Trestle, named from the former King Solomon copper mine, was completed in February 1920.
The original design featured a high–level Howe truss that was supported on timber towers. But all wooden structures require maintenance. Design modifications to the bridge included positioning six low–level Howe trusses onto massive concrete piers over the river.
There were further repairs made to the Trestle in 1936, and the high–level Howe truss span, which had been kept in its original position, was replaced with frame bents.
Why was Kinsol Trestle build?
In order to transport timber by rail, wooden trestles were built extensively to span the area’s massive canyons and ravines.
By far, the largest of those found on Vancouver Island is the 144-foot-high Kinsol Trestle that spans the Koksilah River just north of Shawnigan Lake. Originally completed in 1920, it was named for the nearby “King Solomon Mine” that ultimately folded due to its failure to produce silver and copper. After 1979 no other trains crossed the Trestle, and it gradually fell into disrepair.
The restoration:
However, in 2007 plans were hatched to restore it as both a tourist attraction and a way to extend the Trans Canada Trail network – from Shawnigan Lake to the south and Cobble Hill to the north. Thanks to this foresight and a grand rebuild, visitors can now stroll across the entire 615-foot, gently curving span. If you look closely, you might see kingfishers, swallows, and other birds darting above the river’s path. Even by today’s standards, the Kinsol Trestle is an impressive engineering feat. It remains one of the loftiest wooden railway trestles in the world.
Evolution of the Trestle in the years:
1911: the journey begins
1914 – 1916: WWI brings progress to a slow crawl and picks up with war materials’ demand.
1920: Things get back on track, and the Kinsol Trestle is now officially finished
1922 – 1925: All aboard! Passenger trips become available throughout the Valley.
1931 – 1936: Winter floods cause extensive damage to the Trestle. Reconstruction and installation of the lower Howe Truss.
1973 – 1984: CN completes last significant repairs, then abandons part of the line. BC government takes over.
1999 – 2010: After years of neglect and vandalism, the CVRD is commissioned to restore the Kinsol Trestle for park use. The BC Gov. proposes to remove Trestle, but it was determined that rehabilitation would take place instead.
2011 – 2012: Rehabilitation of the Kinsol Trestle finishes with a grand re-opening. CVRD continues to manage and maintain the Trestle as part of the Cowichan Valley Trail.
Why should you spend some time there?
If you love a good walk, this is the perfect place. You can walk, bike directly on the Trestle. It is pretty impressive when you first saw it and take your time to go under it to see this vast structure. You will even learn more about the place as there are many signs to guide you through your visit. I did love this place, and I think that I make too many pictures again, but I wanted to capture the site’s essence and try to feel how the first travelers were when they arrived here.
