Day 28 – Creston, BC to Nelson, BC

9/8/2026

Another long day of cycling, 74+ miles in all and over 5000 ft of elevation gain.

The route was all on pavement following Canada Highway 3A north to Kootenay Bay, then a ferry ride across the lake, finally southwest along an arm of the lake to Nelson. Another mountain biking hotspot. Rolf manned the truck while John, Greg, & Mark cycled. There was lots of uphill and downhill as we followed the highway. The traffic was light and the weather was great, except for the cloud cover obscuring the mountains.

Once we reached Kootenay Bay the sun burst through, the amazing mountains appeared and the weather warmed. The ferry is part of Canada Highway 3A and is free for all wanting to use it. Kootenay Lake is so huge (65 miles long) that to drive around it would take a lot of time and gas, so the Canadian government operates the ferry.

The last 20 miles from the ferry terminus in Balfour, BC to the Nelson City Campground was about 20 miles. The sun was out, the weather beautiful and views were lovely as well.

We thought the campground in Nelson was a bit dicey. We had 2 campsites, but they weren’t directly adjacent to one another. But it was a place to eat & sleep and we did both.

See the pictures from the Ferry below.