The Trans Canada Trail is in the building process from Newfoundland on the Atlantic coast to British Columbia on the Pacific. When finished, it will be a world class trail: another substantial and important link joining this large nation together. It will be capable of carrying cyclists, hikers, backpackers, campers: in fact, anyone wanting to see this vast, differentiated, gorgeous country on foot. Discover more about the Trans Canada Trail here and here.

Vancouver Island, a large, rather narrow island on the west coast of British Columbia, has a part of the Trail. Its highlight is an old wooden structure called the Kinsol Trestle. The Cowichan Valley (between Victoria and Nanaimo on Vancouver Island) has a starring role to play because the Kinsol Railway Trestle stands here. Without the Kinsol, this part of Trail is still worth experiencing; with it, the section is simply spectacular. At this writing, the Kinsol is accessible for viewing, but impassable, and hikers must detour around it.

The poor physical state of the Trestle is the responsibility of the owners, the provincial government, who have deliberately not maintained it and allowed it to deteriorate. The government has taken the easy route and declared it to be unsafe. The only action it has taken has been to prevent hikers from walking on it. This underlines the problem that groups in the Cowichan Valley are trying to overcome.

The Canadian National Railway (CNR) route through this part of Canada was originally surveyed in 1910 and the building of the Kinsol Trestle was started in 1911. It was so designed that weak components could be removed individually and replaced.

Hundreds of people worked on the Trestle. Thousands of hours of human labour went into its construction. Some of these people might still be alive today.

Structures such as the Kinsol Trestle, despite having been built of a perishable material, were meant to last if care, attention and basic maintenance were provided. When the CNR withdrew from Vancouver Island, the company donated the Kinsol to the provincial government. Thus, the government became its owners in the name of the people of the province. Alas, successive governments have squandered the CNR's gift.

Why is the Kinsol Railway Trestle part of our heritage? Why should British Columbia's Ministry of Tourism, Sport and the Arts and the Federal Ministry of Heritage move to safeguard its existence and improve its condition so it can be incorporated into the Trans Canada Trail?

The Kinsol Railway Trestle is a bridge, built to carry freight (mainly logging) trains across the Koksilah River. It connected Victoria to the Town of Lake Cowichan. This makes it part of the history of the Cowichan Valley and should be preserved. We, our children and our grandchildren learn from those who have already been here. It is our responsibility to see that our important artifacts continue to exist so that our descendants can see them, learning from them directly.

In other words, we should start to do as is done in Europe, where houses are often 900 years old, or more. In eastern Turkey, though not in Europe, there is a bridge dating from the Roman Empire, still maintained and in use. By contrast, we never allow anything to grow old. It's past time that we did.

The last train crossed the Kinsol in 1979. Since then, its owners, the Province of British Columbia, have allowed this historic structure to deteriorate to the point where they now say it must be demolished for safety reasons. Someone in the government must think timbers are falling from it every day.

Anyone who has visited the Kinsol has seen its beauty. It is so high that it has seven tiers. Its top tier is 125 feet above the Koksilah River. It is 615 feet long, making it the largest wooden structure in Canada and possibly the Commonwealth. It is located at Mile 51.1 on the abandoned Cowichan Lake extension of the old Canadian National Railway line. The entire Trans Canada Trail will be 16,900 kilometres long and, if the Kinsol should be saved from demolition, it will be part of it.

If the Province destroys the Kinsol, it will destroy a part of history, including architectural history. No one will again see “the real thing,” except in photographs. Succeeding generations can, indeed, learn from photographs, but it's certainly not the same as experiencing the real, existing structure.

The Kinsol Railway Trestle is a true historic gem. It stands as a tribute to those who built it. The seven-degree curve and the six-degree inward slant of the railway tier lend it a graceful horizontal arch. The slant was included so that trains would not topple into the gorge-- a wonder of early twentieth century wood trestle engineering. See it here.

"The Kinsol Trestle and the Trans Canada Trail belong to all Canadians and every one of them has a stake in its future."
-- Tom Paterson, journalist and local historian of the Cowichan Valley, British Columbia

Please consider contacting these government people in support of our efforts to save the Kinsol Trestle.

In British Columbia, the Minister of Tourism, Sport and the Arts is The Hon. Olga Ilich, MLA:
olga.ilich.mla@leg.bc.ca

The Opposition's critic of this Ministry is Norm Macdonald, MLA:
norm.macdonald.mla@leg.bc.ca

The representative of the riding where the Kinsol Trestle is located is John Horgan, MLA:
john.horgan.mla@leg.bc.ca

Writing to Ottawa to request that the Kinsol Trestle be declared an historic site and/or of important architectural significance is also worth while.

In Ottawa, write to the Minister of Canadian Heritage by going to
http://www.pch.gc.ca/pc-ch/min/verner/contact/index_e.cfm

In the House of Commons, the NDP Heritage critic is Bill Siksay:
siksab@parl.gc.ca

Also in the House of Commons, the representative of the riding where the Kinsol Trestle is located is Jean Crowder, MP:
jean@jeancrowder.ca

Directions to the Kinsol Railway Trestle:
To access the south end, drive west along Shawnigan-Mill Bay Road to the Village of Shawnigan Lake. At the 4-way stop, turn right and follow the road until it becomes Renfrew Road. Turn right at Glen Eagles Road and right again onto Shelby Road. The parking lot is on the left and the walk from there is about thirty minutes.

To approach the north end, turn west onto Bench Road from the Trans-Canada Highway, then right onto Koksilah Road, and left onto Riverside Road. Follow Riverside for about 15 minutes (some of this time on a narrower, gravel road). On the left is a small, gravel parking lot with large boulders. This is where you park. Walk along the left trail for about 10 minutes.