Rafting is one of Golden’s most popular activities.
See map on page 66
Golden
T
he oldest and most northern town in the Columbia Valley, Golden sits at the confluence of the Columbia and Kicking Horse rivers, surrounded by the Canadian Rockies, Selkirk and Purcell mountain ranges. A well-known paradise for outdoor recreation activities, it’s also a historic settlement, lived in and loved by a community proud of its heritage of intrepid exploration and mountain tourism, one that has defined the area for over a century. The Kicking Horse pass and river were named for Palliser Expedition geologist, Sir James Hector, who suffered a near-fatal kick from a horse in 1858 while seeking a route through the mountains for the Canadian Pacific Railway. After the railway to Golden was completed in 1885, the Canadian Pacific Railway brought the first generation of Swiss Mountain Guides to Golden in 1899 to safely guide tourists in the surrounding mountains. And so began the valley’s mountain tourism, which eventually led to the creation of the Canadian Mountain Guide Association, the birth of heli-skiing and the world-class reputation of Golden as an adventurers' mecca. Each year, Golden hosts the Golden Mountain Festival, an annual event that celebrates its authentic mountain town heritage. In 2015, the festival takes place from May 15th to 17th with the theme “Adventurers of Yesterday and Today.”
The 2015 Golden Mountain Festival will also offer plenty of adventure-themed activities, from whitewater rafting to horse-riding and nature hikes. In the downtown Spirit Square, the public will enjoy the outdoor Golden Farmers’ Market and family-themed entertainment throughout the weekend. Discounts on accommodation, activities and dining will also be available. For more information on this year’s festival and what’s in store for 2016, check the festival’s website at www.goldenfest.ca. And don’t miss downtown Golden in the summer when it becomes alive each week with the farmers’ market and Summer Kicks, a series of free concerts that take place in the Spirit Square adjacent to the Kicking Horse Pedestrian Bridge. The bridge, which spans the Kicking Horse River in downtown Golden, is the longest freestanding timber frame bridge in Canada.
Photos © Tourism Golden
The festival’s headliner — Canadian athlete and guide Will Gadd, who fuels his passion for adventure in the mountains surrounding Golden — was named one of National Geographic’s 2014/2015 Adventurers of the Year. His 35-day paragliding trek from McBride, B.C. to the U.S. border after successfully
climbing B.C.’s Helmcken Falls, one of the hardest mixed-route ice and rock climbs in the world, captured the magazine’s attention — as did Gadd’s performance at Colorado’s 2015 Ouray Ice Festival, where he won the elite mixed climbing event.
Mitten Lake, Golden 10
2015 Columbia Valley Map Book