The Kicking Horse Pass

Britannica Online : Kicking Horse Pass

Pass in the Canadian Rockies at the Alberta-British Columbia border and the Banff-Yoho national parks boundary; it is the highest point on the Canadian Pacific Railway, at an elevation of 5,338 feet (1,627 m). The approach from the east is by way of the Bow Valley; from the west end, two circular tunnels were cut into the valley sides (completed 1911) to reduce the gradient of the railway. It was explored in 1858 by James Hector of Captain John Palliser's expedition. Hector was kicked by his horse while crossing the pass--whence its name. The Trans-Canada Highway came through the pass in the 1960s.

General Layout

The tunnel under Cathedral mountain is 3255 feet long with a turn of 291 degrees, and the one under Mount Ogden turns through 217 degrees over 2992 feet. The ruling grade is 2.2%. The tunnels were completed in August 1909, and replaced the route up the "Big Hill", which had a 4.5% grade. There is/was a lookout just off the Trans-Canada Highway from which you could observe both portals of the tunnel. Passengers can ride this route, at least in the summer, on Great Canadian Railtours' "Rocky Mountaineer" train from Calgary to Vancouver.
One amazing piece of trivia about their construction is that when they bored these tunnels, they were off on one tunnel by 1 and 1/2 feet when the two ends connected, and 6 inches on the other. Not bad for the technology back then!

Some impressions from the Kicking Horse Pass area

	A freight train makes its way up ashore the Kicking Horse River towards the spiral tunnels (photo by John Cletheroe).
	CN train at a bridge at the lower spiral tunnel (photo by Brian Keay).
	The train is about to enter the lower portal of the lower spiral tunnel (photo by Brian Keay).
	The engines have just exited the top portal of the lower spiral tunnel (photo by Brian Keay). Compare with the photo above!
	CN train at Morant's Curve (photo by Brian Keay).
	Freight train near the Kicking Horse Pass (photo by Brian Keay).
	Freight train near the Kicking Horse Pass (photo by Brian Keay).

Clemens Grelck
generated on: Mon May 31 10:22:09 MET DST 1999