Myra Canyon

Myra Canyon is located on the Carmi Subdivision between Midway and Penticton. When the CPR took over the operation of the railway in 1930, this area remained essentially as remote and undeveloped as when the railway was built back in 1914.

Myra Canyon was originally referred to as Five Fingers Canyon, or KLO Creek Canyon or Canyon Creek and was the showpiece of the KVR. The natural beauty, combined with the engineering feats built by Andrew McCulloch and his teams, created a segment so spectacular it was featured in brochures and articles promoting the Okanagan Valley. The new railway was hailed as the easiest way for tourists and settlers alike to make their way to the region. The name Myra Canyon did not come into common use until the 1980’s, when the general public started to take an interest in the trestles and they took the name from the nearest KVR station at Myra.

Myra Canyon was an interesting choice for the rail line, as it encompassed one of the most dramatic elevation changes on the route, going from 4133 feet above sea level at Hydraulic Lake down to 1145 feet at Penticton. There were easier access routes that might have been chosen, which would have included the neighbouring Sawmill Creek, but Thomas Shaughnessy had stipulated that the route needed to go from Midway to Carmi, which would include the summit at Hydraulic Lake. Original surveys prior to Andrew McCulloch’s arrival on scene, seemed to indicate that the lower route, which passed closer to Kelowna was somewhat preferable. Once McCulloch re-surveyed the route he realized that the expense to traverse the two lower canyons could be reduced by developing the higher route which included the summit at Hydraulic lake. There were pros and cons to both routes but Andrew McCulloch was able to engineer a route that met Shaughnessy’s stipulations, kept the rail grade at no more than 2.2 percent and provided smoother access through Chute Lake, Naramata and into Penticton. The less convoluted the routing and fewer trestles, the cheaper the construction.

The contract was issued in August 1912, and all the communities on the east side of Okanagan Lake were enthusiastic about the economic boon to their towns. From labourers and materials in Penticton to entertainment and warehousing in Kelowna, everyone felt the financial benefits as building got underway.

Throughout the summer of 1912 people and supplies were being amassed in the various communities adjacent to the projected rail line. By September the work had begun to clear and level the route. The workers, called navvies, were enthusiastically clearing the way, until they met the first obstacles. Rocks. It seems the rock on the eastern side of the lake was much harder than previously encountered and presented some challenges to remove. This caused much consternation amongst the construction companies and ultimately resulted in some lawsuits. This slowed down the work for several months. In addition, there were landowners in the section spanning from Penticton to Naramata who were not prepared to sell their land to the KVR. This shut down work for several months and it was not until the courts intervened in 1913 that the properties were acquired and work commenced again.

This was not the end of the troubles, for the duration of the build there were issues of getting labourers to stay on the job. BC was being infected with labour issues regarding pay and work conditions, the KVR was no exception. Organizers from the Industrial Workers of the World(IWW) an American movement, were moving in and attempting to organize the navvies. This was not welcomed by either the contract holders or local authorities. The organizers were met with physical resistance by the contractors and stiff penalties from the courts. The navvies may have been interested in the union, but it got little support elsewhere.In the spring of 1913 the local workers did strike for better pay and it was said that more than 1000 men walked off the job. This lasted a few days, and then workers went back to work without receiving any increases.

There was significant drilling required for the many tunnels required in this section of rail line. It required a three man team and a full day of work to complete about five feet of line. Initially workers used hand drills, but as work progressed and the rock continued to present a challenge, a steam drill was brought in to assist. The work was still heavy going, it was not until April of 1914 that the teams met up and the tunnels completed. This was a highpoint for the construction teams and this meant work could now progress with less danger and more speed!

Concurrently with these issue, discussions of war were ramping up and there was much uncertainty about proceeding as priorities were changing for everyone involved.

In 1931 the CPR replaced the two largest wooden trestles at Myra Canyon with large steel bridges. In May of 1973 CPR quietly stopped running trains west of Beaverdell, and in 1978 permission was granted to remove the rails on the entire line. Track between Midway and mile 67.9 were removed in 1979. Efforts were made to preserve the track from Penticton to Myra Canyon as a tourist railway since the scenery was equal to any tourist railway in North America, however,the economic difficulties were overwhelming and the track was removed in late 1980.

Myra Canyon Trestles.

Trestle construction of one of the largest wooden trestles on the Carmi Subdivision.

(Photo from Kelowna Capital News)

Passenger train on one of the Myra Canyon wooden trestles.

(Photo from infotel.ca)

Myra Canyon wooden trestle with a passenger train circa 1920.

(Photo from en.copian.ca)

The rail trestles in Myra Canyon Provincial Park near Kelowna, B.C., reopened to the public Sunday June 22 2008,for the first time since a forest fire burned down 12 wooden trestles in the summer of 2003.

An estimated 7,000 people performed a ceremonial walk through the canyon and over the historic trestles in the afternoon.

(Photo from CBC News · Posted: Jun 22, 2008 8:48 PM PT )

Myra Canyon trestles on the Kettle Valley Model Railway.

These trestles were built from scratch by one of the original club members in 1990 and have been an important scenic addition to the KVMRC layout.

These trestles are models of some of the original wooden trestles along the Myra Canyon.