There’s something inspiring about being in an old mining town in the mountains in the winter. All of those old dreams of striking it rich and making a ton of money just by being in the right place and working hard. Rossland, BC is one of those towns.
While other mining communities of the 1800s are now nothing more than ghost towns, that’s not true for Rossland and a select few that have managed to avoid the boom and bust to oblivion cycle.
We’ve been enjoying this little city perched high (1023 m) in the mountains above the Columbia Valley for a few decades. For the most part, it’s the winter season for us, when the slopes of Red Mountain Resort are buried in plenty of snow and offer everything from easy to challenging trails just five minutes drive from the city.
The little hill is now a lot bigger than it was a century ago and expansion plans continue. It’s now one of the top 20 areas in North America when it comes to square kilometres served and in the last ten years the on-mountain facilities have undergone significant growth.
While the winter (and summer) sports dominate the activity lately, originally the city sprang up in short order when prospectors found the local mountains to be full of valuable minerals (copper and gold and more). Claims were made and the rush began in the 1890s. An enterprising young man from Manitoba named Ross Thompson homesteaded 160 acres and laid out a city street grid. When it came to naming the town, he chose Thompson. But the Post Office balked, saying there were already too many paces named Thompson in the country, and to try again. So ‘Rossland’ it became on his second try.
Progress was fast! Two railroads, plenty of substantial buildings and thousands of people poured into the city and the mines really paid off. Skiing as a winter sport was introduced by the miners of Scandinavian descent and was soon embraced by plenty of the area folk. Tradition runs deep here. There’s a winter festival that’s been held almost every year since the 1890s. Talent on the slopes emerged quickly after some minor lifts were put to work and in the 1960s it culminated in the form of local Nancy Greene, a young skier who won Olympic gold for Canada in Grenoble, France.
Today Red Mountain attracts skiers and snowboarders from all over the province, the Pacific Northwest of the USA, and beyond. The international airport at Spokane, WA is just a 2.5 hour drive away and frequent domestic flights land at Castlegar (30 minutes) and Trail airports (20 minutes) from Canadian cities.
There’s a ton of cross country trails in the area for nordic fans and some enchanting walks and hikes around the city for history buffs. In the other seasons, hiking and mountain biking take over. There’s everything from easy pedaling or walking on forested, ancient rail beds to the more demanding Seven Summits, a truly spectacular route in the alpine regions.
Unfortunately for us during our last visit, the area was experiencing one of the latest starts to the season due to a lack of snow. But we still decided to go and enjoy the slightly quieter small city over the Christmas holiday.
We drove over from Penticton where we live (4 hours) but you could fly into Trail with Pacific Coastal. We stayed here - in the Old Firehall and it was perfect to access everything in Rossland. It was also pretty convenient having this great Thai restaurant, the Mook Thai Lounge, on the first floor. Some other great spots we enjoyed:
The Flying Steam Shovel - it’s had a few names over the last century and it’s one of the oldest continuously operating hotels around. It has one awesome gastropub (the tacos!) and the night we were there it was packed with fans following the local hockey team’s game just up the street.
Ferraros - this downtown gourmet supermarket is exactly what you need when you’re stocking your rental kitchen with all the goodies, like we did. Founded in 1943, it’s an institution in these parts.
The Alpine Grind - more than superb coffee, grab some baked goods or a sandwich in this popular spot on Rossland’s main drag, Columbia.
Rossland is perfect for an escape anytime of the year. We’ll be back soon.