Nelson is a heritage town in the Selkirk Mountains of southeastern British Columbia, built on a steep hillside above the West Arm of Kootenay Lake. Silver strikes brought miners and money here in the 1880s and 1890s, and the town's downtown, with more than three hundred restored heritage buildings, is one of the best-preserved Victorian cores in western Canada. A vintage streetcar, number 23, runs along the waterfront, restored by volunteers, and the main street, Baker, is lined with brick storefronts, cafes and bookshops.
In the 1960s and 1970s, the town became a refuge for American draft resisters and back-to-the-land hippies, and an alternative, artistic spirit has lingered. Nelson has a lively music scene, organic bakeries and an outdoor culture of skiing, hiking and mountain biking. Hollywood noticed too: the Steve Martin film Roxanne, from 1987, was shot here. The local college, Selkirk, adds a student presence, and the steep streets are full of cyclists.
The ride east along Kootenay Lake is among the loveliest in the Canadian interior. Highway 3A follows the shoreline through Balfour, where a free ferry, claimed to be the longest in the world at about thirty-five minutes, crosses the lake to Kootenay Bay. The road then runs on to Crawford Bay and Creston, with views across blue water to the Purcell Mountains. The west side, Highway 31 and Highway 31A, climbs through the mountains toward Kaslo and the Slocan valley, with tight bends, steep grades and quiet traffic.
Nelson has fuel, a supermarket and a wide range of restaurants, and it is the main service town for the region. Castlegar and Salmo, farther away, are smaller. The best months are June and September, with clear air and the larches turning gold in October. Summer is warm, with lake swimming, and winter brings snow, so the passes can close. Wildfire smoke can fill the valleys in late summer, and weather in the mountains can change fast. Watch for deer and bears near the road.