On the east shore of Slocan Lake, five kilometres south of New Denver is the small village of Silverton. The region was first settled in 1892 by miners working the south face of Idaho Mountain, extracting the rich deposits of lead and silver.
The Silverton area was first inhabited by the Kootenai and Salish First Nations people, whose pictographs can still be seen along the shores of Slocan Lake.
Population: 185
Location: Silverton is located on Highway 6 in the Slocan Valley, on the eastern shore of Slocan Lake in the Kootenays, 5 miles (8 km) south of New Denver and 17 miles (27 km) north of the community Slocan.
The Silverton Gallery and Mining Museum features an outdoor museum of mining equipment from the local mines at the turn of the twentieth century. The art gallery displays the works of the local artists, and is also a theatre where performances are regularly scheduled year-round.
Follow the Slocan Valley Art Tour during July and August, through New Denver, Silverton, Rosebery and Retallack. The tour allows the public to visit many of the artists in their studios, and to see first hand the ways in which their craft is created.
Galena Trail can be explored for 13 km from Rosebery, through New Denver, through Denver Canyon and Alamo Siding to Three Forks. The Nakusp & Slocan railway is no more, yet the smoke from the wood-fired boilers and the howl of the steam whistle still linger in the air. The beautiful Galena Trail, with its natural wonders, wildlife, and rare and delicate plants, is for non-motorized use only.
Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre on Josephine Street in New Denver allows visitors to improve their understanding of internment history. In 1942, about 22,000 Nikkei (people of Japanese descent), 75% of whom were Canadian citizens, were stripped of their civil rights and labelled “enemy aliens”. The federal government ordered men to road camps while families were placed in animal stalls awaiting forced removal to interior BC relocation camps, or sugar beet farms in Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario. More information on Internment Camps in British Columbia and Canada.
Golf: On the northern outskirts of nearby New Denver is the delightful 9-hole Slocan Lake Golf Course on Golf Course Road. Perched on a benchland above Slocan Lake, the course parallels Highway 6 between New Denver and Rosebery. Golf Vacations in British Columbia.
Winter Activities: There’s plenty to do in these parts once Old Man Winter checks in. Located smack in the middle of the Selkirk Mountains to the east and the Monashees to the west, this area is a veritable playground for skiers, snowmobilers and even ice fishermen – on Box Lake and Trout Lake. Most communities in the area offer cross-country skiing, A few areas that offer trails are Barnes Creek between Fauquier and Edgewood, Wensley Creek Ski Trails closer to Nakusp, and the Upper Brouse Road area southeast of Nakusp. Snowcat skiing and snowmobiling also await visitors who are ready for an adventure to happen.
Summit Lake Ski Area offers downhill skiing and snowboarding on 10 runs ranging from beginner to expert levels. Located 20 km south of Nakusp on Highway 6 to New Denver. In addition to the fantastic downhill conditions, Summit Lake also offers spectacular cross country trails, both groomed and ungroomed, and snowmobiling is also offered in the area. For those seeking more of a challenge, local helicopter skiing companies will whisk you and your guide high into the backcountry, where the finest virgin powder snow lies.
Valhalla Provincial Park is a magnificent world-class wilderness encompassing 49,600 hectares of natural landscape, and 30 kilometres of pristine shoreline along Slocan Lake. The park is located high in the Valhalla Mountain range along the west shore of Slocan Lake, with numerous cascades and waterfalls scattered throughout the park. Backcountry hiking and camping are popular in the park.
Ghost Town: Travel back into the history of this region, to the Ghost Town of Sandon, once the Capital of the Silvery Slocan. Located 8 km east of New Denver, Sandon was an incorporated city of 5,000 people at the height of the mining boom in 1892. Two railroads once served this Monte Carlo of Canada, with its twenty nine hotels, twenty eight saloons, an opera house, two newspapers, five men’s clothing stores, a bank, and several other gambling halls, brothels, offices, stores and businesses. Now a renowned and restored historic site, Sandon lures thousands of visitors each summer.
North of Silverton is New Denver, known for its spectacular location on Slocan Lake, with the peaks of the Valhalla Mountains rising more than 2,100 metres on the opposite shore. Beyond New Denver is Nakusp in the West Kootenays, a picturesque setting at the foot of the Selkirk Mountains, on the east shore of the Arrow Lakes.
South of Silverton is Slocan, once the smallest incorporated city in the British Commonwealth, and perhaps the smallest city in the world before it lost its city incorporation in the 1950s. Slocan is located at the extreme southerly end of Slocan Lake in the Slocan Valley.
Circle Tour: See the best of BC when you embark upon one of the many circle tours that take in Vancouver Island, the Discovery Coast, the Sunshine Coast, the interior winelands or the remote Northern British Columbia. The coastal tours involve exciting rail, road and ferry trips, which is half the fun of travelling in British Columbia. Scenic highways flank the coast, taking you through charming beachside communities, rolling farmlands and majestic mountain ranges. Start your journey here and now, by selecting from one of the Circle Tours, designed to assist you in planning your journey by road through beautiful British Columbia. Circle Tours in British Columbia.
