Shuswap North Okanagan Rail Trail

Be Part of the Legacy

It’s time to step forward and build a legacy that connects our past to our future and our communities to each other.

Together, with your help, we are building a world-class rail-trail that connects our past to our future, our communities to each other, our economies to opportunities and our population to healthy lifestyles.

The Shuswap North Okanagan Rail Trail provides a connection between communities unfolding the true story within Secwépemc territory, protecting natural areas and habitat for wildlife, facilitating healthy outdoor recreational activities and travel options on foot and by bicycle, conserving heritage, cultural, & agricultural values, and encouraging recreational tourism in rural areas.

At just over 50 kilometres long, it will create a perfect opportunity for families to discover scenic landscapes with amenities along the way.

How to Donate

Make a donation to the Shuswap North Okanagan Rail Trail Capital Campaign and help build this greenway legacy for generations to come.

Donations of $160 and over will be recognized on Gateway Trailhead Signage. It may simply be your name, or your donation may have been made in memory of someone else for example.

Donations can be made through Shuswap Community Foundation via security transfer, cheque, Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT), cash, or PayPal.

Credit Card and PayPal Donations

Online donations can be made via the Shuswap Community Foundation PayPal account earmarked for the Rail Trail fund.

If you are participating in a challenge or wish to add a dedication to your donation (minimum donation of $160 CAD), please enter that information below before clicking the “Donate Now” button.

Your donation amount and billing information can be entered on the next page, through PayPal’s secure payment processing.

You don’t need a PayPal account. Simply choose “Donate with a Card” after clicking the button below.

Challenge (optional)

If you are participating in challenge, select it from the drop-down list above. Otherwise select “None” to donate to general Rail Trail fund.

Dedication (optional)

For donations $160 and over, please provide us with the exact text you’d like displayed on Gateway Trailhead Signage. Limited to individual or company name. Maximum 50 characters including spaces.

Donate Securities

A gift of publicly traded securities can be an attractive option. The Income Tax Act provides that capital gains on securities donated to a charity are exempt from tax, but the donor will receive a tax receipt for the full appreciated value. You will receive a tax receipt for the value of the stock at the time of transfer, and may carry forward for up to five years any unused portions of the gift.

Please talk to your professional adviser or broker to make stock transfers easily. You may download the Share Transfers Form for when you meet with your broker.

Learn more about the Benefits of Donating Securities or contact us by email at info@shuswapfoundation.ca or phone 250-832-5428 for more information.

Write a Cheque

Send a cheque (clearly marked “For Rail Trail“) to the Shuswap Community Foundation:

PO Box 624
102 – 160 Harbourfront Drive NE
Salmon Arm, BC V1E 4N7 Canada

For donations $160 and over, please provide us with the exact text you’d like displayed on Gateway Trailhead Signage. Limited to individual or company name. Maximum 50 characters including spaces.

Send an E-Transfer

Send an e-transfer (preferred for larger donations) to ed@shuswapfoundation.ca clearly marked “For Rail Trail“.

For donations $160 and over, please provide us with the exact text you’d like displayed on Gateway Trailhead Signage. Limited to individual or company name. Maximum 50 characters including spaces.

* All contributions over $20.00 will receive a charitable tax receipt.

Your Metres Matter!

50,000 metres @ $160/metre = $8M

One metre of hard packed aggregate trail surface costs $160, and with 50,000 metres to go, your metres truly matter. Together we can raise the funds to surface the trail, and leverage those funds for much anticipated senior government infrastructure and economic development funding streams.

The Rail Trail
Development Plan

The Shuswap North Okanagan Rail Trail Development Plan has been prepared to ensure success in improving pedestrian and cyclist accessibility, destination tourism benefits and longer-term healthy community objectives for all of the communities along the corridor, while attempting to balance the realities of identified technical challenges and limited resources within the rural context.

The multi-use trail will be developed to a basic standard, as a continuous route between Sicamous and Armstrong. The finished surface will consist of crushed and compacted aggregate, suitable for pedestrian and off-road bicycle use, as well as universal mobility access. An average 3.5 metre tread width will be constructed (minimum 3 metre in areas of topographic constraint to maximum 4 metre width where feasible) to maintain consistency with the Okanagan Rail Trail between Vernon and Kelowna, and other Rail Trail corridors within the Province of BC.

Included in the development of this basic standard of trail will be road crossings, signage, access barriers, safety barriers, and support infrastructure to provide a basic level of safe and accessible use by pedestrians and cyclists.

The 4 Stages of
Construction

1. Protect the Corridor

Immediate erosion mitigation strategies needed to stop the loss of existing rail bed to wave erosion and flooding.

2. Make it Safe

Basic priorities necessary to make the trail safe and functional for public access.

3. Build the Surface

Construction of the crushed and compacted aggregate trail surface, along with repairs to culverts where needed and accommodation of agricultural crossings.

4. Finish the Trail

Completion of the rail trail through construction of the Highway 97A pedestrian/bicycle overpass, trailhead parking and amenities, interpretive signage, access to side destinations and final surfacing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please use the drop down menus to explore the answers to many commonly asked questions about the Rail Trail.

What is the overall concept for the Rail Trail?

The Shuswap North Okanagan Rail Trail links communities from Sicamous to Armstrong and provides an opportunity to unfold the true story within the Secwepemc Nation territory focusing on sharing culture, values, and relationships. The Splatsin are a leading partner in the Rail Trail initiative, bringing both local government and first nations together to work collaboratively towards a common goal of uniting communities and connecting with the land.

The Shuswap North Okanagan Rail Trail Development Plan has been prepared and can be viewed here.

The Public Information Display Boards are currently being updated.

What is currently happening on the Rail Trail?

Significant progress has been made in securing the land, designing the rail trail, and establishing the development plan. It is very technical work and extensive consultation has already been completed regarding laying down the trail surface, keeping erosion at bay, channeling flood water, taking care of the environment, addressing safety at road crossings, rock-scaling cliffs, creating parking areas, and designing signage.

As we secure sufficient blocks of funding, we then work with the Rail Trail inter-jurisdictional partners to apply for provincial and federal grants and start building the trail. One metre of hard-packed aggregate trail surface costs about $160, and with 50,000 metres to go, our fundraising goal is $8,000,000.

The fundraising campaign is concentrating on the rail trail surface estimated to cost $160 per meter. As funds are raised to surface the trail, they will help leverage government funding to address all the other layers.

Download the latest information bulletin (Spring 2021)

What will the surface of the trail be?

The finished surface will consist of crushed and compacted aggregate, suitable for pedestrian and off-road bicycle use, as well as universal mobility access.

Dogs on leash are welcome.

No motorized vehicles or equestrian use. Pedal assist e-bikes will be allowed.

What is the Agricultural Land Commission consultation process?

The ownership partners have received the formal decision from the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) allowing a change of use for the former CP Rail Corridor to public greenway trail. More details are available here.

A copy of the ALC Decision can be viewed on the ACL Application Portal website (application 60525)

The background presentation on the ALC process for the rail trail is available here.

What’s next?

Splatsin, RDNO, CSRD, and City of Enderby have agreed to develop a test section of trail to proof construction methods and costing, and engage public interest to promote fundraising. Everything is in place and shelf-ready to tender detail design & construction as capital funding allows. Four grant applications were submitted in early 2021 and we await notification.

Operations and planning staff in each of the jurisdictions are working with the rail trail technical team to plan for trail amenities and signage, as well as developing standards for vegetation restoration and landscaping. This includes addressing invasive plants and other vegetation. We want to remind property owners and the public that there should be no alterations whatsoever to plants and vegetation along the corridor without authorization from the owners.

For the public’s safety, the trail remains closed to all traffic, both motorized and non-motorized. Trespassers may be subject to enforcement fines and other penalties.

Donating Securities

A donation of shares or equity mutual fund shares is the most efficient way to support the Rail Trail.

The Canada Revenue Agency does not apply capital gains tax on donations of publicly traded securities. (Capital gains are the increase in the value of your securities over the price you paid at purchase.)

When you sell your shares for cash, you are responsible for the tax due on the gain, even if you plan to donate the proceeds from the sale. If you pay the tax out of those proceeds, there’s less money left to donate. Your preferred charity receives a smaller donation and you have a smaller donation to claim for your charitable tax credit at the end of the year.

But when you donate your securities directly to the Shuswap Community Foundation, those capital gains aren’t subject to tax. This means the Foundation receives a larger gift, and you benefit from a tax receipt for the full value of your eligible securities or equity mutual funds.

The Benefits: Give More, Save More.

Let’s say you purchased common shares in ABC Company for a cost of $1,000. If the current market value of those shares has increased to $5,000, you would have a capital gain of $4,000.

If you sell those shares and donate the cash proceeds, you’ll owe tax on the capital gain. So, you set aside the taxes due from the proceeds, leaving you with less than the full cash value to donate, and a tax receipt which reflects the smaller donation.

But when you donate the shares directly, you owe no capital gains tax and you’re able to donate the full value. So, the Rail Trail gets a larger donation and you get a tax receipt which reflects your larger contribution.

How it Works

Here are some approximate figures to illustrate.

In the example below, you’re able to donate the full value of your securities to the Rail Trail: $5,000. Your charitable tax credit would increase by over $400, and your donation after tax would be about $920 more than if you had sold the shares and donated the proceeds as cash.

	Sell Securities and donate the after-tax proceeds	Donate Securities directly to SCF
Original Cost of Securities	$1,000.00	$1,000.00
Current Market Value	$5,000.00	$5,000.00
Capital Gain	$4,000.00	$4,000.00
Tax on Capital Gain	¹ $920.00	$0.00
Donation Amount After Tax	² $4,080.00	$5,000.00
Your Charitable Tax Credit	$1,876.80	$2,300.00
Assumes a 46% marginal tax rate. For calculating capital gains tax, this rate is applied to 50% of the capital gain. $4,080.00 represents the full value of $5,000.00 minus estimated tax of $920.00.

By donating shares directly, you save on taxes while contributing more to the Shuswap North Okanagan Rail Trail.

The Shuswap Community Foundation welcomes all gifts and donations, including share transfers.

Be Part of the Legacy

It’s time to step forward and build a legacy that connects our past to our future and our communities to each other.