Highway 23 is a north–south highway that straddles the
Columbia River
The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...
in the
Columbia Country region of
British Columbia, Canada. Its section north of
Revelstoke is formerly known as the
Big Bend Highway
The Big Bend Highway is a former highway in the interior of British Columbia, was the original alignment of British Columbia Highway 1, Highway 1 (Hwy 1) which followed the Columbia River between Revelstoke, British Columbia, Revelstoke and ...
and was part of the original routing of
Highway 1
The following highways are numbered 1.
For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads.
For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads.
For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads.
For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads.
For roads numbered ...
. The Big Bend area was well known as there was a
gold rush there, beginning in 1864. Travelers used canoes or river steamers until a dirt-surfaced "highway" was built on the east bank around the Big Bend, from Revelstoke to
Golden, from 1930 to 1937, opening officially in 1940, and it served as the trans-provincial highway until 1962 when the
Rogers Pass portion of the
Trans-Canada Highway was opened.
Highway 23 was initially opened in 1964, and it was re-aligned through the latter half of the 1960s. Realignment of the highway also occurred in the early 1980s, in anticipation of the creation of the reservoir for the
Revelstoke Dam
The Revelstoke Dam, also known as Revelstoke Canyon Dam, is a hydroelectric dam (combined earthfill dam and gravity dam) spanning the Columbia River, north of Revelstoke, British Columbia, Canada. The powerhouse was completed in 1984 and has an ...
(
Revelstoke Lake), which flooded lower parts of the highway.
Route details
Highway 23, which is long, begins in the south at
Nakusp
The Village of Nakusp (Sinixt ''neqo'sp'') is beside the mouth of Kuskanax Creek, on the Upper Arrow Lake in the West Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia. Lying between the Selkirk and Monashee ranges, the village is known for its ...
, where it meets
Highway 6
Route 6, or Highway 6, may refer to routes in the following countries:
International
* Asian Highway 6
* European route E6
* European route E006
Albania
* National Road SH6
Argentina
* Buenos Aires Provincial Route 6
Australia New ...
. Highway 23 winds north along the eastern shore of
Upper Arrow Lake for to its junction with
Highway 31
The following highways are numbered 31:
International
* Asian Highway 31
* European route E31
Australia
* Hume Highway
** Hume Motorway
** Hume Freeway
* - South Australia
** Gorge Road
** Little Para Road
** South Para Road
** Lyndoch V ...
at
Galena Bay :''Not the Galena Bay on Kootenay Lake at Riondel ''
Galena Bay is an unincorporated locality, on the bay of the same name, at the head of Upper Arrow Lake in the West Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia.
The bay was formerly called T ...
. The
Upper Arrow Lake Ferry continues Highway 23 across Upper Arrow Lake to a location known as
Shelter Bay. North of Shelter Bay, Highway 23 follows the west bank of the Columbia River for to where it meets the Trans-Canada Highway. Highway 23 follows the Trans-Canada east through the city of Revelstoke for 1 km (about ½ mi), finally turning north after leaving Revelstoke.
North of Revelstoke, Highway 23 entirely follows the east bank of
Revelstoke Lake for , past the old townsite of
Mica Creek
Mica Creek is a small village in British Columbia, Canada that was used as a base of operations for the construction of the Mica Dam hydroelectric project by BC Hydro in the 1960s and 1970s. It is located 148 km north of Revelstoke, Briti ...
to its northern end at the
Mica Dam facility.
Major intersections
References
External links
Official Numbered Routes in British Columbiaby British Columbia Driving & Transportation
{{BCHighways
023
3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...
Columbia Country
Columbia River