Rossland

Rossland is a small mountain city in Southern British Columbia, Canada. Rossland was built in the 1890s as a gold mining town, and has become a lovely city of 3,700 people (2016). Rossland sits inside the crater of a dormant volcano in the Kootenay Range. It has become well-known for its excellent ski and mountain bike trails.

Understand
Rossland was named by a miner, Ross Thompson, who staked a claim in 1890. He had tried to call the city Thompson, but he was advised that there was already a town with that name.

By plane
Rossland does not have its own airport, however there are a few regional airports nearby that offer relatively easy access to Rossland either by road or by shuttle.
 * West Kootenay Regional Airport is owned and operated by the city of Castlegar. Castlegar Municipal Airport is 36 km from Rossland and offers regular service from Vancouver and Calgary.
 * Kelowna International Airport is the largest Canadian airport that has access to shuttle service to Rossland.
 * Spokane International Airport is the closest and only airport in the USA which has access to shuttle service to Rossland.
 * Trail Regional Airport is just south of Trail and is the closest airport to Rossland. Allowing easy access to local public transit Trail Regional Airport is one of the best options for travellers looking to reach Rossland on a budget.  The airport offers direct service from Vancouver.

Airport shuttle

 * Red Mountain Express Shuttle. In the winter, on behalf of Red Mountain Resorts, Adrenaline Adventures operates a shuttle from all four of the above airports, however they operate on a reservation-only basis.

Get around
Rossland is a small enough place that everything can easily be reached by foot, however be prepared to deal with some steep hills. Alternatively, traffic is light enough that driving throughout the town is quite painless. Keep an eye open, however, as the locals jaywalk quite frequently. Watch out for rogue mountain bikes as well.

See



 * There are a number of fine old historic buildings in Rossland including the Old Firehall, the old Bank of Montreal building, the Rossland Post Office, the Miners' Hall and the Court House. The Court House was designated a Canadian National Historic Site in 1980.  Have a look at these buildings during your walk around town.  A Walking Tour brochure is available from the visitor centre (at the Rossland Mining Museum & Discovery Centre).  Back in 1897, there were 4 banks, 42 saloons, a couple of newspapers and a population of 7000, during the height of the mining activity in the area.

Do


If it's not skiing season, then it's biking season in Rossland.


 * Hiking and mountain biking
 * There are lots of trails suitable for hiking and mountain biking. The Kootenay Columbia Trails Society (KCTS) maintains many trails in the area and posts a map of trails it maintains on its website.
 * Cross-country skiing
 * Cross-country skiing
 * Cross-country skiing

Buy
The downtown area has several clothing stores and ski stores.



Cope

 * The nearest hospital is in Trail.