For strong knees and wild hearts!
This itinerary is designed with the active visitor in mind. Sample the best of Fernie's Mountain Biking, Hiking, Whitewater Rafting, and more on a week-long adventure tour—can you keep up?
Planning Your Trip
- Getting Here - Located within the spectacular Canadian Rocky Mountains, it is an easy and scenic 3 hour drive west from Calgary, 1 hour east of Cranbrook, or 1.5 hours north of Whitefish MT.
- You can also fly into Cranbrook, Calgary or Kalispell MT and rent a car.
- View our Fernie Travel Offers page for current lodging specials.
- Enjoy the diversity of hiking trails at Island Lake Lodge and their spectacular views. Start with a morning warm up close to the lodge.
- Lunch: Enjoy a gourmet lunch on the patio before taking on a bigger hike to the alpine for the rest of the day
- Dinner: Venture back to town to the Bridge Bistro and relax on the patio with views of the Elk River.
- Power Breakfast: Head to Historic Downtown's Big Bang Bagels and fuel up with their Mr Fernie breakfast bagel.
- Pedal from town to Fernie's amazing trails: explore the diverse forest trails at Mt Fernie Provincial Park, venture out to the challenging Hyper Vent Trail.
- Lunch: If there's time for a quick lunch stop by Lunchbox to refuel.
- For a quick power ride with views of the valley head to Swine on Mt Proctor
- Dinner: Head back into Historic Downtown Fernie for dinner and a welcome pint of Fernie Brewing Company Beer at The Brickhouse or the Pub Bar & Grill at Park Place Lodge; the perfect spot for bragging about your day's conquests with local bikers. Thursday night is jam night at The Brickhouse and Trivia Night at the Pub; pick your favourite entertainment and have a great night out!
- Two companies run daily from Fernie - Canyon Raft Company and Mountain High Adventures. A variety of trip options are available but if you've never done a full day trip on the Elk or Bull River make that your must-do!
- Lunch is provided on your full day whitewater trip—stop at the camp kitchen for a delicious riverside picnic!
- Dinner: Back in town, Explore Fernie's authentic ethnic cuisine. Ask for a tatami room at Yamagoya Japanese Restaurant and sample the best sushi west of Vancouver. The sashimi carpaccio melts in your mouth, and there's a great selection of traditional and fusion rolls to choose from along with delicious appetizers like tuna tataki, gyoza, and air-light tempura.
Day 4: Take a Rest Day!
- Explore Historic Downtown Fernie with its unique cafes, shops, attractions and restaurants.
- Lunch/Dinner: Loaf is the perfect spot to soak in the atmosphere. Choose from a delicious selection of home-made sandwiches, pies, salads, pasta, hand-tossed pizza and specialty desserts to dine in or take out. Perfect for morning coffee, luxuriously late lunches, afternoon tea, family dinners—you could spend all day here!
- Dinner: A rest day is the perfect time to enjoy a special meal; try the sublime Island Lake Lodge perfect inspiration for tomorrow's adventure hike. Leave a vehicle here to pick up at the end of the trail. Gourmet cuisine includes locally sourced produce and the 3000 bottle wine cellar is certain to delight. Relax and enjoy the spectacular mountain views from the patio or picture windows in the Ancient Timbers Dining Room. Make sure to book ahead as tables fill up fast, particularly for Date Night Mondays and Wine Tasting Wednesdays.
- Check our events calendar for nightlife options—the Arts Station has regular concerts and special events including the Wednesday evening Outdoor Concert Series in July & August.
- The spectacular Heiko's Mountain Lakes Trail is a full day wilderness hike over 2 mountain passes interspersed with wildflower meadows and towering peaks. So good we gave it two names! The Mountain Lakes Trail is also well known as Heiko's Trail after the late local legendary trail builder Heiko Socher. Highlights include beautiful waterfalls, iron bridges, the Bisaro Cave, and plenty of opportunities to see the local wildlife in its natural habitat. Expect this hike to take around 10 hours, or make it an overnight trip by packing wilderness camping gear and spend a beautiful night under the stars in an alpine Meadow. Be sure to Pack In and Pack Out everything. This is bear country, so make sure to go prepared and never hike alone. Visit Adventure Smart adventure planning tips.
- Guided hikes are offered by Island Lake Lodge on specific summer dates or by booking in advance.
- Shuttles are required to access this one-way route- leave a vehicle at Island Lake Lodge for the end of your trip.
- Need an easier option? There are lots of 4-6 hour hikes around Fernie. Enjoy Spectacular views from the top of Mt Fernie, Castle Mountain or Mt Proctor.
- Lunch: Don't forget to pack plenty of water & food, there are plenty of options in downtown Fernie for a delicious bag lunch to go.
- Dinner: After this big hike either order in from Himalayan Spice Bistro or keep it casual and grab a bite from Cast Iron Grill located at the Fernie Golf Club
Day 6: Aerial Park at Fernie Alpine Resort
- After your big hike yesterday, enjoy a relaxing morning then head to Fernie Alpine Resort for some fun and challenges on the high ropes and obstacles including the rickety bridge, shrinking islands, snowboard slide and leap of faith. 3 mini ziplines add the element of speed and there's plenty of options to stick to the easier obstacles or try something more challenging. Tours begin every few hours throughout the day and you can set your own pace after the initial instruction.
- Lunch/Dinner: Lizard Creek Lodge (near the base of the Elk Chair) has great dining options for everyone throughout the day or rent a fondue pot or raclette set from Le Grand Fromage for a fun dining option back at your accommodations!
Day 7: Bike Park at Fernie Alpine Resort
- The Bike Park at Fernie Alpine Resort is one of BC's best- with 37 marked trails you'll need to come more than once to take it all in! Start out on the confidence-building Honey Bee before tearing through Top Gun's famous berms and moving on to the Timber Chair to tackle the challenges of Rumplestiltskin and Megasaurus.
- The Elk Chair runs daily throughout the summer from 10.30am-4.30pm and until 7.30pm on Thursdays, The Timber Chair runs on Saturdays & Sundays plus July 1st & Aug 3rd.
- Rentals are available at the Sports Alpine Boutique.
- If you're new to the sport, book at lesson, camp or clinic- there's specialty sessions for kids, guys & girls or join a regular session. The Thursday Night Race Series is a hoot!
- Lunch: Legends (located in the resort plaza) has a full menu to suit the whole family. Open for lunch and dinner.
- Dinner: For your last evening in town, try to grab one of the popular patio tables at Nevados Restaurant and celebrate your week's adventure with a specialty cocktail & patacones. Make sure to check out the many nightlife options in town- live bands, special events and much more on our events calendar!
