Kaslo
Located in the Selkirk Mountains on the western shore of Kootenay Lake, Kaslo (population: 1,072) is a community surrounded by wilderness. From this picturesque village, you’ll find countless outdoor adventures from hiking to cat-skiing.
The area’s first settlers were loggers in 1889/1890. Soon after, mining activity in the Slocan Valley brought new arrivals to the area and Kaslo became incorporated as a city in 1893. Later, the town expanded with the completion of the Kaslo & Slocan Railway, connecting the community to the Slocan mines.
Steamships arriving on the shores of Kootenay Lake also freed the community from isolation. Today, you can visit the famous S.S. Moyie, the last operating passenger sternwheeler in Canada; now in dry-dock on Kootenay Lake.
Following the outbreak of World War II, over 20,000 Canadians of Japanese ancestry were forcibly moved from BC’s coast to isolated internment camps in the interior. Kaslo was one of the Slocan Valley communities used for this purpose. The local Japanese Canadian Museum honours the memory of the Japanese-Canadians interned in Kaslo during this period.
In 1958, Kaslo was designated as a village, enticing visitors with tree-lined streets and Victorian-era buildings.
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