Recreationists will have new place to access the Elk River, with the construction of a new boat launch site at Morrissey in September.
The project, lead by Tourism Fernie in partnership with the Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK), Elk River Alliance and B.C Parks, will oversee the addition of a concrete boat launch ramp at one of the most important Elk River access points for fly fishing and paddling, as well as a signage kiosk and improvements to the existing parking area.
"Elk River infrastructure improvements at key river access sites have been a long time coming and a priority of the Sustainable Tourism Strategy and Tourism Master Plan," said Tourism Fernie's executive officer Jikke Gyorki.
Gyorki added the site will provide an alternative to the Dogwood Park boat launch.
"The only official access site on the Elk River is Dogwood Park in Fernie. All other key sites such as Morrissey, Olsen Pit, Hosmer and Elko have never been formalized with land-use agreements and infrastructure," she explained.
The project is three years in the making, following an extensive planning process that involved confirmation of land ownership, engineering and design work, and navigating a complex land-use approval process and federal approval process for working in and along a fish-bearing river. McElhanney and Gally Equipment Services will be working to install it.
Funding was provided by Tourism Fernie, as well as RDEK Area A, Columbia Basin Trust, Elk Valley Resources (formerly Teck Coal), Freshwater Fisheries Society of B.C, Outdoor Recreation Council of B.C and the provincial government through the Regional Tourism Development Initiative.
The province provided $300,000 towards the project in 2021 and the recreation council awarded Tourism Fernie with a $25,000 grant.
Proposal work for the grant funding application was completed by Paul Samycia of Elk River Guiding and the Elk River Alliance.
Gyorki said Tourism Fernie is working with RDEK Area A director Thomas McDonald to transfer Morrissey Provincial Park from B.C Parks to the RDEK parks system which would allow more projects and improvements to happen on that area of land.
"Our next goal with the Morrissey river access site under the Sustainable Tourism Strategy is to expand the parking and amenities by furthering our partnership with the Regional District of East Kootenay under their Regional Parks Program," she said. "RDEK Area A director Thomas McDonald has been extremely supportive and supports seeing B.C Parks transfer Morrissey Provincial Park to the RDEK parks system."
A few other river access improvement projects are in the works, including installation of a picnic table area at Olsen Pit, a parking area at Hosmer, and signage at both these locations as well as at Dogwood. Additional funds are being sought for the completion of a boat ramp at the Elko take-out site, which has successfully gotten permits and approvals and is currently shovel-ready.
This follows the recent addition of a new parking lot off Coal Creek Rd. and two sign kiosks and a picnic table, at an access point for the ammonite re-route and Coal Creek Heritage Loop, with funding from the province's Targeted Regional Tourism Development Initiative and landowner support from Fernie Trails Alliance.
Tourism Fernie has also been working with various trail and land-use groups to create a Trails Master Plan, completing inventory and mapping, compiling data, and developing case studies on the models and systems used at other tourism destinations.
