Kicking Horse Pass
Kicking Horse Pass (el. 1627 m, 5339 ft) is a high mountain pass across the Continental Divide of the Americas of the Canadian Rockies on the Alberta/British Columbia border, and lying within Yoho and Banff national parks. Divide Creek forks onto both sides of the Continental Divide. Explorers. The pass was first explored by Europeans in 1858 by the Palliser Expedition led by Captain John Palliser. It and the adjacent Kicking Horse River were named after James Hector, a naturalist, geologist, and surgeon, a member of the expedition who was kicked by his horse while exploring  the region. Railway. A National Historic Site of Canada, the main line of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) was constructed between Lake Louise, Alberta and Field, British Columbia using this route in 1884, in preference to the original survey through the more northerly Yellowhead Pass. The original section of the CPR between the summit of the pass near Wapta Lake and Field was known as "The Big Hill". With a ruling gradient of 4.5% (1 in 23), it was the steepest stretch of main-line railroad in North America. Owing to frequent accidents and expensive helper engines associated with railroading  in the pass, the CPR built the two Spiral Tunnels that opened in 1909, replacing the direct route. Although they add several kilometres, they reduce the ruling grade to a more manageable 2.2% (1 in 46). Accidents still occur, including a major derailment in 2019 that killed three CPR employees. Road. The pack train trail over the pass, established at the time of the railway, gradually became a wagon road. In 1928, the Golden–Lake Louise highway, which essentially followed the CPR route, was completed. This section of the Trans-Canada Highway, built in 1962, follows a more northerly placement  along the eastern approach. It reaches its highest point at Kicking Horse Pass at an elevation of . The Golden Triangle cycling route includes the pass. Television. Dave Broadfoot played The Honourable Member for Kicking Horse Pass in the CBC Television satirical series "Royal Canadian Air Farce" and in his personal standup routines.