Zuckerberg Island

Two rivers, one footbridge, ten minutes from anywhere in town

Walk south from downtown, across the suspension footbridge, and the city falls away. Two rivers meet below you. Cottonwood leaves rattle overhead. The bridge gives just enough to remind you it's a bridge, not a floor. That sway is half the reason locals walk every out-of-town guest across it within a day of their arrival.

Zuckerberg Island is a small heritage park at the exact confluence of the Kootenay and Columbia Rivers. Named for Alexander Zuckerberg, the Russian-trained schoolteacher who lived on the island and built the Chapel House (now the Station Museum), the park combines deep-time Indigenous history, early 20th-century immigrant settlement, and a quiet piece of river-bottom forest that's rare in a built-up valley.

The bridge

The suspension footbridge is the main event for most visitors. It sways. That's normal. It's also wheelchair-accessible with a gradual approach on the town side. The bridge connects the Columbia Avenue area to the island directly across the channel.

The trails

Packed-dirt loops wind through the old-growth cottonwood forest. Interpretive signs mark significant features, including pit-house remains from Sinixt ancestors who lived here since time immemorial. The trails are mostly flat and walkable in any weather.

• Perimeter loop, about 15 to 20 minutes at a relaxed pace
• Chapel House and Station Museum, in the centre of the island (check museum hours)
• Riverbank benches, the north and east sides have the best views

The layers of history

Zuckerberg Island holds three distinct chapters of Castlegar's story in one small place:

• Sinixt homeland. Pit-house archaeological remains on the island predate European contact by thousands of years. The Sinixt (Lakes) People hold this territory from time immemorial.
• Alexander Zuckerberg. Russian-born schoolteacher who came to Castlegar in the 1930s and lived on the island until his death in 1961. He built the Chapel House by hand.
• The Station Museum. The Chapel House now houses an operating museum with rotating exhibitions run by the Castlegar & District Heritage Society.

How to visit

The park is a free walk-in, open year-round during daylight hours. The bridge and trails are self-guided. The Station Museum has its own seasonal hours, check the history page or the Heritage Society for current times.

Parking is available at the trailhead on 7th Avenue. Dogs on leash. Pack out what you pack in. Winter walking is lovely; bring traction aids after a fresh snow because the bridge deck can be slippery.