Work continues on Kokanee Mountain Zipline project
By Nelson Daily Staff
You could hear the excitement in Todd Manton’s voice.
However, before Manton and brother Jay see the first client glide gracefully glide down the Kokanee Mountain Zipline, there’s just a little more work that has to be completed.
Okay, a little more than just a little. But in a few months zipline enthusiasts from the area will be flying down the six-zipline course.
“We’re 40 percent done,” Todd Manton told The Nelson Daily prior to having a local helicopter company ferry in supplies to the three decks on the East side of Kokanee Creek.
“We’re not quite halfway there but we’re getting there.”
Kokanee Mountain Zipline is the brainstorm of brothers Todd and Jay Manton.
The two are no strangers to the industry —Todd has extensive experience having worked on projects in New Zealand and Oyama in the Okanagan while Jay is a construction engineer.
The pair began the Kokanee Mountain project in 2013, which is adjacent to Kokanee Creek Park on 44 hectares of land above Kokanee Creek.
Thursday, helicopters were flying equipment into place to construct the decks.
In a few weeks the towers will be landed into place.
Manton said a soft opening is scheduled somewhere in early July with the public opening set for middle of the same month.
“We’re shooting for July 7-10 for a soft opening allowing us to work out and bugs in the system,” Manton said.
Plans call for a 2.5-3 hour tour with two guides on six zip lines; the longest one is 2,000 feet, with a half-kilometer hike in between two of the lines.
Participants will be shuttled up from a landing 2.2 km up Kokanee Glacier Road to a take-off area near the West Kokanee Forest Service Road at 4 km.
The ziplines will cross Kokanee Creek in several locations. At the mustering point, a c-can office building and equipment storage, washrooms and a parking area for staff and customers will be built.
“When we open we’re asking people to book like a tour company and not just drop in,” Manton explained.
“We may be able to accept people who come up to the top without bookings but what we’d really like is for people to book in advance either through the website when it gets operational or by phone.”
Kokanee Mountain Zip Lines hopes to sell 4-5,000 visits the first year and build to 10,000 tours in the future during their season, May to October, with a fee around $85-$89 per tour.
