Kootenay Lake Ferry

Balfour to Kootenay Bay · Highway 3A

Is it running?

Running

Checked September 26 at 10:10 a.m. Pacific, from DriveBC.

The longest free ferry ride in the world, and the only road link between the East Shore and Nelson.

The crossing

Crosses
Balfour to Kootenay Bay
Highway
3A
Crossing time
35 minutes
Vehicle capacity
80 vehicles
Passengers
144
Fare
Free. No reservation, no ticket.
Service
Scheduled Sailings Morning to Night

Sailings

  • Service hours (M.V. Osprey 2000):
  • The M.V. Osprey runs the regular winter schedule except when it is down for regular maintenance. At that time the M.V. Balfour will service the run with it's reduced capacity of 28 vehicles
  • From Balfour
  • 6:30 am - 9:40 pm
  • From Kootenay Bay
  • 7:10 am - 10:20 pm
  • View detailed schedule

Cameras

Kootenay Lake Ferry highway cameraKootenay Lake Ferry highway cameraKootenay Lake Ferry highway cameraKootenay Lake Ferry highway cameraKootenay Lake Ferry highway camera

Images from DriveBC, refreshed every few minutes. After dark an unlit crossing shows black.

The community it serves

Nelson. Local events, notices and the rest of the way around are on that page.

Also worth knowing

Kootenay Lake Ferry is one of 14 free inland ferries the province runs as part of the highway system, separate from BC Ferries. The province publishes full details for this crossing.