Hector Station

A former Canadian Pacific Railway siding at the summit of Kicking Horse Pass, near the shores of Wapta Lake, just west of the Alberta–British Columbia border. Named for Sir James Hector, geologist with the 1858 Palliser Expedition, who was kicked in the chest by his horse near this location; an event that gave the Kicking Horse River and Pass their names.

Operational role. The station was a critical point at the top of the “Big Hill,” the steepest mainline railway grade in North America before the Spiral Tunnels were completed in 1909. Steam locomotives would stop here to add “pusher” engines or check brakes before the treacherous descent toward Field. The site marks the Continental Divide, separating Pacific and Atlantic watersheds.