The Kootenay Ranges, also known as the Western Ranges, are one of the three main subdivisions of the

Continental Ranges The Continental Ranges is a major grouping of mountain ranges in the Rocky Mountains located in eastern British Columbia and western Alberta. It is a physiographic designation for use by geologists and is not used by the general public; it is no ...

which comprise the southern half of the

Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies () or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part of the Canadian Cordillera, w ...

, the other two subdivisions being the

Front Ranges The Front Ranges are a group of mountain ranges in the Canadian Rockies of eastern British Columbia and western Alberta, Canada. It is lowest and the easternmost of the three main subranges of the Continental Ranges, located east of the Bull and E ...

and the

Park Ranges The Park Ranges, also known as the Main Ranges, are a group of mountain ranges in the Canadian Rockies of southeastern British Columbia and southwestern Alberta, Canada. It is one of the three main subranges and the most central of the Continent ...

(which is the largest of the groupings). The Kootenay Ranges lie between the Bull River (E) and the town of

Golden, British Columbia Golden is a town in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, west of Calgary, Alberta, and east of Vancouver. History In 1807, David Thompsonrenowned fur trader, surveyor, and map makerwas tasked by the North West Company to open a trading rou ...

(W) and south of

Kicking Horse Pass Kicking Horse Pass (el. ) 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 ...

, and are the location of the headwaters of the

Kootenay River The Kootenay River or Kootenai River is a major river of the Northwest Plateau in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, and northern Montana and Idaho in the United States. It is one of the uppermost major tributaries of the Columbia River, ...

Subranges

Beaverfoot Range The Beaverfoot Range is a mountain range in the Kootenay Ranges of the Canadian Rockies, located in southeastern British Columbia. The range extends from Cedared Creek near Spillimacheen north to the Kicking Horse River The Kicking Horse River ...

* Brisco Range * Hughes Range *

Stanford Range Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and the ...

* Van Nostrand Range

References

*''Landforms of British Columbia'', S. Holland, publ. BC Govt, 1976 East Kootenay Columbia Valley {{BritishColumbiaInterior-mountain-stub