Thompson Okanagan

Photos from the Thompson Okanagan region of British Columbia including Kelowna, Vernon and Kamloops

Kelowna and Lake Okanagan View from Bear Creek Park

View of downtown Kelowna and Okanagan Lake from Bear Creek Provincial Park near Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada

view of kelowna and okanagan lake panorama

Kelowna Panorama from Bear Creek Park (Purchase)

-click to enlarge-

   Back in 2013 I photographed this scene after hiking to the top of the stairs to view Bear Creek Falls. From this viewpoint one sees great views of Lake Okanagan, downtown, and the hills to the south of the city (the Thompson Plateau and Myra Bellevue Park). The fire damage to the hillsides above Kelowna here are from the Okanagan Mountain Park Fire of 2003. The firestorm that started in Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park spread to inhabited areas of Kelowna covered 250 square kilometers (61 776 acres) and destroyed 239 homes.

   To get to this location park at the parking lot on the west side of Westside Road in Bear Creek Provincial Park. From there it is a simple walk up the Loop and Canyon Rim Trail (with its many stairs) to the Bear Creek Falls view points. From there (if I recall) one of the trails heads towards the lake and this view.

For more photographs from Kelowna and other areas of the Thompson Okanagan visit the Thompson Okanagan Gallery in my Image Library.

Kalamalka Lake Viewpoint in Vernon

Evening view of Vernon and Coldstream looking over Kalamalka Lake in Vernon, British Columbia, Canada

view of vernon coldstream and kalamalka lake at night

Kalamalka Lake Viewpoint near Hwy 97 (Purchase)

-click to enlarge-

   Kalamalka Lake and other areas around Vernon are among my favorite places in British Columbia’s Thompson Okanagan region. The above view of Kalamalka Lake, Vernon, and Coldstream was made on the same evening as another photograph of mine: a Panorama of Kalamalka Lake. Unless I am in a hurry, I always seem to stop at this lookout to stretch my legs and look at the view. On this day I was coming back from Kelowna at just the right time for some blue hour photographs.

lakeside property in vernon british columbia

View of Kalamalka Lake from Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park (Purchase)

-click to enlarge-

   This second view is from Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park along the Corral Trail. In the larger version of this photo you can just see the viewpoint from the first photograph above on the hill in the upper left hand corner.

For more photographs of Vernon, Coldstream and the surrounding areas please visit my Thompson Okanagan Gallery.

Horses in Hedley, British Columbia

Horses begging for apples and other treats (which are often provided by tourists) near the town of Hedley, British Columbia, Canada

hope mountain reflected in silver lake

Horses along the Crowsnest Highway in Hedley, BC

-click to enlarge-

As with my earlier cruise ship panorama post I thought I’d share an image I’ve come across in my archive while catching up on some editing and keywording. This is a small herd of horses that quickly ran over to the fence when I pulled off Hwy 3 near Hedley, British Columbia, Canada. I had been looking for an angle to photograph the highway and Nickelplate Mountain together but when this group came running over and lined up against the fence, I couldn’t resist. I believe they were begging for apples and other treats and had determined I was a likely source of goodies. Unfortunately for them, I had nothing to offer (not that I would have fed someone else’s animals without permission anyway). A few minutes of hopeful expectation turned to disappointment and they wandered away.

Peachland and Okanagan Lake

Beachfront condos and shops along Beach Avenue on Okanakan Lake in Peachland, British Columbia, Canada

beach at peachland in british columbias okanagan

Beachfront Property at Peachland, British Columbia (Purchase)

-click to enlarge-

   During my May trip to the Thompson Okanagan I stopped to photograph along Beach avenue in Peachland, British Columbia. The benches along the beach proved a good place to eat lunch and watch some storm clouds come up from the south and up towards Kelowna.

   I also visited Hardy Falls in Peachland, which is a small waterfall along Deep Creek on the south end of the town. A quick 10 minute or so walk along a trail next to Deep Creek and I was at the falls. The area had changed much since the scouting images I looked at were made. A rockfall has blocked view of the lower part of the waterfall from the trail, and closed the end of the trail itself. I had briefly considered a way to get a better angle on the falls, but a rock rattled down the hillside into the water and I decided the photo below would suffice!

hardy falls near peachland british columbia

Hardy Falls in Peachland, BC (Purchase)

-click to enlarge-

Visit my Image Archive for an entire gallery of photographs I have made in the Thompson Okanagan region of British Columbia.

Bubna Slough in Kelowna

Bubna Slough along Glenmore Road in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada.

bubna slough on glenmore road kelowna british columbia canada

Bubna Slough in Kelowna, British Columbia (Purchase)

-click to enlarge-

   I have passed this small lake (or pond) along Glenmore Road in Kelowna, British Columbia for a few years – never really knowing the story of the poles stuck in the ground there. Google has turned up a lot of information about what these actually are, but I don’t know which story is true. Depending on who you believe these are either:

  1. An emergency refueling station for water bombers (this doesn’t seem too plausible)
  2. The remains of an old irrigation flume
  3. Remains of an old bridge or pier

Personally I think it looks like an old fence or someone just stuck a bunch of sticks in the ground in order to start this kind of speculation!

I did enjoy the Kildeer running around in the grasses near the road though. Not a good photo opportunity, but cool to see.

 

Okanagan Beaches – Shorts Point Beach in Fintry

Beach at Short’s Point in Fintry Provincial Park on the shore of Okanagan Lake in Fintry, British Columbia, Canada.

sailboat at shorts point in fintry provincial park in the okanagan

Beach at Short’s Point at Okanagan Lake (Purchase)

-click to enlarge-

   This beach scene from the Short’s Point area of Fintry Provincial Park would have been rather mundane if someone hadn’t left their catamaran sailboat on the shore for me to photograph. I spent some time walking along the beach at Fintry looking for compositions but didn’t walk all of it – the Fintry beach is 2km long!

View more of my photos from the Thompson Okanagan.

Okanagan Beaches – Otter Bay Beach in Vernon

Otter Bay Beach on the shores of Okanagan Lake at Ellison Provincial Park in Vernon, British Columbia, Canada

otter bay beach on the shores of okanagan lake at ellison provincial park in vernon, british columbia

Otter Bay Beach on Okanagan Lake

-click to enlarge-

   As I pointed out in my previous Okanagan beach post, I am not much of a beach goer. However, last year while at Ellison Provincial Park I photographed Otter Bay Beach during a sunny spring day. On my trip this year I went back to this location, but the conditions were not quite right for photography, unfortunately. I will probably be back to try again this fall or in spring 2014.

otter bay beach on okanagan lake at ellison provincial park in vernon, british columbia

Otter Bay Beach on the shore of Okanagan Lake

-click to enlarge-

   View more of my photos from the Thompson Okanagan.

Okanagan Beaches – Kal Lake Beach in Vernon

Okanagan Beaches: Kal Beach at the north end of Kalamalka Lake in Vernon, British Columbia, Canada

kal beach in vernon british columbia on a spring morning

Kal Beach on the north shore of Kalamalka Lake (Purchase)

-click to enlarge-

   I am not much of a beach person. I prefer uncrowded natural places, I don’t swim, and I tend to avoid heat when possible. This made spring the perfect time for me to photograph some of the beaches in British Columbia’s Thompson Okanagan region – a summer destination for many people. Right now I presume Kal Beach in Vernon is packed elbow to elbow with people trying to cool off in the current heat wave.

kal beach in vernon british columbia on a spring morning

Kal Beach in Vernon, BC

-click to enlarge-