Coming up with picks for best spots for a beach picnic a walk in the park
The Okanagan Valley has so many ideal locations for a beach picnic. So how do you choose? After pondering this summertime question, we came up with some of the most popular spots, but threw in a few that aren’t so popular but offer a quiet respite from the usual urban hustle-bustle.
However, how can you argue with the fact that Penticton was recently voted as having the No. 2 Best Beaches in Canada by TripAdvisor (even though it maintains only seven public beaches)?
1. City Park, Kelowna This 13.2-hectare green space on Abbott Street downtown has it all — two vastly different beaches in the long, sandy Hot Sands Beach and Cold Sands Beach, lawn bowling, a children’s water park, aqua park (Wibit), playground, picnic area, mobile and static concession stands, buskers, skateboard park, running track, sports field, change room and washroom facilities. The downside is pay parking, but it is also home to numerous fundraising events by local charities during the warm weather months, special weekend events such as Center of Gravity, and family events such as Interior Savings Moonlight Movies and the Fat Cat Children’s Festival.
2. Okanagan Lake Beach, Penticton Located on Lakeshore Drive near the downtown core and just east of the Penticton Lakeside Resort, its 1.8 hectares has nearly a kilometre of premium, sandy beach as one of the Peach City’s most popular and most beautiful beach areas. It also has a swimming area, rest rafts, kiddie slides, shade trees, washrooms nearby, firepits and free parking. Okanagan Lake Park hosts a variety of festivals and events from May through October each year. Penticton Creek enters Okanagan Lake on the western portion of the park, so be sure to watch for ducks and other waterfowl floating in the creek.
3. Skaha Lake Beach, Penticton This south-facing beach, located on Skaha Lake Road and Parkview Street, is part of Skaha Lake Park, which has 8.5 hectares of park and red sand beach (one of B.C.’s most beautiful sandy beaches, and great for sunbathing and wading in the warm waters of Skaha Lake. It also has a children’s water park and Rotary Centennial Pavilion, a great escape in case of rain and a great venue for weddings. This beautiful park offers outdoor fun for everyone with a variety of year-round recreational opportunities.
4. Otter Bay, Ellison Provincial Park,
North Okanagan This is one of two beautiful bays in the park, with more than 50 picnic tables total and a group picnic area. Otter Bay has picnic tables on a crescent-shaped beach sheltered by rocky headlands with coarse pink sand, a pit toilet, fountain tap, volleyball net, shade provided by well-spaced Douglas fir trees and a swimming area marked with swim buoys. As an alternative, South Bay offers a great view of the Fintry delta to the south and the other side of Okanagan Lake. Or, head over to quiet Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park, where a three-kilometre trail leads to a large beach of coarse sand that extends into the water at Cosens Bay, picnic tables and pit toilets.
5. Christie Memorial Park,
Okanagan Falls Located on Seventh Avenue on the south shore of Skaha Lake, this is Okanagan Falls’ largest beach park, with almost a half-hectare of soft sand, plenty of picnic tables and benches, two full-size beach volleyball courts, lush grassy areas, large shade trees and Heritage Walkway, which runs along the entire waterfront and is lit by the warm, romantic glow of walkway lights after dark.
6. Oyama Beach, Lake Country Virtually the entire isthmus of Oyama has a beautiful beach on the north end of Wood Lake. Its south-facing aspect and the shallow water make for great swimming in warm water. And the new Okanagan Rail Trail extends in both directions — to Coldstream and to Winfield — for those who want a little cycling before a picnic. A boat launch is located at the northeast end and local kayak shops often hold demo days on the west end.
7. Kalamalka (Kal) Beach, Vernon Located on the north shore of Kalamalka Lake on Kalamalka Road, it is arguably the best and most well-known beach in the greater Vernon area, with volleyball courts and washrooms. A big parking lot across the street is accessible via Husband Road. It is located at the end of the Okanagan Rail Trail, so you can cool off in the water if you’ve cycled from Lake Country and before your return trip.
8. Sun-Oka Beach Provincial Park Located three kilometres south of Summerland, this is one of the most superb beaches in the entire Okanagan. The name is a shortened version of “Sunny Okanagan.” The park provides an outstanding, south-facing beach in front of a sandy lake bottom that makes getting in and out of the water easy, swimming buoys, water play and picnic opportunities as well as fantastic views down Okanagan Lake.
9. Swim Bay, Peachland Located on Beach Avenue North in front of the Peachland Community Centre, it just stretches and stretches with a sandy beach, pebble beach, wharf, diving board, zip line, rope swing, washrooms and picnic area. Concession is available from June to September, and a lifeguard is on duty from the end of June to the end of August. You can wander along the beach after your lunch and even pop in to local shops on Beach Avenue.
10. Kelowna’s waterfront With more than 30 beaches, it may be hard to choose, so here are five of the most popular beaches: Tugboat Bay in Waterfront Park, Boyce-Gyro Beach, Rotary Beach, Sarsons Beach Park and Strathcona Park. If you can’t decide, you can bike from Rotary Marshes and Waterfront Park in the north along the Promenade through City Park to the Abbott Street Recreation Corridor (with its quiet, street-end beaches) to Lakeshore Road for Boyce-Gyro and Rotary, right on Sarsons Road to that beach.
Okanagan Top 10 is an opinion piece which appears every Saturday.
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