Climbing festival to rock Okanagan
Rock climbers are carefully picking their routes to a festival later this month that will celebrate Skaha Bluffs Provincial Park.
The 2022 Skaha Climbers Festival, set for May 28-29, will honour the 12th anniversary of the creation of the park and the 27-year anniversary of the Climbers’ Access Society of B.C.
The festival is being organized by the Skaha Climbers Association to raise funds in support of the Skaha Park Watch Society and the Skaha Climbers Anchor Repair Society, both of which work to keep the area safe, secure and sustainable.
The festival will include climbing clinics, competitions and a film night.
“We will be hosting a silent auction at the Saturday evening event with all proceeds going to support the Skaha Bluffs Park Watch Society program,” which was created in 2015 to deter auto crime in the area, added organizer Rolf Rybak in an email.
“Our program employs local residents with barriers as ambassadors, through Penticton Area Co-operative Enterprises, supported by Penticton city grants and significant donations from local businesses and visiting climbers. These funds go directly back into the community creating integration opportunities for persons with employment barriers, with the benefit of keeping our climbing area safe and secure.”
For more information or to purchase tickets for the various events, visit skahaclimbersfestival.com.
Located south of Penticton above the east side of Skaha Lake, the bluffs include several long canyons with walls up to 80 metres high. Dozens of routes up the rock have been established over the years as the destination has become one of the most popular places to climb in Canada.