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By Marshall Jones
If you do the math, you will realize quickly that our Nine Weeks of Summer was truncated. We lost a week due to a few little fires we that diverted our attention and we wrap up summer this week with a run down of our adventures this summer.
1. Bear Creek Park: This trail is made for walking but bring good shoes for the dusty, somewhat slippery trails. You will see canyons, waterfalls and, yes, many, many stairs. It’s a good walk for a workout as you choose from many different versions of the trails and a burn in the thighs on the stairs. You have to see the view of Okanagan Lake and Kelowna from Bear Creek Park. The trails are vintage Okanagan landscape; dry and dusty with juniper and bunchgrass and the occasional fallen Ponderosa pine looking like a carcass on the side of the trail.
2. Rock Ovens: This one is a short little trail down Gallaghers Canyon, actually just the last two kilometres of the 16-km Mission Creek Trail. We start on the far end on Field Road, off McCulloch Road. There’s plenty of parking and a washroom before you go. What you encounter is a steep hill down into the canyon. It’s hot and dry on the trail, but you have a great view of Layercake Mountain, one of the more interesting examples of local geography. And local geography is why you are taking this trail.
3. Hardy Falls: This short Peachland trail leads to one of the few local falls but last year a rock slide and a fallen tree lead to its closure. It just re-opened last month so I was among many locals who went to see what the fuss was about. And what I found was fuss for good reason. The rock slide came down right in the falls and it looks far different from what any recent visitor will remember. Large boulders have fallen into the pool below the falls.
4. Kalamoir Park: You have several choices about how to take the trail. If you want to climb you can do one of several loops to make your way back. At the very least, push on from the Collens Hill parking lot and climb the dry and dusty hills where the trees and shade give way to incredible vistas and hot sun. Keep following along until you find yourself back under cover and not far from Sunnyside Drive, the third entrance point.
5. Myra Canyon Trestles: You choose how long you want to walk or ride your bikes. If you go close to some of the steep canyon walls, you could find yourself in trouble, but it should be safe even for kids, so long as they know how to use the brakes. The even trail begs for bicycle wheels.
6. Mission Creek Greenway: The Mission Creek Greenway is the best example of urban planning and community action in the Okanagan. Nearly 17 kms of a linear trail winds through the city and protects an important tributary to Okanagan Lake. The flat, well-groomed trail is a favourite of runners, recreational walkers, nature lovers and dog walkers. It leads from Okanagan Lake, past residential areas, golf courses, swampland and into the mountains and canyons and hoodoos.
7. Paul’s Tomb: The roughly two-kilometre trail has two entrances; one with an easy grade off Poplar Point and the other with a serious downhill shuffle from the Crown lookout on Knox Mountain. Crown lookout—likely the most popular place for photos of Kelowna—has the most parking. As you head out on the trail, expect it to be hot. It has little shade, but there is relief at the end. Follow the trail under high rocky cliffs on one side a view of the clear, blue lake on the other. Dogs are welcome.
