Vernon Activities
The natural resources of the Okanagan Valley make it an ideal vacation area for the avid outdoors person or family, regardless of what they consider a great outdoor adventure to be. If it’s boating, hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, or just plain strolling that you like, the Okanagan is the place to be.
Davison Orchards Country Village & Gift Shop
www.davisonorchards.ca
(250) 549-3266
3111 Davison Road, Vernon, BC
Davison Orchard Country Village is a family owned and operated farm consisting of 50 acres of fruit and vegetables, a farm market, a country gift shop and a bakery as well as a picnic and children’s play area for families. Tour the fruit orchards, stroll the vegetable and flower gardens, or sip pure apple juice squeezed right at the farm. Come and pet the animals, pick your own bouquet of flowers, visit Auntie Mae’s gift shop and in-house bakery! Open May – October
Drive Time: 10 Minutes North
Directions: Follow Okanagan Landing Road North. It will turn into 25th Ave. Turn left on 41st Street and left on Bella Vista Road. Turn right on Davison Road.
Historic O’Keefe Ranch
www.okeeferanch.ca
(250) 542-7868
9380 Highway 97 North, Vernon, BC
Explore a collection of vintage farm machinery, picnic under the shade of the maple trees, enjoy the huge model railway display, and the many farm animals. Here you will discover some of the oldest remaining structures in the Vernon area, all carefully preserved or restored, each with its own unique and fascinating exhibit. Guided Tours available. Open May – September.
Directions: O’Keefe Ranch is located 12 km north of Vernon in the scenic Spallumcheen Valley. Drive north on Highway 97 past Swan Lake, then take the Kamloops turnoff and travel about 4 km further. We are located on your right, across from Spallumcheen Golf Course.
Planet Bee Honey Farm & Gift Shop
www.planetbee.com
Toll-Free: 1 (877) 233-9675
(250) 542-8088
5011 Bella Vista Road, Vernon, BC
Open year-round 7 days per week. Tours, tasting and educational tours.
Drive Time: 7 Minutes North
Directions: Follow Okanagan Landing Road North. It will turn into 25th Ave. Turn left on 41st Street and left on Bella Vista Road. Planet Bee is on your right.
The Jammery
www.jammery.com
1 (877) 775-JAMS
(250) 766-1139
8038 Highway 97
Services: Jam-Making Tours/Restaurant/Gift Shop/Ice Cream. Open daily, year round
Drive Time: 15 Minutes South
Directions: Follow Highway 97 South. The Jammery is on the right side.
GAMING FACILITIES
Lake City Casino – Vernon
www.lakecitycasinos.com
(250) 545-3505
4900 Anderson Way, Vernon, BC
Follow 25th Street into Vernon. Turn left on 32nd Street/Hwy 97 North. Turn right onto 45th Ave. Turn left on 27th Street. Lake City Casio is located at 4801 – 27th Street (10 minutes)
GUIDED TOURS AND ADVENTURE ACTIVITIES
Winds & Rivers Escapes
www.windsrivers.bc.ca
(250) 545-4280
Winds & Rivers Escapes provides a variety of exciting activities, including hiking, sightseeing, camping, river or lake canoeing. Winds & Rivers Escapes also features Canoe and Winery tours. This unique one-day tour combine open water paddling on Okanagan Lake, historical insights of the region, followed by an “al fresco” style lunch, winery tour and tasting at award-winning Okanagan wineries.
Outdoor Discoveries
www.outdoordiscoveries.com
(250) 545-7446
Take a nature hiking or walking tour with award winning tour guide Roseanne Van Ee in the Vernon area of southern BC in the Okanagan Valley. Join in on one of our pre-scheduled outdoor adventure tours, or have your own nature tour specially custom designed for your group. We welcome requests for group tours. You can select from a Mountain Wildflower Tour, Bears & Berries Tour, Ghosts of Silver Star Tour, Snow Shoe Tour, or Mushroom Safari Tour, depending on the season.
Adventure Okanagan Cooperative
www.adventureokanagan.com
1 (800) 549-1114
The Adventure Okanagan Cooperative offers something for everyone – plan an adventure for the soul and discover the Okanagan!
Monashee Adventure Tours
www.monasheeadventuretours.com
(250) 76-CYCLE
Monashee Adventure Tours, chosen “One of the Best” in the Okanagan. Rediscover the joy of the outdoors. Monashee offers guided tours, from the beginner to advanced, throughout the Okanagan. Biking & hiking in summer, and snowshoeing for backcountry exploring in the winter. Come and join the fun with one of the Best!
Lone Pine Ranch
www.sharphooks.com
(250) 549-2209
Come join us on our trails and discover the beauty of the Okanagan on horseback – just 10 km south of Vernon across from Predator Ridge Golf Course.
MOVIE THEATRES
Famous Players
www.tribute.ca
(250) 542-1107
7 – 2306 Highway 6, Vernon
Vernon Town Cinema
www.vernoncinema.com
Show Phone (250) 545-0352
2910 30 Avenue, Vernon
BX Falls and BX Creek Hikes
This trail has a trailhead and parking at each end, it does not loop. This guide starts at the high end, the Tillicum Rd. parking lot, 2 km from the junction of Silver Star Rd. the trail ends at Star Rd.with an option to connect to the Grey Canal. The total trail length is 2.2 km with some stairs and steep sections. Slip into another world for a cool moist reprieve from the dry hillsides of bunchgrass and Ponderosa Pine. The trail offers three options within the first 300m:
1. Walk to the upper viewpoint of the falls.
2. Climb down to the base of the falls.
3. Continue on this trail to a sharp descent to the creek and follow the BX Creek Trail.
Experience the cool, humid world of birch trees, devil’s club, horsetail and cedar along the creek-side trail to Star Rd. En route, the creek reveals evidence of the early agricultural and logging history of the North Okanagan. If you choose to walk the length of this trail:
4. Watch for remains of a dam, flumes, & channels that brought water to early orchards and ranching operations on the sunny hillsides. The 2 km trail brings you to Star Rd.. Return by the same route to the parking area on Tillicum Rd. or
5. Continue your hike onto the Grey Canal Trail. Follow Star Rd. for 300 m N where the trail continues another 500 m through a field & northwest to Silver Star Rd.
Grey Canal Trail
The trailhead is on the left side on Silver Star Rd., 1.5 km from BX School. The full length of the Grey Canal Trail is 4.8 km one way, ending at Glenhayes Rd. Return by the same route to the parking area off Silver Star Rd., but a shorter loop of 3.5 km is an option. Without irrigation this valley could support only a few range cattle and the apple orchards and vineyards that blanket the hot slopes above Vernon would have never materialized. The engineering technology of the 1890′s resulted in 46 km (19 miles) of irrigation ditches, dam flumes, pump and reservoirs of the Grey Canal, one of the most extensive systems ever built in British Columbia. It is a gently undulating trail with magnificent valley views. Interpretive signs offer some insight into the Grey Canal then and now. This trail is a designated dog walking area.
McKergow Meadows
Though this is a shorter steeper hiking option, the views from Middleton Mountain into the valleys and down to Kalamalka Lake below make this trip well worth your efforts. Mud Lake, a small pond within this park, is home to and an essential part of the habitat for duck, geese, toads and salamanders. You can explore the slopes, but they are covered in prickly pear cacti. Beware!
“Commonage”
Walk along Old Mission Rd and explore one of Canada’s most important raptor habitats. See hawks, owls and eagles soar on cliffsides, updrafts or swooping low over fields in search of prey. Stop at ponds rich in interesting waterfowl and shorebirds. Extend your nature walk to visit displays at the Allan Brooks Nature Centre. Located on Mission Rd., between the DND Athletic Field and Bench Row Rd.
Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park
Walk along the many pathways in this unique bunchgrass landscape, through open grasslands, along cliffs, & through moist cedar and fir forests. Lesser used trails lead to peaceful Deep Lake. The clean, attractive beaches throughout the park are great for swimming. There is even a “pet beach” for your four-legged friends (dogs must be leashed). Interpretative signs will tell you about local flora and fauna. Access Kal Park through the Red Gate, Cosens Bay parking lot or the Jade/Juniper parking lot.
Okanagan High Rim Trail (Kalamalka Park Access)
A new 50 km wilderness trail following the crest of the mountain ridge on the east side of the valley from Vernon to Mission Creek on Hwy 33 (east of Kelowna). Start at the Cosens Bay Gate of Kal. Lake Provincial Park. Take the left path paralleling the fence. Watch for a marked path to the left, crossing the lower valley, then climbing up a steep path to join the old road leading to the telecommuncations tower on the hilltop. Take water and food, wear sturdy footwear. Best hiked in sections, from access points of mountain lakes east of Oyama, Winfield and Ellison. Contact the Vernon Outdoors Club at (250) 260-3541 for more details and information.
Ellison Provincial Park
Camp in a Douglas fir forest, near beautiful pink sand beaches on Okanagan Lake. Two nature trails allow you to explore the forest. Summer interpretative programs guide you through local ecology, including campfire circles & presentations at the outdoor amphitheatre.
Silver Star Mountain
www.skisilverstar.com
22 km from Vernon, Silver Star is best visited from late May through the end of September. A number of trails take you through subalpine forest and slope, past beautiful flowers and historical remnants. Take Silver Star’s convenient and fun chairlift ride to the top, then follow a leisurely trek downhill. Guided tours are available on weekends in the summer, along with a self guided trail, “The Water Rustler’s Trail”. You can also rent mountain bikes and take to the hills on your own!
Enderby Cliffs
Two trails access these cliffs, through private property; seek permission first! Contact the Enderby Chamber for property permission contact info. Route 1: follow Brash-Allan Rd. to the end and take the driveway to the right, the trail starts at a gap in the white fence, marked with red ribbons. A steep and strenuous route, 1.5-2 hours. Route 2: follow McNabb Rd. almost to the end, park just past the old, white hog barn to your right. Trail starts up the bank on the left side of the road, 2-2.5 hours of moderate exertion. For more details, contact the Enderby Chamber at (250) 838-6727.
Larch Hills
Well-known as a cross-country ski area in the winter, Larch Hills also offers excellent hiking & biking opportunities in the summer months. Explore a large number of trails in the hills above the Shuswap basin – why not bring a lunch along!
Bluenose Mountain
The triple summits of Bluenose are an awesome sight, located in the Lavington area 15 minutes east of Vernon. The 1st and 3rd summits are open to hikers, offering fantastic views of the countryside and the Monashees. Take Hwy 6 to Learmouth Rd. follow to a T-junction, turn left and continue on this road for approx. 4 km. You will see a cleared area on the left with a hiking sign near the roadside. An easy to moderate hike. Approx 3.5 hours round trip. Water and snacks are a good idea.
Monashee Provincial Park
Accessible only by foot, this park offers pristine trails through beautiful old-growth cedar, hemlock and spruce forests, and untouched watersheds, with beautiful alpine meadows at higher elevations. Campsites are available at several locations in this Monashee Range wilderness refuge.