Once we got out of Vancouver and the suburbs the drive became very scenic as we drove part of what is known as the Crows Nest Highway. The total length of the Crows Nest Highway is over 700 miles. Obviously we did just a portion of it but it included a couple of nice climbs and descents including the Allison Pass Summit and Manning Provincial Park.
Penticton is one of those gems that Beth has the ability to find. It's a city of about 50,000 that has the distinction of being situated between two large lakes. On the north side is Okanagan Lake which is almost 100 miles long and around 4 miles wide at it's widest point. To the south is Shaka Lake which is much smaller (7 miles long and 1.4 miles wide) but impressive in it's own right.
This area is Canada's oldest wine producing region and currently there are over 125 wineries. The heaviest concentration of them is along the eastern shore of Okanagan Lake although they extend down south to the small towns of Oliver and Osoyoos which are very close to the US border.
It was suggested to us by a nice lady in the visitors center that if we drove down towards Osoyoos that we stop at the Burrowing Owl Winery for lunch. We had no option but to take her up on the recommendation especially after she shared with us that her favorite place on earth is Anna Maria Island! The Burrowing Owl wine (and food) was really nice and shouldn't be confused with the Winking Owl wine that you can buy at Aldi for around $3. Although at $35-40 a bottle I'll be sticking closer to the Winking Owl wine!
https://www.burrowingowlwine.ca/
https://grapecollective.com/articles/winking-owl-reviews-of-an-under-3-wine
After a little looking around we headed back towards Penticton and found Ice Cream Heaven! It's a place called Tickleberry's in Okanagan Falls which is a small town that doesn't have a waterfall (seriously). The ice cream was amazing but it wasn't just the quality it was also the quantity. A small "single" cone had 3 hearty scoops. It was a tough job but we fought our way through it.
http://www.tickleberrys.com/
So was it too much wine or too much ice cream? Actually it was neither! The too much of a good thing I'm referring to is the record rain and snowfall that this area received this past winter. When we started walking along the elevated walkway of the Lake Okanagan shore we noticed the lake level seemed as if it might be elevated even though it's contained within the lake. We've since learned by talking to a number of locals that it is at levels that have never been seen by life long residents. Even though it is not overflowing it's banks there is normally 40-50 feet of sandy beach in front of our hotel and right now there is none. If you recall the lake sizes I shared earlier in this blog the excess water in the big lake (Okanagan) flows out through a dam into the smaller lake (Shaka) and then on down into other small lakes and rivers. I'm not an engineer but I can tell you it's going to take a long time for the lake (which hasn't crested yet) to return to it's normal level. Some of the pictures may give you a better idea.
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| This is the SS Sicamous. It has been a museum for 40 years. Normally it has no water under it. Right now it is floating! http://sssicamous.ca/ |
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| These three statues of children are normally 2+ feet out of the water. The water is above the knees of the first child. Someone put lifejackets on them...........not a bad idea! |
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| What it normally looks like along the lake front |
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| Sandbags along the walkway. Normally there is 40-50 feet of beach here |
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| The walkway along Okanagan Lake. It remains high and dry although the water comes right up to it. Notice all the nice benchs |
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| Lunch at the Burrowing Owl! |
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| Desert Center Boardwalk |
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| A storm brewing over the vineyards! |
