Outdoor Destinations in Kelowna, BC

Chichester Wetland Park

Chichester Wetland Park is Rutland's neighbourhood wetland, a small City of Kelowna natural park of ponds and tall trees off Fitzpatrick Road where a surprising amount of wildlife packs into a short trail. Nearly 180 species of birds have been recorded here: marsh breeders such as sora, Virginia rail, marsh wren and blackbirds in the cattails, migrating warblers and western tanagers passing through in spring and fall, and a resident flock of mallards that winters on the open water. Painted turtles haul out on the logs on sunny days, and the easy loop is short enough for a lunch-hour visit or a first birding outing with children. It is a stop on the BC Bird Trail, free and open year-round, with street parking at the Chichester Court and Sumac Road West entrances. Dogs are welcome on leash — this is the one Kelowna wetland park on the trail that allows them — so keep them close around the water.

Crawford Trails – Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park

Crawford is what Kelowna riders call the trail network in the western part of Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park, above the Upper Mission, reached from the Stewart Road East trailhead. Mountain Bikers of the Central Okanagan describes more than 150 km of multi-use trails here, from flowy singletrack to technical rock gardens and challenging descents, with difficulty ranging from beginner to expert but most routes falling in intermediate or advanced terrain — it is where many local riders learned to mountain bike. BC Parks permits cycling in the park, with e-bikes allowed on signed and designated trails, and warns of natural hazards including steep drop-offs at Crawford Falls and Devil’s Elbow and falling rock; the Little White Trail between Pooley Creek and Upper Crawford is closed. Dogs must be kept under control. The Myra Canyon trestles lie in the same park but are reached from their own trailheads on the Myra and June Springs roads. A pit toilet is provided at the Stewart Road East trailhead; parking costs are not published.

Dilworth Mountain Park

Dilworth Mountain is the ridge that rises out of the middle of Kelowna, and the City's park on its crest gives you, in its own words, some of the best vantage points in the city — about 1,000 feet above the valley floor, with downtown Kelowna and Okanagan Lake spread out to the west, the Kelowna Golf and Country Club directly below, and the mountains beyond the lake. The payoff comes cheaply: park in the lot off Chilcotin Crescent and the lookout trail is a short, easy walk, while the gentle Dilworth Ridge Trail loops the top of the mountain for about 2.6 km on gravel through meadows and pockets of forest, passing one lookout after another and the distinctive hoodoo formations on the mountain's flanks. It is a neighbourhood park as much as a viewpoint — there is a small playground for kids, and dogs are welcome on leash on the trails — which makes it an easy sunset stop between dinner downtown and home. One caution: in periods of extreme wildfire risk the City closes the lookout area, so check the park's page in high summer before you head up. Parking is free.

Full Cyrcle Adventures

Full Cyrcle Adventures runs guided off-road UTV and 4×4 buggy tours from its base at 4270 Swamp Road in south-east Kelowna — Tourism Kelowna describes it as the city’s only adventure-tour company offering UTV tour experiences. Guests drive their own buggy after a short training session, following a professional guide through mountain roads, forested and rocky trails and scenic lookouts on a two-hour round trip; family off-road and more demanding mountain tours are offered, with departures at 10 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Tours are private-group bookings, so a family or group of friends has the trail to themselves. The company also runs chartered boat trips on Okanagan Lake as a separate service.

Gillard Trails

Gillard is the Okanagan’s original freeride mountain-bike area, on the hillside south of Kelowna’s Kettle Valley neighbourhood, and is now an official Recreation Sites and Trails BC trail network maintained by Mountain Bikers of the Central Okanagan. The trails took shape in the late 1990s and remain built for intermediate to expert riders — fast singletrack, jumps of every size, rock gardens and slabs, wooden features and steep technical lines — with enduro, freeride or downhill bikes recommended. It is best ridden as a shuttle network, though MTBCO’s multi-year climbing-trail project now gives riders a way up under their own power. Tourism Kelowna’s route: Lakeshore Road to Chute Lake Road, then Gillard Forest Service Road to the Recreation Sites and Trails BC parking lot about 3.8 km up. Provincial recreation-trail rules ask that pets be kept quiet and under control; parking costs are not published.

Graystokes Snowmobile Area – Kelowna Snowmobile Club

The Graystokes is the Central Okanagan's big sledding country: a high plateau of meadows, bowls and forest roads east of Kelowna where the Kelowna Snowmobile Club, riding since 1968, grooms more than 300 kilometres of trail across Graystokes Provincial Park and the Myra-Bellevue zone and keeps eight warm-up cabins stocked and standing — Main Cabin, Hilltop, K-Dog, Uncle Tom's and Whitehouse in the Graystokes, and Doghouse, Canyon Lakes and Priest Creek on the Myra side. The pin here marks the Graystokes Main staging lot; the club also publishes the 201 and Myra staging areas, and its trail maps, GPS waypoints and an interactive Gaia map are free to download. A day pass is $30 including tax, bought online through the club's store before you go, and proof of purchase is checked at the staging areas — BCSF members save $5 at the trailhead. Only snowmobiles are allowed on the groomed trails in winter (no ATVs or tracked side-by-sides), and this is avalanche and backcountry terrain, so ride prepared. The club's annual events and grooming updates are posted on its site and social channels.

Hiawatha RV Park

Hiawatha is the campground inside Kelowna: 85 tent and RV sites on Lakeshore Road in the Lower Mission, a few minutes' walk from Gyro and Rotary beaches, the lakeside path and the cafés of Pandosy Village. Full hookups keep the big rigs happy and there is grass for tents, which makes it the rare place where you can do a city holiday — wineries, restaurants, the waterfront — and still sleep under a tarp. It runs from March to the end of September and books up early for July and August.

High Rim Trail

The High Rim Trail traces the forested ridge high above Kelowna, Lake Country and Vernon for about 55 km of wild, uncrowded hiking. Pick a section for a day hike with big valley views, or tackle it end to end as a multi-day adventure.

Holy Doodle Sailing Charters

Slip away from the dock on a private sail aboard a cozy 8.5-metre yacht. Choose a daytime cruise, a sunset sail or a full-moon night on Okanagan Lake, and help trim the sails or simply relax. May to October.

Hydraulic Lake Recreation Site

Hydraulic Lake is the near end of the McCulloch Reservoir and the easier of its two campgrounds to reach — a short turn off Highway 33 rather than a run down the 201 — with 30 sites, a cartop launch and good rainbow fishing on a 10-horsepower lake. The Kettle Valley Rail Trail passes right by, so you can ride to the Myra Canyon trestles from your tent and be back for the evening rise.

Inspire Trails – Myra Canyon Ranch

Inspire Trails runs guided horseback trail rides from Myra Canyon Ranch at 4675 June Springs Road in south-east Kelowna, on the way up to the Myra Canyon trestles. Rides go out every morning and afternoon, with a gentle one-hour scenic ride ($125 per person) offering an easy introduction for first-time riders and a panoramic view over the Okanagan Valley; the guides know the trails and the wildlife along them, and riders regularly see eagles, owls, deer and marmots, with a resident great grey owl near the ranch. Inspire reopened at its new home on the ranch on April 20, 2026 and takes bookings online for the season; ride times can shift with the weather.

Johns Family Nature Conservancy Regional Park

Johns Family Nature Conservancy is more than 400 hectares of parkland in south Kelowna with panoramic views of the Okanagan Valley and trails that lead to The Crags, a well-known climbing spot. It is also Canada's third Nocturnal Preserve, a Royal Astronomical Society of Canada designation that keeps artificial light to a minimum, so the sky here is as much of a draw as the view. The main parking lot is off Chute Lake Road just outside the city boundary, less than 1 km along the gravel. Hikers can also start from Lakeshore Road: the Lebanon Creek Greenway is a 2.3 km climb with 450 metres of elevation gain up to the top of the Crags, with shorter trails to make a loop or reach the Kettle Valley neighbourhood; its Lakeshore Road vehicle entrance is closed from November 1 to April 1. A washroom is on site, dogs are welcome on leash, and hours shift seasonally, from 6 a.m. to between 6 and 11 p.m., with reduced maintenance from November 1 to April 1.

KLO Creek Regional Park

KLO Creek Regional Park is a 1.8 km creek-side trail in southeast Kelowna, a short stroll on natural terrain that the Regional District recommends for its cool shade in summer and for the stunning geological formations that also make it a popular spot for climbers. It is beautiful in every season. Dogs are welcome on leash. The parking lot is off McCulloch Road at the switchback over KLO Creek. Park hours shift seasonally, from 6 a.m. to between 6 and 11 p.m.

Kangaroo Creek Farm

Kangaroo Creek Farm is the Okanagan's one genuinely surprising animal encounter: a working farm on Old Vernon Road, a few minutes north of Kelowna's airport, where red kangaroos and wallabies lounge in open paddocks you can walk straight into. Feeding the animals and holding a joey are included in the admission — there is no extra charge — and the cast runs well beyond the kangaroos, with common wallaroos, Bennett's, dama and albino wallabies, emus, peacocks, goats, parrots, potbellied pigs and a family of capybaras. The 2026 season runs from June 27 to October 12: daily 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. through September 7, daily 10 to 3 for the rest of September, and Saturdays, Sundays and Thanksgiving Monday in October, with last entry at 2:45 p.m. High-season admission (to September 7) is $30 for adults and youth 16 to 64, $15 for children 5 to 15 and $15 for seniors, with children four and under free; from September 8 the rates drop to $20, $10 and $10. Debit, cash, Visa and MasterCard are accepted, and wheelchair users and Access 2 cardholders enter free, though be aware the paths are gravel, dirt and grass. Dogs are not allowed in the animal enclosures (leashed dogs may wait in the picnic area), commercial groups and schools book by email, and the farm asks drivers to avoid the left turn onto Highway 97 at the uncontrolled intersection when leaving.

Kasugai Garden

Tucked behind a wall off Water Street, Kasugai Garden is downtown Kelowna's secret calm: stone lanterns, sculpted pines, a waterfall and a koi pond celebrating the city's friendship with Kasugai, Japan. Free, peaceful and just steps from the lake. Open spring to late October.

💎 Hidden Gem

Kelowna Memorial Arena

Memorial Arena is the old downtown rink on Ellis Street, a few blocks from the waterfront, and in winter it hosts City of Kelowna public skating alongside a dedicated Seniors Skate — a quieter, slower session that regulars prize. It is a bring-your-own-skates building: there are no rentals here, so if you need gear, use Rutland Arena or the Stuart Park rental hut instead. Sessions are pre-booked online through the City's recreation portal (bring your confirmation email); admission follows the City scale of $4.75 general, $4 for children 6 to 13, $3 for preschoolers and $12 for a family of two adults and three kids, with the child and preschool rates arranged by phone at 250-469-8800 because online booking sells only the general rate. Public skating returns each October, and a skate here pairs naturally with a downtown lunch or a walk along the lake.

Kelowna Nordic Ski and Snowshoe Club

Kelowna's own cross-country and snowshoe area lies in the McCulloch highlands southeast of the city, roughly 20 to 45 minutes from town on paved highway. The club grooms 75 km of double-tracked trails with a good range of difficulty, normally finished by 10 a.m., alongside marked snowshoe trails, warming cabins and designated K-9 trails where dogs are welcome. Three parking areas serve the system: the Kallis lot on Highway 33 just past the Big White Road junction (ski access only), the Summit lot 0.9 km further with ski and snowshoe trails, a shelter and outhouse, and the main lot 4.5 km along McCulloch Road with the cabin and both trail types. Day passes and memberships are sold by the club; check the grooming report before you go.

Kelowna Paddle Centre

The Kelowna Paddle Centre is a community-run, non-profit paddling hub on the Okanagan Lake shore at Pandosy Waterfront Park, operated in cooperation with the City of Kelowna to make paddling sports safe and affordable for everyone. Visitors can rent stand-up paddleboards, sit-on-top single and double kayaks, outrigger canoes and surfskis — a two-hour SUP rental is $40 and every rental includes a PFD, paddle and a brief intro lesson — or join drop-in paddles and public programs open to non-members, with youth summer camps in season. It is the easiest place in the city to get onto the water without owning a board, and the calm bay in front of the centre suits first-timers.

Knox Mountain Park

Knox Mountain is Kelowna's largest natural area park, 385 hectares rising roughly 300 metres above Okanagan Lake just north of downtown, and its lookouts are the classic view of the city. The park moves from lakeshore to mountain top through riparian, wetland, ponderosa pine bunchgrass and Douglas-fir ecosystems that the City describes as fragile and easily eroded, so stay on the trails. Walking, running, hiking, road and mountain biking, birding and winter recreation are all part of life here. The park is open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.; vehicles may drive Knox Mountain Drive to the first lookout from noon to 8 p.m. in the frost-free season, and the road closes in winter, for events and in extreme wildfire risk. Motorized vehicles are not permitted elsewhere in the park. Additional parking is at the western base off Poplar Point Drive. Signature routes include the Apex Trail to the upper lookout — about 5 km round trip on dirt trails with stairs, a moderate 45 minutes to an hour and a half — the 3 km lakeshore walk to Paul's Tomb and Kathleen Lake, the 3.2 km road climb from the base to the top, and the Lochview Trail that connects the park's north side. Dogs must be on leash except in the designated off-leash dog park at 450 Knox Mountain Drive, and smoking, vaping and cannabis are banned in all City parks.

♥ Local Favourite

Kuipers' Peak Mountain Park

Kuipers' Peak Mountain Park in Kelowna's Upper Mission is a short hike with a big reward: five to ten minutes to the top, with some sections that will get your heart rate up, and a stunning view of Okanagan Lake from the peak. The hillside is still recovering from the 2003 wildfire, and the City also features the park for winter snowshoeing. The trailhead is at 792 Kuipers Crescent, reached via South Ridge Drive. Dogs are allowed on-leash only.

Lakefront Sports Centre

Kelowna's one-stop waterfront rental base: grab a boat, jet ski, paddleboard, kayak or bike right on downtown's Water Street, or try flyboarding. It's the easiest way to get out on Okanagan Lake.

Luxury Lake Tours

Captained private boat tours on Okanagan Lake, from sightseeing cruises and fishing charters to wine tours that arrive at lakeside wineries by water.

MNP Place

MNP Place — the multi-rink complex on Gordon Drive that many locals still call the Capital News Centre — is where Kelowna's hockey players get their drop-in fix. From Thanksgiving to Spring Break the leisure rink opens for weekday public skating, with skate and skate-trainer rentals on hand (no helmet rentals, and helmets are required for anyone under 18). The real draw is the ice-time menu: Stick & Puck sessions run in late-morning and midday slots for skaters of any age who want to work on their shot — $10 to $11 a person, capped at 30 skaters, helmets mandatory with a CSA face cage for under-18s, and strictly no scrimmages, goalies or lessons, because the session is unsupervised. Adult Drop-In Hockey (19+) is a friendly, fast-paced game offered several times a week between late morning and mid-afternoon, and goalies skate free. Everything is booked through the DaySmart Recreation calendar on the venue's site, so check it for the week's times before you drive over.

Maude-Roxby Wetland (Bird Sanctuary)

Tucked into the Okanagan Lake shoreline at the end of Francis Avenue in the Pandosy neighbourhood, the Maude-Roxby Wetland is a bird sanctuary you can walk into from a residential street. A raised boardwalk with benches and small piers threads through willow groves and cattail marsh to a viewing platform that juts out over the lake, so you can watch the water and the reeds at the same time with almost no disturbance to what lives there. Winter brings rafts of gulls and waterfowl, with tundra and trumpeter swans possible; spring fills the willows with warblers, vireos and flycatchers; herons, ducks and red-winged blackbirds are here most of the year; and because the site has turned up so many wandering rarities over the years, the Central Okanagan Naturalists' Club keeps a close eye on it. It is a stop on the BC Bird Trail and one of Kelowna's best-known birding spots, yet it stays quiet. The boardwalk is wheelchair-friendly and the park is free and open year-round. This is a nature preserve first: no dogs are allowed; parking is on the street. It is about 4 km south of City Park along Abbott Street, an easy bike ride on the lakeside route.

McCulloch Reservoir Recreation Site

About an hour up Highway 33 from Kelowna, the McCulloch Reservoir site puts 39 campsites on the shore of the big plateau lake that locals also call Hydraulic Lake: cartop boats and canoes on 10-horsepower water, rainbow trout in the evenings, and the Kettle Valley Rail Trail and Kelowna Nordic's trail network a few minutes away. It is cool up here when the valley is baking, first come and first served, and quiet after eleven by rule. A second Recreation Site, Hydraulic Lake, sits on the same reservoir closer to the highway.

McKinley Mountain Park

McKinley Mountain Park is the City of Kelowna's 'Mini Knox': a 17-hectare hillside park in the McKinley area north of the city where a short hike of about 1 km uphill ends at a fantastic view along Okanagan Lake to both north and south. The City lists it as a hidden gem with trails as its amenity, at 1798 Shayler Place. Be aware of wildlife here, including bears and coyotes. Dog status is on-leash.

💎 Hidden Gem

Mill Creek Regional Park

Mill Creek Regional Park is a cool, shaded surprise east of Kelowna's airport: a flat, easy trail under cedars that follows Mill Creek to a set of cascading waterfalls — the Waterfall Trail is only about 800 metres one way, with a short boardwalk section, so it suits small children and anyone after a quick, cool escape. At 13.5 hectares it is small, but the falls, the shade on a hot afternoon and the creek's role as an important wildlife corridor make it worth the short drive into the Ellison area. Washrooms are on site and dogs are welcome on leash. There is a parking area on the west side of Spencer Road and street parking on the east side. Park hours shift seasonally, from 6 a.m. to between 6 and 11 p.m., with reduced maintenance from November to March.

Mission Creek Greenway Regional Park

The Mission Creek Greenway is Kelowna's great linear park: 16.5 km of multi-use trail following Mission Creek from Okanagan Lake into the hills, linking parks, interpretive viewing areas, rest spots and picnic areas along the way. From the lake the trail is flat and wide — an easy walk or ride — and the difficulty builds through Scenic Canyon, where elevation and stairs take over. Nine main access points have parking, from Lakeshore Road and Truswell Road up to the Field Road lot in Scenic Canyon. Washrooms are on the route, an easy portion of the trail and the washrooms are accessible, and dogs are welcome on leash. It is a shared trail, so keep right, pass on the left, and cyclists must stay under the 15 km/h limit and ring a bell before passing. The Regional District maps the Greenway in sections — 7.5 km from Lakeshore Road to Creekside, 2.3 km from Gerstmar to Hollywood, 7.1 km from Hollywood Road up to Hydraulic Creek, plus a 1.3 km south spur from Casorso Road to Gordon Drive — which is why the mapped total comes to 18.7 km against the 16.5 km headline figure. In 2026 the Gerstmar Bridge project is closing short stretches between Ziprick and Gerstmar roads at times, so follow the detour signs. Hours shift with the seasons (6 a.m. to between 6 and 11 p.m.), and some access points get reduced maintenance from November to March.

Mission Creek Mountain Bike Skills Park

The Mission Creek Mountain Bike Skills Park is a City of Kelowna bike park on a 3.4-hectare site at 1960 Hollywood Road South, next to the Mission Creek Greenway. Whether you are new to mountain or BMX biking or riding at a high level, it has something to work on: a pump track and four dirt-jump lanes that progress from beginner to expert, with some of the sport’s top riders having contributed to the design. It is also a good spot to catch your breath on a bench and watch the airtime the advanced riders get. Riders can roll in directly from the Greenway, and the City keeps the park open through its seasonal winter closures of other facilities. Parking arrangements and costs are not published on the City’s page.

Mission Creek Regional Park

Mission Creek Regional Park is 92 hectares of winding trails, creek and cottonwoods in the heart of Kelowna, and a park that works in every season. It is home to the Robert Hobson Environmental Education Centre for the Okanagan (the EECO, open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and the kokanee spawning channel, so a walk here doubles as a nature lesson. The named trails are gentle — the 3.5 km Soopollalie Trail, the 1.3 km Sutherland Hills Trail, the 1 km Pine Loop and the short Turtle Pond and Kokanee trails, about 7 km of easy walking in all — and the easy trails, washrooms, picnic shelter and playground are all accessible, and dogs are welcome on leash. Portions of the trails are closed while the Gerstmar Bridge trail improvements are built (announced August 2026, with no reopening date yet), so follow the closure signs and detours. The main parking lot is at 2363 Springfield Road with entrances at Durnin and Leckie roads, there is a second lot at the end of Ziprick Road, and three trailheads with street parking along Hall Road. Park hours shift seasonally, from 6 a.m. to between 6 and 11 p.m.

♥ Local Favourite

Munson Pond Park

Munson Pond is Kelowna's birding jewel hidden in plain sight: a 9.8-hectare urban wetland near the corner of Benvoulin and KLO roads that protects one of British Columbia's rarest ecosystems, a cottonwood–water birch forest, around a 3.8-hectare pond. A one-kilometre gravel loop circles the water past boardwalks, two viewing platforms and interpretive signs, and the path is accessible, so it works as well for a quiet family walk as for a serious morning with binoculars. More than 225 species have been recorded here, from migrating geese in spring and fall to warblers, waterfowl and the occasional rarity that keeps the local birders coming back, and it is a signed stop on the BC Bird Trail. To protect that wildlife, dogs are not permitted anywhere in the park — bylaw officers visit regularly and do ticket — and it is a place for slow, quiet looking rather than picnics or play. Turn west onto Munson Road off Benvoulin to find the small paved parking lot.

Myra Canyon Bicycle Rental & Tours

Skip hauling bikes up the mountain: rent on site at the Myra Canyon trailhead and ride the historic Kettle Valley Railway across 18 trestles and through two tunnels high above Kelowna. Guided tours are available too.

Myra Canyon – Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park

Myra Canyon is the Okanagan's signature rail-trail day: the historic Kettle Valley Railway grade curls around the canyon southeast of Kelowna on its trestles, and BC Parks has placed 14 viewpoint benches along the way, with the trestles themselves opening onto the valley and the steep, rocky canyon walls. Walk it or ride it — cyclists are asked to walk their bikes across the trestles, and e-bikes are allowed on the signed trails. Pit toilets sit at the Myra, Ruth and Stewart Road East trailheads and just beyond Trestles 1 and 8. Dogs must be kept under control, and BC Parks notes the backcountry beyond the trail is not suitable for pets. The park stays open through winter, when Little White Mountain offers backcountry skiing and snowshoeing. The classic day is the 12 km one-way section between the Myra and June Springs access points, with 18 trestles and bridges concentrated in an 8.8 km stretch; BC Parks lists roughly 75 parking spots at Myra and about 33 at June Springs, plus the Stewart Road East access from Kelowna. The Little White Trail (Pooley Creek to Upper Crawford) is closed.

Okanagan Adventure Park

Okanagan Adventure Park is the new home of the former Myra Canyon Adventure Park, now on Highway 33 east of Kelowna. The park is built around an aerial treetop obstacle course and ziplines, with a guided Zipline Tour through the canopy, a Canyon Swing that reaches speeds of up to 100 km/h, and a dedicated Kid's Course for younger climbers. In the fall shoulder season it opens for drop-in visits on weekends from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with weekdays by advance or same-day phone booking. Everyone signs a liability waiver, and a parent or legal guardian must sign for anyone under 19.

Okanagan Ballooning

Float above orchards, vineyards and Okanagan Lake at sunrise on a hot-air balloon tour, one of the most unforgettable ways to see the valley.

Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park

Okanagan Mountain is 11,321 hectares of rugged wilderness on the east shore of Okanagan Lake, opposite Peachland, with no public roads inside it — which is exactly its appeal. From the north parking lot, the Boulder Loop runs 5 km (about 3 hours, easy) and the Old C.N. Trail 3 km; the Rim Trail, the Pinnacles and the viewpoint near the south lot deliver the big views, and the canyons are good country for spotting sheep, goats and elk. The south lot is reached through Naramata on Chute Lake Road, 6 km of gravel followed by 1.5 km of very rough road. Paddlers can string together day trips or multi-day trips along the undeveloped shoreline, camping at the marine campsites and swimming in the bays. Mountain biking is allowed on the signed trails (e-bikes on designated trails), horses have their own routes, and the park has pit toilets only. Dogs must stay on leash.

Okanagan Parasail

Okanagan Parasail lifts off from the Waterfront Promenade on the downtown Kelowna waterfront, behind the Delta hotel and right on the boardwalk. You launch from the back of the boat and land on it again, and from up there the whole sweep of Okanagan Lake opens out — the city on one side, dry hills on the other. Flights go up solo, double or triple, so you can share the view rather than take it in alone. Parasailing is one of the few Okanagan activities that puts you above the lake instead of on it, and it takes no experience: the crew straps you in, lets the line out, and reels you back to the deck. The season runs April through September, with the boat out from 9 am until dusk.

Ponds Park & Trail

The Ponds Park & Trail offers over two kilometres of paved trail in Kelowna's Upper Mission with excellent views of Okanagan Lake and the city. The City describes it as flat and accessible to everyone, including people using motorized scooters or wheelchairs, which makes it one of the few view walks in the valley that everyone can share. Bring the kids for the playground in the park that overlooks the city. Dogs can come too — just make sure they are on a leash. The park is at 1213 Frost Road.

Postill Lake Lodge

Postill Lake Lodge is a lakeside-cabin and fly-fishing resort in the hills north-east of Kelowna, at 11950 Postill Lake Road. Spring is the resort’s prime season: the lake’s nutrient-rich water makes for excellent fishing, especially fly fishing, for rainbow trout and speckled brook trout, and you can bring your own boat or rent one at the lodge. Beyond Postill Lake itself, guests have wilderness access to five nearby trout lakes, including Roddy Lake, for anyone who wants to explore. Accommodation runs from lakefront cottages and lodge suites to camping and seasonal rentals, with winter stays as well; reservations are taken online. A BC freshwater fishing licence is required on all of these waters.

Robert Lake Regional Park

Robert Lake is not a park you walk through — it is a park you look at, and for birders that is exactly the point. This shallow alkaline lake in the Glenmore Valley north of Kelowna is a rare prairie-style salt flat, and its salty water draws more than 140 species, including breeding American avocets, black-necked stilts and Wilson's phalaropes that you will not find on the big lakes, along with green-winged teal, northern pintail and ruddy ducks, and a parade of shorebirds during the August migration. To protect the nesting habitat the Regional District has built no trails and allows no access to the shoreline; instead there is a small parking area at the end of Curtis Road with an information kiosk and a viewing spot, so bring a spotting scope or good binoculars and settle in. The lot is bordered by private land on both sides, so stay within the park area and approach quietly. Robert Lake is a stop on the BC Bird Trail, it is free, and it is open year-round on the regional parks' seasonal hours (6 a.m. to 6 p.m. in winter, later in summer). Spring and late summer are the seasons to come.

Rotary Marsh Park

Rotary Marsh is downtown Kelowna's wild corner: a restored wetland at the north end of Waterfront Park, beside the lakeside promenade and ringed by high-rises, where gravel paths and wooden boardwalks wind between cattails and marshy ponds. Opened in 1995 as a Rotary conservation project, it now supports around a hundred bird species, dozens of native plants and five kinds of mammal, and it is the easiest place in the city to see wildlife that is genuinely at risk in British Columbia — painted turtles basking on logs, great blue herons stalking the shallows, and a pair of ospreys that nest each summer on the platform out in the marsh. In winter, loons, grebes, hooded mergansers and diving ducks gather off the point, and a jetty lets you scan the open lake. It is a stop on the BC Bird Trail and a five-minute walk from the downtown cafés, so it slots easily into a waterfront stroll. The park is free and open year-round, and, as a wildlife refuge, no dogs are allowed.

Rutland Arena

Rutland Arena is Kelowna's public-skating workhorse: two NHL-sized sheets on Dodd Road where the City runs open public skates, parent-and-tot sessions and dedicated seniors' skates through the winter, with the season reopening each October. It is the easiest place in the city to skate without owning gear, because the rental counter carries skates, helmets and push-along skate bars, and there is sharpening on site — the same rental line (866-313-5071) can answer sizing questions before you come. Public skating is pre-booked online through the City's recreation portal up to seven days ahead; bring the confirmation email as your ticket. General admission is $4.75, with children 6 to 13 at $4, preschoolers $3 and a family pass for two adults and three kids at $12. Only the general rate is sold online, so call Active Living & Culture at 250-469-8800 in advance to pay a child or preschool rate. Also known locally as the Rutland Twin Arena.

Scenic Canyon Regional Park

Scenic Canyon is where the Mission Creek Greenway turns wild: a 229-hectare natural area in southeast Kelowna where the trails follow Mission Creek and KLO Creek beneath Layer Cake Mountain and Pinnacle Rock, two of the valley's most striking geological features. The Greenway runs right through the park — its Hollywood Road to Hydraulic Creek section is 7.1 km and rated moderate, with stairs and bridges — so it suits walkers who want more than a flat stroll, while the park's own short trails add the 1.2 km Saskatoon Trail, the 230-metre Rock Ovens Trail past the old stone ovens and the steep 240-metre Pinnacle Trail, rated difficult. The Black Bear Trail is currently closed and parts of the park are closed for hazards; obey the signs. Washrooms, picnic tables and viewpoints are in the park, and dogs are welcome on leash. Park at the end of Field Road or at the Hollywood Road South entrance; the Field Road and McCulloch Road vehicle entrances are closed from November to March, when maintenance is reduced. Hours shift with the seasons, from 6 a.m. to between 6 and 11 p.m.

Splash BC Floating Water Park – Kelowna

Splash BC’s Kelowna water park floats just off Hot Sands Beach in City Park, the green heart of downtown — a full-scale inflatable adventure course of towers, slides, climbers, balance beams and monkey bars anchored on Okanagan Lake, scaled for first-time climbers and the adults who insist they are only watching. It is open to ages five and up; children aged five to seven must be accompanied on the park by a supervising adult (19+), with discounted chaperone passes available. A day pass ($34) gives all-day come-and-go access during operating hours and an evening pass ($24) covers 5 to 7 p.m.; private sessions can be booked. The park operates through the summer season and the beach, concession and waterpark of City Park are steps away.

Stuart Park Outdoor Rink

Skating at Stuart Park is Kelowna's signature winter picture: a free outdoor rink on the downtown waterfront with Okanagan Lake and the Bennett Bridge as the backdrop, the Sails sculpture a block away and cafés and restaurants on every side. The rink opens in early December, weather permitting, and skating costs nothing — bring your own skates and a helmet, or use the rental hut, which runs from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily with kids' skates for $4, adult skates for $5, helmets for $2 and push-along EZ bars for $2. The rental shop closes when the temperature drops below −10°C, so on the coldest days come equipped. In some seasons the City has asked skaters to book a time slot online, so check the City's skating page before a holiday-week visit. Stuart Park is also home to the Winter Street Market and Light Up in the run-up to Christmas, which turns an evening skate into a full night out downtown.

Woodhaven Nature Conservancy Regional Park

Woodhaven is a peaceful forested park in Kelowna's Lower Mission where a single trail system passes through four distinct natural ecosystems — a black cottonwood zone, Douglas-fir, ponderosa pine and western red cedar — in just under 30 hectares. It is home to endangered species and a historical irrigation flume, and it is one of the few regional parks where dogs are not allowed at all, which keeps it quiet for wildlife and for walkers. The trails themselves are short — about 1.4 km of interlinked loops (Main, Perimeter, Flume, Saskatoon and the Dry and Wet Interior trails) — so this is an unhurried hour rather than a workout, and one part of the property is closed to public access. Washrooms are on site. The parking lot is off Raymer Road. Hours shift seasonally, from 6 a.m. to between 6 and 11 p.m.; maintenance is reduced from November 1 to April 1, and the park can close without notice in extreme weather such as high winds or heavy snow.

sntsk‘il’ntən–Black Mountain Regional Park

sntsk‘il’ntən–Black Mountain is a vast 640-hectare regional park on Kelowna's eastern slopes, where trails climb through endangered grasslands to open viewpoints over the city and the valley. The park carries an nsyilxcən name — the Regional District offers an audio clip to help with pronunciation — and was created through a collective effort to protect this landscape; further park development is still underway, so expect a natural, lightly built experience rather than a finished network. Seven named trails already cover about 13 km — the 3.3 km sntsk‘il’ntən Trail, the 2.7 km Grassland Trail, the 2 km Coyote and Ephemeral Pond trails, the 1.5 km Flume Trail, the 1 km Ridge Trail and the short Hoodoo Trail, rated easy to moderate — while the difficult Summit Loop is currently closed and a section of the park is closed for conservation. Dogs are welcome on leash. There is a parking area off Swainson Road, and the park can also be entered through Tower Ranch Hillside Park, with street parking on Tower Ranch Drive. Park hours shift seasonally, from 6 a.m. to between 6 and 11 p.m., with reduced maintenance from November to March.

Your trip

Outdoor Destinations in Kelowna, BC