Hiking in Okanagan Falls

Have you ever hiked in the Okanagan Falls area before?  Our go to hiking guru Sue Mavety sure has!  My aunt Sue has spent a number of years hiking around the hills in the Okanagan Valley.

How long have you lived in Okanagan Falls?  What attracted you to the area?  
12 years. I visited the Okanagan a lot as a child and with our children when they were young and we wanted to leave the Lower Mainland area.
 
What do you enjoy most about hiking around the Okanagan?  
The weather is normally dry as compared to hiking on the coast where I used to live.  And you get some lovely views without having to climb really high to get out of the dense vegetation that is on the coast.
 
Do you hike with an organized group and if so what is the name of the club?
Yes I belong to the Penticton Adventurers Club. (I am president at the moment)  We are a hiking/social club for people over 55 years of age.  We have over 100 members, about 70% of which are hikers.  We hike 2-3 times a week and our hikes range from rambles too strenuous in difficulty.
 
What time of the year is your most favourite time to go on a hike?
I enjoy hiking at all times of the year, they each have their own special attributes.  We hike the lower trails in the valley in the winter, but I love the snow and we do a lot of snow-shoeing with the club as well. The flowers in the spring and summer are beautiful and there are so many different varieties to see.  The golden colours of the grasses in the fall are also wonderful.  And we have seen deer, mountain sheep, bear and moose on our hikes.
 
What hikes would you recommend in OK Falls?
Being in a small town hiking is really at your doorstep.  The KVR (Kettle Valley Railway) is always an interesting "walk" as opposed to a hike.  There is lots to see along the lake and you can go north from OK Falls to Kaleden (just over 4km one way) or you can head south down the river all the way to the south end of Vaseux Lake (this is long probably close to 8km one way from the town site of OK Falls).  It is also different from the northern route as it is along the river most of the way.
 
The hike up Peach Cliff area gives some wonderful views of the valley both north to Penticton and south past McIntyre Bluff. You do not even need to go to the top to get some great views.  There are many trails but they are not signed or flagged. They are animal trails that we humans have now used enough that they are very apparent.  There is also an old mine in the area with some tunnel openings and an old quarry filled with water where they did some open-pit mining.  An old rapidly deteriorating shed with core samples is also in the area.  We usually see deer and often mountain sheep in this area as well.

 
Thank you for sharing with us Aunt Sue!!