Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park

Last updated
Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park
Half Way Bay on Lake Okanagan during Golden Hour in Winter
Canada British Columbia location map 2.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in British Columbia
Location British Columbia, Canada
Nearest city Kelowna
Coordinates 49°43′42″N119°38′21″W / 49.72833°N 119.63917°W / 49.72833; -119.63917 Coordinates: 49°43′42″N119°38′21″W / 49.72833°N 119.63917°W / 49.72833; -119.63917
Area110.38 km2 (42.62 sq mi)
Established1973
Governing body BC Parks

Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park is a provincial park within the Okanagan-Similkameen Regional District of British Columbia, Canada, focused on the mountain of the same name and located on the east side of Okanagan Lake, opposite Peachland and immediately south of the City of Kelowna. [2] The park is one of the largest in the area, covering 110.38 square kilometres (42.62 sq mi). Most of the park is only accessible by foot, horseback, bicycle, or boat as motor vehicle access is restricted to BC Parks staff and technicians servicing the three telecommunications towers in the park.

Contents

The park comprises several trails, [3] campsites (including six marine camp areas), lakes, and large areas of wilderness. Popular activities include hiking, camping, boating, mountain biking, and hunting (which is permitted).

Between 1975 and 1993, around 84.5 hectares (209 acres) of land now incorporated into Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park was donated by Dr. David Carruthers Murdoch through the Nature Trust of British Columbia. [4] [5]

Wildlife

Mule deer foraging on a late winter morning at Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park

The rugged rocky terrain is habitat for mountain goats, white-tailed deer, moose, elk, lynx, and marten. Coyote are also found in the park. Small but very important species are the blue listed western harvest mouse, Nuttall's cottontail (the furthest northerly occurrence) and spotted bat. [6]

The northern alligator lizard and western skink can be found under rocks or bark in open wooded areas while the yellow-bellied racer prefers grasslands and open fields. Other reptile species found in the park include western painted turtle, rubber boa, gopher snake, western blue racer and western rattlesnake.

The park protects habitat for bird species including the western grebe and white-headed woodpecker.

Wildfire

2003 Okanagan Mountain Park Fire 2003 Okanagan Mountain Park Fire.jpg
2003 Okanagan Mountain Park Fire

In 2003, a wildfire started in the park near Rattlesnake Island and spread quickly, eventually burning most of the park. The burned trees and other fire-related hazards posed an extreme danger and the park was closed. In 2005, the park was reopened after much cleanup work, though many burned trees still are a significant danger.

Images

Related Research Articles

Okanagan Lake Lake in British Columbia, Canada

Okanagan Lake is a large, deep lake in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada. The lake is 135 km (84 mi) long, between 4 and 5 km wide, and has a surface area of 348 km2.

2003 Okanagan Mountain Park fire

On August 16, 2003, at about 4 a.m. local time, a wildfire started via lightning strike near Rattlesnake Island in Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada. The wildfire was fueled by a constant wind and the driest summer on record up to that time. Within a few days it grew into a firestorm.

Rattlesnake Island (Okanagan Lake)

Rattlesnake Island is a small island on Okanagan Lake located directly east of Peachland, British Columbia, Canada. The land and shore surrounding the island form part of Okanagan Mountain Park. Legend has it that the lake monster, Ogopogo, lives in a cave on Rattlesnake Island earning the small land mass the nickname "Monster Island".

Bowron Lake Provincial Park Wilderness park in British Columbia, Canada

Bowron Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park located in northern British Columbia, Canada, roughly 117 km (73 mi) east of the city of Quesnel. Other nearby towns include Wells and the historic destination of Barkerville. Once a popular hunting and fishing destination, today the park is protected and known for its abundant wildlife, rugged glaciated mountains, and numerous freshwater lakes.

E. C. Manning Provincial Park

E.C. Manning Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. It is usually referred to as Manning Park, although that nomenclature is also used to refer to the resort and ski area at the park's core. The park covers 83,671 hectares and was the second most visited provincial park in 2017-18 after Cypress Provincial Park. The park lies along British Columbia Highway 3, and occupies a large amount of land between Hope and Princeton along the Canada-United States border.

Graystokes Provincial Park

Graystokes Provincial Park is a provincial park located on the border between the regional districts of Central Okanagan and North Okanagan in south-central British Columbia. It was established on 18 April 2001 to protect a large area of the ecologically diverse Okanagan Highland east of the Okanagan Valley.

sw̓iw̓s Provincial Park

sw̓iw̓s Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located on the west side of Osoyoos Lake in the town of Osoyoos, which is on the Canada-United States border at the southern end of the Okanagan region of British Columbia. Approximately 38 hectares in size, the park was originally created in 1939. The name was changed from Haynes Point to sw̓iw̓s, the original Okanagan (Syilx'tsn) name for the region, meaning "narrowing of the waters".

Height of the Rockies Provincial Park

Height of the Rockies Provincial Park is a provincial park in the Canadian Rockies of south eastern British Columbia, Canada. It is located west of the Continental Divide, adjacent to Elk Lakes Provincial Park.

Itcha Ilgachuz Provincial Park

Itcha Ilgachuz Provincial Park is a provincial park in the Chilcotin Country of British Columbia, Canada. The park is 111,977 hectares in size and contains Far Mountain and Mount Downton, its two most prominent peaks.

Kikomun Creek Provincial Park

Kikomun Creek Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada.

Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park

Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located in the Okanagan Highland east of Kelowna. It was established to protect the full elevational range of the North Okanagan Basin and North Okanagan Highlands ecosections.

Okanagan Falls Provincial Park, now officially named sx̌ʷəx̌ʷnitkʷ Provincial Park, is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located within the traditional territory of the Osoyoos Indian Band. Since time immemorial, the Osoyoos Indian Band's Okanagan ancestors have inhabited and cared for the lands and waters in their traditional territory. The park is also located within the town of Okanagan Falls, protecting the area around the waterfall of the same name, which lies below the outlet of Skaha Lake in the course of the Okanagan River.

Okanagan Lake Provincial Park

Okanagan Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. Established in 1955, the park covers a total area of 98 hectares.

Woss Lake Provincial Park

Woss Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located 75 kilometres southeast of Port McNeill, near the community of Woss, which is also known as Woss Lake.

Tweedsmuir North Provincial Park and Protected Area

Tweedsmuir North Provincial Park and Protected Area is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, which along with Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park and Entiako Provincial Park were once part of Tweedsmuir Provincial Park, then B. C.'s largest park, 9,810 square kilometres (3,790 sq mi) located in the Coast Range.

Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park

Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park is a provincial park covering parts of the eastern Kitimat Ranges, northern Pacific Ranges, and the Rainbow Range in British Columbia, Canada. It was established on May 21, 1938 to protect a vast area of pristine wilderness in the western interior of the province.

Christina Lake (British Columbia)

Christina Lake is a lake located along the Crowsnest Highway in the south-central area of British Columbia known as Boundary Country, which separates the Okanagan region from the Kootenays. It is located 23 kilometers east of Grand Forks, just 1 km north of the United States border. The region experiences very hot, dry summers which results in July and early August water temperatures averaging in the 23 °C range. Divers will experience thermoclines beginning at a depth of approximately 10 feet in the summer. The lake is renowned as the warmest tree-lined lake in British Columbia.

Vaseux Lake

Vaseux Lake is a shallow freshwater lake located along the course of the Okanagan River in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada.

Mount Seymour Provincial Park

Mount Seymour Provincial Park is a park in Vancouver, British Columbia's North Shore Mountains. With an area of 35 square kilometres, it is located approximately 15 kilometres north of Downtown Vancouver. The park, named after Frederick Seymour, was established in 1936. Mount Seymour Provincial Park provides visitors with a variety of recreational activities and animals with natural habitat.

Okanagan dry forests Temperate coniferous forest ecoregion in British Columbia, Canada and Washington, United States

Okanagan dry forests is a temperate coniferous forest ecoregion in the Pacific Northwest of North America, as defined by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) categorization system. It is closely associated with the Okanagan region of British Columbia and Washington. Only 20% of the ecosystem is still intact, and continues to be under threat for preservation due to land clearing and urban expansion, alongside the increasing threats of fire and extreme weather due to climate change.

References

  1. "Okanagan Mountain Park". Protected Planet. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
  2. "Okanagan Mountain Park". BC Geographical Names.
  3. BC Parks trail brochure
  4. Donor Spotlights, BC Parks, retrieved February 26, 2013
  5. "Land Contribution to Okanagan Mountain Park" (PDF), Visions, BC Parks Newsletter, BC Parks, 5 (2): 4, April 1994
  6. "Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park". British Columbia, Ministry of Environment. Retrieved 16 October 2013.