Okanagan Desert & Valley B.C.

When people think of Canada, we’re sure that “desert” is not at the top of the list of descriptors. But there is in fact a desert in western Canada. And we found it. And it was beautiful!

 

Not sure what these crops are, but the land is all fertile from the irrigation. They pull water from the lakes and rivers and then just about anything seems to grow fine. But it’s obvious where there is irrigation and where it stops. We were told that the irrigation systems are turned on several times each day.

One constant on our trip south was trains. Not sure who’s following who, but the trains ran all the time!

Complete with mesas, steppes and very sparse vegetation

On the way North through BC, we stopped and camped at a small town named Terrace. We camped next to a couple from BC whose daughter had just moved to Terrace. After giving us lots of great advice about places to stay and routes to take, they offered us a place to park at their house on the way back south. They live in the town of Savona on Savona Lake. And it was beautiful!

Although they claimed the water was nice and warm, we decided that their thermostats were a little out of adjustment. Warm for Canada, maybe! But we did swim for the afternoon. After a while, the water felt good as a relief from the heat. Lyn and Louisa stayed in the water longer; I quit after a while and helped Bill do some wiring on their camper.

Nice view!

They have even installed a 30 amp RV outlet on the outside of their garage!

Hmm – thinking there might be a mosquito issue here?

The lake is huge!

Lots of toys on the lake. We drove through here on the Saturday of Labor Day weekend. Canadians celebrate and it’s their last long weekend before winter starts so it seems like everyone was out camping. So we decided to make a run for the border rather than linger too long.

A large campground along the edge of the lake. We never saw a road leading down the hill but it looks like a nice spot!

Float planes – they’re everywhere!

Lots of crops, all on irrigated land.

Given the desert conditions, it shouldn’t be too surprising that there is a strong rodeo culture in the area.

We didn’t see many sailboats on our trip. This was one of the few lakes large enough to make it attractive. Of course, several sailboats equals a race. In this case, it was a full on regatta.

At the south end of the valley, the landscape turned lush with vineyards and orchards everywhere. One frustrating aspect is that we were headed to the border and no fresh fruits or vegetables are allowed across. So we passed up all the stands. And, like just about every other car and camper, we were stopped and searched for fruits and vegetables! Then on the US side of the border – no fruits, no vegetables. Bummer!

 

But if not…