On the roads of British Columbia
2024
Highlights of the trip
During your stay you can enjoy the following highlights: Culture / Heritage, Faune and flora, Discovery, Adventure / Sports & Leisure.
Best times to go
The best time(s) to go is/are : Printemps, Eté.
Where to stay - Vancouver ?
The map of your stay "On the roads of British Columbia"
Detail of the stay : On the roads of British Columbia
How to get there - Vancouver
On the road to Coquihalla
Steps: Kamloops
Just for the pleasure of taking Coquihalla, a highway known for its length and endless coasts, the trip between Vancouver and Kamloops should be made (in winter, plan special equipment, snowfall is frequent and unpredictable).
Wells Gray Park and Helmcken Falls
Steps: Wells Gray Provincial Park
Take the Yellowhead Highway (n° 5) northwards and follow the Thompson River to get to Wells Gray Provincial Park. When you get there, discover the many falls. The most majestic are certainly those of Helmcken, very popular for wedding photos. Two and a half times higher than Niagara Falls, they are as tall as the largest contemporary buildings in Vancouver (141 metres).
Places of interest : WELLS GRAY PROVINCIAL PARK
In the footsteps of immigrants
Steps: Revelstoke
Returning south, then east after Kamloops; Stop at Salmon Arm, along Shuswap Lake. With more than 1,000 km of waterways, the region has about thirty provincial parks and discoveries just as much, if not more. The town is known for the salmon migration and, in October, attracts crowds around the Adams River. Then, continue to the most Italian city in the west: Revelstoke. Stop at the town's pub and dance to country that tells the story of immigrants.
Around Okanagan Lake
Steps: Silver Star Mountain
Before heading south, make a detour to the north to see the Revelstoke Dam: 175 metres high. Then, descend to Vernon: welcome to Okanagan! The city is very cosmopolitan, but is of little interest, unless you continue to Silver Star resort, whose chairlift remains open in summer and allows you to reach its peak. Then, join Kelowna by the road located west of Okanagan Lake; The view is much better and more savage there. The town of "grizzly bear", in Salish dialect, is a little victim of its own success. The beaches are often overcrowded, and architects wonder.
Osoyoos, agricultural territory
Steps: Osoyoos
The heart of Okanagan is known for its orchards and its vineyards. You will then be spoiled for choice. Vancouverites spend many weekends there to gather fresh fruit and promote agriculture in the province. It is the other desert of the interior of British Columbia: Osoyoos holds the record for Canada's drought, with an average of 25 cm of rain per year. Proclaimed to be "the Spanish capital of Canada", Osoyoos enjoys ideal conditions for growing exotic fruits.
Penticton and its relaxed atmosphere
Steps: Summerland
Penticton, "a place to stay forever," offers more than 10 hours of daily sunshine in summer, exceeding Honolulu in this. The "fishing town" lives by its tourism, its festivals and its beaches. Discover the other wine and fruit growing undertakings of Summerland and Peachland.
Fruit tasting in Keremeos
Keremeos is another centre of fruit farming (cherries, apricots, peaches, pears, apples, plums), and wine tasting is a must there. Take your time.
Princeton and gold seekers
You arrive in Princeton after passing through the village of Hedley, a hamlet formerly inhabited by gold seekers and other adventurers. The western Canada is also the exciting story of the gold rush.
Manning Provincial Park and Similkameen Valley
Steps: Manning Provincial Park
E. C. Manning Provincial Park is rich in mountains, lakes and forests. Take the time to stop there and take one of its marked trails, including that of Rhododendron Flats. Continue to the viewpoint of the Cascades, where you will overlook the Similkameen valley and its natural amphitheatres of mountains.
