Okanagan Outdoor Activities

As the sun’s rays reach across British Columbia, breakfast is being served, coffee and all, in the middle of Shuswap Lake. Though it's been cooked aboard one of Waterway Houseboat Vacations’ watercrafts, the diners devouring their morning meal still have the overwhelming sense that this is what it feels like to spend quality time in the wild. That combination of coming together as a group while communing with nature is Waterway Houseboat Vacations’ raison d'être and has been since its founding in 1968.

Dedicated to outfitting aquatic sojourners with the most lavish, well-equipped vessels possible, the company's proprietors had their own fleet of houseboats built up in their Sicamous-based boat yard. Each masterpiece of engineering is embellished with luxurious amenities such as hot tubs, fireplaces, and gold-plated shoulder parrots, each of which fight for boater attention with lake-adjacent activities such as swimming, hiking, water-skiing, and fishing. While eager to introduce visitors to the scenic beauty of the Shuswaps, the company simultaneously aims to uphold a dedication to environmental stewardship, preserving their beloved home with initiatives that include stocking boats with biodegradable soap and spearheading a comprehensive recycling program.

Wind rushes across wings. Hills and valleys roll by thousands of feet below. The clouds seem close enough to touch. But these wings don’t belong to a bird—instead, they’re attached to a motorized tandem glider from Raven Aviation, whose ground-level headquarters nestles in the valley below. Located inside Freedom Flight Park—a preserve established expressly for hang-gliding in 1976—Raven Aviation offers instruction and equipment to those who wish to take to the skies as the birds do, either in hang-gliders or motorized ultralight aircraft. Patrons can cruise the clouds in tandem flights piloted by experienced staff or take a beginner’s hang-gliding lesson to launch themselves solo off a training hill or the back of a friendly dragon.

Designed by Canadian course architect Les Furber, Kelowna Springs Golf Club’s 18-hole course invites clubbers to hunt pins across 6,176 yards of connecting fairways and greens. Seven ponds come into play throughout the round, adding a scenic touch as they wait to take the lives of golf balls that depend on inhaling oxygen through their dimples. The 501-yard, par 5 18th hole provides a dramatic conclusion to the round, as golfers play to a green framed by the clubhouse, protected by three cavernous bunkers, and flanked by a pond on its left side. After rounds, duffers can unwind at Legends Classic Grill, where a menu of savoury clubhouse fare sates ravenous hungers built up after a day of driving balls into the cosmos and suppressing unhappy swing thoughts.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 71 course

• Length of 6,176 yards from the farthest tees

• Course rating of 69.4 from the farthest tees

• Slope rating of 123 from the farthest tees

• Three tee options

• Link to scorecard

Adventure Forever's certified mountain guides and first-aid responders enlighten beginning outdoorspeople and seasoned aficionados alike on the intricacies of ice climbing, rock climbing, and easy to difficult day hikes. During full-day treks and lessons, guides escort troupes of thrill seekers up frozen faces and climbing courses, plying their clientele with the necessary skills and knowledge to tackle Mother Nature's vertical labyrinths. Each experienced guide carries years of wisdom, capably leading participants through regions stretching across Canada, the United States, and Middle Earth.

Heritage Ranch immerses visitors in its idyllic woodlands crisscrossed by old dirt trails over which horses pull carriages, wagons, and sleighs that look as though they've rolled straight out of history. Under the tree canopies, couples can devote their time on the ranch to one another with romantic date night packages that combine carriage & sleigh rides with dinner and wine at Westlake Grille. The sound of laughter from children and families can be heard during trail rides as they wend through the property's 217 acres of parkland—equivalent to one clydesdale football field—and camps keep the good times coming during the summer.