Bear Creek Hike

Where:

• Bear Creek

 

When:

• July 20, 2020

 

Who:

• Ed, Jace, Jamie, Vicki

 

Trailhead:

• a ten minute drive from downtown Kelowna
• head south on Highway 97 across the bridge
• take the Westside Road turnoff along the west side of Lake Okanagan for about five minutes (7 km)
• the parking lot is on the left-hand side just before you cross the bridge to the Bear Creek Provincial Park beach and camping site

 

 

Degree of difficulty:

• 120 meters of elevation
• 2 km round trip for the loop, but we added on a section that went out an old road to an abandoned orchard that added another 2 km
• 2 hours total time on the trail
• we did the loop in a counter-clockwise direction
• a steep but short climb up the stairs at the start gets the lungs opened up
• after you cross the bridge in the upper part of the canyon and climb the south embankment, we detoured off onto a horse trail that led up the valley to another valley that contained the abandoned orchard which was an interesting and unexpected discovery
• there are railings and safety fences to protect people from falling into the canyon, so it’s a safe hike for all levels of ability

 

 

Interesting notes:

• this is a short hike if you only make the loop
• beautiful views of the canyon, Lambly creek, and waterfalls as well as sweeping views of Lake Okanagan, Knox Mountain, and downtown Kelowna
• we came across an abandoned orchard that had saskatoon berry, Oregon grape, maraschino cherry, and red currants
• we also saw Indian paintbrush and a few other wildflowers along with the unique bark of the bull pine tree
• there is a road up the north side of the creek that leads up to a lumber site
• near the end of the hike and off to the right is a large tree with an osprey nest in it
• there is an outhouse at the trailhead and halfway around the loop
• the creek was named Bear River in 1833 by David Douglas of fir tree fame, although the official name is Lambly Creek