Elevate your local knowledge

Sign up for the iNFOnews newsletter today!

Select Region

Selecting your primary region ensures you get the stories that matter to you first.

Okanagan Lake

UPDATE: SUV plunges into Okanagan Lake near Penticton; Summerland woman killed

PENTICTON –  The driver of a SUV that plunged into Okanagan Lake from Highway 97 between Penticton and Summerland this morning has died. South Okanagan Traffic Services media spokesperson Sgt. Harold Hallett confirmed this afternoon, Jan. 4, the 42-year-old Summerland woman behind the wheel died in Penticton Regional Hospital as a result of the injuries...

Kelowna man to jump into Okanagan Lake in support of refugees

KELOWNA - “What’s a little bit of icy water compared to some of the things they’ve been through,” Alan Monk says. On Saturday morning, Monk will join at least 80 other Canadians in the Polar Swim for Refugees, an ad hoc fundraiser that started in Victoria and has caught on with swimmers in other parts of...

Kokanee numbers keep rising in Okanagan

OKANAGAN - Kokanee numbers are up from last year in all of the big valley lakes, the provincial government says. Wood Lake’s kokanee population continues to recover from a disastrous 2011 when poor in-lake conditions lead to a huge increase in fish mortality of all ages, according to a media release. Over 20,000 returned to spawn...

Knox Mountain Park under popularity pressure

CENTRAL OKANAGAN - Knox Mountain, the crown jewel of Kelowna’s park system, is under increasing pressure as its popularity grows. Use of the landmark park has jumped in all areas including vehicle use which has climbed from a daily average of 448 in 2012 to 582 in 2014. Event use has gone up as well...

Kokanee salmon population explodes in Okanagan Lake with biggest spawn in quarter century

OKANAGAN - It’s a record year for Kokanee salmon spawning on Okanagan Lake. Jason Webster, a Vernon-based fisheries biologist, says more than 300,000 shore spawners were counted during this year’s annual survey — the most in more than 25 years. “It’s turning into a cyclical thing where every four years there’s a great big run,...

Signs at boat launches encourage responsible fishing in Okanagan Lake

KELOWNA – Lovers of the lure will notice some new signs at several major boat launches in Kelowna. The signs, which are presently at launches at Sutherland Park, Water Street, Queensway, Cook Road and Cedar Creek, list the native and introduced species in the lake as well as encourage people to practice responsible fishing. “The...

RCMP marine unit focus is saving lives not writing tickets

OKANAGAN - With just one boat covering lakes throughout the southern Interior, there’s plenty of times when the long arm of the law simply ends at the lakeshore. But if you do run into the RCMP marine enforcement unit and you’re boat’s not up to snuff, they’ll be on your case, either writing you a...

VIDEO: Boaters get in way of water bombers on Okanagan Lake

KELOWNA – The forest fire burning in the Little White mountain area southeast of Kelowna has more than tripled in size today, plus efforts to fight the blazer are being hampered by boaters on Okanagan Lake. Calls about a big plume of black smoke southeast of Kelowna this morning, Aug. 27, sparked an immediate response...

Okanagan Lake water level not bad, next year could be the problem

OKANAGAN - Despite sitting smack dab in a region beset by a level four drought, Okanagan Lake is not doing too badly when it comes to water level, at least at first glance. Estimates from the natural resources ministry predict the lake won’t go down as far as it has in previous drought years. It's...

HELSTON: What you can learn from a near tragedy on Okanagan Lake

Warnings to stay safe on the water have become to summer what drunk driving campaigns are to Christmas and telephone scam alerts are to grandparents. They’re good and important messages, but ones that tend to lose their kick over time like an old wind-up toy. Organizations work hard to find new ways of connecting these...

Man injured while free diving in Okanagan Lake has died

KELOWNA - A man who was critically injured while free diving near Paul’s Tomb on Sunday has died. The B.C. Coroners Service says 27-year-old Kevin John Stephens was free diving in Okanagan Lake and had submerged for several minutes before his girlfriend, also a free diver, brought him to the surface. “After several minutes she...

Police tail prolific offender across Okanagan Lake, into the bush

VERNON - A police chase by both land and water ended with the arrest of a prolific offender in Vernon this morning. The pursuit began just after 6:15 a.m. Monday, Aug. 10, after police received a report of a suspect on Okanagan Lake near Lakeshore Road. The man had commandeered a Zodiac boat and was...

Water meters help keep lid on consumption in Kelowna

KELOWNA - As the province deals with the one of the most widespread droughts on record, municipalities and other water providers are increasingly looking for ways to alter consumption patterns amongst their users. While staged watering restrictions can force short term changes in use, the gold standard for long term change is the water meter,...

Urgent dredging at busy boat launch put off until fall

KELOWNA - A mechanical failure in specialized equipment has forced the City of Kelowna to reschedule urgent dredging at the Cook Road boat launch. The city announced just two days ago it’s largest boat launch would close for a week at the height of the boating season, but now says the work will have to...

Winter storms close Kelowna’s busiest boat launch at the height of summer

KELOWNA - Stormy weather last winter has left behind a sandbar in Okanagan Lake big enough to shut down the city’s busiest boat launch. Located near the mouth of Mission Creek, the Cook Road boat launch will be closed for a week at the height of the summer boating season for dredging, park planning manager...

Possibly missing hiker or hikers in Okanagan Mountain Park

KELOWNA – RCMP have a mystery on their hands as they investigate a possible missing persons case involving camping equipment found abandoned in Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park. Police say a tent and a cooler were discovered near the shore of Okanagan Lake, south of Commando Bay between Goode’s Creek and Van Hyce Beach in the...