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Okanagan Lake

Teen rescued after failed attempt to swim Okanagan Lake

VERNON – A 19-year-old from Alberta was rescued from Okanagan Lake after a failed attempt to swim from Ellison Provincial Park near Vernon to the other side of the lake. RCMP called Vernon Search and Rescue at about 5 p.m., Friday, June 12, and the volunteers launched their boats. The teen was found an hour...

Province to hold public meetings on second Okanagan Lake crossing

KELOWNA - It’s at least twenty years before it will be built but the province still wants to hear what you have to say about a second lake bridge in the Central Okanagan. A press release from the Ministry of Transportation says two open houses are scheduled next week, one in Kelowna and the other...

Newest Interior beer festival promises greatness

KELOWNA – The Great Okanagan Beer Festival in Kelowna next weekend is all about the world of craft beer. The main event is Saturday, May 9 in Waterfront Park on Okanagan Lake with an estimated 2,500 people expected to sample beers from over 40 breweries. Gibbons Festivals and Events have three days of events planned...

Highflying rescuers stage exercise on Okanagan Lake

PENTICTON – Penticton Search and Rescue teamed up with RCAF 442 Squadron for a joint exercise above Okanagan Lake Saturday morning. Two local Search and Rescue swift water technicians were dropped into the lake off Three Mile Point from a hovering helicopter in a simulation of an overturned boat with survivors. “The RCAF Cormorant approached...

Backyard pools contaminating Okanagan Lake

OKANAGAN - Backyard pools are a source of fun and relaxation for many Okanagan homeowners but if improperly drained they are a source of excess chlorine and contaminants for Okanagan Lake. “Chlorine is unfriendly to the lake and the surge of people emptying their pools and hot tubs in the spring and fall adds to...

Half marathon combines wine and natural Okanagan beauty

KELOWNA – The Kelowna Wine Country Half Marathon is based on the success of a similar event held in California’s famous Napa Valley. The Napa to Sonoma Wine Country Half Marathon first combined a marathon with natural beauty and wine over a decade ago. Destination Races brought the idea to the Okanagan Valley for the...

Why this Okanagan woman took not one, but 12 polar bear dips

OKANAGAN - If you thought this week’s Polar Bear Swim participants were nuts, you won’t believe what this Okanagan mom has been doing for the past three months. Along with her sister and 14-year-old daughter, Kelowna resident Mix Hart has been taking a dip in Okanagan Lake once a week for the past 12 weeks....

PHOTOS: New Year’s Day frigid plunge into Okanagan Lake

KELOWNA - About 100 brave souls walked, waded, ran and dived into the fridge waters of Okanagan Lake at Kelowna's City Park on New Year's Day. The annual Polar Bear Swim not only tested the participants ability to survive in icy water, it was a fundraiser for the Community Recreation Initiatives Society. The icy spash...

VIDEO: Hauntingly beautiful mist rises from Okanagan Lake

KELOWNA – It doesn’t happen often because the weather conditions and the temperature of the water in Okanagan Lake have to be just right. Kelowna wedding videographer Jerry Mason posted a time-lapse video to YouTube he took last weekend of arctic sea smoke on the lake. The very cold air mass that flowed into the...

Vigilance and caution urged on lakes following tragic boating accident

VERNON – A Vernon teenager remains in critical condition in hospital after he was run over by a powerboat on Okanagan Lake Saturday evening. Miles Wohlford, 14, was with a group of friends tubing on the northern arm of the lake off Westside Road near Mary Anns Road around 6:10 p.m. RCMP Cpl. Gerry Kovacs...

Tubing teenager hit by tow boat on Okanagan Lake

VERNON – A 14-year-old local boy was critically injured in a tubing accident on Okanagan Lake near Vernon Saturday evening. RCMP Sgt. Derrick Donovan says the boy was riding a tube behind a power boat and fell off. He was struck by the boat that had been pulling the tube. It happened just after 6...

Greenway underpasses closed again

KELOWNA – The swift and rising water in Mission Creek from the spring runoff and the rain on Friday has forced the closure of the two underpasses on the Mission Creek Greenway. The trails under the Casorso Road Bridge and south side of the creek at the Gordon Drive Bridge are closed until the water...

Boaters rescued after accidental overnighter

KELOWNA – Members of Central Okanagan Search and Rescue were called to assist in the rescue of two people who became stranded after an evening of boating Monday. COSAR vice president Duane Tresnich says RCMP requested help searching a remote area of Okanagan Lake north of Rattlesnake Island after a report the engine of a...

Sunscreen and shades kind of weekend

THOMPSON-OKANAGAN — Mother Nature has a treat for us this weekend—soaring temperatures and lots of sun. Highs of 24-25 C will be highlighted by sun for much of the day today and by Sunday the entire region will be seeing highs of 28 C with more sun. We can expect to see some cloud cover...