Kelowna British Columbia Road Trip

The Trans Canada Highway

So we decided to drive to Kelowna BC from Edmonton.  We needed a break and we have not been to the Okanagan Valley for a long time. April is not always the best time to be driving as the weather can be unpredictable and we certainly experienced a variety of conditions during our drive.  We left Edmonton in a snow storm but it was clear once we reached Ponka and the rest of the drive to Banff was great.

Lac Des Arc Lake

We stayed in Banff overnight and had an opportunity to walk around town and drive to Vermillion Lakes. We decided that a stop in Banff would break up the drive. It would have been better to drive a little farther so that the second days drive would not been as long.

Vermillion Lakes Banff with Tunnel Mountain

Kicking Horse rest stop was a great place to take a comfort break. Specially after driving through the pass with snow, sleet and rain.

Rogers Pass was also lots of snow with very few places to have a rest stop so plan ahead if you are driving in the winter. Once in B.C, the road is two lanes. There are frequent passing lanes along the way but the trucks and trailers do hold the traffic up. The time zone changes at the Rogers Pass so don't forget to set you watches back one hour from Alberta time.

Before reaching Field British Columbia be sure to stop and look at the Spiral Tunnels. The trains make their way through the tunnels  are a gradual climb or descent to get over the Continental Divide. The stop was full of snow in April so we did not stop this time.

Round House 

Once you get to Sicamous you know that the weather is changing as the fruit stands start to appear. April is not the time to be shopping for fresh fruit here.

Mara Lake Rest Stop

On Mara Lake there are lots of house boats for rent. This rest stop allows for a quick break before we continue our drive.

After our seven hour drive we were ready to check into our resort. We had a condo booked at the Manteo Resort on Okanagan Lake in Kelowna.



Check out the detailed descriptions of our hiking, touring and wine tasting while in Kelowna.

Sunset from our patio on Lake Okanagan

To complete the circuit we decided to go home a different route by traveling through B.C. to Jasper, Alberta on the Yellowhead Trail. The total trip with driving around Kelowna and down to Ossoyos was about 2500 km.