Our favourite cycling days are ones with warm sunny weather and great scenery. We love to take time to explore interesting sites and visit inviting cafes and eateries. Sure the route could be done in one sweaty hour, but we prefer to savour the experience, taking two or three hours. And there is no place better than the North Okanagan for such indulgent and interesting cycling!
At 7:30 in the morning, when the air is still cool, we lather ourselves with sun screen, don our sunglasses, bike gloves and helmets and make sure our water bottles are full. With a copy of Greater Vernon Map Book and Guide and Greater Vernon Hiking and Biking Routes tucked in our pannier bag, we pedal east along Okanagan Landing Road, turning on 41st Avenue to 30th Street, then on to Alexis Park Drive and onto Old Kamloops Road. The road is smooth but the shoulder is very narrow. We are careful to stay as far to the right as we can and the cars pass us safely.
Not far from town we spot a sign for Swan Lake Nature Reserve Park and turn off just beside Stawn’s, a local honey farm, then ride down a short gravel road. Raptors watch us from above as we bike along a pathway through waving grasses that reach higher than us, stopping to read the information signs. We learn that Swan Lake has a rich history and these wetlands continue to be an important mecca for nesting and migrating birds as well as reptiles, amphibians and small mammals. It is a fabulous birding site especially in the spring and fall.
Back on Old Kamloops Road we pass Headbones Gallery, open to the public noon to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday. It is a private gallery of contemporary art, its experimental art as vibrant and captivating as the views from its hillside location.
Continuing along Swan Lake we gaze at the pastoral scene surrounding the still lake, then turn east of Highway 97, staying on the wide shoulder and out of the way of the fast traffic. At Highland Road we turn right heading to Swan Lake Nurseryland but the sign “open showroom” at Kekuli Bay Cabinetry/Huber’s Furniture catches our eye. We head upstairs to admire state-of-the-art kitchen cabinets and look through the window to watch furniture being made on site.
Just down the road we stop at Swan Lake Nurseryland for coffee and a snack. We walk past the overflowing bins of local cherries and apricots, and the boxes of strawberries and raspberries, through the funky gift shop to the café. I spy the homemade apple pies for $8.99, but reason such a purchase would not travel well via bike. We get a coffee and herbal tea and share a huge triple-berry biscuit for $4.80 and sit in the café that overlooks the north end of Swan Lake.
Returning to Highway 97, we cross under the over pass and ride up the bike path on the east side of the highway, connecting with Pleasant Valley Road. The undulating road is punctuated with welcomed shade and we are soon pedaling down Silver Star Road turning left on 20th Avenue and following the bike lane to 43rd Avenue, eventually finding our way back to Okanagan Landing Avenue. It’s been 30 km and a wonderful three hours of local exploration!
Moira McColl is a freelance writer and cycling enthusiast in Vernon. This is the first in her six-part Urban Wanderer series on cycling in the area, with the hope that it will encourage locals and visitors alike to explore the North Okanagan on two wheels.
