Okanagan Lake ( oka, kɬúsx̌nítkw) is a

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

in the

Okanagan Valley The Okanagan ( ), also known as the Okanagan Valley and sometimes as the Okanagan Country, is a region in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. It is part ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada. The lake is long, between wide, and has a surface area of 348 km² (135 sq. mi.).

Hydrography

Okanagan Lake is called a

fjord lake In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Icela ...

as it has been carved out by repeated glaciations. Although the lake contains numerous lacustrine terraces, it is not uncommon for the lake to be deep only offshore. Major inflows include

Mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

, Vernon, Trout, Penticton, Equesis, Kelowna, Peachland and Powers Creeks. The lake is drained by the

Okanagan River The Okanogan River (known as the Okanagan River in Canada) is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately 115 mi (185 km) long, in southern British Columbia and north central Washington. It drains a scenic plateau region called th ...

, which exits the lake's south end via a canal through the city of

Penticton Penticton ( ) is a city in the Okanagan Valley of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada, situated between Okanagan and Skaha lakes. In the 2016 Canadian Census, its population was 33,761, while its census agglomeration The ce ...

Skaha Lake Skaha Lake is a freshwater lake, through which the Okanagan River flows, in the Okanagan region of south central British Columbia. Along the shoreline are Penticton (north), Kaleden (west), and Okanagan Falls (south). Name origin The lake was labe ...

, whence the river continues southwards into the rest of the South Okanagan and through

Okanogan County, Washington Okanogan County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington along the Canada–U.S. border. As of the 2020 census, the population was 42,104. The county seat is Okanogan, while the largest city is Omak. Its area is the largest in ...

to its confluence with the Columbia. The lake's maximum depth is near

Grant Island Grant Island is an ice-covered island, long and wide, lying east of the smaller Shepard Island off the coast of Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica. Like Shepard Island, Grant Island is surrounded by the Getz Ice Shelf on all but the north side. Gran ...

(Nahun Weenox). There are three other islands: one known as

Rattlesnake Island Rattlesnake Island refers, variously, to the following places: United States * Rattlesnake Island (Clear Lake), in Lake County, California * A previous name for Terminal Island, in Los Angeles County, California * Rattlesnake Island (New Hampshire ...

, much farther south by Squally Point. The other two are near Grant Island. They are unnamed and are located just north of the north-point of Whisky Cove at Carrs Landing. Some areas of the lake have up to of glacial and post-glacial sediment fill which were deposited during the

Pleistocene Epoch The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was finally confirmed in ...

. Notable features of the

include terraces which were formed due to the periodic lowering of the lake's predecessor, glacial

Lake Penticton A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...

. These terraces are now used extensively for agriculture such as fruit cultivation.

Geographical context

Cities bordering the lake include Vernon in the north,

in the south, and

Kelowna Kelowna ( ) is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the head office of the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The name Kelowna derives from the Okanagan word ''ki� ...

, as well as the municipalities of

Lake Country Lake Country is a district municipality with a population of approximately 15,000 in the Okanagan Valley region of British Columbia, Canada. It is a part of the Central Okanagan Regional District, and of the Kelowna metropolitan area. The city ...

(north of Kelowna),

West Kelowna West Kelowna, formerly known as Westbank and colloquially known as Westside, is a city in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley. The city encompasses several distinct neighbourhoods, including Casa Loma, Gellatly, Glenrosa, Lakeview Heights, Shan ...

(west of Kelowna),

Peachland Peachland is a district municipality in the Okanagan Valley on the west side of Okanagan Lake in British Columbia, Canada. It was founded in 1899 by John Moore Robinson, although the region had long been home to the Okanagan people. Peachland is ...

(south of West Kelowna), and Summerland (north-west of Penticton). Unincorporated communities include

Naramata Naramata is an unincorporated community in the Okanagan region of south central British Columbia. On the eastern shore of southern Lake Okanagan, the locality is by road about north of Penticton. Name origin In November 1906, John Moore Robinso ...

(north-east of Penticton). Various lake features include

(a small island east of

), Squally Point (a popular cliff-diving area) &

Fintry Delta Fintry is a small community in British Columbia, Canada. It lies on the west shore of Okanagan Lake, north of the city of Kelowna, and south of Vernon. It has about 50 homes and is at the bottom of a three kilometre steep windy road off West Si ...

on the west side. The five-lane

William R. Bennett Bridge The William R. Bennett Bridge is a pontoon bridge in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada. Completed on May 25, 2008, the bridge replaced the older Okanagan Lake Bridge built in 1958 to link Downtown Kelowna to West Kelowna across Oka ...

, a floating bridge with a high boat passage

arch An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vaul ...

connects

to the city of

and the community of Westbank. This bridge replaced the three-lane floating

Okanagan Lake Bridge The Okanagan Lake Bridge (also known as the Kelowna Floating Bridge) was a three-lane, long floating bridge in British Columbia, Canada. It crossed Okanagan Lake, connecting the Westside area to Kelowna on the lake's eastern side. Taller boa ...

on May 30, 2008, which had a lift span for passage of large boats.

Steamboats of Lake Okanagan

During the early days of settlement and development of the

Okanagan The Okanagan ( ), also known as the Okanagan Valley and sometimes as the Okanagan Country, is a region in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. It is part ...

region, the lack of roads in the region made the lake a natural corridor for passenger travel and freight. The

Canadian Pacific Railway Lake and River Service The Canadian Pacific River Lake and River Service, also known as the British Columbia Lake and River Service, was a division of Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) which began operating passenger and cargo shipping routes along British Columbia's inl ...

was the main carrier on the lakes, providing freight and passenger connections between

, on the

Kettle Valley Railway The Kettle Valley Railway was a subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) that operated across southern British Columbia, west of Midway running to Rock Creek, then north to Myra Canyon, down to Penticton over to Princeton, Coalmont, Br ...

(the Southern Mainline) and

Okanagan Landing Okanagan Landing was an unincorporated settlement and steamboat port at the north end of Okanagan Lake in the Southern Interior of British Columbia. Located southwest of the city of Vernon, it was the terminus station for the Shuswap and Okanaga ...

( Vernon) for connections to the CPR Mainline at

Sicamous Sicamous is a district municipality in British Columbia located adjacent to the Trans-Canada Highway at the Highway 97A junction, where Mara Lake empties into Shuswap Lake via a short narrows. Sicamous is a resort town about halfway between Calg ...

via the Shuswap and Okanagan Railway. Smaller vessels such as the SS ''Naramata'' provided passenger service to smaller settlements around the lake, as well as excursions for tourists.Penticton Museum displays, and heritage signs at the Okanagan Lake Heritage Shipyard on Okanagan Beach in Penticton. Aberdeen (sternwheeler)

Vessels

* (freight) * (luxury-class passenger service) * (luxury-class passenger service) * (luxury-class passenger service) * (sternwheeler) * SS ''Naramata'' (excursion and water-taxi) * (''Fintry Queen'', excursion and water-taxi) * - 1950-1960 (''Bowen Queen'' 1960-1965, MV ''Vesuvius Queen'' 1965-1998) * (steel ferry) * (steam tug) * (steam tug) * (ferry) * (ferry) * (1919 ferry) * (1923 ferry) *'' Canadian National Tug no. 6'' (diesel tug) *'' Canadian National Tug no. 5'' (tug) * MV ''Kelowna-Westbank'' (ferry) * (1912 ferry) * (1906 ferry) * (ferry) * (ferry) *'' Colleen'' (rowboat) * (ferry) * (ferry) * (ferry) * (tug) * (early steamship) *'' Ruth Shorts'' (rowboat) * (early steamship) * (early steamship)

Landings

* Summerland *

Okanagan Mission Father Pandosy Mission, also known as the Okanagan Mission, was the original home for Father Pandosy in Kelowna, British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pa ...

( Vernon) *

Fintry Fintry is a small riverside village in Stirlingshire, central Scotland. Landscape The village of Fintry sits on the strath of the Endrick Water in a valley between the Campsie Fells and the Fintry Hills. The name Fintry is said to have deri ...

Carr's Landing Carr's Landing, officially Carrs, is a neighbourhood and formal ward in District Municipality of Lake Country, which is located in the Okanagan region of British Columbia, Canada. It is located by the Okanagan Lake, east of Grant Island, and no ...

* Ewing (Ewing's Landing) * Killiney Beach

Recreation

Many parks and beaches are found along the shores of the lake, which make boating and swimming very popular activities. The lake is home to several species of fish, including

rainbow trout The rainbow trout (''Oncorhynchus mykiss'') is a species of trout native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead (sometimes called "steelhead trout") is an anadromous (sea-run) form of the coasta ...

and kokanee. It is said by some to be home to its own lake monster – a giant serpent-like creature named

Ogopogo In Canadian folklore, the Ogopogo is a lake monster said to inhabit Okanagan Lake in British Columbia, Canada. Some scholars have charted the entity's development from First Nations folklore and widespread water monster folklore motifs. The O ...

Images

File:Maude Roxby Wetlands sunset.jpg, Maude Roxby Wetlands sunset File:Okanagan Lakeshore at Boyce-Gyro Beach on a Winter Afternoon.webm, Boyce-Gyro Beach on a Winter Afternoon File:Swimmers in Peachland.jpg, Swimmers in Peachland File:Half Way Bay on Lake Okanagan during Golden Hour in Winter.webm, Half Way Bay during Golden Hour in Winter File:Okanagan Lake.jpg, Clouds over Okanagan Lake

References

External links

Bacon Magazine: The Ogo PogoGallery of Okanagan Lake steamboats
* {{Authority control Okanagan Lake Lakes of the Okanagan Articles containing video clips Osoyoos Division Yale Land District