OKANAGAN VALLEY - British Columbia: Including the Alaska Highway - page 396

Continue beyond the beach for eight kilometers (five miles) to Kalamalka Lake Pro-
vincial Park, on the east side of the lake. Within this 978-hectare (2,420-acre) park, a
1.5-kilometer (0.9-mile) trail winds down through bunchgrass and ponderosa pines to Turtle
Head Point, while other trails lead to a low-lying wetland and lofty viewpoint.
ACCOMMODATIONS
Downtown and around the outskirts of Vernon is the usual collection of hotels and motels
of greatly varying standards. These are handy for a simple overnight stay, but to make the
most of your time in the area, book a room at Silver Star Mountain Resort.
Polson Park Motel (3201 24th Ave., 250/549-2231 or 800/480-2231,
www.polsonparkmotel.ca , $80 s, $90 d) is the least expensive of Vernon's 20-odd motels.
Across from Polson Park, the three-story motel has an outdoor pool and basic rooms.
Moving up in price and quality is Best Western Vernon Lodge (3914 32nd St., 250/
545-3385 or 800/663-9400, www.rpbhotels.com , $146-156 s or d), where stylishly decor-
ated rooms overlook an enclosed three-story tropical atrium.
Camping
Dutch's Tent and Trailer Campground, three kilometers (1.9 miles) south of downtown
(15408 Kalamalka Rd., 250/545-1023, $24-34), is a five-minute walk from Kal Beach, but
doesn't have much else going for it, as sites are close together and there's lots of highway
noise.
Two provincial parks within a 15-minute drive of downtown provide campsites. Sixteen
kilometers (10 miles) southwest of town on Okanagan Landing Road is Ellison Provincial
Park (519/826-6850 or 800/689-9025, www.discovercamping.ca , April-Oct., $30), on the
east shore of Okanagan Lake, while south along Highway 97 toward Kelowna, Kekuli Bay
Provincial Park (519/826-6850 or 800/689-9025, www.discovercamping.ca , April-Oct.,
$30-38) slopes down to a boat launch and pebbly beach on Kalamalka Lake. Although open
to the elements, it has showers and power hookups.
FOOD
The dining choices in Vernon have improved vastly in recent years, as has the coffee scene.
The best coffee joint is Bean to Cup (3903 27th St., 250/503-2222, 6am-10pm Mon.-Fri.,
6:30am-10pm Sat., 7am-10pm Sun., lunches $6.50-9), in a converted residential house with