It's still winter here, but I'm thinking ahead to next spring and summer and our next adventures. I think Okanagan Slow Road might be the guide book for next summers adventures.
Okanagan Slow Road by Bernadette McDonald is a book we received as a housewarming gift when we moved to Kelowna two summers ago. It's a fresh approach to touring; providing some lesser known routes and regions to explore. This book also sums up the Okanagan Lifestyle perfectly. This is a region where the residents can chose to enjoy a relaxed day at the beach, a drive along the winding mountain roads, an adrenaline raising adventure, or some world class food and wine....sometimes even combining two or more of these things in the same day.
I've always been a fan of taking the slower route, I'd rather take a back road than rush along the busy highway so this book really works for me. With 39 different routes/areas of interest, it has unique ideas of places to see from Enderby down to Osoyoos. I enjoyed that this book doesn't just focus on wineries, as many guidebooks and websites dedicated to the Okanagan do, but instead has a balance of outdoor activities, farms, cafes, and wineries - really giving a good selection of some of the best that this area has to offer. This book has a mix of photographs and painted illustrations showing some of the beauty of the valley to go along with the written descriptions. This book also lists farmers markets and wineries in the appendix and the author shares some favourite recipes using fruits and vegetables found in the Okanagan Valley.
As I am flipping through the book again writing this I think I really should be keeping this book in my car for when I start making visits to schools as part of my job - often I have sometime to kill between visits and don't know what to do with my time. I'm bookmarking the sections on downtown Penticton and the section on Vernon - both places I travel to regularly.
Okanagan Slow Road doesn't contain maps and the directions to places are pretty vague so be sure to pick up a map (or charge your GPS unit) before you head out, and of course be sure to double check that the cafes in the book are still in operation. If there is one thing I have come to realize in this area its that restaurants open, close, rename and rebrand almost over night.
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