If you’re looking for a new trail to hike in the Okanagan head on over to Rose Valley Regional Park in West Kelowna. This park offers trails for all levels, and is dog and bike friendly!
What to Expect?
There are a few different entrances to start your hiking adventure on.
- Main access is on Westlake Road near the pond and Rose Valley Elementary School, with a parking lot to the south of the pond and across from the West Kelowna fire hall.
- Gated parking lot (closed during winter months) at Westlake Road and Starlight Crescent
The park is open from dusk to dawn; you can check out the exact times depending on the time of year you go here. One of the great things about this hike is the amount of options you have for your adventure! This park offers 12 different trails ranging in difficulty from easy to hard. The best part is that most trails come with spectacular views making this a great choice for beginners, and plenty of benches along the way for a picnic.
One thing to note is that no matter the trail you choose, it will take at least an hour to an hour and a half to complete at walking speed.
Our Experience at Rose Valley Regional Park
When we first got there we actually didn’t realize there were different trails to take! We started up on the path pictured above and took the first left. This put us on a steep uphill climb. There was a map at the next flat section telling us where we were, where the view points in the park were, the trails to get there and their difficulty. After the climb up, we decided to do an easy trail and maybe switch if we felt we could handle a challenge.
Disclaimer: Just because I write about trails, does not fit by any means! I was out of breath and bent over after the short climb up, while small children ran by.
We took the trail called Yellow Bell, which we followed until we came across the map for a second time. This time we decided to switch over to Bitterroot trail after some advice from fellow hikers. Bitterroot trail is steep in some sections making it moderate in difficulty. I’m so glad we rose to the challenge! The view points on Bitterroot are amazing! We were treated to stunning views of Okanagan lake, as well as Rose Valley lake.
Final Thoughts
We will definitely be coming back to try out some of the other trails! There are maps along the way letting you know where you currently are on the trails, which is helpful when deciding on what lookout points you want to see! Signs are posted every few meters, telling you what trail you’re currently on. This is especially helpful when you’re not sure which way to turn at a fork in the trail. However, be prepared to get lost! We ended up getting lost at the very end, which luckily only tacked on an extra ten minutes. You can find GPS enabled maps for this park here.
For more outside adventures check out my post on Kelowna’s hidden outdoor gym, and enjoy Discovering Kelowna!