Okanagan |
First Nations people
have lived in the Okanagan Valley for 3500 to 4000 years. They were a hunting and gathering society. One of the main
villages was located on the east bank of Okanagan River, the name Penticton
is derived from them and can be translated as "A Place to Stay
Forever".
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David Stuart established Fort Okanagan at the junction of the
Okanagan and Columbia Rivers in 1811. In 1849 the settlement around Okanagan officially became
a British Colony.
Okanagan Valley has the best climate in Canada. It is with low levels of precipitation,
high average temperatures, comfortable humidity levels, short winters and early
spring seasons.
Sunshine predominates here, even in the Winter. Many farmers from Manitoba came into fruit farming in the communities of
Peachland, Summerland and Naramata at the end of 19th century.
The Kelowna area’s cash crop used to be tobacco, but after the
post-First World War slump, those farmers switched to fruit. By 1900 the Okanagan had over 1 million
fruit trees growing. After while the orchard
industry started to become somewhat profitable. This area has recently become Canada's
"fruitbasket." The Okanagan now
grows about 1/3 of all of Canada’s apples. The surrounding hills display a picturesque combination of orchards and
vineyards. Colourful fruit stands line the highway, offering a diversity of taste
throughout the long summer months. No other area can match the taste the juiciness of our local fresh fruits.
Ogopogo, Canada's most famous water monster lives in Lake Okanagan. Indian
legends support a monster living in Okanagan Lake long before
white men arrived in this country. There are archival records of Ogopogo's existence going back to 1872. Unlike the Loch Ness Monster, sightings have been reported of a creature some 20 to 50 feet
long, with a horse shaped head and an undulating serpent like body almost every year.
Okanagan Lake offered a long, calm stretch of water suitable for
navigation.The SS Sicamous was launched and went into service
in 1914, just in time to carry many of the early settlers off to World War I. Queen
of the fleet of Okanagan Lake boats, she was 200.5 feet, steel-hulled and had a
gross tonnage of 1785.65. The SS Sicamous had been built in Ontario and
assembled at Okanagan Landing. The SS Sicamous is berthed in Penticton and is
open to the public.
Small towns of the valley offer their charm and friendliness. It is a great place to work, live and
invest in a new or existing business.