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The Gay and Lesbian Travel Center |
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The Hawaiian Night Before Christmas Children's Book
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Pick Your Own Canada’s Okanagan Is Ripe For Gay Getaways by Don Pretzer
For sun and fun in Western Canada, look to British Columbia’s stunning lake district - the Okanagan. Gay friendly, affordable, and accessible - this resort destination has a great selection of leisure and adventure throughout the year.
BEST BETS: Three Mile Road Beach (Penticton/Naramata) a gay friendly nude beach, and a spa treatment.
TOWN AND COUNTRY
LIVING - If a majority of today’s Okanagan residents live in-town
(Kelowna, Vernon, and Penticton), they enjoy the
Immigrants from Europe, South Africa, South Asia, and East Asia have each added their traditions to food markets. Quality beef, venison, goat, lamb, elk, bison, beefalo, wild boar, goose, suckling pig, trout, and salmon are destined for area fine restaurants and abroad. Goat and cattle dairies produce award winning craft cheeses. BEST BETS - Wood crafts and carvings, lavender, pepper sauces, salsas, syrups and jams, specialty soaps, smoked and candied salmon, local honey and products from beeswax, and a wide array of traditional breads at local farmers markets. Forget about diets and discover the Nanaimo bars, tiger ice cream, and butter tarts.
BEST BETS: Wine tastings and tours, brewery tours, and the Fall Wine Festival in October.
CANADIAN FRONTIER
LIFE - A century ago it
was gold that lured
BEST BETS: Hearty Ukrainian and vegetarian Dukhobor foods, cedar planked salmon, First Nations art and sculpture, steam train rides, shopping for artic diamond, ammonite, opal, and jade jewelry, fancy dancing at powwows, and touring mining towns and historic ranches.
BUFF AND BLUFFS
- On
land and water, there are great places to pursue traditional and extreme
sports. For winter sports - hockey rules, and both Vernon and Kelowna
have championship teams with fine new home arenas. Golf takes honours
with the amazing number of excellent BEST BETS: Summer and winter at Silver Star Mountain Resort, near Vernon, with the colorful Victorian inspired village and year round population (dual mountain season passes and multi-day tickets with Big White Ski Resort near Kelowna); late ski season – ski in the morning at Silver Star Mountain Resort or Big White Ski Resort then head on to a valley golf course the same day; Cycle the Naramata bench and lower Kettle Valley trail whenever the weather is nice and stop at local wineries for tours and wine tasting.
HONEYMOONS AND SUITE DREAMS - Gay couples from around the world come to British Columbia to be married, and the Okanagan offers both the wedding and honeymoon facilities for this occasion. Centrally located in the heart of the Okanagan region, Kelowna International Airport (YLW) ranks eleventh in Canada, with expanded facilities and a number of new domestic and international flights.
From Osoyoos on
the US border up to Vernon and the Northern end of
Kelowna (grizzly bear in the Interior Salish Language), has the most gay owned accommodations - some clothing optional and pet friendly, as well as the largest number of rooms at gay friendly hotels. This college town has a vibrant theatre, dance, art and music scene. Prospera Place Arena hosts major music tours and championship hockey. Nearby Big White Ski Resort is Canada’s largest totally ski-in / ski-out resort village. Kelowna also has the largest number of gay owned businesses in the region; those in the market for vintage 60s and 70s fabric should head over to Fabricfinders to see Rick Neyts treasure trove. Check out original western wildlife and erotic cowboy themed art at Marc Houde's Saddleup Art at the Kelowna Farmers Market and nearby Discover Wines Ltd. - both on Springfield Road.
Vernon - at the north end of Okanagan Lake, has an active lesbian and gay community, great fine and casual dining, and a range of art galleries. For one-of-a-kind rainbow motifs in stained glass, stop by Seasons Garden Gifts downtown on 30th Avenue. Gay owned and gay friendly accommodations are ideally situated to experience both the downtown nightlife and summer and winter outdoors at Silver Star Mountain Resort.
Penticton - at the south end of Okanagan Lake, is the meeting place for lesbians and gay men in the southern part of the region, many of the best beaches, and is central to most vineyards and wineries. BEST BETS: Kelowna, Vernon, and Penticton each have a Lake City Casino - so in between all the shopping, adventures, leisure, and dining you can try your luck and maybe come home with more money than you started with!
Alaska/Horizon Airlines, Air Canada, and Westjet Airlines offer international and domestic connections to Kelowna. Go to www.gayokanagan.com for the Okanagan Rainbow Coalition’s web site and more vacation ideas.
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THE
OKANAGAN LAKE DISTRICT - Long, deep lakes
set in mountain valleys, moderate temperatures, plus a sunny, arid
climate are a perfect combination. Near the US border, the Okanagan
holds Canada’s only true desert - with unique vegetation, wildlife, and
natural features. Above, mountains and plateaus are forested with
ponderosa pines hiding smaller wilderness lakes. Along with its heritage
of native and Canadian frontier life, championship sporting venues, and
town and country living - this natural setting holds a wealth of spa
retreats and resort destinations.
country
life. Fruit orchards, vineyards, and horse stables are often as
close, or closer, than a gas station. “A chef’s ultimate
playground”, this region has long been known for developing improved
varieties of hazelnuts, apples, cherries, pears, peaches, and apricots.
The cornucopia of produce includes selections of melons, strawberries,
asparagus, garlic, and culinary lavender. Farms are taking on a
whole new look with expanding fields of ginseng, lavenders, Echinacea,
and wine grapes.
BACCHUS,
BEERS, AND FESTIVALS - Check the calendar
for local festivals devoted to wines and lagers. Much of the Okanagan’s
growing reputation world-wide comes from its acclaimed wines. Its most
famous products are red and white ice wines, produced from frozen grapes
with higher sugar content for dessert wines. There are also excellent
ales and lagers brewed locally, plus ciders and other distilled spirits.
Other attractions include music festivals - check out the one devoted to
Elvis, vintage sport boats, car and truck rallies.
adventurers
from the Pacific Coast, Canadian Prairies, and the US Pacific Northwest
to the lands of the Shuswap and Okanagan First Nations. Today, native
and frontier life and cultures are more than a memory. Try your luck
gold panning or hunting for local jade and opals. Head to Armstrong for
the weekly farm auctions, selling a range of vintage wares as well as
produce and animals. The Interior Provincial Exposition, specialty
livestock shows, rodeos, powwows and salmon feasts, horse and dogsled
races celebrate local traditions. Explore regional museums for the
unique histories of Japanese, Chinese, Ukrainian, and Russian Dukhobor
histories.
courses throughout the region. There are three choice ski mountains for
downhill snow sports and mountain biking in summer, as well as excellent
snowmobile, cross country ski, and snowshoe trails to explore. The Skaha
Bluffs are easily accessible and perfect for rock climbing. Lake
Okanagan hosts the only Canadian leg of the Wake Board World Cup
competition, and many of the lakes provide great conditions for water
ski buffs. Head to Penticton for super fit Ironman Triathlon. Kelowna
hosts marathon races and the Knox Mountain Hill Climb car race, and the
annual dragon boat races. For white water kayaking, head over to the
upper Shuswap River near Mabel Lake or over to the Silmilkameen River.
Okanagan
Lake there are an impressive range of gay owned and gay welcoming
accommodations. Oliver and Kaleden feature more exclusive
accommodations that welcome lesbian and gay customers to architecturally
unique estates. A different sort of country setting with orchards and
pastures between Kelowna and Vernon offers gay men bed and breakfast
lodging with clothing optional relaxation.
