Penticton

Penticton is between the Okanagan Lake in the north and Skaha Lake in the south. If the word Okanagan sets off your taste buds, then yes, this is the land of fruits and vegetables. Penticton also offers sandy beaches and a Lazy River ride. The canal connecting the two lakes will carry you slowly from one end to the other.
This is not our first visit to Penticton. We were not able to book a camp site in advance, so we decided to stay at the Penticton Lakeside Resort again. Not really the most cost effective solution, but a nice and central place to stay.

The climate and the position of the lakes favours any fruit or vegetable that require sunshine. The farms offer their products along the highway.

There is a market in Summerland, a few minutes by car north of Penticton. It is so popular that the visitors frequently cause traffic jams of epic proportions. Our primary interest are the wineries that can be reached by bicycle. A packed gravel path connects most of the wineries on the east side of Okanagan Lake. Keep in mind that the sun can really burn down on you, bring water and sun protection on your bicycle ride or walk.

The wine tasting by bicycle is actually very enjoyable, no parking problems and very relaxed. You will be able to sample more wines within a 10 kilometer stretch than your bicycle riding skills can handle

This year we visited the BC Wine Info Centre just beside the Casino. We got some valuable information about the local wineries and also picked up a Port. How else would we eat melons if not by replacing the seeds with Port wine. The BC Wine Info Centre sells wines and spirits, the selection is overwhelming.

Almost all wineries offer wine tasting and some places have a restaurant or patio to enjoy the wine and view.
Beside the wineries, we know of one distillery that produces Grappa. We found the place during our 2014 Penticton trip.

We do not endorse any of the wines on this page. We do however like their locations and decorations.

When you purchase wine while visiting the wineries, be aware that you may get some of the wines for a better price in the BC Liquor Store.
We bought two bottles during our tasting excursion and added 4 more bottles at a $3 discount from the BC Liquor Store to our wine cellar in the camping trailer. Yes, we do have a wine cellar in there.

Not the last time we will stop in Penticton. For now, we brought back a few bottles to refresh our memories until the next trip.