WELCOME TO KELOWNA
Kelowna Facts
 Population est. of 2007 is 167,596.- The Okanagan Sunflower is the official floral emblem of Kelowna. Also known as the Arrowleaf Balsamroot, the indigenous flowering plant is found only in the Okanagan area of B.C. and the Okanogan region of the state of Washington.
- The Okanagan Lake is 135 km long, between 4 and 5 km wide, and has a surface area of 351 km. The lake's assumed maximum depth is 232 meters near Grant Island (also called "Whiskey Island" or "Seagull Island" by locals), but the lake possibly goes much deeper under the shelves.
- Lake Okanagan is rumored to hold a secret: Ogopogo its own version of the Loch Ness Monster. There are still occasional sightings of the Ogopogo. The latest being: 2007: Ogopogo was seen by a retired dentist in Saturday's Kelowna Daily Courier October 13 2007. He was rowing by the Eldorado Hotel and the mouth of Mission Creek south to Pentiction when he noticed a wave from behind. There were no other boats on the lake at the time, so he looked back. He saw two or three humps come out of the water three feet. The color was brown to black and no fins swimming slowly south. He watched as it submerged leaving a wake that lasted two minutes.
- In August 2003, the Okanagan Mountain Park Fire destroyed over 25,000 hectares of forest and park land, forcing the evacuation of more than 27,000 people and destroying 239 homes.
- The Okanagan Lake Bridge opened July 19, 1958 and is the only floating structure of its kind in Canada. The pontoon section of the bridge is 2100 feet in length with each section being 200 feet long, 50 feet wide, and 15 feet deep. Each pontoon has two anchors, one on each side. They weight 70 tons each and are embedded 25 feet into the lake bottom.
- A NEW Bridge (William R. Bennett Bridge) is currently under construction alongside the existing bridge and is expected to cost $145 million.
Castanet - Kelowna’s Homepage
Welcome to Kelowna
Thompson Okanagan Tourism
Tourism Kelowna
City of Kelowna Official Website
Downtown Kelowna
Unpublished Stories of Ogopogo
Fruit Blossom & Harvest Dates
|
