brendantravellog

[brendantravellog]

Kelowna

Saturday

Leading up to our trip to BC’s interior, we were concerned we might need to call it off due to the multitude of wildfires plaguing the area. Fortunately, as we got closer to our travel date, the fires seemed to be avoiding Kelowna.

The morning of our trip, we packed our bags, stopped by Livia cafe for breakfast, and were on our way. While the drive began well, we were soon delayed by the horrible traffic between Langley and Abbotsford. Quite a bit frustrated, we finally made it out of the traffic jam after half an hour and were on on way with only a couple of restroom and gas stops.

We made it to Kelowna around 5 and ventured to the Eastern edge of the city to our AirBnB in Rutland. The basement suite was quite lovely with a private entrance, a large bedroom, an comfortable great room and kitchen, and a washroom with laundry machines. 

We dropped off our stuff and quickly headed back to downtown Kelowna for dinner, as I foolishly only had a pastry for breakfast. We found a cool looking spot called Gather that had Korean and Italian food, but without a reservation, we weren’t getting in. Instead we wandered over to BNA Brewing which had a small food stand inside called BoxcAr. Ivy had a Noodle Salad while I had a Root Beer Pork Banh Mi, both of which were delicious. 

After dinner we walked around the area a bit before retreating from the heat back to our car and our suite.

Sunday 

We slept in a little bit, but not so late to miss out on our planned hike in the morning. We were on our way to the Myra Canyon Trestle Trail along Kettle Valley Railway, but got fed up once we realized we’d have to drive on a gravel logging road for several kilometers. We quickly turned back and parked at the KLO Creek Regional Park and walked along the creek for a couple of hours. 

It was a nice hike, but we were pretty famished afterwards because we skipped breakfast, so we headed into town and stopped by Bright Jenny Coffee Roasters for a muffin and some cold brew coffees. It was a really nice space in an industrial area with a relaxed vibe to it. 

After our coffees, we drove around and checked out the hilltop residences to kill some time before going to see a movie to beat the heat a bit. We watched Old by M. Night Shayamalan (check out my other blog for my review). After some groceries, we went out for an early dinner at Salt & Brick, a tapas restaurant with a rotating menu. We had a Lobster Roll, Confit Duck, Yam and Salami Waffle Cone, and Fried Halloumi, which were all really tasty. Afterwards we stopped for some Frozen Yogurt at TRU in the Mission District. 

Monday

Ivy had a short Zoom class Monday morning with a student trying to brush up before a quiz, so we stopped by Third Space Coffee in the Landmark development for a quick breakfast. We both had Nitro Cold Brews and Chocolate Croissants, which were underwhelming. However, the outdoor patio space was incredible and allowed us the chance to chill before her class.

Amazingly, the class only lasted 15 minutes, so we were quickly up and out again. We drove around West Kelowna for a while to kill time before our appointment at Mission Hill for a private lunch and a tour of the wine cellar. The lunch consisted of a Shrimp and Sea Asparagus starter, a Chicken with Morels and Gnocchi main, and a Apricot and Cornmeal Cake dessert. Each course was pair with a different wine - Sauvignon Blanc, Reserve, and Ice Wine - our favourite of which was the Ice Wine.

After a bit of a rest back at the suite, we took some salads we bought at the grocery store to Gyro beach along Lake Okanagan for a relaxing evening. While the water was cold, the beach was very sandy, making for a lovely experience. Oddly the lake was very shallow, with the water only ever making it up to our waists despite going past the buoys. 

Tuesday

We started early with a trip to Kempf Orchards for some cherry picking. We got about 8 pounds of Lapin cherries before calling it quits and heading to Sprout Bread and Coffee in the Cultural District for an Iced Coffee, Long Black, and Blueberry Danish. We explored the cultural district and visited the Kelowna Art Gallery and Mosaic Books before returning to Gather (this time with a reservation) for lunch. Ivy had the Bibimbap while I had the Kimchi Orzo. We shared the frites platter as a starter which included some delicious fried gnocchi.

After lunch, we headed back to the suite, as Ivy had a 3 hour class. I spent the bulk of this time checking out book and comic stores unsuccessfully trying to track down some specific comics. Once I got back, I relaxed while Ivy finished her class. Afterwards, we stopped by Parlour Ice Cream for a couple of scoops each. I had the bubble gum and creamsicle in a cone, mainly for nostalgia reasons, while Ivy had the Vanilla and Whiskey Hazelnut. 

After ice cream, we drove to Shannon Lake with the hopes of finding a quiet spot to swim, but it turned out to be quite swampy, so we just took some photos instead. We ended up back at Lake Okanagan, but at a more remote beach - Sarsons Beach Park. This once was a lot quieter than Myra, but the beach and lake were much rockier.

Wednesday

After packing, we went back to Sprout for the same drinks we had the day before and a Monkey Bread and Chocolate Croissant. We continued our exploration of the Cultural District by strolling Kasugai Gardens before heading to Kelowna Fruit Stand for some fresh fruits and vegetables.

Our final stop before leaving was Frankie, We Salute You!, a vegetarian restaurant located in the Landmark business park. This place was really popular and we only avoided a long wait by getting there around 11:45am. We each had a cocktail - with Ivy having a Watermelon Basil Margarita and I having the Blood Orange Ginger Lemonade with Gin. Ivy had the mushroom patty burger with vegan cheese and sesame fries while I had a Buffalo tempeh caesar wrap with sesame fries. Everything tasted great and proved that good vegetarian food doesn’t need to try and pretend it’s meat. 

After lunch, we headed back, with the same traffic jam between Abbotsford and Langley. Once we passed that bottleneck, it was smooth sailing again before we got home and relaxed. 

All in all it was a great trip. We’ll definitely be back soon if only to experience the sandy beach and great vegetarian food again.