Where to cycle in the Okanagan? Author Colleen MacDonald knows - Making Tracks (2024)

Without question, the most common query received by the Sheriff and Constant Companion Carmen is, “where do we cycle, so we can go there too?” The answer, of course, is everywhere you can.

The pair have their favourite routes but love to explore new territory. And the Okanagan has so many trails, they keep finding new and exciting paths away from the most popular (and becoming-crowded) places.

For newbies and experienced cyclists, the best starting place is the popular guide book, Let's Go Biking, by Lower Mainland author Colleen MacDonald.

Why is a Lower Mainland cyclist writing about the Okanagan, you ask? The answer, according to the author is, "I wrote the book I would want to buy for myself to discover the Okanagan."

She initially started an online blog, Let's Go Biking, with 10 easy rides after a friend asked where to go biking in the Lower Mainland their kids.

“(From that,) www.letsgobiking.net grew to more than 200 rides as the kids got older and wanted to explore more,” said MacDonald. “People asked for a book to take along for the ride so I self-published, Let's Go Biking Around Vancouver, in 2018, which has sold over 8,000 copies to date."

After writing about Vancouver, people kept asking for a guidebook for the Okanagan, she said.

"I knew many of the routes but wanted to know where 'the locals' rode. With the help of dozens of people throughout the Okanagan and beyond, I had fun putting together a great gathering of easy and fun routes."

The result, Let's Go Biking in the Okanagan and Beyond, has 36 easy-to-follow maps and more than 140 routes, with turn-by-turn instructions, surface conditions and level of difficulty. The area covered is from Osoyoos to the Shuswap and along The Great Trail, from Hope to Cranbrook.

More than 6,000 Okanagan guide books and ebooks have now been sold, which is extremely gratifying for MacDonald.

"It's nice for me to know that my volunteer work is reaching people who are keen to explore and enjoy our amazing province. The e-bike boom is getting more people out enjoying these routes that might have been too hilly before."

MacDonald didn't stop there. In 2022, she wrote a guidebook for Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and the Sunshine Coast. (She has also written books on local history, as well as children’s stories.)

"I write the Let's Go Biking guidebooks to let people know where to go for easy rides, hikes, walks and runs. It's a labour-of-love, my volunteer work,”she said. “And I donate proceeds to the Trails Society of BC, BC Cycling Coalition and local trail advocacy groups.

With distances ranging from five to 75 kilometres, these easy day trips are fun for families, beginning cyclists, seniors, explorers, and those who like to stop and smell the roses.

"There’s something for everyone from scenic rail trails, park trails and city greenways to quiet country roads. With its dry climate and stunning scenery, there’s no better way to see the Okanagan, Shuswap, Boundary Country and Kootenays with their awe-inspiring lakes, mountains, farms, vineyards, orchards and vibrant communities. It's a great guidebook for those looking to explore and discover places right in our own province."

The guidebooks were a true collaboration, she added, working with trail advocacy groups in every region, including the Ribbons of Green Trails Society in Vernon, Trail of the Okanagans in Summerland, Trails Society of BC and Shuswap Trails Alliance. Most of the photographs were donated by people in the region.

Let's Go Biking Okanagan and Beyond has the most popular routes—the Kettle Valley Rail (KVR) Trail, Myra Canyon, the Mission Creek Greenway and the Okanagan Rail Trail, for example. But it also has new routes, such as East Kelowna’s Vistas and Vines, the Similkameen Valley, Summerland’s Loop and the Fur Brigade Trail and exploring Oliver and Osoyoos. There are many routes in Vernon, including the Grey Canal, dozens of routes in the Shuswap and even in tiny Kaleden.

One of the themes is "riding through the vines," she said, but it also has helpful tips about places to eat, visit, and things to see.

She is planning another print run of Okanagan and Beyond in the next couple of months and was in the valley in mid-April to cycle new routes in Vernon with Ingrid and Wally Neumann of Ribbons of Green Trails Society and the Sheriff and CCC).

MacDonald and her husband, Ian then checked out the South Okanagan trails. It was perfect timing as Okanagan hills are covered with the beautiful blooms of yellow arrowleaf balsamroot (Okanagan sunflower) and the white flowers of Saskatoon bushes.

Let’s Go Biking Okanagan and Beyond retails for $19.95 and is available at Mosaic Books on Bernard Avenue in downtown Kelowna, Chapters and Coles stores in Penticton, Kelowna and Vernon, Books ‘n' Things in Penticton, Davison Orchards, Olympia Cycle and Good Gracious Gifts in Vernon and Otter Books in Nelson. It is also sold at local wineries, farms, bike shops and gift shops through Sandhill Book Marketing Ltd. of Kelowna, which acts as a distributor for small press and independent publishers.

MacDonald has cycled all over the world and still thinks British Columbia is one of the best places to ride. "Biking is just right, great exercise. I love to explore. The pace is just right . (You’re) outside, you hear sounds, you experience smells and you can stop for a lakeshore picnic,” she said.

Neumann was not only the main source of information on North Okanagan trails but a huge contributor of photos, noted MacDonald.

"Not only that, when I needed a missing picture, she and Wally hopped in the car and went and got one or more."

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.