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Not Luxe ☼ Travel
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things to do in vernon bc

    man looks out upon vernon bc canada from his car

    Things to do in Vernon BC

    by Nick & Raychel December 28, 2020

    Ahh Vernon, the small town located in BC’s southern interior. What is there to do in Vernon BC? Well you’re in luck, because there are many things to do do in Vernon BC!

    We had been living about 25 minutes outside of Vernon for the entirety of the summer finishing up our ambulance conversion and spending time with our newborn niece. We love the Okanagan, and we found ourselves enjoying the many sights and attractions that Vernon has to offer. 

    Below you will find our tried and true list of the top things to do while in beautiful Vernon British Columbia.


    Feel like watching instead of reading? Find our YouTube channel here!

     

    Kalamalka Lake

    An Okanagan classic! 

    This is the main attraction of Vernon BC. Boaters and swimmers alike flock to the lake of a thousand colours from all over Canada. It’s especially popular with Albertans!

    Rotary Pier at main beach is the most popular hangout spot boasting a big sandy beach, some trees for shade and a volleyball net. The views here are incredible, showing the mountainous landscape that slopes down into the water. Feeling hungry? There’s Kal Lake Food Services, a little Mexican themed concession located on the beach (there are veggie dogs available as well!) Need to cool off? Check out Kalavida Surf Shop located just northwest of the beach where you can rent a stand up paddle board. If you happen to be going in mid-late August you can catch the Kalamalka classic stand up paddle board festival as well. Make sure to get there early to get a spot as it gets busy quick!

    For those of you looking to get away from the crowds there are plenty of smaller beaches and hideouts all around the lake worth exploring for. We would typically hike around Rattlesnake Point to look for a secluded place to hangout and have a picnic. Rattlesnake point itself is a beautiful view as well! 

    girl looking over kalamalka lake in vernon bc

     

    Ellison Provincial Park

    A fantastic spot for camping, swimming and rock climbing!

    That’s right, rock climbing! There are quite a few spots located all around the beach and throughout the trails, we’re not climbing experts ourselves but we have spent many days at the beach watching the climbers ascend the boulders. 

    The beach itself is sandy with lots of large trees and picnic tables around. This beach is much less busy than rotary pier at Kal Lake and it’s located on the other side of Vernon on Lake Okanagan. It’s about a 10 minute walk from the parking lot to the beachfront (stroller friendly).

    Davison Orchards

    A great place to start your day if you’re cruising around Vernon in our opinion.

    Davison Orchards is a quaint little orchard nestled just west of the city centre where you can start your day with a coffee from the farmhouse cafe, and grab something sweet or savoury from the farmhouse bakery. All of the produce is locally grown so make sure whatever you’re after is in season!

    A fantastic place for children. Davison orchards features a 1 acre wide playground with treehouses, slides, hay stack tunnels and even a barn with farm animals for kids to feed. Sure to keep your kids busy so you can enjoy your coffee. 

    BX Falls 

    A short hike with an incredibly photogenic and mellow waterfall!

    BX Falls is a gorgeous little waterfall and a great spot to take some photos and enjoy the view. Located just 12 minutes from downtown Vernon it’s worth the trip if you’re keen to see some BC waterfalls! It’s a good place to bring kids as the trail is wide and mostly flat followed by lots of steps (not stroller friendly). Be careful if you’re going when its wet or below freezing as the wooden steps can be slippery. Like we mentioned its a great place to get some photos of your kids or to get that impromptu insta shot. We’ve even seen wedding photos taken down here!

    girls looking over bx falls in vernon bc

    BX-Press Cidery

    Our favourite cidery in Vernon!

    The BX-Press Cidery is a 5 minute drive from BX Falls meaning if you’re going to one, you’re going to the other! You could also sneak a cider or two to check out the falls if you’re feeling cheeky (not that we recommend it *wink*)

    BX-Press features a wide range of different ciders to choose from. All of the ciders are grown from local apples right on their orchard. Enjoy sitting out in the orchard while eating one of their variety of wood fire pizzas which complement and pair well with the ciders (all of which can be made vegan). Be sure to ask if they have anything special that season as they often have a one-of-a-kind drink for that year. 

    flights of cider surrounding wood fire pizza at bx press in vernon bc

    BX-Press is also kid and pet friendly lots of fun options for your little ones to enjoy. Enjoy the “Big Bug Walk” through the orchard and see if you can spot all the ladybugs. They also feature live music every night on the weekends!

    Silver Star Mountain Resort in Vernon, BC

    Great in the summer or winter!

    Perched over 5000ft above sea level is Silver Star Mountain Resort, a cute little mountain village featuring bars, clothing shops, bakeries and sporting good stores.

    Silver Star is a ski/snowboard resort in the winter and a mountain bike park in the summer with over 40 trails to ride down. Not a fan of action sports? Silver Star Resort is still a great place to grab a coffee and hop on a gondola ride to see the beautiful views of the forest from above. 


    All in all, Vernon BC is a great little city to live in or explore. If you’re interesting in moving to Vernon or the Okanagan Valley in general, find our write up on what it’s like here!

    Is the Okanagan too snowy for you in the winter? Same. We also wrote about our experience living in Vancouver, BC. You can find that here!

     

     

     

     

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Nick & Raychel
Nick & Raychel

In 2018, we sold everything we owned and moved to Cambodia to teach English.

Let’s make this clear: this journey didn’t start with money. This journey started with a desire to see the world and to do something different for a change.

We’re not going to fool you with photos of floating breakfasts and private jets. We know what it’s like to be on a budget. Although we like to take pretty pictures, we aren’t going to wake up at an ungodly hour to give you unachievable travel jealousy. We aren’t going to censor ourselves or lie to you.

What we are going to do is stay in cheap hostels, find ways to make money, give the advice that we would want to hear, and share our experiences with you honestly.

Are you in?

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ABOUT NICK & RAYCHEL

About Us Hi! We’re Nick & Raychel, the Canadian travel couple behind the brand ‘Not Luxe’. Far before we were married (and on a mission to see the world), we were working…

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Instagram

  • Working to TRAVEL✈️🚐

If you’ve been following along with our vlogs and stories, it will come as no surprise to you when I say that our days are long right now. When we chose to start travelling, we signed up for a work-save-travel-repeat cycle and have been living in for the past 4.5 years. 

We chose this life.
But we still get tired. 

And between fixing up the van, preparing for our next adventure and working full time in that Southern Ontario heat - it’s a lot. But our minds are set on travel, on exploration, on adventure, culture, and learning. So we adapt to the seasons and understand that this point in the cycle is  just that - a season -  and we are so damn grateful to be doing it together.

📍 Traditional territories of the Erie, Neutral, Huron-Wendat, Haudenosaunee and Mississaugas.
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Tags: #notluxe #worktotravel #travelcouple #vanlifecouple #traveldiaries #vanlifediaries #travelgram #livetoexplore #vanlifeculture #budgettravel #worktotravel #traveljobs #travelblogger #vanlifestyle #vanliving
  • **CLOSED** GIVEAWAY!! 🎉

We are giving away a Bluetti EB70 portable power bank. Having a power station on hand is a sweet backup for those who are already set up completely for off-grid living and/or a good start for weekend campers looking to try out van or camper van life. We are stoked to have another way to work outside, charge more appliances and get out adventuring.

The winner will win ONE Bluetti EB70 power bank & charging cables. 

Specs:
• 716Wh capacity and 800W rated wattage
• The ultra-stable LiFePO4 battery chemistry,2500+ life cycles
• 4*110V AC outlets, 2*100W PD ports, 2*5V/3A USB-A ports, 2*regulated 12V/10A DC outputs, 1*12V/10A car port,1*15W wireless charging pad.
(Note: does not come with solar panels)
-

HOW TO ENTER:

1. Like this post 
2. Must be following @nickandraychel & @bluetti_official
3. Tag a friend in the comments below (more tags = more entries)
4. Bonus entry - share this post to story for 5 extra entries! 

Open to USA & Canada residents. Giveaway closes on June 22, 2022. 
Winner will be announced on 06/25/22. 

-

Disclaimer: No purchase necessary. Giveaway is not sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Instagram.

The contest period will run from 06/15 to 06/22 2022.

— 

Tags: #vanlifecouple #vanlifeing #notluxe #vanlifediaries #vanlifegiveaway #campinggiveaway #campervan #vanconversion #camperliving #tinyliving #tinyhomeonwheels #tinyhomes #vanlifenewbie #vanlifers #livinginavan #livingoffgrid #offgridliving #vanlifedreams #travelinspo
  • Slowing down 🚐 

The whole appeal of van life and many alternative living options is the freedom to take a go at your own speed.

But sometimes it feels like you just want to see it all.
And we’ve seen SO much in the past twenty months. 

Especially in the past six.

As Canadian travellers, I find that our slow season is the opposite of others. We escape the cold weather and have been abroad for many Christmases and snowfalls. During those times, we’re cliff jumping, waterfall hopping, cruising, skatepark hunting, friendship building…

Then, when lake season rolls around we’re ready to take on a more conventional work schedule, to save up to do it all again.

But we have to tell ourselves to relax, to enjoy the downtime, to take in the peaceful moments just as much as the epic ones. To soak up the sun, to drink water, to slow down.

It’s a constant learning process.

📍Traditional Hohokam, Patayan, and Yavapai land ⁣

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  • But how do you SHOWER? 😅

This photo is from the most ridiculous YouTube thumbnail we’ve had to date. We took so many funny photos this day, we couldn’t NOT share. Or maybe we could. Oh well.

But let’s answer the question while we’re at it.

🚿 We primarily go to Anytime Fitness which is a little pricier than Planet Fitness. In our opinion, however, the equipment is way nicer, there are usually less people, they’re all over Canada & the US, it’s open 24/7, and the showers are private.

🚿 When we’re not near an Anytime Fitness (this has only happened one time when we were in Quartzsite), we find a truck stop shower to go to.

🚿 And that’s about it. We bought a camping shower at the beginning of van living and only used it one miserable time.

Do you think a shower is necessary in a van build?

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  • We have been doing so much stealth city camping lately that we felt like we needed a break. When we first moved into our van, we set off to Vancouver Island, where we were constantly surrounded by nature - and even though we had no idea what we were doing, it was just easy to be outside.

As you guys know, we’ve lived all sorts of van life. From brick & mortar jobs, to off-grid living, to city dwelling, to full-time travelling. Lately, we’ve seen A LOT of cities and while we’re grateful to have covered so much ground, we knew we needed nature. 

So we nestled ourselves into Starved Rock State Park and reset.
Full video is on YouTube. Link in bio.

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  • “The life you have led doesn’t need to be the only life you have” – Anna Quindlen

I can’t imagine committing to being the person I was 5 years ago for the rest of my life. I can’t imagine committing to one mindset or one way of life. 

It would be impossible to put into words how much we’ve changed through travel and meeting people. And as we start to hype ourselves up for our next big journey, we’re excited to dive head first with an open mind. 

Whether you’re building a van, starting a new job, buying a plane ticket, or even walking out of the house every morning - you have no fucking idea what’s in store.

Travel has a special way of changing you. 
And the best thing you can do is allow it. 

📍 Traditional Kumeyaay land
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