Hello everyone! You guys have probably been wondering where we have been for a while, I kept saying, ‘’the Okanagan Valley,’’ but I never really said WHERE exactly…  We are staying in Osoyoos. The name Osoyoos means ‘’narrowing of the waters’’ in the Okanagan language (Syilx’tsn), and it was originally supposed to be ‘’soo-yoos” but the settlers wanted to add an “O” because the other towns start with an “O” such us Oliver, Okanogan, Omak, and Oroville.

This is where we are staying for six months! Most of you probably knew that my family and I usually spend half of our year in Florida, from November to April, but due to COVID-19 we stayed in Canada. I’m also raising awareness about food insecurity and raising money for Food Banks Canada on our drive from where I live in the east to west.

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My Dad searched the internet for, “warmest place in Canada,” and Osoyoos came up on the Google search. “Canada’s warmest welcome” is Osoyoos’ motto. Canadians living in the west know about Osoyoos, but I live in the east coast so I’ve never really heard about it. We even asked some of our friends, and only a few of them knew about Osoyoos. There’s also a border crossing to Washington,USA, and from the lookout I can see Washington state. Make sure to watch the attached video!

Some people think that Canada is the land-of-ice-and-snow, but its not. Since we got here it only snowed twice, once in December that stayed for a day, and you’ll see it on my video. And it snowed today, but it wasvalready melted later in the afternoon. The coldest temperature here since we arrived in November was 3C (37.4F) during the day, and around 10 – 13C (50-55.4F) when it is a nice sunny day. That’s pretty warm compared to other parts of Canada. On January the 13^th we had the same temperature here as in Orlando, Florida this year.

Osoyoos is surrounded by the Okanagan Desert, a semi-arid region that is home to hundreds of plant and animal species that are unique to the area. In simple term it means the weather is dry and it doesn’t rain very much. It is Canada’s desert, but not similar to the desert in Africa. In the summer time, Osoyoos had a record high of 42.7C (109F). My goodness, that’s hot! Rattlesnakes can be found here too. There is literally a, “CAUTION SNAKES CROSSING,” sign right outside the resort and on some trails. I find it very weird because I usually see a wild animal caution sign for a bear, deer, or moose.

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The Syilx People (pronounced as Salish) occupy the area, which extends over approximately 69,000 sq. km. It’s the yellow colored area on the map. The Salish territory extends into Washington state. Most of the buildings in Osoyoos has a special adobe-style, and it looks nice and rustic. The resort we are staying in has this style, and the Tim Hortons in town is the same design. I’ve never seen a Tims building look like that before. (By the way, Tim Hortons is an iconic Canadian coffee chain)

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The Osoyoos Indian Band is one of the seven bands of the Syilx nation. Since the arrival of the settlers here in the west, they have learned to survive in the modern times. They are a very successful indigenous tribe. They own wineries and many other businesses in town.

So, by now you’re probably wondering, ‘’What’s Osoyoos like?” Well, Osoyoos is surrounded by cascade mountains. There are so many vineyards and fruit orchards. Turn your head one way, vineyard, turn your head the other way, also vineyard. You get the picture! It makes a very beautiful landscape. Then, twenty minutes away, you have the town of Oliver, and it is Canada’s wine capital! There are fifty plus vineyards between Osoyoos and Oliver. I’m excited to see the orchards and the vineyards in the spring, because it will be a colorful sight!

Osoyoos, has quite a few things to do. You can swim, sail, kayak, jetski, waterski, wakeboard, or stand up paddle board on Osoyoos Lake, (the warmest freshwater lake in Canada), take a nice walk on one of the many trails, stay at one of the resorts, and shop at the small downtown. One thing I find a bit funny is that there’s only one hardware store and it has EVERYTHING you can imagine! Let’s just say its a small town, and this little store is the place to go if you ever need anything! The downtown is also good for a nice walk as well, it’s right by the water! Local people also say it is very busy in the summer time here. In the summer it is very hot. Last summer, my dad was checking the temperatures, and Osoyoos had a record high of 46.1C (115F).

My dad researched the resorts in Osoyoos and their amenities. The best one he picked was Spirit Ridge, and it has been managed by the Hyatt Resort since 2016. Spirit Ridge is Hyatt’s only Unbound Collection, and it is on sacred indigenous land. The Nk’Mip Desert Cultural Center is also located at the resort. My family and I went there, and I learned more about land and the indigenous people. I’ll tell you more about it on another post, don’t worry. North America’s first Indigenous-owned and operated winery is also at the resort, at the Nk’Mip Cellars. It is also more quiet at Spirit Ridge because it’s not so close to the downtown compared to the other ones. The resort has an outdoor hot tub, sauna and a really nice outdoor heated pool! Also a water slide, but it’s not opened during winter. I think this resort is great, and they give you everything you need. There’s also a huge cauldron where we roast some marshmallows on Christmas time. In the summer time, the resort provides a beach shuttle for the guests who wants to go to the beach. My family doesn’t golf, but there is also a golf course and a spa at the resort.

There’s three restaurant’s at the resort, but our favorite restaurant is called The Bear The Fish The Root and The Berry. It’s a long name, I know. It’s named after the four food chiefs; The Black Bear, Chinook Salmon, Bitterroot, and the Saskatoon Berry, they represent the key elements of Indigenous cuisine. The chef has won so many awards. The food he prepares is so delicious! We go there often for brunch on weekends, and we had our Christmas dinner there too! There are things on the menu like venison (deer meat) burger, wild boar bacon, and other stuff I don’t really want to try… The menu is a modern vineyard cuisine, with indigenous roots. I like the modern cuisine part… not too strange. As I’ve already said before, I’m not an adventurous eater! One more thing, there’s a riding stable at the resort, and we plan to go for a ride one of these days. When we go for a walk, we bring carrots with us to give them a treat. They must be very happy because it’s something different than hay!

And that pretty much wraps up about Osoyoos! I’m really enjoying my time here in the Okanagan because it keeps me and my family active. We swim everyday and go for a walk, or hike as much as we can. I hope you enjoyed this post, and you’ve learned something about Canada. I think I should get paid for this post from the resort for promoting the resort! Just kidding! Make sure to watch the video! By the way, the closest airport to Osoyoos is Penticton Airport if traveling by air.

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To learn more about Osoyoos, British Columbia click the link – https://www.osoyoos.ca/