Kelowna's diverse mountain bike and free riding scene ranges from beginner to extreme areas with open valley views or steep tree lined single track descents. The cross country areas can take you along the easy lake-shore flats to an aggressive climb all the way up to the top of the 'Kettle Valley Railway' where you'll find a leisurely ride along the famous trestles or a rewarding downhill descent through the pine forests and several man made features.
Knox Mountain: Located not far from the downtown area “Knox Mountain” has some good climbs and descents. You can access an easy ride out to Paul's Tomb or a more challenging climb to the top and drop off some single track down shale covered slopes with some awesome views of the valley and Okanagan Lake. There are new designated cycling trails in effect so check for the signs or get a trail map from one of the local bike shops.
For organized racing there is the 'Kelowna Spring Classic' Mountain Bike Race - held in early May at Myra/Bellevue Provincial Park www.kscmtb.com/
Gillard: The “Gillard” area below “Myra-Bellevue Provincial Park” is considered Kelowna's best downhill area and trail network. Leave your vehicle at the bottom and hitch a ride to the top for up to 15 steep rocky descents with some awesome natural and man made features that have been completely rebuilt since the Okanagan Mountain Park fire back in 2003.
Okanagan Mountain Park: To the South is “Okanagan Mountain Park” which is accessed at the south end of Lakeshore Road and will take you all the way to the Naramata benchlands. This great cross country area is huge so be prepared for a long day trip if you plan to ride to Naramata or through 'Wild Horse Canyon' or down to 'Commando Bay'. The riding through here is considered intermediate to advanced. The devastating 'Okanagan Mountain forest fire' that ravaged the mountainside in 2003 had damaged a lot of the trail systems, but signs of new growth are abundant everywhere.
Postill Lake: “Postill Lake” to the north of Kelowna has both cross country and downhill terrain that offer amazing features like the wall and some other crazy hits which were built by the local cycling community and cater to more advanced riders. Intermediates can also pick their lines and learn to ride some of the larger features. Some of the more popular runs in this area are Addiction, Inferno and Technical Difficulty.
Kelowna has a “Mountain Bike Park” along Mission Creek Greenway and Hollywood Road north. They have built a lot of manmade features with hits and berms with an awesome flow. Most riders are using the solid 'dirt jump bikes'. Always ride with respect and follow their “Code of Conduct”.
West Kelowna: Over in "West Kelowna" you can find some great cross country loops like “Rose Valley Provincial Park”, the challenging “McDougall Rim Trail” and the user friendly areas like the “Telemark” cross country ski area.
Powers Creek: “Powers Creek” is a very technical cross country area with some great manmade and natural downhill features that can also be ridden by an intermediate rider with care.
Smith Creek: Awesome cross country trails can also be found in the “Smith Creek” area above 'Westbank' with up to a 2.5 hour intermediate climb to the top of "Soul Train" for a long fun descent to the bottom.
Pick up a trail map at one of our local bike shops and talk to the pros for all of Kelowna's best riding areas.
Check out our other specific cycling pages, CycloCross, Road Biking and BMX.
Gillard Trails
Powers Creek Trails
Postil Trails
