During a magical mid-air moment on my mountain bike (two feet off the ground is kinda my sweet spot) on Tumbleweed (my favourite intermediate flow trail at the Kamloops Bike Ranch), it hit me. Of all the towns I’ve visited in Western Canada, Kamloops is, literally, a perfect match for my tastes. The mountain biking is fabulous. The golf scene is sensational. And the craft beer is tastier than a two-foot birdie putt at Tobiano. So, from the lens I’m looking through, Kamloops is a triple-whammy. A trifecta!
Of course, while Kamloops is king when it comes to mountain biking, golf, and delicious craft beverages, it’s got much more going for it than that. Guided hiking tours, fishing, paddling, beaching, Indigenous tourism, foodie fun, and wine touring are a few more notable examples.
And, perhaps best of all, getting to Kamloops just got a whole lot easier for Albertans. Direct flights from Edmonton to Kamloops with Westjet will return this spring. While you can, obviously, easily make the trip by car, the 1.5 hour flight time is certainly appealing for that quick getaway when time is of the essence. (I’d say visit tourismkamloops.com to plan your trip.)
“Appealing” is a word that doesn’t do it justice when describing my favourite golf course in the Kamloops area: Tobiano. (FYI: The course is now called GreenTee Country Club Tobiano.) With 18 stunning holes that soar atop the bluff high above Kamloops Lake, Tobiano is, from a visual standpoint, as good as golf gets. There are stellar lake-and-mountain views on every single hole! Also, this bold and contemporary Thomas McBroom design features dramatic elevation changes, wildly-creative bunkering, daring go-for-broke shot options, and character galore.
But the golf scene in Kamloops isn’t just a one-shot wonder. There are eight awesome courses in the Golf Kamloops portfolio (check out golfkamloops.com) and there is a ton of variety. For example, Talking Rock Golf Course near Chase is a phenomenal parkland course that parades through the forest and serves up a spectacular finish on the lake. Bighorn Golf & Country Club is a dynamite desert course that tumbles and rolls through an arid landscape near the confluence of the North and South Thompson Rivers. And Rivershore, a storied Robert Trent Jones Sr. track that hugs the banks of the South Thompson River, is a mature, championship-worthy course that is also perfectly positioned near a number of wineries.