The best camping near Otter Lake Provincial Park

Beneath the canyons and streams of the Cascade Mountains, Otter Lake Provincial Park is set on the lake in a relatively isolated part of British Columbia, 320 kilometres (200 miles) east of Vancouver, and about 150 kilometres (93 miles) from Kelowna or Penticton in the Okanagan Valley. In a forest of Douglas fir, the 45 vehicle-accessible campsites at the sole campground accommodate RVs and tents, all within a short walk of the lake, where you can paddle, fish (primarily for trout), or swim. While you can take a dip in the campground’s small swimming area, the park’s separate day-use area in Tulameen, five kilomet54e (three miles) south of the campground, has a more appealing sandy beach, as well as picnic tables where you can take a break when you come out of the water.

1. Reservations are recommended for camping at Otter Lake Provincial Park. Book your site online up to four months in advance at BC Parks’ Discover Camping website.
2. About half the Otter Lake sites can be reserved during most of the park’s May-to-September season. The remainder are first-come, first-served from May through mid-June and again after Labour Day in September, and reservable for the rest of the park’s summer season. If you don’t have a reservation, try to arrive in the morning for the best chance of nabbing a campsite.

Camping season at Otter Lake Provincial Park runs from late May through late September. The weather is usually warm and dry, although you may have a bit more rain in May and June than later in the summer. It can get quite hot in July and August, so stay hydrated and protect yourself from the sun. As in many British Columbia parks, summer weekends and holidays are busiest, so try Sunday through Thursday if you’re having trouble booking a campsite. Otter Lake’s gates are closed in the off-season, and water and other services aren’t available, but, weather permitting, it’s possible to walk into the park through winter.

• There’s a grocery store in Princeton, 33 kilometres (20 miles) southeast of Otter Lake Provincial Park. For other supplies, or a broader selection, do your shopping in the Vancouver area if you’re coming from the west, or in the Okanagan if arriving from the east. 
• The Otter Lake campground has flush toilets, pit toilets, and drinking water taps, but no showers. 
• A section of the Kettle Valley Railway, a multi-use hiking and cycling path that’s part of Canada’s Great Trail, passes near the park, across the lake from the Otter Lake Campground.