Approximately 26 KM (16 miles) from Penticton, British Columbia. Biking time round trip- 5 to 6 hrs allowing for stops. Round trip from parking off Chute Lake Road at Glen Fir to Rock Ovens 6,5,4,3,1,2,9,10 roughly 23 KM (14 miles), elevation gain-241M (788 feet). Best time is usually May to September.
Directions: From Penticton drive north to Naramata. Continue past Naramata on North Naramata Road. At the junction of North Naramata Road and Chute Lake Road turn onto Chute Lake Road. A short distance after going over a cattle guard and the end of the pavement there is a short turnoff on the right. This is the hookup to the Kettle Valley Railway rail bed at a point called Glen Fir. From here one can take a bike to the rock ovens in the park. The trip can be made as long as one is comfortable with. One is pedaling up a 2.2% grade on a rough, often soft gravel surface so the trip out can be slow going. Coming back is much easier as it is downhill although rough. The furthest rock oven from Glen Fir, Rock Oven 12 is roughly 38 KM (23.6 miles) round trip. The closest Rock Oven (number 6) is roughly an 8 KM (5 miles) round trip. Note: Rock Oven 7 is nearly 1400 meters (0.9 miles) down the steep Tote Road Trail near Rock Oven 5. It is much easier to get to Rock Oven 7 from the access to the KVR rail bed near Naramata. Some rock ovens are as built in 1913 while others had to be restored due to damage over the years. The sign for each one shows the date it was originally built or restored.
Alternatively one can access Rock Ovens 11 and 12 further up the Chute Lake Road from the KVR hookup a short distance before Chute Lake. Look for a side road on the right with a railway crossing sign. Rock Oven 12 is a approximately 2 KM (1.3 miles) north from this access to the KVR rail bed. One will going uphill on a slight grade to Rock Oven 12 from this point. Elevation difference is 40 meters (131 feet). Rock Oven 11 is approximately 4.7 KM (2.9 miles) south of this access to the KVR rail bed. One will be going down a slight grade to Rock Oven 11 and pedaling up the grade (2.5%) coming back. Elevation difference from parking is 81 meters (265 feet).
The access to the KVR rail bed near Naramata gives easy access to Rock Oven 7 and Little Tunnel. A short distance past the turnoff to Naramata (Robinson Ave) Smethurst Road intersects North Naramata Road on the right. Follow Smethurst Road which climbs uphill to a parking lot on the KVR rail bed. From here Rock Oven 7 is roughly 3.3 KM (2.1 miles) north up a 2.2% grade. Access to Rock Oven 7 is about a 300 meters (0.2 miles) climb up a side trail. Little Tunnel nearby is approximately 3.8 KM (2.4 miles) from the parking area.
For a two day trip one could start above Kelowna at Myra Station and bike downhill to Penticton with an overnight stay at the Chute Lake Lodge. In Summerland there is a steam driven train that runs in the summer one can take for a ride on the stretch of track that was left.
There are signs with the history of the construction of the KVR which are quite interesting. Again long narrow U's were used to keep the grade through the mountains no more than 2.2%. The engineering and construction of the KVR through this terrain during 1913-1914 was quite a feat and drew visits from engineers around the world. The rock ovens were used to do baking for a work force that numbered around 2000 workers. Working conditions were rugged and the fresh bread and other food produced by these ovens were probably the high point of the day. Breakfast could be dangerous as workers who had slept in would heat their dynamite in frying pans to quickly warm it up rather than using the slower hot water jackets. Explosions from misjudging the heat required were not uncommon.
GPS Data: Right click on link to bring up menu to download (save) file.
Kettle Valley Railway Naramata Section Rock Ovens- Chute Lake Road Glen Fir Access 2010/08 |
Kettle Valley Railway Naramata Section Rock Ovens- Chute Lake Road, Chute Lake Access 2010/08 |
Kettle Valley Railway Naramata Section Rock Ovens- Naramata Access via Smethurst Road 2010/08 |
Kettle Valley Railway Summerland Tourist Train |