Summer is well underway, but with floods and smoky skies getting so much attention there are notably fewer tourists taking advantage of the region鈥檚 assets.
Conrad Wiker, the owner of Whiplash Cable Park, has definitely experienced a less robust season than in years past, having not even opened yet.
鈥淲e鈥檙e hoping to open soon, but right now Mother Nature is still the boss,鈥� Wiker said Wednesday, as friends and clients alike joined his crew to clear the cable park of debris that washed to shore during the flood.
鈥淪he鈥檚 reminded us of her power and her fury鈥� but we don鈥檛 quit here.鈥�
The bottom line, he said, is the park will survive what is so far a dismal season and is due to community support.
Another water focused business facing an unseasonable lull is Wibit Water Park.
Riley Gallagher has run the Wibit in 麻豆精选 for years and his dad recently opened a Peachland and Penticton location.
Plans for an Osoyoos Wibit were recently approved and it鈥檚 expected to be installed next year.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a little slow,鈥� said Randy Gallagher.
鈥淲ith our waterparks we don鈥檛 usually go into the third week of June.
鈥淚n Penticton, for example, a lot of the beach was non existent, it was under water and that鈥檚 hard when the whole idea is going to the beach and playing in the waterparks.鈥�
In 麻豆精选, however, last year鈥檚 sand restoration project created more space to play and that鈥檚 made the Wibit even more of a draw, he said.
The trouble on this side of the lake has been the negative publicity.
鈥淲ith the high-water mark, a lot of tourists held off coming this year,鈥� he said.
鈥淣ow we are all back to normal and hopefully the smoke will go away.
鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 affect our business directly, but it does put a damper on tourism. People don鈥檛 want to come to a smoke filled valley and pay for hotels.鈥�
Ellen Walker-Mathews, vice-president of destination and industry development for the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association said her organization is working hard to ensure potential out-of-province tourists know that the sunny Okanagan is ready to welcome them.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a challenge for our stakeholders and we are working to counteract any perception that the entire province is on fire,鈥� she said.
鈥淒estination B.C. has been making daily photos available to media and speaking with media in places like Calgary and Edmonton to make sure the messaging and journalism is responsible.
鈥淥f course, we want to make sure our colleagues dealing with wildfires in the north are well looked after and safe, but people also need to understand the entire province isn鈥檛 on fire.鈥�
Walker-Mathews said there is always the risk of fire and smoke in the Okanagan every summer and if there was a major issue that warranted for people to stay away, she said TOTA would be the first to tell people.
鈥淗owever, we have had great skies the past few days and we need to get that message out, from Salmon Arm to Osoyoos, that we are looking beautiful,鈥� she said.
鈥淭he roads are open, there are no fires in the immediate area and it is summer as usual here.鈥�
