Christie Falls
Christie Falls
West Kelowna
A rough drive, and steep hike descent, to a super-tall waterfall that you can walk behind!
After driving past Bear Creek, the adventure to this trailhead takes you on a dirt road for approximately half an hour. Most of the road is in relatively good shape except for the last 1 km or so. The hike is short, but the Christie Falls trail results in a beautiful waterfall, and a small cave to explore!
The hike is slightly difficult, following a path through a forest that suffered during the 2009 Terrace Mountain fire. It is flagged for direction and also includes a steep decline. A cave is accessible by the waterfall, and is ideal for climbing. The area is frequented by climbers and is used during the summer and winter for the sport.
This trail should not be done until at least June 1st due to its high level of elevation and shade. More than likely access will be blocked by ground snow cover.
Route
Kids & Pets
Features
Address
Driving Time
From Downtown Kelowna, approximate travel time by car is 1 hr.
Notable GPS Co-ordinates
Detailed Directions
Suitable dirt road for all cars. This includes 28.1 km on a rough dirt road which takes 45 to 60 minutes, depending on your driving comfort level.
- From downtown Kelowna, head into West Kelowna across the bridge.
- Take the Westside Road exit.
- Head north on Westside road past Bear Creek park.
- Turn left on the Bear Lake Main (1.5 km north of Bear Creek park) with signs for MX Track/Burnco Rock Products
- At 6.9 km ignore the fork to the right which goes to Bear Creek OHV
- At 9.6 km ignore the second entrance to Bear Creek OHV on the right
- At 11.8 km (just before the 13 km marker), turn RIGHT on Esperon FSR (labelled with signage 2022)
- RESET ODOMETER
- At 9.7 km stay on the main road, keeping left.
- At 10 km pass Big Horn Dam on the left.
- At 10.5 km (24 km marker) turn RIGHT onto Christie just past Big Horn Dam heading uphill.
- RESET ODOMETER
- At 3.0 km, keep right on the main road, ignoring the fork to the left.
- At 3.5 km (9 min or so), turn LEFT on a dirt road (signs for Christie Falls)
- Drive 2.2 km to end and arrive at parking lot with trailhead.
ALTERNATIVE: For 4x4ing drivers, alternatively drive all the way up to the unlabelled (ask us for a GPS log) Terrace Mountain Road turn-off for a more adventurous route. This road has been deactivated and has numerous gutted out deactivations in the road. The turn-off is approximately 30-35 min up from downtown Kelowna, plus 40-60 minutes on the dirt road.
- Reset odometer at turn-off from Westside Rd. Warning: Distances are APPROXIMATE.
- At 1.3 km, keep right.
- At 1.73 km, keep left on main road.
- At 4.08 km, keep left.
- At 6.55 km, keep right.
- At 13.59 km, keep right.
- At 16.78 km, keep right.
- At 19.02 km, keep right (left is Terrace Mtn)
- At 22.97 km, turn right w/signs for Christie Falls.
- Drive to end of road.
Google Directions
Personal Hiking Time Estimate
We have a downloadable GPS map for this trail!
Last Updated on Sunday, January 26, 2025
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