The Okanagan Highland is an elevated hilly

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...

area in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, and the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

(where it is spelled Okanogan Highlands). Rounded mountains with elevations up to above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...

and deep, narrow

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams ove ...

s are characteristic of the region.

Definition

BC Geographical Names The BC Geographical Names (formerly BC Geographical Names Information System or BCGNIS) is a geographic name web service and database for the Canadian province of British Columbia run by the Base Mapping and Geomatic Services Branch of the Integra ...

, a service of the British Columbia Integrated Land Management Bureau, defines the Okanagan Highland as an area extending southward from the

Shuswap River The basin of the Shuswap River (pronounced /ˈʃuːʃwɑːp/) lies northeast of the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia, originating in the central Monashee Mountains. It is the upper part of the drainage better known to British Columbians as belo ...

and the Coldstream Valley, east of

Vernon, British Columbia Vernon is a city in the Okanagan region of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It is northeast of Vancouver. Named after Forbes George Vernon, a former MLA of British Columbia who helped establish the Coldstream Ranch in nearb ...

, for 85 miles to the 49th parallel and into the State of Washington, lying between the

Monashee Mountains The Monashee Mountains are a mountain range lying mostly in British Columbia, Canada, extending into the U.S. state of Washington. They stretch from north to south and from east to west. They are a sub-range of the Columbia Mountains. The highes ...

on the east, and the

Thompson Plateau The Thompson Plateau forms the southern portion of the Interior Plateau of British Columbia, Canada, lying to the west of Okanagan Lake, south of the Thompson River and east of (although never adjoining it) the Fraser River. At its most southern p ...

and the

Okanagan Valley The Okanagan ( ), also known as the Okanagan Valley and sometimes as the Okanagan Country, is a region in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. It is p ...

on the west. The eastern boundary of the Okanagan Highland is clearly defined by the valley of the Kettle River. The western boundary is drawn arbitrarily and is somewhat difficult to define, because there are no natural features to follow between

Penticton Penticton ( ) is a city in the Okanagan Valley of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada, situated between Okanagan and Skaha lakes. In the 2016 Canadian Census, its population was 33,761, while its census agglomeration The ce ...

in the Okanagan Valley and Lumby in the Coldstream Valley. The

Washington State Department of Natural Resources The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) manages over of forest, range, agricultural, and commercial lands in the U.S. state of Washington. The DNR also manages of aquatic areas which include shorelines, tidelands, lands un ...

describes the "Okanogan Highlands" as a larger area, extending from east of the

Cascade Mountains The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, a ...

and north of the Columbia Basin into northern

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...

and the

Shuswap Highland The Shuswap Highland is a plateau-like hilly area of in British Columbia, Canada. It spans the upland area between the Bonaparte and Thompson Plateaus from the area of Mahood Lake, at the southeast corner of the Cariboo Plateau, southeast towards ...

. This region includes FDR Reservoir (the impounded Columbia River above

Grand Coulee Dam Grand Coulee Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, built to produce hydroelectric power and provide irrigation water. Constructed between 1933 and 1942, Grand Coulee originally had two powerh ...

), the Kettle River Range, and the southern portion of the

.Washington State Department of Natural Resources, ''Geology of Washington - Okanogan Highlands''
, downloaded 15 March 2012

Geography

The highest summit in the Highland is

Big White Mountain Big White Mountain is the highest mountain of the Okanagan Highland, Canada, and also of the Beaverdell Range, a subrange of that formation, which lies between the Okanagan Valley to its west and the main spine of the Monashee Mountains to its ...

, at its northeastern extremity, which is also the highest summit of the

Beaverdell Range The Beaverdell Range is a subrange of the Okanagan Highland in the Southern Interior of British Columbia, located between the West Kettle and Kettle Rivers, and running nearly due south from Big White Mountain, which is its highest summit, an ...

, a mountain range which extends south from Big White between the Kettle and

West Kettle River The West Kettle River is a tributary of the Kettle River in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is part of the Columbia River basin, as the Kettle River is a tributary of the Columbia River. Course The West Kettle River originates in St ...

s. Other notable summits are

Little White Mountain Little White Mountain is a mountain near the city of Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, near the central Okanagan Valley. The mountain stands an elevation of 2,171 meters (or 7,123 feet). It is a significant destination for backcountry recreation, ...

, Mount Baldy, Mount Moore, Mount Greyback, Mount Hull, and Mount Bonaparte which is the highest summit in the US portion of the Highland. The Okanagan Highland is the source of several rivers in addition to the Kettle and West Kettle, including the

Sanpoil River The Sanpoil River (also spelled San Poil) is a tributary of the Columbia River, in the U.S. state of Washington. The river is named for the Sanpoil, the Interior Salish people who live along the river course. The name is from the Okanagan ter ...

Conservation

Protected areas located within the Okanagan Highland include

Gladstone Provincial Park Gladstone Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, surrounding and north of the north end of Christina Lake in that province's Boundary Country The Boundary Country is a historical designation for a district in southern ...

, Graystokes Provincial Park, Granby Provincial Park, and

Colville National Forest The Colville National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in northeastern Washington state. It is bordered on the west by the Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest and the Kaniksu National Forest to the east. The forest also borders Little P ...

References

{{Authority control Mountain ranges of the Interior Plateau Geography of the Okanagan Monashee Mountains Articles containing video clips