Park overview
sẃiẃs Park is proudly managed and operated by the Osoyoos Indian Band.
sẃiẃs Park is located within the traditional territory of the Osoyoos Indian Band. Since time immemorial, the Osoyoos Indian Band’s Okanagan ancestors have inhabited and cared for the lands and waters within their traditional territory.
sẃiẃs sounds similar to “s-wee-yous” and means a place where it is shallow or narrow in the middle of the lake. The place name explains how the area was used to cross Osoyoos Lake by foot or by horse.
Audio Files: The nqilxʷcən/nsyilxcən place name for sẃiẃs park was recorded by Osoyoos Indian Band Elder Jane Stelkia and Westbank First Nation Elder and language teacher Delphine Armstrong. Jane’s nqilxʷcən skʷist (traditional name) is qʷʕayxnmitkʷ xʷəstalk̓iyaʔ. Delphine’s nqilxʷcən skʷist (traditional name) is ɬək̓əmxnalqs.
In 2015, the park was renamed to reflect the traditional Okanagan place name for the area. The nqilxʷcən/nsyilxcən place name and history of sẃiẃs have been passed down for thousands of years through the oral tradition of capti’kʷl stories and teachings.
Lakeside campsites and privacy make this one of the most popular provincial parks. Campers are encouraged to book reservations early in the season to secure campsites during the busy summer months.
Advisories
Dates of operation
The park gate is open April 1, 2023 to October 9, 2023
Current status:
Open
- Facility type
- Vehicle-accessible camping
- Number of campsites
- Reservable frontcountry sites: 41
- Vehicle-accessible sites: 41
- Double sites: 7
- RV-accessible sites: 1
- Main operating season
- 2023: April 1 to October 9
- Reservable dates
- 2023: May 19 to September 24
- Service note
- entrance gate locked nightly
from 11 pm – 7 am - Winter note
- The gate is locked during the off-season.
- Facility type
- Vehicle-accessible camping
- Main operating season
- 2023: April 1 to October 9
Safety info
- The extremely hot and dry Okanagan climate can result in overexposure to the sun. Children and adults alike should use a sunscreen and wear a hat during long periods in the sun.
- Visitors should be aware that extreme caution is required when swimming or walking in the shallow water surrounding the park. There is potential for dangerous undercurrents and there is also an extremely steep drop offs surround the exposed sandbar at the tip of the point. Children should be supervised at all times. Swim, wade or walk in the water at your own risk.
- sẃiẃs Park is subject to severe and unexpected winds on occasion. Please ensure that all tents and equipment are tied down at all times, to help prevent damage.
- sẃiẃs Park contains significant amounts of poison ivy. Park guests are encouraged to become familiar with this plant and avoid any contact.
Special notes
- Due to popularity and size of the campground, there is a maximum stay policy of seven nights per calendar year in this park. Reservations are made through the BC Parks reservations system.
- sẃiẃs Park is an important archaeological and cultural heritage site. Please help respect and protect this historically and culturally important area by following the park rules. Park guests are also reminded that the Heritage Conservation Act protects all archaeological and cultural heritage sites in the province. This includes intact or disturbed, known or unknown, recorded or unrecorded sites.
Camping
- Total number of campsites
- Total reservable frontcountry sites: 41
- Total vehicle-accessible sites: 41
- Total double sites: 7
- Total RV-accessible sites: 41
Campsite reservations are accepted at this park.
All campsite reservations must be made the BC Parks reservations system. When reservations are not available all campsites function as first come, first served.
This small park offers 41 vehicle-accessible campsites, seven of which are double sites. Campsite reservations are accepted for all sites. Reservations are strongly recommended for all weekend from May through September and any dates in July and August. If a site is not reserved for that evening, a green “available for one night” sign will be placed on that site indicating that it is available that night. The maximum length of stay is seven days due to the size and popularity of the campground. Access to the boat launch remains open year-round.
The sites are large with level gravel pads, picnic tables and fire rings. The many of the sites can accommodate larger RVs. Most of the sites are right on the lake, one of the attractions of this park. The landscape is open with sites being separated by pockets of beach and scattered cottonwood and Ponderosa pine trees for shade. The inner campsites and those at the tip of the spit are in thickets of shrubs that offer more privacy and shade and the opportunity for bird watching. The nearest services are in Osoyoos and there is a phone in the campground near site #10.
Check-in procedures:
- Guests with reservations: check reservation board at campground entrance for pre-assigned site number.
- Guests without reservations: check the reservation board for sites that may be available on a first come, first served basis or for one night only.
Special note: during peak season, reservations are highly recommended as first come, first served sites are available on a minimal basis only.
| Vehicle-accessible camping fee | $32 per party per night |
| BC seniors’ rate (day after Labour Day to June 14 only) | $16 per senior party per night |
For information on the BC seniors’ rate, see the camping fees page. Discounts.
Facilities
There is a single launch with a concrete ramp. The parking lot beside the boat launch is for vehicles with trailers only. There is a flush toilet at the boat launch.
Boaters should be aware of the narrow channel at end of Haynes Point, so stay between yellow markers. Boats must stay out of marked swimming areas. There are marinas in Osoyoos for private boat rentals.
Check with US Customs prior to going to the USA on Osoyoos Lake.
Campfires are allowed and campfire rings are provided at each campsite. We encourage visitors to conserve wood and protect the environment by minimizing the use of fire and using campstoves instead. Firewood can be purchased in the park or you may bring your own wood. Fees for firewood are set locally and may vary from park to park. Limited burning hours or campfire bans may be implemented.
To preserve vegetation and ground cover, please don’t gather firewood from the area around your campsite or elsewhere in the park (this is a ticketable offence under the Park Act). Dead wood is an important habitat element for many plants and animals and it adds organic matter to the soil.
This park has a day-use and picnic area. A narrow, shaded terrace with tables overlooks the sandy beach and north to Osoyoos. Cottonwoods separate the tables from the beach. There is plenty of paved parking and two small wooden change houses just off the narrow beach.
This park only has flush toilets, no pit toilets.
This park is located 2 km south of Osoyoos off Hwy 97, on 32nd Avenue.
Park and activity maps
Learn more about this park
Park details
- Date established: May 17, 1962
- Size: 38 hectares
Park contact
This park proudly operated by:
Osoyoos Indian Band
E-mail: oibparks@oib.ca
Phone: 778-437-2295
Fax: 250-498-6577
(This is not a campsite reservations number)
Nature and culture
History
The present day park was created on May 17, 1962. In 2015, the province and Osoyoos Indian Band agreed that the Osoyoos Indian Band will manage sẃiẃs Park.
Cultural Heritage
The archaeological and cultural heritage values at sẃiẃs park tell an important story about how the Osoyoos Indian Band’s Okanagan ancestors used sẃiẃs as a crossing area, cultural use, and habitation site in the thousands of years prior to the arrival of European settlers in the region.
The Okanagan ancestral remains that were disturbed and reburied on site are the oldest on record in the Osoyoos region (approximately 1,224 years old). Radiocarbon testing of faunal (i.e. animal) materials recovered from a shell midden provided important information about the diet of the Osoyoos Indian Band’s Okanagan ancestors 3,265 to 4,475 years ago. Obsidian flakes retrieved from the park were analyzed to be from the Whitewater Ridge in Oregon. The presence of the flakes in the park affirms the travel and trade routes of the Okanagan People along the Columbia River Basin.
The cultural heritage values in the park include opportunities for the ongoing continuance of Okanagan culture through traditional, ceremonial and cultural use of the area.
The old Hudson’s Bay Fur Brigade Trail also passed through the area nearly two centuries ago.
OIB and BC Parks are working in partnership to ensure the long-term protection of the archaeological and cultural heritage resources within sẃiẃs Park.
Conservation
The park protects species and ecosystems at risk such as peach leaf willow, antelope brush-needle and thread grass and wetlands. Wetlands are rapidly disappearing in the Okanagan Valley. The marsh area and self-guided interpretive trail are important features of the park.
Wildlife
The marsh area of the park is home to a variety of wildlife. Blue-listed species include the Western small footed myotis bat, barn owl, spadefoot toad and painted turtle. The tiger salamander is a red-listed species that calls the park home.
Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples
BC Parks honours Indigenous Peoples’ connection to the land and respects the importance of their diverse teachings, traditions, and practices within these territories. This park webpage may not adequately represent the full history of this park and the connection of Indigenous Peoples to this land. We are working in partnership with Indigenous Peoples to update our websites so that they better reflect the history and cultures of these special places.