Explore:NW Explore:NW Spring 2016 | Page 59

R I V E R S I D E G O L F C O U R S E kari medig photo Fairmont Hot Springs Resort offers three courses to golf, including the Riverside Course where play crosses the Columbia River six times over 18 holes. whitewater creeks. The 6th hole, dubbed Cliffhanger, lies on a plateau green with sheer drops on three sides. For more altitude, head up, way up, to Sun Peaks Resort, in BC’s Thompson Okanagan region. The resort’s Graham Cooke-designed layout is, at 1,200 metres (3,937 feet), BC’s highest golf course. Not surprisingly, views and elevation changes abound. Sun BC’s many microclimates add up to one unavoidable fact: the province enjoys some of the nicest weather in Canada. An evening round? No problem. The province’s northerly latitude keeps the sun up late on summer nights. If you like it hot, head to the Thompson Okanagan, where dozens of golf courses enjoy long sunny summer days and cooling lake breezes (the area’s Merlot vines are counting on it, too). At Predator Ridge, a highly rated 36-hole duo in the northern Okanagan, the sun’s warmth turns the landscape to gold by September. Further south, near Oliver, the Les Furber-designed Fairview Mountain Golf Club meanders among the shrub-grassland and arid beauty of BC’s pocket desert. The weather is also kind to coastal BC, where the mild climate keeps golf courses on Vancouver Island and in metro Vancouver open year round. Whether it’s the lay of the land, the beauty and challenge of water, the clean air and altitude, or the long sunny days, all four elements come together beautifully on BC’s golf courses. Wherever you golf here, you’ll be in your element. kenmoreair.com 57