Naramata is a community of approximately 2,000 people within the Regional District of Okanagan–Similkameen in British Columbia, Canada. Naramata is situated in the Okanagan Valley on the southeast shore of Okanagan Lake, to the north of Penticton from which is the only road access.
Founded in 1907 as a prime agricultural area, Naramata was also known in its early years as a cultural centre. People from across the Okanagan would arrive by boat for concerts, plays, operas and regattas. Paddlewheelers regularly stopped at the local wharf carrying freight and passengers up and down Okanagan Lake. In 1914, Naramata received a new link with the rest of Canada when the Kettle Valley Railway was completed on the hillside above the village. Due to the intense volume of rock work it gained the reputation as one of the most difficult stretches of KVR construction.
Today, remnants of the KVR make for great exploration, such as the train tunnels, rock ovens, and the railway right-of-way which clings to the hillside high above Okanagan Lake and is now part of the Trans-Canada hiking Trail.
