With two good sized cities and several towns and villages on its shores, the lake draws more sun seekers to its beaches than any other area in the southern interior. 135 kilometers (84 mi) long and averaging just under two miles in width, the lake is home to a quarter of a million people, millions of fish and one lake monster. It has a surface area if 351 square kilometers (136 sq mi) and its maximum depth is 232 metres (761 ft). It contains 24.6 cubic kilometers (5.9 cu. mi.) of water which has an average residence time of 52.8 years. Its shoreline totals 270 kilometers (170 mi).
Long before white men had arrived in the area, the Okanagan First Nations People knew of a large serpent like creature which lived in the lake. Known as Naitaka (Salish: n'ha-a-itk, "lake demon")by the natives, it's known more commonly as Ogopogo.
The lake is a mecca for fishing, boating and sailing, with several marinas along its shores. It is in a glacial valley, formed (or more properly, reformed) by glacial action during the ice ages. It is fed by the Okanagan River from the north and several smaller streams along its length. The Okanagan River exits its south end and flows south to the Columbia River in Washington State.
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