
Shorts Creek Canyon Rim Trail follows the north edge of the ravine in the Fintry Protected Area. The trailhead is a bit difficult to access which also may explain the lack of trail maintenance. Those things aside, there are several points along the trail with excellent views all the way to the Monashees, Camel’s Hump, Okanagan Lake, Sugarloaf, Big White, Little White, and Okanagan Mountain. Terrace Mountain looms over the entire trail and the sounds of Christie Falls are a constant crashing down into the canyon. The trail ends at a cliff overlooking multicoloured basalt columns, easily as spectacular as those at Keremeos.
Directions to Trailhead
It is advisable to have either detailed maps or GPS instead of just directions as there are many unmarked turns and forks to navigate before reaching the trailhead. The start of the journey to the trailhead begins roughly 20km north of Fintry with a turn off Westside Rd onto Beau Park Road (unpaved). Stay left to fork onto Bouleau Rd and left again to Whitemans Creek Rd. A final left turn across a bridge continues you down Whitemans Creek Rd and here the road gets much rougher (end of the line for cars). At 6km from the trailhead there is a road washout (as of summer 2020). It is probably doable for ballsy drivers but many are just parking here for now (adding 12km of road walking to the hike). ATVs should have no trouble.
From the washout, the best idea would be to bicycle or walk the rest of the road. Take note that the 6km is uphill with an elevation gain of 400m to the trailhead. There is also a river ford and a couple more unmarked turns. Best to keep to detailed maps/GPS.



Trail details
The trail has not been maintained in a few years. Hundreds of trees have fallen along the path so there is lots of ducking, jumping and navigating required. That being said, the bridges at the creek crossings are mostly intact and it is not overly difficult to stay on trail.


Distance Kelowna to Trailhead: 2-3 hours depending on strategy
Trail Return time: 3-5 hours
Trail Length: 5.1 km one way
Elevation gain: 250m (just trail), 400m (washout to trailhead)
GPS: Highly advisable.
Easy to Stay on trail: Mostly. The trail follows the ridgeline so it is relatively easy to get back on course.
Thanks, very nice write-up! Good job with the drone as well. Planning an ATV trip to the cliff face that’s visible from Christie Falls. Hoping to shorten the walk by approaching from the west. Sat imagery is old though, won’t know if the trails are passable until we get there.
Very curious to know if your trip worked! There are a ton of criss-crossing ATV trails up there but so many in bad condition. I wouldn’t be surprised if there was another route in but I can’t imagine it would be without at least some bushwhacking. I think the easiest way would be to ATV to the trailhead sign (past the washout I mentioned and the river ford). The road washout doubles the hiking time for regular vehicles but with an ATV straight to the trailhead it would be fine. If you find another way I’d love to see your GPS tracks!
This was one of my favorite hikes in the area. Tried this in July 2019 and managed the washout with an AWD SUV but the water in the creek was high and we could not get past that. Not keen on doing the extra trip 6 km on the road. Shame really.
Explored most of the ATV trails nearby. The best one was in good shape and took me to within 400 meters of the west end of Steve’s hike. Will try to walk the last bit next time. At least half of it looks open and easy. Hard to say about the rest, might be very dense. Have approached from both the east (road and culvert washouts) and from the west (near Sandberg Lake) Final leg of ATV track here. https://www.dropbox.com/s/wguzf1bzfkfyhxa/cliff%20hike%20markers%20and%20track.kmz?dl=0
Nice work Wayne! I think it’s worth attempting a bushwhack from there. The satellite photos show there is a mix of thick trees and clearings but it should be doable.