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Year in Review: Penticton’s largest and longest-running festivals return

The Penticton Peach Festival returned in 2022, after a multi-year hiatus

This year’s summer was one of celebration in Penticton, with some of the city’s longest-running events and festivals returning after multi-year hiatuses.

The 75th-anniversary of the Penticton Peach Festival brought tens of thousands of people to the city in early August, headlined by live music from renowned artists, motocross competitions, beach volleyball by Skaha Lake and the beloved Grand Parade down Main Street.

One of Canada’s most beloved summertime events was also marked by the return of the Skyhawks parachute team, who arrived at the Penticton Regional Airport hours before the official start of Peachfest for a community meet-and-greet and demonstration.

Later that day, the festival’s return was made official when the members of the Skyhawks jumped from 6,000 feet to land at Okanagan Lake Park.

“This is the proudest I’ve ever been while serving my country because I get to see Canadians coast-to-coast,” Capt. Pierre-Alexandre Dufour said after arriving at Peachfest. “Doing this in Penticton today just makes me so proud.”

After a quiet two summers, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, several other events roared back to Penticton in 2022.

The Penticton Elvis Festival on the final weekend of June welcomed tribute performers from as close as Vancouver and Seattle, to as far as Amsterdam and London. During the same time, the 20th edition of Western Canada’s premium car show, the Peach City Beach Cruise, returned just down the street.

Elvis Presley and car-themed festivities preceded an in-person celebration of Canada Day at Gyro Park for the first time since 2019. Ribfest and the Penticton Scottish Festival also returned during that same holiday weekend.

And in September, 1,500 racers from across the Pacific Northwest gathered at Skaha Lake for the Penticton Dragon Boat Festival.

From June to September, there were plenty of both indoor and outdoor entertainment options in Penticton and event organizers are already looking ahead to 2023.

READ MORE: Year in Review: Penticton’s controversial developments


@lgllockhart
logan.lockhart@pentictonwesternnews.com