The Arts Council of the North Okanagan presents the Okanagan Rail Trail Plein Air Event
REGISTER to paint or walk, bike, or run on the trail to see all the artists creating!
Sunday, June 14th, 2026
Paint outdoors & explore nature with your brush in hand! Starting at KM 0 of the beautiful Okanagan Rail Trail in Vernon and extending into Lake Country, artists will explore the trail and seek out a spot to paint for the day. This event is free and open to all ages and abilities.
Prizes will be awarded in 4 groups: Experienced Artists, Emerging Artists, Youth Artists, and People’s Choice.
Bring your own art supplies and materials and get ready for a day of plein air fun!!
The Friends of the Okanagan Rail Trail (FORT) Ambassadors will be on the trail in bright green high-visibility vest if you have any questions.
At the end of the day, artists will gather at the Rail Trail Cafe for live music, art jurying, prizes, and some light refreshments.
You can register until noon the day before the event to give us enough time to email you the registration package. Registration is not available on the day of the event.
RAIL TRAIL PLEIN AIR EVENT SCHEDULE
9:00 to 2:00 – Registered artists proceed to the Rail Trail and choose spot to paint. Have fun!
3:00 – Artwork brought to Rail Trail Cafe for jurying. Live music, artist mingle & light refreshments.
4:00 – 5:00 1st, 2nd, & 3rd Place Prizes awarded for Experienced, Emerging, and Youth Artists.
NEW WRAP UP CELEBRATION LOCATION: Rail Trail Cafe for live music, snacks and drinks from 3:00 to 5:00. You must be at the Rail Trail Cafe by 3:00pm at the latest for your work to be included.
The People’s Choice Award will be announced online on June 29th, 2026.
NEW THIS YEAR – Register for our Artist Talk and Q&A at the Rail Trail Cafe – Sunday, May 31st, 2026.
Let us know if you would like to join us. We will have a professional plein air artist and a social media specialist on site to answer questions. We will send out the information for this event only to those who register. The session will run from 10am to noon.
Register HERE!
