Originally known to the First Nations of the Okanagan Valley as Khiluk, which was- and remains today revered as a sacred site producing therapeutic waters. During World War I the minerals of Spotted Lake were used in manufacturing ammunition. Later the area came under the control of the Ernest Smith Family, for a term of about 40 years. In 1979 Smith attempted to create interest in a spa at the lake. The First Nations responded with an effort to buy the lake; in October 2001 they finally struck a deal. First Nations arranged the purchase of 22 hectares of land for a total of $720,000, and contributed about 20% of the cost. The Indian Affairs Department paid the remainder.

A South Korean diver clad in Santa Claus costume swims with sardines at The Coex Aquarium on December 8, 2012 in Seoul, South Korea. Even though the official religion of South Korea is Buddhism, about 30 percent of it is Christian and Christmas is one of the biggest holidays to be celebrated in South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun)

Border Security Force (BSF) personnel patrol along the border fence during a cold foggy morning near India-Pakistan Wagah border about 40km from Amritsar on December 21, 2022. (Photo by Narinder Nanu/AFP Photo)

A tree stands in a lake in Usingen near Frankfurt, Germany, Wednesday, March 22, 2023, the World Water Day. World Water Day was established in 1992 by the United Nations to spread awareness about the water condition all over the world. (Photo by Michael Probst/AP Photo)

People jump over the fire wearing traditional Russian village-style clothes as they celebrate the summer solstice with a bonfire in the village of Okunevo, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northeast of the Siberian city of Omsk, Russia, in Okunevo, Russia, late Thursday, June 20, 2024. (Photo by Evgeniy Sofiychuk/AP Photo)

Iraqi Kurdish women work at a hand-weaving Kurdish traditional carpet shop, in the district of Raniya, about 70 kilometres (43 miles) east of Arbil, the capital of Iraq's northern autonomous Kurdish region, on February 11, 2025. (Photo by Safin Hamid/AFP Photo)

Dalmatian pelicans jostle over a fish meal on September 9, 2021. Every year about 100 of the birds fly to feast at Lake Kerkini, central Macedonia, Greece. (Photo by Peter Bradley/Solent News & Photo Agency/Solent News)

American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift early October 2025 reveals “dark fear” that used to plague her before finding Travis Kelce as she opens up about wedding plans. (Photo by Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott)