Wednesday 15 January 2014
Meet Lucy!
We've been wanting a dog for years, so words can't describe how happy we are to finally have a puppy! She's an 8 week old Blue Heeler or Australian Cattle Dog which originally was a cross between a Dingo and a Dalmatian.
Sunday 12 January 2014
Our Journey
Kris and I met in a karaoke booth in the Summer of 2006 in Fukuoka, which is on the southern island of Kyushu in Japan. Since then, we've been searching for a fulfilling life that would give us a chance to work outdoors whilst continually learning new skills. After a couple of couple of years working in Victoria, BC (me organic farming and Kris for the provincial government), we felt that it was time to settle down and find some land. We drew up all sorts of lists about where this place would be (Ontario? BC? England? USA?), and in May 2013 we decided to check out the East coast of Canada. I drove a Smart car from Vancouver to Toronto, and by Michigan I had acquired a fan club on the US Highways with plenty of fist pumping as my miniature vehicle cruised across the vast prairies of North America! We arrived at Halifax airport and were greeted with an epic pink sunset...was it meant to be? Well, the following week was filled with constant drizzle and grey clouds, which amazingly didn't deter us from feeling an almost instant connection with the Annapolis Valley. Countless strangers helped us on our farm hunt (a guy named Peter even drove us around for an hour), and we returned to BC with a wallet full of phone numbers. Such kind people made us want to return and settle down to life in the countryside and we understood why so many Nova Scotians out West want to return to their homeland eventually.
So, in September we packed up Vic, our trusty 1992 Volvo station wagon, and headed East from Victoria to Kingston. A flat tire was the only blemish on a rainy 5 day trip over the Rockies and Prairies to the beautiful lakes in Ontario. We considered ourselves seriously lucky that we got our flat just as we rolled into Kenora, ON, as there is literally nothing for miles in either direction from the city and definitely no cell reception!
I then drove from Kingston to Nova Scotia on my own to see a house we had put an offer on. I camped outside a boozer in Edmunston, NB and feeling pretty hungover, was in desperate need of a cup of Earl Grey tea and decided to hunt down an independent cafe in a random town off the Highway. I found just what I was looking for in Perth Andover and was persuaded to have breakfast too. I went to pay and was told it was settled up by the couple next to me who had already left. Wow! I hadn't exchanged one word with these people and they had bought me breakfast. Amazing. As I spoke to the owner another couple asked where in Nova Scotia I was headed, so I explained that I was going to look at a house in Lakeville. They couldn't believe it as they were from the next village in the Valley. Unbelievable. Greg and Elsie told me I could camp in their village, Woodville, and help their neighbour with his apple harvest. In the end, the house in Lakeville had terrible clay soil and I ended up camping at the Boates' Apple orchard for a few weeks before Kris made it out. After more house hunting, we found a beautiful property in Woodville where we had already started making friends, so we decided to put in an offer, and before we knew it our offer was accepted.
Now our dream of living off the land could become a reality. Years of inspiration from countless sources could be put into practice. We can't wait to learn as many skills as we can muster and hope many inevitable failures can be turned into successes and food for our community.
So, in September we packed up Vic, our trusty 1992 Volvo station wagon, and headed East from Victoria to Kingston. A flat tire was the only blemish on a rainy 5 day trip over the Rockies and Prairies to the beautiful lakes in Ontario. We considered ourselves seriously lucky that we got our flat just as we rolled into Kenora, ON, as there is literally nothing for miles in either direction from the city and definitely no cell reception!
I then drove from Kingston to Nova Scotia on my own to see a house we had put an offer on. I camped outside a boozer in Edmunston, NB and feeling pretty hungover, was in desperate need of a cup of Earl Grey tea and decided to hunt down an independent cafe in a random town off the Highway. I found just what I was looking for in Perth Andover and was persuaded to have breakfast too. I went to pay and was told it was settled up by the couple next to me who had already left. Wow! I hadn't exchanged one word with these people and they had bought me breakfast. Amazing. As I spoke to the owner another couple asked where in Nova Scotia I was headed, so I explained that I was going to look at a house in Lakeville. They couldn't believe it as they were from the next village in the Valley. Unbelievable. Greg and Elsie told me I could camp in their village, Woodville, and help their neighbour with his apple harvest. In the end, the house in Lakeville had terrible clay soil and I ended up camping at the Boates' Apple orchard for a few weeks before Kris made it out. After more house hunting, we found a beautiful property in Woodville where we had already started making friends, so we decided to put in an offer, and before we knew it our offer was accepted.
Now our dream of living off the land could become a reality. Years of inspiration from countless sources could be put into practice. We can't wait to learn as many skills as we can muster and hope many inevitable failures can be turned into successes and food for our community.
Wednesday 8 January 2014
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