Pretty cool piece about "Living off the grid"
http://www.globalnews.ca/video/index...LdTzDaiC#video

I have a couple of friends that live out there much of the year. Looks pretty fantastic. Of course now the secret is out lol. Wow, looks like paradise, life off the grid. Dreaming now...while I toil at my tedious day job... Thanks for sharing! 8D

Any word on Buddy?

charming feature, well done.
now I want a Saint Bernard

I hope that St. Bernard breeder with some 42 or so dogs rambling through the forest are not defacating in some one's drinking water supply like the engineer who said he drinks water straight out of "his" creek. The thundering and scrabbling feet of 40 dogs looks like they were laying waste to some beautiful mosses and lichens. St. Bernards have no concept of Leave No Trace, or Tread Lightly, that's the dog breeder's responsibility.

I don't get why the featured couple had a bunch of exercise machines on their porch? You supposedly live in paradise, with a lush rainforest, ocean, beach just outside your door, and you'd rather get a workout on a big box store, chinese made fitness machine? Can't Lasquetians hike, bike, swim, paddle, run, walk, cut/split firewood to get some exercise?

That's what I do. I doubt that any of the other Lasquetians featured in the show have excersize equipment.

from The Morning Show:

http://www.globaltoronto.com/Pages/M...?id=6442629198

Impressive.....from the most basic to the earthship.

Could be fun for a while, a short period though.

Wow, and a huge pack of dogs. and 1000's of sheep.

K

Utopia? Every pound of dog food (or all other freight, for that matter) takes this route:

Drive from home to ferry and find a parking spot. Run down to the ferry before it takes off.

Go from Lasqueti to VI on the passenger ferry, that costs $ and burns diesel. Don't forget to get your loading pass for the return trip.

Try to get your car at French Creek running, that's maybe been sitting for weeks. Hope the vandals haven't stolen your gas, or slashed your tires.

Spend your day shopping and race back to catch the last ferry (3 a day, except none on Tue-Wed). Load freight (space is very limited) and race to park your car and get back down to the ferry before it takes off. Hope it's not a SE wind or you'll be rolling broadside for the hour of open water crossing.

For most people, they find it necessary to have a vehicle on both Lasqueti and VI. That's insurance twice, plus parking fees at French Creek. There's no car ferry to Lasqueti, so vehicles need to be barged over, costing a couple of hundred dollars each way... which usually means a one way trip for an old used vehicle.

Once on the Lasqueti side, you'll need to pack your freight up the ramp (hope it's not low tide) and go fetch your vehicle and bring it down to the dock. How much does gas cost on Lasqueti?

Final leg, drive home. For many, this last leg also involves a path between the road and home, involving packing or wheel barrowing the freight down the trail.

Finally time to kick back and rest... But first start a fire and turn on the propane lights. You did remember to get your tanks filled on "Dangerous Freight" day, didn't you?

Every jug of milk, roll of tar paper, cast iron bathtub... all freight, goes through this scenario.

You could get your own boat and skip the ferry, but anybody that's gone this route soon realizes that boats are just holes in the water, needing to be filled with money.

Sound's pretty idyllic doesn't it?

Lol, sounds like a good reason to be really well-educated on what you'll need to be as self-sufficient as possible, to avoid those trips whenever possible. 8D And perhaps make a group shopping list, so neighbours can help each other out when visiting VI... Grow yer own, brew yer own. 8D Seeds are a lot lighter to carry than groceries! Maybe learn to love my tea without milk? (!!!)

Some of these people barge in quantities of diesel for their generators, not so great for "peace & clean air". No different than camping in a regional park.
Got to put up with annual RCMP flybies from helicopter searching for that evil weed.
RCMP also visit to catch unlicensed motor vehicles.
That guy's plastic wrap living quarters looks like my greenhouse.
That other guy's "fire under the bathtub while drinking plum wine" reminds me of that science quiz.."when a frog is placed in a shallow pot and the water turned on slow boil..."[B)]

Some lasquitians sure do dress unusual when they visit the big island, and somehow the Clock and Work ethic in a structured work environment eludes them when they land a job here.

Others feel entitled to let their dogs roam nilly-willy.One ass dog owner held his neighbors' at bay with a .22 when they complained of the noise, shit and trespass and stalking by his dogs, and it took the police 12 hours to arrive and investigate.

On the plus side, the island is dark at night.

Other than the pub at False Bay, I don't know of anyone that uses diesel to fuel generators for electricity. Most of the people, living on Laasqueti, that I have known from the 1970's, are making their own power from wind, hydro and solar.

This is not a simple process and requires much knowledge of the systems and a large output of funds to set up. It is not "free" electricity, as it has it's initial set up costs, including wiring a house similar to one on the grid and maintaining, replacing and disposing of deep cell batteries (much like car batteries).

People that fully embrace a lifestyle like this are not taking the easy way out and work far harder for their power than do people on the grid.

It's one thing to hang out for a summer, strumming your guitar and growing enough vegetables to think you're self sufficient, yet another thing to live there year round for many years, raising a family.

Cambium, please keep your nose and comments away from business that you have no real knowledge of.

Peter

It is a genuine life-goal to build an earthship. But it's hard to see where I'm going to get the approval and that kind of upfront cash.

Great video though, was nice to see the dream being lived.

Also it delights me how unable that woman was able to cope with a fairly comfortable level of rural living.

Somebody here is suggesting that they know every one that lives on this island and still flashbacks to the 1970's.
Some of us talk to people that regularly visit the island and deliver goods and services there.
I can see it from near my home.
Got some news for that person, real-estate-push has brought in a different mindset & me-attitudes & dreams of cheap cheap deals, and even in this film there is a hint thrown at lowermainlanders that lasqueti is only "90 minutes away fron vancouver".
Those that do make a success of using renewal energy and living off the land and community cohesiveness are doing something that we should be striving to do across the water.
All the power to them, no pun intended.

Cambium,

I never stated that I knew everyone on Lasqueti... only that I know many established residents on the Island. I am in personal contact with many of them on a regular basis. For 25 years, much of my cabinet business was done for people living or owning land on Lasqueti.

You know more than I do about Lasqueti Island, because you say, "I can see it from near my home."?... and you, "talk to people that regularly visit the island"? Have you ever even been to Lasqueti?

Cambium, or what ever you want to call yourself, stop making a fool of yourself and stick to the very few subjects that you may know something about, which doesn't seem like many.

I'm sure you will just have to have the last word on this, so have at it.

Peter