Leaving Monkey Valley

As I have mentioned in other postings, I have put Monkey Valley on the market. I hope you have had a chance to look at the virtual tour of the house today.

Offering nature-based teachings in new places

The original intention of this website was to promote the retreats that I offered here on the land. I have offered a variety of events, including an amazing retreat where a group of 25 people from around the world gathered to build a medicine wheel. Another favourite was the yoga and ChiRunning retreat that I taught with Angela James. Going forward, I will still be offering the vision fast, the medicine walk and the teaching of the four directions, and a yoga and nature workshop, but in new locations.

The choice to sell Monkey Valley

It was a difficult decision to sell Monkey Valley, but that seems to be where the flow of my life is taking me. I have been the steward of the land and care-taker of the home for 12 years now. I bought this land within a few weeks of my father’s death. It has held much healing, learning, and growth for me. And a fair share of frustrations, too, which I think is part of the territory with any major undertaking. I have enjoyed most of the learning, and many fine times with family, friends, and co-journeyers on the path of inner realization, both with the Diamond Approach and with the nature-based spiritual practices.

At this stage in my life journey I find myself wanting to put down deeper roots in one place. Keeping two homes for all these years—Monkey Valley and an apartment I rented in Vancouver for a pied-à-terre—has required a lot of energy. I realize that I don’t want to spend my energy that way, and on the travelling back and forth. Yet if I have to choose only one place to be, I am sad to say that I can’t choose Monkey Valley. I feel too isolated there when I live there alone full-time. It has taken me a while to realize (and admit) that I am a social creature, and I like to be around people! So if I am going to choose a place to put down roots, I need to choose a place where there are people. I have noticed over the years how returning from Monkey Valley to Vancouver (where I was born and have lived for most of my life) always feels like a home-coming. My appreciation for and love of this city have grown. (Though like most of us, I could do with less traffic!) One morning I spent some time reading the Georgia Straight‘s annual “Best of Vancouver” issue, and love for this city swelled in my heart.

So these are some of the factors in my decision to sell Monkey Valley. Making this choice, I bit the bullet and bought a townhouse in Vancouver, which I love. I have been putting down roots and weaving into the fabric of community here in many ways, including a new gig volunteering by teaching yoga at the Pacifica Treatment Centre. I am looking forward to this next phase of my life!

Monkey Valley is a self-sufficient, off-grid home and 160 acres. It is probably the most unique solar-powered home for sale in BC right now. It is a very private property located in the wilderness near Aspen Grove, BC, between Merritt and Princeton. The closest lakes are Kentucky Lake, Alleyne Lake, Loon Lake, and Missezula Lake. In fact, if you follow Shrimpton Creek south from the property line, Missezula Lake is less than a mile away. This very private property offers a sustainable, green home and acreage that you can live in year-round, or use as a vacation or recreational property. It is also an ideal investment property, as the land only increases in value and it is extremely rare to find such a private, pristine property so close to Vancouver and Kelowna. Rural land for sale is common enough, but to find a quarter section of fully fenced ranch land with no neighbouring properties is very unusual. The fencing, 5,000-square-foot barn, year-round creek, and grassland make it an ideal horse property. This remote acreage also has timber that can be logged, and it is surrounded by crown timber land. The 3-bedroom house is one-of-a-kind, blending an old-fashioned log cabin with a modern addition that offers all the comforts of solar power, cell phone service, and internet. The home, barn, and outbuildings are clad in country-style board-and-batten of Princeton fir. If you’re looking for creek-front real estate, you’ll love this home that’s more peaceful than most waterfront properties. Sound carries over water, so if you share a lake with neighbours, it’s never fully peaceful and quiet. This ecoproperty is the only land for sale near the Kentucky-Alleyne Provincial Park, and it is fully accessible for RVs. This could be a holiday property for a group of families who enjoy RVing in the wilderness. This unique character property is located at the north end of the Cascades foothills, in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District.