Update: Float Cabins for Sale on Powell Lake BC
Winter is here. This is one of my favourite times of the year. The lake is quiet, except for work boats and the occasional hardy cabin owner who enjoys cool (sometimes cold) evenings and solitude. In case you haven't guessed, that's me. And pretty soon we may even get a dusting of snow. Just enough to enjoy.
Purchasing our cabin was the best thing we ever did. Why don't you come up and take a look at some of the great properties that are available. You might find the perfect spot just for you.
Are you interested in getting a cabin of your own? Here's an updated list of cabins and properties up the lake that are for sale. Some are through real estate agents, so you can get more information via their websites.
Powell Lake Houseboat for Sale - Powell River Living Magazine had an add for a houseboat that is still be available for $44,500. The add says, "44-foot Three Buoys Houseboat with fuel efficient 120hp Mercruiser gas engine. Amenities include propane hot water shower, full galley with cooking stove, fridge and plenty of cupboards. A cozy gas fireplace adds warmth on chilly nights. For overnight trips it sleeps 8 including separate captains cabin and private loft. Extras include 110 power, water slide, dinghy and swim grid. Large upper deck with controls and steering make this a great alternative to a float cabin." For more information or viewing (at the Shinglemill Powell Lake Marina) call Gord at (604) 483-1269 or email agentgord@gmail.com.
Mandy Brown from RE/Max have a cute freehold cabin on Powell Lake. It comes with about half an acre of treed property about 15 minutes from the Shinglemill Marina. The 900 sq ft cabin has two bedrooms and one bath, and a cozy woodstove. It comes with canoe, linens, kitchen utensils, everything to get you started on the best summer you've ever had. Was $259,000. Now all of this can be yours for only $229,000. For more information, click here. You can reach Mandy at 604-485-2741 or mandybrown@remax.net.
Interested in an 8.35 acre land holding for a remote retreat or ecotourism resort? The Powell Lake Lodge is for sale and Jason Zroback of LandQuest can help you out. The land has ten years left on a thirty-year Crown (government) lease. The improvements include five cabins, several outbuildings, water, septic and dock. It's been vacant for a while and would need some work, but the price is right at $299,000 for everything. It's water access from Powell River but there's road access to the ocean at Theodosia Inlet. Give Jason a call at 604-414-5577 or jason@landquest.com.
Powell Lake Cabin Services - Already have a cabin up the lake? We are always looking for help with projects around ours. Our good friend (and float cabin neighbour) Justin Behan offers services such as cargo delivery, lumber packages, cubes, propane tanks, wood stoves, and anchor and rope supply. In addition, Justin is now a distributor for Sun-Mar composting toilets just like the one we installed in our new bathroom addition. For more information, call Justin at (604) 483-6527.
Want a real estate agent that really knows float cabins? That's Harry Zroback (our man Harry who helped us get our cabin) from RE/MAX. Harry owns a cabin himself, so he's an excellent person to contact for all your "up the lake" real estate needs at 604-483-8333 or harry@powellriverrealestate.com.
If you have any questions about Powell River, Powell Lake or cabin living, I'd be glad to help out. Just leave a comment or use the e-mail link in my profile to send me a message. -- Margy
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Coastal BC,
Float Cabin Living,
Powell Lake,
Powell River
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24 comments:
I love looking at these houseboats and imagining a different way of life... perhaps it will be my way of life in the future, when the children are grown and ejvig and I don't have to work anymore! It looks heavenly.
Looks like a great way to live to me. It would be a GREAT reason to get rid of some(or all) of the STUFF I own. LOL
I would love to live on Cassiar Island...just think my own island.
I'll take one!!!!
Hugs ♥♥
Gee whizz....I'll dream on!
What a wonderful life! Jim would love fishing off his front "yard"!
These cabins are the entry to a great way of life, as you know so well, Margy!
I have a friend moving to the coast looking for an unusual place on the water. I'd say these fit! I'll be showing her your blog. Happy belated New Year to you and Wayne!
Hi Marion - If they have any questions have them send me an e-mail. I always love bragging about my home up the lake. - Margy
Hi Margy,
I've been reading your comments for some time now. I grew up in a float camp in the Smiths and Rivers Inlet area. Ready to get back to it! Wondering about the 5 cabin lease property. Do you pass it on the way to your place? Sorry...my knowledge of the lake is slim! Wondering how long it takes to get there, and how rough the dock etc. is, as it has been empty for quite some time. I look forward to your ongoing messages...especially the ones about gardening! My mom got quite creative, as did the other ladies of the camp. Fantastic luck with flowers, but not so much with veggies. Marcia
Hi Marcia - The lease property with the 5 cabins is farther up the lake from us. To get to our cabin it takes 25 minutes in a runabout so I am guessing it would be an additional 15-20 minutes to get to the property in a boat our size. I haven't been into the dock in over a year so I am not sure of the condition now, but then it had some weak spots and wood damage. As you said, things that have been left alone for a long time do tend to deteriorate. The same with the cabins. If you are interested, I would highly recommend contacting the agent and going up to look at the property. You would also want to see how much longer the lease runs and what the renewal requirements are. It was a commercial operation until the early 2000s. One interesting aspect is that it can be reached overland by a network of logging roads, but access from Powell River is quite restricted to quads and even that may be eliminated in the near future. But for backcountry exploration it is a big bonus. The center of the property was a huge grassy area surrounded by the cabins and then forest. If you are handy with restorations or have someone in the family it would be a good fixer-upper. If you had to pay for all the work to be done that might be another thing. Hope this helps. - Margy
Hi Margy,
Very helpful. Thankyou. In your experience, would there tend to be more snow/rain there than in, for example, downtown Powell River, Townsite, or Lund? Marcia
Hello again! Hubbie and I are looking for some off grid land. Sister and her hubbie may be joining us. In touch with local realtors. Certainly would appreciate any suggestions you may have. Thanks. Picked up...I think it was 'Up The Lake' last time in P.R. enjoyed it very much. Marcia
Hi Marcia -
As far as snow, starting at about our cabin the snow sticks and stays a bit longer than in town, but only slightly more. The elevation at lake level is just barely above sea level. The last two winters have been relatively mild, but there have been some with more snow and freezing weather. For us it is a welcome change. If we had grown up here maybe we'd have a different point of view.
There are quite a few locations where you can find off the grid properties especially north of town along the coast. Some are accessible by forest dirt roads and others are water access only. One real estate agency you might check out is BC Land Professionals. They are the same ones that are offering the Powell Lake Lodge. Here's a link to one in Okeover Inlet. http://www.bclandpro.com/Properties.php/Details/81
The agent we've used is Harry Zroback at ReMax. A link to him is in my post. Just tell him Wayne and Margy sent you. He'll take good care of you like he did us.
Margy
Margy
If Harry lives in a cabin, heknow very well.
When I lived up North of Brazil, during 1 year, I lived in a house on the water, Amazon River, do u know that?
hahahahahahha
It was so funny
nice day
graceolsson.com/blog
Hi Margy, thanks for stopping by. It has been a hard year and somewhat frustrating so getting to at least sleep in the cabin was a treat, unfortunately the "noseeums" found me rather quickly and I had to retreat for now.
I currently am looking for the "perfect" stove to keep it cosy but not over heated. There will be a deck off the back where a NE composting toilet will be and a rainforest shower and cystern. I have been thinking of you and your windpower turbine you wrote about last year and thinking I can do the same here.
This has been a much more frustrating process than I expected and that is saying a lot 'cause I don't frustrate easily. It has been a remarkable experience and I realize I know and am capable of much more than I think...I will never build with a partner again!!!!!
Glad things are going well with you and I hope the weather gets warmer for your time up the lake, it has been extremely cool here.
Smiles
Hi Margy, Likin' the pics of your garden float. How has the summer been there? We have tried to see the 5 cabin lease property, with realtors, twice. Once the boat would not start and once in got stormy and the lake was too rough. We are from Alberta and our time in P.R. is sadly brief each year, so not much chance to take a closer look.
Question...what do you and the other float houses/cabins use as a water source? If you use creek/river/spring, do you need a permit?
We're wondering if the dock is still solid enough to tie up at. Guess we'll find out if we get out there this fall. We'd need to build a dock and also a swim float. Know anyone with experience in building log/plank docks and floats?
Thanks for your info and updates.
Happy floating! Marcia
Hi Marcia -
Hope this is the lucky trip for you. I still haven't been back to the property, so I don't know the condition. I do know when you leave cabins untouched that long they do deteriorate quickly. Same goes for the floats. They weren't in good shape when we were there several years ago. But I am sure you could find a spot to tie up until repairs could be made. Plus, if the real estate company is really trying to move the property I bet they have kept some things in working order.
I don't know what the property did for water. They must have had some kind of system with five cabins. We use the lake water after boiling for cooking, coffee, and of course, washing. For drinking water we prefer to take bottled water up. We don't need much, so a few jugs lasts us quite a while.
Our good friend is excellent at building cedar log floats, but I don't know if he is available for extra work. Another resource is Justin Behan. He has a business to build floats and cabins, and sells anchor rope, wood stoves and compost toilets. His number is in the post. The challenge has been to find a logging company willing to sell any. Maybe the old dock logs aren't so bad they can't be reused.
Margy
Thanks Margy. We've been wondering (thinking of kids and grandkids!) what the lake water temperature is like in the summertime...warm enough to swim, ski, etc., without a wetsuit? Also curious to know what the percentage of rainy days is. Should be able to find some weather stats somewhere. Your comments about snow were helpful too. They call it the "Sunshine Coast" But I hear there is a lot of rain.:)
Marcia
P.S. Reading "Up The Main". Interesting. Funny! Gives a sense of the area.
Hi Marcia -
Every year is a bit different. This year in June and July the lake water was colder than normal because the weather was cooler. But on average, I would say the lake water is between 15-20 degrees C from July through August. On a good year you can swim in June and September. By October it is a bit chilly for my taste for lake baths. Kids and adults tube and ski lots on the lake. There are even a few seadoos. Usually July and August have more sun than rain, but this year we've had more rain than normal. It is typical to get a fire ban sometime in July due to lack of rain. Fall can be a nice time of year with a nice mix of sun and rain. By November, the winter storms arrive with wind and rain more frequent. That lasts usually through Easter when Spring brings more sun and storms that are less strong. We do get snow, but for the last two years it has been minimal. Three years ago we got several days of snow followed by a cold spell so it stuck on the ground for a few week. Usually, the snow melts in a few days. We do get cold nights, so ice is more prevalent than snow. We came from Southern California where there were no real seasons, so having distinct seasons has been exciting for us. There is nothing better than snuggling up in front of the wood stove while it rains (or snows) outside. Not at lake level, but up a few hundred feet you can cross country ski and snowshoe. Because the property you are looking at has access to logging roads (or at least it used to) you might be able to use a vehicle to get high enough for winter sports. - Margy
p.s. Our other name is the Raincoast. Have you read any of the Raincoast Chronicles books yet? They have lots of history of the area (but mostly the lower Sunshine Coast).
Hi Margy,
Haven't read the Raincoast Chronicles yet. Will check them out. Reading Adventures in Solitude by Grant Lawrence. Very funny!
Thanks for the further info.
We have spent a lot of years in Alberta...winters with temps to minus 50 C so are looking for someplace with milder weather. But dear hubbie is a prairie boy...not sure he can handle 5 months of rain and storm and cloud! Yes...the realtor tells us that the 8 acre property has a connecting road to the logging roads...very grown over, of course. Do you get any phone or internet service up the lake? Sorry if these are questions you have already answered in your blog. I need to spend some time and re-read. We are looking at float houses also. Wondering how they are taxed.
Appreciate the info!
Marcia
HI Marcia - We are on the ragged edge of cell phone coverage with my old phone with an external car antennae. I know some people have satellite phone and Internet. That is probably what would be needed that far up the lake. There is also a company in town that offers cell phone coverage extension antennas, but don't know if you are close enough for that. Float cabins have both lease and regional district taxes. That would probably be the same for the lease land property you are looking at. The lease for our cabin is about $500 a year and I think the taxes are about the same. The taxes are based on the assessed value of the cabin. Cabin leases were issued in about 2002 for most cabins for 20 years. We have about 10 years left before renewal. - Margy
Hi Margy,
Well, this was our lucky visit! We got up the lake on a totally gorgous day, and took a careful look at the 5 cabin property. Jason Z pointed out your place on the way up! The 5 cabins have been vandalized with furnishings stolen. Also, steps to decks are about had it, and the docks no longer exist. The alders have grown up and almost obscure the lake view, and the entire place is grown over. Having said that, we think it is stunning! Fell in love, in fact! Have been trying to negotiate a deal with the owner, but no luck so far:(
It would take a lot of work and significant dollars to get back in shape, but what a great place. Thanks again for all the info you have shared and who knows? One day we might just see you up the lake! Marcia
Hi Marcia - Glad you finally got up to the property. We were in Bellingham when you went by. Maybe we'll connect if all goes well for you. - Margy
Hi Margy--wouldn't it be super to live on the Lake. Well you know don't you.
On a sad note, my Mother left this earth to seek sunnier pastures yesterday. She was 95 and went very quickly for which I am thankful. Thanks for being a friend. MB
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