Profile information
Host rating
100 %
Last replied
28 Aug 2024
Feedback
26
Email verified
Badges (3)
Details
Description
We are a retired couple, living in a beautiful seaside community on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, 35 minutes drive or 50 minute bus ride to a ferry (40 minute ferry ride) to downtown Vancouver. Our home is on Porpoise Bay with 2/3 of an acre of trees, shrubs, flowers and vegetables.
*️️️️️️️️️*️️️️️️️️️ We are non-smokers & do not want workawayers who smoke or wear scented cosmetics. We have wifi available, but we ask that you NOT be on your phones while working. (We do not have data for streaming movies.) Cable TV is available in your bed-sitting room.
Penny is recovering from an infected knee replacement and is on antibiotics 24-7 for the next 6 weeks. We have a portable machine which she must be connected to at all times. As a result, her mobility is extremely limited right now. She is an avid flower and vegetable gardener and would love help planting and getting the gardens organized.
We help cleaning and cooking (we can take turns cooking, but if you really love it you can do it all :0)! Penny is vegan: John eats fish and dairy but eats plant based much of the time -- cooking fish is OK but other meat is not cooked in the house. We have a BBQ on our attached deck where you can cook (poultry/pork) and clean the BBQ.
Penny has taught English as a second language and speaks Spanish badly. John, -- a singer/songwriter has an English major degree (a while back) and is also capable of helping with English. He no longer hears well (life as a musician) so slow, clear speech is appreciated and certainly helps learning.
We'd like a workaway for one to two weeks but are flexible depending on your circumstances & ours at the time.
We have kayaks and a SUP for your use. They can be launched right here below the house. We have equipment for tennis, pickleball and other sports equipment and are in easy walking distance to a large wilderness park with huge Douglas fir trees and many other species. This area is known for outdoor activities and visits from animals, mainly deer, racoons, black bears, and elk.
The bus is a few blocks from our house & connects to many places of interest on the Sunshine Coast. We'll take you to special places not accessible by bus if you like. Some workawayers have just enjoy's to swim, kayak, hike or relax up on their second floor sundeck overlooking the sea.
Sechelt is partially located on a First Nations Land so there are aboriginal people & places of their culture to visit, a small museum and various cultural events. We have a good library, movie and live theatre + some sort of festival or happening most every weekend. Golf, racquet sports, swimming in lakes, swimming in the ocean inlet we live on, many, many hikes. Sechelt is located on Georgia Strait which has now been renamed the Salish Sea. plus a lovely indoor pool in town. There are markets and small malls plus waterfront walks in both lower towns (Gibson's and Sechelt) + other marine attractions, plus the world famous Skookumchuk Narow's rapids.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Language practice
Elderly Companionship
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
General Maintenance
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
Travellers can learn and/or improve english, the history of this area, about the First Nations people who settled this land centuries ago -- water sports, hiking and a deep connection with the natural world. If the timing works they can also visit the famous Skookumchuck Narrows.
Help
Outside: Gardening and General Maintenance, which could include moving soil, pruning, weeding, vegetable garden maintenance. Possible help with small repairs and projects around the house & carport. Perhaps outdoor painting. A person should be comfortably able to lift a small bag of concrete in and out of a wheelbarrow, for example.
Inside: Cooking, cleanup, vacuuming, general & special house tasks.
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: BeginnerThis host offers a language exchange
I would like to improve my very poor Spanish.
Accommodation
We have a waterfront home and you'll have large, oceanfront upstairs bed sitting room with a balcony overlooking Porpoise Bay. The room has a sofa, a TV, two comfy beds (or one kingsized bed). Almost exclusive use of a large upstairs bathroom tho' we occasionally use the soaker tub. Workawayers are free to use the rest of the house most of the time as well as the garden areas, large deck attached to the house and a deck down by the sea.
What else ...
There is a bus stop a few blocks from our home. The bus goes directly to the town of Sechelt, (15 minute walk, 10 minute bus ride) where a transfer can be made to Halfmoon Bay to the north and to the south the villages of Roberts' Creek and Gibson's. There are many, many hikes, 4 lakes and ocean beaches all along the peninsula. The vehicle and passenger/car ferry (about 45 minutes by bus and a 40 minute beautiful ferry ride across the Salish Sea to West Vancouver, where there is a fast bus into townVancouver regular bus to Squamish & the famous Whistler areas.
When we are able we will drive you into Sechelt or other places.
The Sunshine Coast is one of the most beautiful unspoiled areas in the lower mainland of B.C., featuring untold opportunities for hiking, water sports, biking, fishing, cross country skiing. Our area is known world wide as a prime scuba diving venue. Skookumchuck narrows, a world renowned tidal phenomenon is a one hour drive + one hour hike away -- passing beautiful clear lakes along the way.
The city of Vancouver (40 minutes by bus/car plus 40 minutes by ferry) is a world class city worth going online to check out. The towns of Whistler & Squamish are +/- three hours away offering wonderful skiing, mountaineering, rock climbing and partying -- you do need a bit of money for the skiing and partying!
One could also just lounge on one of our large deck overlooking Porpoise Bay or a smaller deck down a short set of stairs to the Salish Sea. There's also a small deck off "your" room just to "contemplate your navel" - a local expression for relaxing that I hope doesn't offend anyone.
Yes, those are deer in our yard, they're not always here and the only thing they harm are our veggies & flowers and occasionally eat bark from trees. We don't know of anyone who has been injured by a deer. The opposite isn't true.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
We don't know what this means, but we so usually have good internet access.
Space for parking camper vans
We could accept campervans, likely up to 20 feet in length. This would have to be discussed. We could provide it with electricity but likely only cold water???
Can possibly accept pets
No
How many Workawayers can stay?
One
Feedback (12)
Their house and property is really beautiful right on the sechelt inlet, perfect for swimming, kayaking and stand up paddling.
The room we stayed in was nice with its own little balcony from where we had an awesome view of the inlet and the… read more
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Feedback
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Accuracy of profile:
(5.0)
Cultural exchange:
(5.0)
Communication:
(5.0)
Their house and property is really beautiful right on the sechelt inlet, perfect for swimming, kayaking and stand up paddling.
The room we stayed in was nice with its own little balcony from where we had an awesome view of the inlet and the… read more
We worked inside and outside with pleasure and we also have fun together !
Their house and their garden and view were amazing ! We had lot of fun watching the seel in front of the… read more
Brenda was really lovely and she mainly asked me to do some gardening and to walk her very cute and active dog Brandy, which was a pleasure (If Brenda creates a workaway profile I'd be happy to leave her a review).
John… read more
I had despaired of ever having a small reno in our master bedroom look good, but Jo took it on, knew exactly what to do and with beautifully detailed painting, glazing,… read more
