Those look like nice places - but too far out for my wife. And, I need to commute back and forth to Vancouver for the next 8+ years.
Those look like nice places - but too far out for my wife. And, I need to commute back and forth to Vancouver for the next 8+ years.
Have you considered Kamloops area, esp north towards sun peaks?
Kootenays sound like they'd be better for you (minus the bird hunting) after you move, but too far for you to get out for weekends in the interim
Been in the Vernon area for about 8yrs now. Fishing/Hunting is meh compared to other places in BC. WAY to busy these days. Soooooo many Albertards and LML Douche flooding in every summer. Best trade-off is my house value has about Doubled.
There is some great grouse hunting if you're willing to climb, and you're a short drive from some excellent Goat hunting. If you're into deer (meh) there certainly are plenty.
Can't believe how much busier it's become since I first arrived.
Armstrong is a cool spot for sure. Highway has now been twinned all the way into Vernon, so that commute is a snap, but if the destination is the Kelowna airport, getting through Vernon can be a choke point, depending on weather, time of day/year. Might be worth your while to check out Lake Country, south of Vernon. Also take a drive along Westside Road. It runs from Spallumcheen all the way to Kelowna. A bit windy & narrow plus the north part is Reserve land, but south of that there are some awesome properties. Dumps out south of the bridge across the lake though, so airport access would be a nightmare thru Kelowna.
Have you been to any of the ski hills in the Okanagan? Of course I'm partial to Silver Star, as mentioned it's one of the main reasons I chose Vernon over Kelowna or Penticton. There are some local nicknames for the hills, they are quite apt, Big Whiteout, ScrApex, Revelsoak... don't actually recall the one for SStar, but it was considered a bit of a hokey family hill in the past. These days with new terrain opened up it is actually near the top with respect to the amount of skiable acreage in the province if not the country. The snowpack is reliable, check the webcam, downside is winter operations shut down after the 1st weekend in April. They could keep it going to the end of the month most years, but locals are busy golfing & gardening by then & it's not cost effective to run the lifts with insufficient out of town clientele. Commute from Vernon up the hill is about 25 minutes, Big White & Apex both longer drives from Kelowna, Penticton respectively.
http://www.skisilverstar.com/my-moun...itions/webcams
2 world class Cat Skiing operations within an hour's drive, Monashee & Mustang. Another officially opened at Keefer Lake this past season & yet another K3, operates off Hwy 1 near Sicamous. Sol Mountain Touring, 5 star backcountry lodge also up in the Monashees, staging off Hwy 6. They have a summer program up there as well, mountain biking. Did I mention SStar is getting more than a little attention from the mountain biking world these days? Beowulf, new trail opening this summer. Since the hill is closed for skiing, I might take a drive up to the Monashee Pass & earn a few turns like I did in November, shortly after deer hunting season....
Half grew up in Coldstream. Nice place. Good access to the airport (as you're on the south side of Vernon and it's easy to get out of). Good access to various areas going East (Lumby, Cherryville, etc).
But definitely getting busier in Vernon. Not really in a good way, either. Although, did the hike up Middleton Mtn when there last time and was shocked at how low some of the nice places at the top were priced.
Not sure there really is a specific residential area to avoid other than downtown near the Upper Room Mission. That's where most of the societally challenged folks hang out & other than apartments, condos etc. not much worth buying or investing in. It is still a relatively small city compared to where you are. The real bad actors are mobile & get around, so IMO you're not much safer in one area as opposed to another. I'm in an older area a few minutes walk from downtown and the only trouble I've had was one crackhead who tried to break my car window with a piece of wood some 6 or 7 years ago. Vehicle is in a carport, I heard a loud thump in the night. Went back to sleep & saw the evidence next day. Person must have been too freaked or stressed to try another blow at the window with a stump. Apparently the area I chose to live was called crackhead hill at one time.... No problem since then & there have been raids in newer neighbourhoods/developments busting drug/crack houses.
Last edited by mike31154; 04-20-2017 at 03:44 PM.
I moved the family to Penticton 2 years ago and it was the best decision I've ever made. Direct flights to Vancouver/Calgary if you need them. 40 mins to Apex. 40 mins to Kelowna. It's a little dead in the winter, but that hasn't bothered me one bit. Lots of animals to chase and plenty of diverse terrain within an hour of the house. It's busy with tourists in the Summer, but that's the same anywhere in the Valley.
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The mountains are calling and I must go - John Muir
This is always an interesting question. I'm luckily in the housing market in the lower mainland, made the sacrifice when I was young and am grateful I did because pricing jumped so tremendously. Now I am house rich, wallet poor... but how do you capitalize on that house equity? Could move somewhere else, but I hate snow. In some way, I envy those of you who enjoy winter sports...
If you are considering acreages , the only concerns you should be aware of are : water ... ie up towards silver star = no water on some parcels (dry wells)
and I am not sure what has been going on the last year on the land between Armstrong and Vernon ( contaminated water?)
the areas to stay away from IMO in Vernon would be towards the OK Landing ie sewage plant , Happy days store ... that area , Alexis park area ... lower east hill and downtown area in general , just because it is easy access for the lowlifes .