Williams Lake - Potential Move - Share your thoughts

[Murder]

I asked you all here about 6 weeks ago about a potential move to Quesnel and I appreciate all that chimed in to let me know about that, turns out my job is much easier to transfer to the Williams Lake area than Quesnel, so my focus has shifted there.

My property on Vancouver Island has appreciated substantially and we can afford much more in Williams Lake/150 Mile than we can here. Is this part of the Cariboo a nice place to live, does it lack anything? How is the ATV'ing (I'm a maniac for being in the bush on my 4 wheeler, i leave from the house now at least once a week)

Is fishing any good, is there camping on the lake shore for big Rv's? What areas are nice to live, where should I avoid? Looking at 1 acre+ preferably 2-10 acres

And of course, what's the hunting Like? Lots of bears?


You get the point. I'd love to hear anything you have to say. I am taking my wife and daughte the week starting April 4th just to get a lay of the land, talk to locals and look at some houses and see if it is a fit for us.

My biggest worries are I'll hate the long winters (short atv seasons and too much snow), the bugs, forest fires and hot summers...........maybe I worry too much?

Cheers

[RugDoctor]

150 Mile for sure. ATV and hunted directly out the front door. Close to Horsefly with some of the best bear hunting…..not huge but plentiful. Deer…..grouse.

[S.W.A.T.]

Williams lake and are is nice with plenty to do and see. However the area comes with many social problems. High crime rates fuel this fire

[Harvest the Land]

Williams Lake seems to get less precipitation than Quesnel. 150 Mile burnt up pretty good in 2017 so might not have to worry about any fires in the near vicinity for a while, but it also seems like almost every summer there are fires in the surrounding areas and it can get smoky at times. I think the lake itself isn't that great for fishing and more for pleasure. Dugan and Dewar lakes are only about a half hour from the Puddle and only about 15 minutes from 150 mile and iirc there's some decent size brook trout in there. If you like to go for kokanee you can troll Tyee lake and catch some dandies and well as the odd chance at some really nice sized Gerards (its a long skinny deep lake so car toppers would work just fine if that's all you got. Sledding trails everywhere. Tons of grouse everywhere and bears. Particularly compared to where I mostly hunt in reg 3, I think reg 5 has a TON more mulies. Some Moose but its LEH. I'm sure Drillbit, Warren and Steve will weigh in with more. One thing you might want to keep in mind is to not setup shop downwind of the Atlantic Power facility because I think they burn railway ties and not so sure on how much you'd like to breathe that shit. Good luck

[IronNoggin]

You want to pm SRUPP on this Forum.

Cheers

[warnniklz]

Bears everywhere.

Borland Valley specifically, can head out on your quad and get to Fox Mountain and in turn Tyee Lake, or out Moffat Lake and get out Horsefly or 100 Mile or anywhere really. Could even talk to my buddy and maybe get permission to cut through his yard and out onto the power line. Can really go for miles there.

Long winters... start sledding, ice fishing, skiing, snowboarding, winter camping...

Worst part of the town is you'd have to share it with me and that's a pretty big thumbs down.

[WWBC]

Williams lake ( if your not in town) is nice. Lots of really good recreation opportunities all around.

[srupp]

HMMM feel free to send a PM and i will call you on my dime...hunting..any direction you look..fishing too many to list..Dugan lake # 28.4 is always great...bears..deer mulie..whitetails..grouse..wolves..coyotes..flyfis hing is phenominal...lakes everywhere....LOTS of good homes with 5..10 acres at 150 mile house..places better than others..places to avoid...
i would be willing to put on coffee or tea..or get in the car and show you around if you wanted..
always willing to help..answer questions..etc.
cheers
Steven

[srupp]

Williams Lake seems to get less precipitation than Quesnel. 150 Mile burnt up pretty good in 2017 so might not have to worry about any fires in the near vicinity for a while, but it also seems like almost every summer there are fires in the surrounding areas and it can get smoky at times. I think the lake itself isn't that great for fishing and more for pleasure. Dugan and Dewar lakes are only about a half hour from the Puddle and only about 15 minutes from 150 mile and iirc there's some decent size brook trout in there. If you like to go for kokanee you can troll Tyee lake and catch some dandies and well as the odd chance at some really nice sized Gerards (its a long skinny deep lake so car toppers would work just fine if that's all you got. Sledding trails everywhere. Tons of grouse everywhere and bears. Particularly compared to where I mostly hunt in reg 3, I think reg 5 has a TON more mulies. Some Moose but its LEH. I'm sure Drillbit, Warren and Steve will weigh in with more. One thing you might want to keep in mind is to not setup shop downwind of the Atlantic Power facility because I think they burn railway ties and not so sure on how much you'd like to breathe that shit. Good luck

hmm yes they do burn railway ties..the creosote is toxic when burned
the information presented is accurate.
steven

[TimberPig]

Not that they haven’t burned rail ties in the past, but while they are permitted to burn them as far as I am aware they aren’t burning ties at this time. As long as fibre from the sawmills or the bush is available, the rail tie content will be little to no component of their freedstock.

The real estate prices here have spiked in the last couple of years, mostly driven by people like yourself moving from other markets and driving the prices up. Quesnel doesn’t seem to have had as much of an impact this way. I would be cautious in buying real estate here in the current market as with such a rapid rise in prices a correction could leave you having paid much more than it is worth. A fact many people either aren’t aware of, or are wilfully blind to is that the WL TSA having been heavily impacted by fire and mountain pine beetle killed timber is facing a serious correction in the amount of timber available to harvest for the next 60-80 years. The next AAC determination is going to cut the timber harvest to roughly 50% of the current level, which means roughly 2 less sawmills operating, half as much harvesting/trucking jobs, fewer service jobs supplying all of these industries and fewer service jobs to accommodate the needs of all of these people. A very large economic correction is coming in our forest sector with the next couple of years. Add in if many of the people who have moved here who may or may not be able to continue working from home post pandemic, and things could change even more.

The options for hunting, fishing and quading are endless, both near and further out. Hunting options vary and aren’t as good as they have been in the past, but are still decent if you put in the time.

[REMINGTON JIM]

HMMM feel free to send a PM and i will call you on my dime...hunting..any direction you look..fishing too many to list..Dugan lake # 28.4 is always great...bears..deer mulie..whitetails..grouse..wolves..coyotes..flyfis hing is phenominal...lakes everywhere....LOTS of good homes with 5..10 acres at 150 mile house..places better than others..places to avoid...
i would be willing to put on coffee or tea..or get in the car and show you around if you wanted..
always willing to help..answer questions..etc.
cheers
Steven

I Have Heard then Mr S Rupp is going to run for Mayor of WL ! :shock: :grin: RJ

[horseman2]

Starting January 1st, coyotes and wolves . . . make friends with the ranchers.
March is the start of calving season so the ranchers will need some help with crows, ravens and coyotes.
May bings out the gophers and groundhogs until about August . . . good for tuning up your hunting skills.
Hunting season in full swing September to December.
"Hard Water Fishing" starts in January and there is lots of opportunity after the ice clears.
When I went to Williams Lake, I had never heard of lagoons.
The quality of the housing left us a little off . . . perhaps inspection services have changed but it is the Cariboo.

[tigrr]

I would live North, South or East of Williams lake but not in Williams Lake.
I live in Horsefly but would not want to drive to Williams lake every day for my job. A house on a paved, maintained road is a bonus.
28 lakes, I have fished in 11 and caught fish in 8. 1000's of miles of trails or old logging roads. Wolves make hunting areas change frequently.
A gate on your driveway and a dog.
I have 4500 kms on my atv in 5 years. You need a small 12' boat and a big 16+' boat for the different lakes. I mainly ice fish.
I'm retired and loving it.

[srupp]

hmm GREAT info Timberpig...wont hear that from realestate agent..
hmm yes new home inspector for WL...15 years ago...our home in wl had many issues that slid under the radar..built in 70s...but looking for acarage you wont be in downtown anyways.
hmm note TIGRR did leave out 1 direction..lol..west
if wife is working from office in town...PLUS cost of gas...and wanting acerage..150..Borland valley fits roughly your perameters.

been 33 years in current shack..not sure my system could handle a move.
good luck
steven

[CranePete]

We’ve been in Borland Valley for 10 years, really like the area. Five minute commute for my wife (teacher), lots of trails to get out ‘n about. It’s gotten a bit spendy, but I think there’s still value for your dough. Folks keep everything from quail to horses, if that’s your thing.

[BimmerBob]

I was just searching on Craigslist and came accross this listing, not sure about the area but it says 9.8 acres for $640k, might interest you...

https://cariboo.craigslist.org/reb/d/williams-lake-stunning-and-private-bdrm/7450799799.html

[XPEIer]

Been in WL for 16 years,,, work in the public recreation business so drop me a PM and I can give you all you need in regards to camping and fishing. WL is a bit of a hole for a town, but it makes up for it in the surrounding area and things to see and do.

XPEIER

[tigrr]

I heard a joke that planes lift to 11000 feet flying over Williams Lake so they don't get the wheel stolen off the plane.
Yikes.

[Downtown]

I heard a joke that planes lift to 11000 feet flying over Williams Lake so they don't get the wheel stolen off the plane.
Yikes.

I am not much of a Joke Guy but this one gave me a Chuckle because it fits 1oo % - unfortunately.

Cheers

[horseman2]

IIRC there were 364 Auto Thefts in 1987.
A road block on Hwy 20 recovered two stolen vehicles one night before they were reported missing.

[REMINGTON JIM]

Most stolen vehicles head out west on hwy 20 -mostly driven by some if the locals from out that way :twisted: RJ

[TimberPig]

Not saying there isn’t crime in Williams Lake, but like elsewhere much is fueled by drug habits. Williams Lake (along with Quesnel and Prince George) serve a much larger population as hub cities to outlying areas than the in town population. This makes the crime statistics look much worse than they are as all the crime from a larger area gets brought into town but compiled against the in town population only. Williams Lake is the service center for closer to 50,000 people with an in city limits population of roughly 12,000.

Most of our thieves are lazy opportunists as well. If you lock your stuff up the chances of it disappearing go way down. Living further out than walking distance also helps lower the chance of issues.

[Redthies]

Any rural community with “certain demographic” communities nearby is going to have theft issues. It’s an unfortunate reality. We were looking at acreages west of WL a few years back and were told “it’s a great area if you don’t want to have a cluttered yard or own nice things”. As in, if you don’t lock it up, you won’t have it long, and even if you lock it up, it’ll be gone sooner than later. We had an honest longtime local for a realtor.

We are currently sitting on an accepted offer on a small acreage in the West Kootenay/Boundary region and while the house needs work, in this market we are very happy with the deal. The current market is likely going to see a correction sooner than later. There are people who think it’s going to be substantial. I personally think maybe a 10% drop in prices. I’ve seen a couple of properties in our search area actually DROP their prices in the past two weeks. This is in an area where $50-$70,000 over asking has been the norm for the past year or so. We tied up our place for $15,000 UNDER asking and only $7,000 over assessed value. In today’s market that’s a great deal. It’s also in a resort town, not an industry town, so working situations are far less likely to impact housing values.

The takeaway is, if your not in a one industry town, values may come down a little in the coming year, but it will take a 1980s type inflation situation to bring them back to pre “pandemic” levels. I would not want to over extend on any property right now, and definitely not in a forestry or other resource dependent area. If you are north of Kamloops, you are in “resource” country. The vast majority of people won’t move north of there unless they are into the outdoors in a big way, or need to for work. That means you get like-minded neighbors, but a real estate market tied to the economy. South of Kamloops you find shorter winters and places “random” people are happy to live. There is a reason why 90% of Canadians live within 250 kms of the US border. That makes the 10% that live “up north” very lucky to have 90% of the land to enjoy!

[Edzzed]

I'd suggest Logan lake, 40 minutes to Kamloops or Merritt. Not a lot of crime, I think they had one murder in 40 years and the 2 were in a hotel. They do have crime but being a small town, Shame is a deterrent. Trails everywhere. Deer everywhere. Not a lot of moose but there are bears. We just happen to have a house we will be selling. back gate opens up to forest and nothing but forest for many miles. https://www.google.ca/maps/@50.5005448,-120.8156636,235m/data=!3m1!1e3?hl=en Right now Realtor.ca lists 9 houses. https://www.realtor.ca/map#ZoomLevel=14&Center=50.490484%2C-120.802018&LatitudeMax=50.51109&LongitudeMax=-120.73404&LatitudeMin=50.46987&LongitudeMin=-120.87000&Sort=1-A&PropertyTypeGroupID=1&PropertySearchTypeId=1&TransactionTypeId=2&Currency=CAD

[Murder]

Hot damn, you all are giving me a lot to think about!

I do realize that prices are inflated in the area right now, but so is the market I am in, and with a 300k mortgage here and a property that will sell for 1,000,000, I think being mortgage free or damn close makes sense in my early 40's, even if the value drops.

Theft, I do worry about, probably too much. I'm the guy that pounded in 1200 feet of 6.5' fencing on my current property, a locked gate, cameras and alarms all over. I work too damn hard for all my toys to give them up to some lazy good for nothing thief. I'll likely do the same if I end of moving.

The forestry sector does seem to be a large part of the local economy, so it isn't lost on me that with fires, pine beetle etc that there could be a large change for the worse in that industry with a cascading effect into the service industry as a whole and a diminishment of housing prices.

I wish I didn't like where I live now so much, but honestly a new chapter seems like a good idea. Chasing bigger deer and moose. Atv'ing where there isn't a gate and security sure would be nice.

Will likely pm/call the few that have offered

Cheers

[notahypocrite]

anywhere up there is better than anywhere down here in the lml

[TimberPig]

Hot damn, you all are giving me a lot to think about!

I do realize that prices are inflated in the area right now, but so is the market I am in, and with a 300k mortgage here and a property that will sell for 1,000,000, I think being mortgage free or damn close makes sense in my early 40's, even if the value drops.

Theft, I do worry about, probably too much. I'm the guy that pounded in 1200 feet of 6.5' fencing on my current property, a locked gate, cameras and alarms all over. I work too damn hard for all my toys to give them up to some lazy good for nothing thief. I'll likely do the same if I end of moving.

The forestry sector does seem to be a large part of the local economy, so it isn't lost on me that with fires, pine beetle etc that there could be a large change for the worse in that industry with a cascading effect into the service industry as a whole and a diminishment of housing prices.

I wish I didn't like where I live now so much, but honestly a new chapter seems like a good idea. Chasing bigger deer and moose. Atv'ing where there isn't a gate and security sure would be nice.

Will likely pm/call the few that have offered

Cheers

While real estate in general in BC has spiked in the last couple of years, some areas have seen larger increases than others. My place in Borland Valley has increased by roughly 30% in the last two years, with no significant new jobs created in the area during that time. If you buy now and it drops back closer to pre pandemic levels, that is a significant loss in value and given a pending significant drop in employment with a coming reduction in timber harvest (the forest industry and associated services is the single biggest economic sector in Williams Lake) there is likely to be a large drop in value when there are fewer people in the local economy. Barring significant new industry creating jobs, this is likely to not recover as quickly as other areas may see in their markets.

Quesnel has already had their fibre supply to production capacity realigned, which is part of why their market is somewhat lower and likely to remain more stable.

Not sure what sector you are employed in, but these significant local economic changes are going to impact many seemingly unrelated sectors through the ripple effects in the area.