Facilities for Participants
O.U.R. ECOVILLAGE program participants live in personal tents in our camp area. We have outdoor solar showers and a washing station as well as several compost toilets. Our outdoor kitchen serves food with daily input from the garden. The menu always offers vegetarian options. A cob oven is also available for bread baking and pizza. Meals are provided – breakfast is self serve, lunch and dinner are prepared by our cooks. In previous years Skillbuilders built the “Chillage,” our hang-out space for participants near the kitchen area with a Rumford fireplace and and a big cob bench. The chillage is used as classroom, cyber cafe and gathering space and offers shelter on rainy days. The big yurt on the property is used for gatherings, council, celebrations and presentations….and our library. Right outside the yurt is our open meadow with room for soccer games. The upstairs of our Art Studio offers quiet study/research space and classroom.The Healing Sanctuary will be available according to summer schedules.
meeting at the chillage
A word on electronics: In the commons near the office and kitchen you have access to wireless internet. Please bring your own laptop- we do not provide public computers. Cellular phone reception is good – we ask for respectful use (keep it turned off during your work/program time and step out of the group when you use your phone)
When you live in community there comes a time for solitude- our 25 acres have walking paths and quiet places in the woods to wander and wonder.
Surrounding area and extended community
O.U.R. ECOVILLAGE is situated near Shawnigan Lake on Vancouver Island.
The immediate area invites hiking, boating, cycling, and swimming (good to consider bringing a bike for local trips). Weekend trips can reach Strathcona Park, the west coast of the island, the Gulf islands, Victoria and Vancouver. The closest communities for shopping and services are Mill Bay, Shawnigan Lake, Cobble Hill and the town of Duncan. Public transport reaches as close as Shawnigan Lake, approx. 45 Minutes walking distance from O.U.R.ECOVILLAGE. Our climate has a dry season from June to October. Temperatures reach upper 20s Celsius in summer, but cool down at night.
on top of Mount Baldy
