Hi there,
Fly Away Farms is exploring opening up access to the property as small scale venue for gatherings and retreats. We already love the space for our own family campfires, nature walks, gatherings and birthday parties, and have welcomed guests for overnight camping. We imagine it becoming a space (eventually) for multi-day retreats, camps, a place for music (festivals and concerts, maybe), and foremost, a place for people to connect with each other and with nature. If you're looking for an outdoor venue for a gathering outside Kelowna, the heart of the Okanagan's wine country, please keep reading!
Introducing...
Fly Away Farms is exploring opening up access to the property as small scale venue for gatherings and retreats. We already love the space for our own family campfires, nature walks, gatherings and birthday parties, and have welcomed guests for overnight camping. We imagine it becoming a space (eventually) for multi-day retreats, camps, a place for music (festivals and concerts, maybe), and foremost, a place for people to connect with each other and with nature. If you're looking for an outdoor venue for a gathering outside Kelowna, the heart of the Okanagan's wine country, please keep reading!
Introducing...
OPEN SPACE
An outdoor, rural retreat and gathering spot in Kelowna, BC.
About the space
Down the slopes of an active family farm, not far from the Kelowna Airport, there is a quiet, grassy valley that can host people who need a simple, natural getaway. You can hear the burbling of the small brook that passes through, and stand under the shadows of the gentle, giant trees: veteran Ponderosa pine trees and large, weeping willows. Nestled between a vineyard, a cherry orchard and farmer’s fields, the grassy land is private enough to give you a sense of healthy seclusion, while being central enough to get you back at the highway or airport within minutes.
Possible uses
Open Space is meant for unfiltered, unplugged and unvarnished moments. It’s for folks who need time in nature, time alone, or time with one another. This might be:
- Camping (overnight or multiple nights)
- Birthday parties (marshmallow roasting, fort-building, obstacle courses)
- Field trips (schools, community groups)
- Filming (TV, commercial, music videos, and other video shoots)
- Music (concerts, festivals, campfires)
- Small gatherings (family reunions, church groups, youth groups)
- Wedding venue (only the most casual and simple)
- Outdoor guided activities (yoga, breathwork, meditation)
- Personal retreats (overnight getaways, spiritual or silent retreat, journaling in solitude)
- Retreats and camps (group, multi-day gatherings)
What the site has
- Grassy fields
- Toilet (outhouse with a flushing toilet, served by creek water)
- Fire pit
- A treehouse
- Creek access
- Trees
- Space for tents or RVs (no hook-ups)
- Space for cars
- Space for wide games (bocce, capture the flag, etc)
- Nature (hawks, eagles, vultures, coyotes, deer, and sometimes bears) and natural phenomenon (Northern Lights sometimes!)
What that site does not have
Open Space is as the name suggests: an open space. It is not a glamping facility or an RV park, not a retreat centre or a wedding venue. It is part of a property that is actively farmed, and is available for day use or overnight use, for folks who appreciate experiences that are more rugged, rustic or rural. Please do not expect:
- Running water: There is no running water.
- Electricity: This site is off-the-grid, and has no power outlets available.
- Accommodations: There are no cabins or places to stay provided. Tenting, car-camping or RVs only.
- Hook-ups: There is no hook-up for RVs.
- Wi-fi: There is no internet connectivity available.
- Gathering spaces: There are no indoor gathering spots, and no covered facilities.
- Catering: There is not catering or food services provided.
- Swimming: The creek is not swimmable.
- Amenities: There is no sauna, pool, hot-tub.
What we can offer
- Add farm fresh eggs to your stay, from on-site Fly Away Farms, when you book in advance ($6/doz)
- Get support designing or hosting your gathering or retreat, through Co.school.
In the area
Open Space is situated “around the back” of an active family farm in the Ellison area in Kelowna, BC, not far from the Kelowna Airport. It is situated close to a number of helpful amenities:
- Kangaroo Creek Farm (3 minute drive)
- Mill Creek Regional park (4 minute drive)
- Ellison Community Hall (2 minute drive)
- Ellison Dog Park (2 minute drive)
- YLW - Kelowna International Airport (7 minute drive)
- Airport Village (8 minute drive) including Tim Horton’s, Starbucks, Nester’s Market, Dairy Queen, Kaya Sushi, Masla Indian Bistro
On the way
Open Space can serve as waypoint for longer journeys, and could be seen as your Kelowna / Okanagan stop on your way to:
- Silver Star Mountain (45 minutes)
- Big White Ski Resort (55 minutes)
- Osoyoos, Oliver, Naramata Bench and Okanagan wine country (30 min - 2 hours)
- Revelstoke, Golden and the BC interior (3 hour drive)
- Vancouver / Whistler / Squamish (5-6 hour drive)
- Calgary, Banff, Lake Louise and the Canadian Rockies (5-7 hour drive)
About the property
The geographical features of this land were shaped by the retreat of glaciers during the last ice age. As the land become more hospitable to humans, its first inhabitants were the Sylix people of the Okanagan First Nations. When European settlement began, this specific area was owned by Price Ellison (after whom the area is named), and George Whelan, a rancher. The creek on the property is named Whelan Creek, and the large, Victoria-era house visible from the fields belonged to Whelan. The area where Open Space is situated was the former site of his ranch-hand’s quarters.
About the hosts
F&K purchased this land in 1995, and their daughter Kendra built a new house on this property with her husband Kevan, in 2013. This intergenerational family has been farming the land (raising chickens, cows and even alpacas) and raising kids together throughout this time. While Kendra runs the family farm, Kevan operates Co.school, a facilitation and coaching business. Open Space is the natural coming together of farm + facilitation; people + land.
What people say
“I am so grateful for the chance to stay in this beautiful valley. Your hosting was so kind.”
- Max, Quebec, car camper
“It was so lovely. I really didn’t expect it.”
- Micah, from Germany, tent camper
“Such a nice place to stay. Very refreshing. We won’t forget this.”
- Gerome and Tory, from Australia, campers
- Max, Quebec, car camper
“It was so lovely. I really didn’t expect it.”
- Micah, from Germany, tent camper
“Such a nice place to stay. Very refreshing. We won’t forget this.”
- Gerome and Tory, from Australia, campers
Interested in using Open Space?
We're currently in "learning mode," as we get ready to offer access to Open Space to more people. We are reviewing requests on a case-by-case basis, to make sure we can adequately meet the needs, and to ensure alignment with what the land can handle. If Open Space sounds interesting to you, please fill in the form below. Your host Kevan will review the request and get back to you!
