November 14, 2012 This is a test post. Property is SOLD and I’m just messing around…

…with experimental test posts for my new math blog.

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This is the end of this post.

What are We looking At Here?

View to the south and its corresponding map indicator.

House Picture Gallery

Exterior View from the West

Exterior View from the South

Three hours later, the winter snow was gone....

 

Theoretical Newspaper Ads for Our House and Acreage

Ad #1:
Home on Lakeview Acreage
3 bdrm house and triple garage on 10 gently sloping acres with open, unobstructed south-facing Okanagan Lake views. For price and details drive by 15150 Barkley Road and pick up your free flyer OR take an armchair view with your Browser. Just copy and paste 
 https://15150barkley.wordpress.com   or   15150 Barkley road   into the Google Search Box

Ad #2:
Buy now and Build Later
What?  10 acre Okanagan Lake view property with well-maintained home provides the perfect opportunity for you to live-in now and rebuild or renovate later. Call ……… for details. MLS#…………

Ad #3: 
You can Renovate the House But you can’t Renovate the View
High-End Builders! Got a client with money and imagination? We’ve got a great house on 10 view acres. It’s your Perfect Opportunity for a custom renovation or total rebuild. For details, check out our blog. Just Google us at:   15150 barkley

Ad #4:
Okonogan Lake View Property
Older, well-maintained house on 10 south-facing cleared acres. For details check out our Blog at:     https://15150barkley.wordpress.com
(A quick aside: Yes, all those o’s are correct, that’s how our Neighbours to the south spell Okanagan)

Ad #5:
Just a 20 Minute drive….but A World Away
This one’s got the 180 degree south-facing lake view and the peace and quiet – without the total isolation. 10 minutes to shopping and amenities; 20 minutes to the Airport. Interested? Google us at:  15150 barkley    for all the details.

Ad #6
Absolutely Massive Okanagan Lake Views
From our location, Lake Okanagan and Lake Oceanagan could very well mean the same thing! House and 10 ocean-like view acres right here in Lake Country!
Surprisingly close to everything  – yet so far from the urban hustle and bustle.
Perfect for those vigorous empty nesters looking to be close – but not too close – to their focus of activity – whether it be locally, or up at Fort Mac, or any of those exotic vacation destinations out there. Check us out on Google:  15150 Barkley Road  for all the details

Ad #7 (with picture)
Drink this with your Morning Coffee…

…or this with your Evening Tea….

Look interesting? Check out our Blog:  Google us at:  15150 Barkley Road

Elevations, Geographic Features, Elevations and More…

Some Elevation Information and other Topographical Stuff:
Lake Okanagan: ……………… about 1,122 feet above sea level
House Elevation: …………….. about 427 feet above the lake
Barkley Road Elevation: ….. about 500 feet above lake

Orientation:…………………….. the home is South-facing with Kelowna in the distance.

Geographic Features:
To get a bird’s eye view of general terrain and other geographical features of the property you can Goto the Regional District Website: If you click on this and nothing happens, it’s because your Browser has pop up blocking enabled.
The pop up blocker message should appear toward to top of your browser page. Follow the simple instruction to Disable the pop up blocking and you should be good to go.

 You’ll know that you’re in the right place when you see the title page “Regional District of Central Okanagan Geographic Information System v2.1a” showing a map of Kelowna and the surrounding region (note that Lake Country is about 30 Km north of Kelowna)

To find 15150 Barkley Road, click on the Search icon (a magnifying glass) located in the upper right-hand corner of the page. In the Search Parameters Dialog Box, type  15150 into the House # text box; and Barkley into the Street Name: text box. Clicking on the Search button at the bottom of the window brings up an outline map showing the property boundaries in blue. To fill in the property outline, just click of the Imagery icon on the upper left, and the outline fills in with a satellite image of the property showing its geographic features. The Slider icon in combination with the Compass icon at the lower left  allow you to visually explore the property and its surrounding area in lots of neat and informative ways.

The feature I really like is using the Compass tool to rotate the property to match up with the south-facing view shown in the Blog’s opening photograph. Hint: South is aligned with 1:00 on the analog clock face (obviously it’s upside down as well).

Contour Maps:
To find the Contour Information, click on the Map Layers icon. In the Map Layers dialog box that appears, click on the Base Layers box (if it’s not already ticked), then click on the small “>” arrow located directly to the left. In the drop down box that appears, click on the Contours check box and the pink contour lines will appear. It’s harder to write these instructions than it is to actually do the task. 
This RDCO site is a great tool not only for researching our property, but also for any others in the area that are of  interest to you.    

15150 Barkley Road – a Satellite View

(In case you missed it: RDCO stands for “Regional District of the Central Okanagan”)
Have a great day….

Shopping for a Good View? Things to Consider 15150 Barkley

There is view property, and then there is VIEW property. Here are a few things to  consider:

– what kinds of obstructions – how many hydro poles, transformers, wires, neighbours’ trees and houses etc – are you willing to put up with? Better to notice these things sooner rather than later. They have a way of getting into your head.

– nice views often come with higher elevations. But higher elevations usually translate into larger snow volumes and steeper driveway access….We’re sitting comfortably at about 425 feet above the Lake with wide open south-facing views.

– is your view safe from future encroachment? At some later time, could somebody obstruct or diminish the quality of your existing view through their building or renovation activity?

– how alive is your view? Somehow, a view of  hazy city lights far into the distance seems a bit sterile to me. With a good telescope and camera, your view should provide a good variety of interesting things for you to see and shoot (with your camera) over the course of a year. It’s like a living picture that entertains 24-7-365.

– does the design of the home allow you to enjoy the view from the inside while seated? Try the “sit down test” and see for yourself. If you’re going to renovate or rebuild at some point in the future, it’s a good thing to keep in mind.

– last but not exactly least: does the property offer a view from the bathroom and the kitchen?  ours does! 🙂

15150 Barkley Road – Satellite and Contour Maps

Here’s a neat satellite map showing nearby 10 and 20 acre parcels and our proximity to Lake Okanagan:

For those buyers out there who intend to rebuild or renovate….Here’s a contour map showing driveway access and building placements. The grid lines are 2m (about 6.56 vertical feet) apart.

Here are some Property Elevation Points. (don’t let the meter elevations above sea level shown on the map throw you off ! Check out the numbers below)

Lake Okanagan itself is 1,126 feet (342m) above sea level.
Lower Corner..: 315 feet (96m) above the Lake.
House…………….: 427 feet (130m) above the Lake.
Barkley Road…: 500 feet (152m) above the Lake.

Driving Directions – 15150 Barkley Road

For people unfamiliar with the Lake Country area, finding your way for the very first time can be quite a challenge. The following should help.

If you are travelling north from Kelowna: turn LEFT at the lights located at Hwy 97 and Oceola Road. Your landmarks are the Super Save Gas station on your right and Tim Horton’s located in the shopping mall.

If you are travelling south from Vernon, turn RIGHT at the lights located at Hwy 97 and Oceola.

Continue uphill along Oceola Road. At the top of the hill your second landmark is the stone entry way for The Lakes Subdivision. Continue along the same road and soon you will be descending toward Okanagan Lake.

When you reach the “T” junction at the bottom of the hill, turn to the RIGHT. You are now on Carr’s Landing Road heading north along the lake.

Continue along Carr’s Landing Road for a few minutes and look for a wide, paved road which forks to the right. This is Moberly Road. Continue up Moberly a short distance until you come to the first cross street. This is Lake Pine Road. Turn LEFT and continue north.

Barkley Road is where the paved road ends and the gravel road begins….FEAR NOT DEAR READER:

A short 2 minute drive along this wide, scenic, well-maintained road brings you safely to your destination marked with “15150” on the gate post.

Below is a schematic map and a set of labelled pictures as a visual supplement.

Driving Directions Schematic

 

 

A couple more things to note:

– total driving time from Tim Horton’s on Hwy 97 to our home is under 10 minutes.
– most of the route I’ve described is along the School Bus Route. This means that these roads have top ploughing and sanding priority when it snows.

The View – A Brief History

It’s ironic isn’t it? If it weren’t for the Pine Beetle Infestation here in the Valley, our gorgeous 180 degree views of the Lake, mountains and vineyards could not have come to pass.

Back in 2007 it was painfully obvious to the residents that the large stands of Pine trees in the area were dying off at an alarming rate and would soon be creating a whole host of very inconvenient problems.

In June of 2007, a group of  6 of us – representing approximately 60 acres – hired a timber contractor to remove the diseased trees. In late September the felling, clearing and trucking operations began; and, by early November, the slash piles were ready for disposal. In January of 2008 (after some political/environmental issues were settled), burning of the waste piles began and was substantially completed later in the same year.

Where’s Lake Country / Winfield? Some Driving Distances and Times

The Town of Winfield is located 20 km north of Kelowna up Highway 97 – the Okanagan Valley’s main North/South traffic corridor. Driving time from Kelowna to Winfield is about 20 minutes.

The Town of Winfield itself sits in the center of a regional administrative area appropriately named “District of Lake Country”. The District itself is broken into 4 subdistricts or constituencies. These are Okanagan Center, Oyama, Carr’s Landing and (go figure) Winfield – where most of the Town of Winfield is situated.

Our property is located in the constituency of Carr’s Landing. Driving time from our home to Tim Horton’s on Hwy 97 is under 10 minutes. Another 2 to 3 minutes’ drive south puts you into  downtown Winfield. Continuing south from Winfield, it takes about 10 minutes to reach the Kelowna International Airport. Another 10 minutes from there and you’re well into the City of Kelowna.

In a nutshell, driving time/distance from home into Kelowna is about 30/30 – 30km in 30 minutes. 

Here’s a quick Numeric Summary and Schematic Map:

           From:                    To:                    Approx. Time          Approx. Distance
           Home                    Hwy 97                     10 min                        7 km
           Home                    Winfield                    12 min                       11 km 
           Home                    Airport                      22 min                      20 km
           Home                    Kelowna                    32 min                      30 km
     

Schematic: Wheres Winfield?