Jorge Alvarez and Filip Hrkel/Jorge Alvarez and Filip Hrkel
20100 Highline Road, D’Arcy, B.C.
Asking Price: $2,999,000
Taxes: $1,726.65 (2024)
Lot Size: 14.3 acres
Agents: Rob Boyd and Sherry Boyd, Engel & Völkers
The backstory
Victor Beresford and his wife stumbled across a 14-acre slice of history in 2021, during the height of the pandemic.
Hidden in the mountains, about one hour and 40 minutes from Whistler, was a lakeside property that seemed to encapsulate British Columbia’s past. It was nestled at the intersection of two historic roads: one a gold-rush era railroad where an oxen cart had transported riders for a 25-cent fare, the other a cattle trail that connected the 80,000-acre Douglas Lake Ranch to civilization.
In the gardens surrounding the house were vineyards that once bore enough grapes to fill 1,000 bottles of wine annually. The garden leads to the pebbled beach of Anderson Lake, which never freezes, even in minus 35 C winters. The pristine waters brim with 30-pound brown trout and steelhead salmon, the elusive fish of a thousand casts that can, according to local rumour, be caught in just two.
“In a nutshell it is pretty spectacular,” said Mr. Beresford.
The inside of the house was no less storied. The former owner, a commander in the Canadian Armed Forces, had framed the fireplace in the main living room with stones from his travels in the Second World War, from the Pyramids of Egypt to the Mayan temples of Mexico. Hidden in the attic, Mr. Beresford found a century-old portable record player, one of the first of its kind. It still worked.
The house today
Home of the Week, 20100 Highline Road, D’Arcy, BCJorge Alvarez and Filip Hrkel/Jorge Alvarez and Filip Hrkel
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In 2021, the property was in a dilapidated state, said Mr. Beresford. For three years, the couple worked fastidiously to return the property to its former glory and bring it into the 21st century.
A contractor with 25 years of experience, Mr. Beresford upgraded the 50-year-old hydro-powered generator to make it the sole source of power year-round. Last winter, he left the house for the whole season, monitoring the system via satellite. When he returned, the hot water ran through the pipes with no delay.
But the property still retains its old-world charm.
The first house on the property – a two-bedroom, two-bathroom log home – features live-edge counters, a wraparound deck and a wine cellar, alongside a flex room and workshop. A map is still hung next to the fireplace, pinpointing the original location of each stone. The custom-made furniture reflects the sixties-log-cabin aesthetic and gives the whole space an artistic flair.
The second space, nicknamed the “Earthship”, is built from the granite of the rugged B.C. terrain, cut using a diamond-tipped chainsaw. The one-bedroom, one-bathroom stone house benefits from geothermal heating in the winter while the stone structure keeps it cool in the summer. The space also has a kitchen, living room, bathroom, plus a sauna and cold dunk tank. The window and door frames of this hobbit-esque space are lined with mosaic sunflowers.
Mr. Beresford’s brother-in-law, an arborist at UBC, returned the grapevines and fruit trees to full health, while his wife planted layers and layers of flowers that transform the colours of the garden every two weeks, from spring to summer.
Mr. Beresford likes to sit on the deck and watch the trumpeter swans, mountain goats and eagles traverse through the wilderness.
“It is one of the most magnificent places that you can ever sit and drink a cup of fresh water,” he said.
The best feature
In a downstairs bathroom is a carved jade tub, framed by arched windows that overlook Mount Currie and Anderson Lake.Jorge Alvarez and Filip Hrkel/Jorge Alvarez and Filip Hrkel
In a downstairs bathroom is a carved jade tub. It is framed by arched windows that overlook the Haylmore mountains and Anderson Lake. When filled with hot water, the jade absorbs the heat and becomes a “giant therapeutic tub,” said Mr. Beresford. He recommends some rose petals and candles, for good luck.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article contained incorrect information about the lot size and driving time from Whistler, and misidentified the mountains in view from the jade tub. This version has been corrected.