A couple from Canada built the island of their dreams and has been living on it for 29 years
Who among us does not dream of his own island in the ocean. Alas, but such luxury is available only to very rich people. Although for those whom nature has not deprived of ingenuity and diligence, there is another way. A couple of Canada's Wayne Adams (Wayne Adams) and Catherine King (Catherine King) live most of their lives on their own island, which they built with their own hands from improvised materials.
The place where this amazing island-raft drifts is located near Vancouver Island, near the Pacific coast of Canada. Wayne and Catherine call this place in their own way — "Freedom Bay" and consider it the best on earth. The couple settled here 29 years ago, after several years spent in the city. Now they will never come back and plan to live in harmony with each other and nature for the rest of their lives.
Wayne and Catherine are creative people. He is a wood and stone carver, and she is a dancer. Before settling on the raft, they lived in the town of Tofino on the west of Vancouver Island. Despite the fact that only 2 thousand people live in this settlement, it seemed to Wayne and Catherine noisy and fussy.
So one day they moved out of a rented apartment, sold their property and went to live by the ocean. The couple collected logs and floating debris on the shore and built a raft out of them. Since Wayne has been working with wood all his life, making a wooden structure did not cause him any difficulties.
When the floating island became large enough, it was launched and began to be completed there. Now the giant raft, according to the calculations of its creators, weighs about 450 tons. It is not controlled in any way and drifts freely near the shore. To prevent the island from being blown away during a storm, Wayne tied it to the shore with strong steel cables.
On the platform there is a house, an art gallery, a dance floor, a candle factory, greenhouses and even an artificial waterfall. The islanders receive electricity from solar panels, and the waste is disposed of in a special floating container floating nearby.
The couple very rarely leaves their "Bay of Freedom". The nearest settlement is a 25-minute drive from their island. When Wayne and Catherine are asked if they would like to live on land and if they are seasick, they just laugh. Wayne Adams says that, on the contrary, he suffers from an "earthly illness" and is always in a hurry to return home.
And there is not much time for the spouses to walk on land. As you know, such a grandiose floating structure needs constant repair and maintenance. The islanders also have plenty of housework. Catherine grows vegetables in 4 greenhouses. All the plants were germinated from seeds right on the island. The woman makes fertilizers herself, from seaweed. Cleaning takes a lot of time — the island just attracts dust.
Wayne is constantly sawing, cutting and nailing something — a big raft sets him a lot of difficult tasks. In addition, the "captain" of the floating island catches fish, and often directly from the sofa. In the floor of their with Catherine's house has a hatch made of transparent plastic, under which there is water. The spouses provide for almost everything themselves, buying only clothes, batteries and tools in the city. The Robinsons get to the shore by boats, of which they have several.
Despite being very busy, the couple also has free time. Wayne spends his leisure time reading or fishing, while Catherine dances, plays musical instruments and paints. There are almost no guests among the residents of the floating island. Sometimes herons, crows and seals visit. Recently, hermits are often visited by journalists. The hosts are always hospitable, but they have no time for long conversations.
But the American Joseph Wharton, who also built his house far from the shore, definitely did not like guests. He had a lot of reasons for this.