Every part of Bowen Island has wonderful getaway homes and gardens that few people know about and still fewer get to see. Sometimes they are in distant neighbourhoods or down a private lane or tucked away on a remote cliffside. But, wherever they are, they have one thing in common. Their owners have created their personal version of what makes a home comfortable. Their gardens have been designed to harmonize with that vision. A lucky visitor can learn a great deal from a visit to one of these treasures.
Seven innovative homes and gardens to admire and learn from that's the menu for the 2012 People, Plants and Places Tour, a Bowen Island summer highlight since 1993.
Adding to the formal tour sites are stops at the Museum and Archives and the Memorial Garden. A third component is the mid-island seven-acre Mitts garden which is designated as a picnic site.
It takes a full day to savour the homes and gardens but the 'drive yourself' format allows visitors to linger at sites of special interest. In addition, because guests may spread the tour over two days, off-island visitors will find it easy to make a weekend of it. The island has an amazing array of bed and breakfast facilities and a number of excellent cafes plus a handsome nine-hole golf course.
One of the attractions on the 2012 tour is the spectacular new waterfront home of Lisa and Rory Holland. Their home was designed for indoor/outdoor living and is situated above a deer-proof garden that slopes gently to the beach. The Holland's marvelous two-acre property was once part of the Adams family's 1930s purchase of 850 acres. An original small cottage has been renovated and tucked into a niche above the ocean. This area is one of Bowen's microclimates, which shows in the variety of shrubs and plants now flourishing. Nice to note that the Hollands have a well for outdoors watering.
Ticket info? Orders of one to nine tickets are $25 each while orders of 10 and up are $20 each. On Bowen, ticket order forms are available at many agencies including the 2012 Visitor Information Centre and the Museum and Archives. Or, download order forms from bowenislandppp.org. The People, Plants and Places tour is a fund-raiser for the Bowen Museum and Archives and the Bowen Island Memorial Garden.
