SHAWNIGAN LAKE

It’s name is an adaptation of the Hul’qumi’num name for the Shawnigan Lake. It is located at the edge of the Cowichan Valley and borders the communities of Cobble Hill and Mill Bay. This lakeside village is full of vibrancy and is a popular recreation destination. The community itself is compromised of about 8500 people, but in the summer time that typically doubles. From Langford it is about a 30km distance.

The Real Estate market is hot and properties are snapped up quickly, as the urban sprawl continues in Langford more and more are finding Shawnigan Lake a popular place to live all year around. Surrounded by so much beauty with a plethora of hiking, biking, water sports, quading, dirt biking and so much more this place has become a haven for those looking to have untouched nature as their backyard. There are several beaches and some of the most adorable cottages that hug the shorelines.

Shawnigan Lake is a well-known venue for arts and craft shows, there are two general stores, three restaurants and a couple amazing coffee shops and even a pretty neat tiny historical museum! It is also home to Shawnigan Lake School which is a co-educational independent boarding school for ages 13-18 that is one of North America’s premier boarding schools, offering a 270-acre campus of Lakefront property, the campus has 35 buildings including 9 modern boarding houses. St. Johns’s Academy designed for grades 4 to 12 offers an inspired approach to explore, take risks and innovate in and out of the classroom. The Academy sits on 23 acres of lake front property.

A few of my favourite places to go when I am out there is hiking and mountain biking along the Koksilah River and for a swim afterwards under ‘burnt bridge’. The Kinsol trestle, which was restored in 2011 and remains one of the loftiest wooden railway trestles in the world. Of course the water sports are always a fun time, wake surfing, tubing, water skiing or just enjoying a sunset cruise on the water is right up there too with my all time favourites!