'We feel a lot healthier': Pender Island couple experiments with living off land for full year
If the pandemic has taught us anything, it's that we can adapt when we have to.
An island couple decided to up the ante last summer when they moved to Pender Island, B.C. to take on the least convenient challenge you can imagine – and they're almost at the finish line.
In August 2020, Chris Hall and Stef Lowey decided to move to Pender Island to challenge themselves by only eating what they catch, grow, harvest or raise for an entire year.
The pair are proof that the answer to feeling healthier, doesn't come off of a store shelf.
"We feel a lot healthier," Hall said on Tuesday. "(Our) energy levels have balanced out, weird things like that, but it makes a difference. Clearer skin I think for both of us too."
Six months ago, CTV News checked up on them to see if they were doing OK. It turns out, they were thriving, and the same seems to be true now.
The pair has been sharing their journey with more than 30,000 YouTube subscribers, and have been showing what creative foods can be made in B.C., like coffee made from dandelion roots.
"I like sea asparagus more than normal asparagus," said Hall.
The couple has also been making dehydrated bladderwrack chips.
"They're not bad," said Lowey.
But, plenty of experiments also went sideways.
"Chris almost set fire to our deck trying to smoke some bacon," Lowey said.
The pair says their greenhouse was also destroyed during the winter.
"So that was a fail," said Lowey.
It's all part of the charm of living on the southern Gulf Island.
The pair's one-year challenge will finish on Aug. 2. The couple has a bottle of champagne ready that they've been saving for the occasion.
Lowey and Hall may also dip into some old favourite foods for a cheat meal a year in the making.
"I definitely still want pizza and hot wings. Maybe some tacos too," said Lowey.
As for getting back on the grid, the pair says they're still not sure what the future will look like.
"I don't think we'll ever go back to the way we were living," Hall said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
'Sophisticated' cyberattacks detected on B.C. government networks, premier says
There has been a "sophisticated" cybersecurity breach detected on B.C. government networks, Premier David Eby confirmed Wednesday evening.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
Canucks beat Oilers 5-4 in comeback to take Game 1
The Vancouver Canucks won the first game of their NHL playoffs series with the Edmonton Oilers 5-4 on Wednesday night coming back from a three-goal deficit.
Nijjar murder suspect says he had Canadian study permit in immigration firm's video
One of the Indian nationals accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar says in a social media video that he received a Canadian study permit with the help of an Indian immigration consultancy.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.