"If you're looking for a tranquil, peaceful, quiet and beautiful place to stay, Manna House is it. ...your place has everything you need. I loved the private beach, comes with fireplace and firewood. Can’t ask for more..." Bebiane K, Jun '21 "The location is so lovely and tranquil and the beach garden with fire pit is a great place to spend a relaxing evening looking out at the ocean." Robyn I, Jun '22 "The location was perfect! The fire pit/beach access was easy and beautiful! We loved this place!" Marcia, Jun '22 "Highly recommend using the wonderful fire pit. For wildlife lovers, on the property's beach in the evening, we saw seals and a family of about ten river otters swim by. There was also some sort of eagle convention going on." |
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West Coast Supper Ingredients : BBQ + Ocean + Sunset !
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If the enthusiasm of our guests to book this particular amenity is anything to go by, then nothing encapsulates the West Coast experience like cooking locally caught seafood over an open grill next to the ocean (perhaps after taking the canoe or the kayak out ;).
I'd just like to mention the sunsets, which are routinely amazing, because the beach (and therefore the fire pit) face East, and the sun sets in the West. However, as you can see from these photographs and those below, the sunset is often so intense and the atmospheric conditions are just right to light up the sky to the North and South, and often 360°, especially during the Summer! For our guests, it delivers an unforgettable evening.
↕ 180° Panorama ~ The sun sets in the West, setting the clouds ablaze in the East
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Seafood Supper at Sunset (Christine S; July '22) ↕
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"One last question, how do we get down to the beach?"
On arrival you get a tour of the place, and if I haven't mentioned the beach access by the end, that is the question on everyone's lips. Having unpacked, checking out the beach is always next on the agenda, so let's walk you through it...
For Your Convenience: Split logs are stacked up in the Beach Garden ready for burning; kindling, paper, a lighter and a bucket (to put the fire out with sea water when you're done), along with the BBQ tools, can be picked up from the new boathouse. There's also folding rocking chairs and tables to sit around the fire.
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↕ any image (photos all before building of new boathouse; see below...)
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Beach Garden Gallery
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↕ any image
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Boathouse & Storage
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There's room for 3 kayaks and one canoe on the right-hand-side, with a store room for the boating equipment, (paddles, life jackets, etc.) next to it, but smaller, allowing for a covered seating area at the front and a 'state-of-the-art' composting toilet at the back. Firewood (for the fire pit) will be stored in the rack that faces the ocean and at the back, protected from the weather by a 2' overhanging roof.
We were almost finished building it when the storms and snow struck. Now that it's warmed up a little, the structure should be finished and in use by the end of December (but staining the woodwork with our 'standard' dark and light greens will have to wait until Spring).
The steps over the log to the left of the boathouse lead to the newly created site for 3 ocean-facing barrel saunas, which should be operational mid-late January.
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Boathouse & Storage, unfinished, 12/12/22 ↕
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Summer Fire Ban: It cannot be precisely predicted when this will come into effect and if it will be continuous, a spell of wet weather could see it lifted temporarily or early; so whilst we will take bookings it is on the understanding that when the Complete Fire Ban on all outdoor fires is in effect, no use of the Fire Pit is possible. We haven't had a forest fire on Denman Island in decades, and we'd like to keep it that way!
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The Good News is that when the Total Fire Ban is lifted and replaced by a Partial Fire Ban, a fire pit which is less than 3 feet in diameter and on private land, is one of the first things allowed.
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Safe & Efficient: The site was cleared down to sub-soil and rock, with chainsaw and bobcat, before being levelled as much as the slope of the site would allow. Two truck loads of Denman sand were spread over the surface of the garden area and path. The 31" diameter fire pit is constructed on a solid brick base that extends infront, with flat boulders dug up on site supporting the down-slope side, preventing slippage. The design and sheltered siting ensure a fire that is easy to light, maintain, and contain; not to mention great to cook on! And the smoke won't get in your eyes, because it is so efficient that it doesn't create much, and what it does usually blows away from the front towards the beach.
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