A Dream Built From a Yacht

For most, the fantasy of a private island conjures images of seclusion and serenity. For the owners of Eaglet Island, a 1.2-acre parcel just south of Gabriola Island in the De Courcy Group, that fantasy became a decades-long engineering project. The couple, who bought the island in 1992, originally planned to build an 86-foot yacht and use the island as a base for exploring the surrounding waterways. But after assessing the channel, they decided the boat was too large and instead built a house on the island—using the materials they had intended for the yacht.

The result, according to listing agent Alan L. Johnson of Colliers/Unique Properties, is a home designed for comfortable off-grid living with as little effort as possible. Johnson describes the homeowner as an "engineer/inventor kind of guy" who has done everything "to the nth degree."

Infrastructure Beyond the Ordinary

The property's infrastructure reads like a catalogue of self-sufficiency. The workshop houses a 10,000-pound metal lathe, which the homeowner used to build a walk-in freezer and a rainwater collection system with stainless-steel tanks. Two commercial desalination plants supply fresh water. Four heavy-duty diesel generators provide power, and one of them uses a heat capture system to heat a large water tank below the house for hot water. A wood stove, lined in stainless steel to burn beach wood without salt damage, also offers hot water heating.

The dock is actually a 52-by-13-foot barge with a float plane ramp and lift. It is attached to the island by a large steel pipe that houses cabling, electricity, water lines, and a 65-horsepower pump used to siphon salt water for fire protection. Two 60-foot-high aluminum solar panel stands are anchored to the ground and equipped with rungs for cleaning and maintenance. The homeowner even designed aluminum gutters that pull down and flip over so they can be spray-cleaned without a ladder.

The exterior of the house is concrete mesh with high-density foam insulation behind it, showing no signs of cracking or pulling away after 30 years. Inside, three-inch-thick fir flooring, cedar beams, gum wood and purpleheart wood accents, and stainless steel kitchen countertops define the open-concept main level. An upstairs loft holds two bedrooms and decks, with views towards Gabriola in the north and Pirate's Cove to the south—mostly open ocean.

The couple also constructed a 12-by-20-foot greenhouse over the rocky shore that produces more vegetables than they can consume, and the homeowner built a 26-foot aluminum boat and designed the property's septic tank and dispersal field.

Location and Listing

Eaglet Island sits in the De Courcy Group, 16 kilometres southeast of Nanaimo. Gabriola Island, with commercial services and the Twin Beaches shopping mall, is a 10-minute boat ride away. De Courcy Island's 76-acre Pirate's Cove Marine Park offers a protected anchorage that attracts boaters.

The home, built in 1997, spans 2,500 square feet with two bedrooms and two bathrooms. It is listed for $2,595,000. The owners stay connected through several point-to-point internet systems as well as Starlink.

The listing is handled by Alan L. Johnson of Colliers/Unique Properties, who highlights the home's comfort and views. As he told The Province and the Vancouver Sun, the property was built by someone who "has done everything to the nth degree."

Perspectives

Listing Agent Alan L. Johnson — Describes the homeowner as an "engineer/inventor kind of guy" and praises the property's construction quality, noting that it is "very comfortable" with "beautiful views." He emphasizes that the owner has done "everything to the nth degree."