About Us
80 acres,
two rural bnbs,
farm produce & products,
education & events,
garden, orchard, pasture & livestock,
dogs, cats, horses, pigs, sheep, goats, rabbits, chickens & turkeys,
two first time farmers and land stewards,
and a whole lotta love for
homesteading in
the Deadman Valley.
Howdy! I’m Natalie
I’m the city girl who bought an acreage in a rural area with a run down cabin and moved from Vancouver in 2018. With little hands on skills or experience and an unrelated background in fine art and retail… the learning curve was steep. But I was determined to live more sustainably and self sufficient. Becoming intrinsically connected to nature and the landscape is a humbling and endlessly fascinating journey and fills me with purpose and joy.
I run our businesses & livestock.
How
we
met
Hey! I’m Tanner
Born and bred in Ashcroft. I had my sights on the Valley since I was a boy, spending family holidays at Vidette Lake and growing up exploring and adventuring in the area. I bought my 10 acre property with 70’s log home in 2018. To me it represented freedom, a place where I could fulfill my passions of hiking, gold panning, fishing, hunting and wrenching, all with my dog by my side.
I run our mill, machines, build & fix things.
Nat and Tan’s properties were just down the road from one another. However they lived as unbeknownst neighbours for over a year, both simultaneously living and working solo on their properties, until he put a note on her gate, offering to lend a hand if she ever needed it. When Natalie asked for help with her water line, he was there the next day. And the rest is history.
Tanner’s log home and workshop was more set up for full time living so Natalie moved in with him and continued renovating her cabin. In the summer of 2021, while away on their engagement trip, the Sparks Lake Wildfire tore through the Deadman Valley, burning down Tanners entire property and home. At Natalies, the cabin was incredibly only singed, sitting right on the precipice of the fires perimeter.
They moved into the cabin and began rebuilding their lives there. Tanner got a mill and started making rough cut lumber from the burnt timber from the fire. Once back on their feet they established Deadman Acres as a farm and business, producing produce and products and working to restore the area that they both love.
They got married on the farm in August 2022.
About The Farm
Nestled in the valley, beside the pristine Deadman River and open pastures the farm is set within a magnificent and unexpected BC landscape, with fascinating historical and geological features dotting the surrounding area.
We raise a variety of livestock that is sold through our gate sales. All our meat is butchered, cut and wrapped at our local abattoir and is FDA inspected.
The seasonal garden and orchard currently only supplies us & our livestock but we aim to continue developing it so we can offer fresh veg CSA’s in the coming years. We are currently seeking a partner through our Young Agrarian Society listing for someone interested in further developing it.
We host holiday rentals and a variety of educational seminars to open the door to those curious about homesteading. We aim to create space for aspiring farmers because it can feel a little less daunting when you’ve got someone in your corner who’s been there.
Farming Practices
NO TILL, PLASTICS, CHEMICALS,
ANTIBIOTICS OR PESTICIDES
We grow both produce & livestock with organic, regenerative and permaculture principles that support holistic land stewardship. At the heart of our farming ethos is a dedication to soil health, sustainability and the conservation of wildlife & biodiversity.
Passion For Dirt
COVER CROPS, ROTATIONAL GRAZING,
COMPOST, NATIVE PLANTS, CROP DIVERSITY
Healthy soil is a LIVING ecosystem ALIVE with microorganisms. Its maintenance is vital for it to perform its incredible capabilities; to sequester carbon, retain water, reduce erosion, sustain bountiful crops, productive grazing lands, healthy livestock, wildlife and diverse landscapes. We believe the most nutrient dense and best tasting foods come from healthy soil.
CALL TO ACTION
Get curious about your food!
Learning about from where and what method of farming your food comes from is a massive step towards informed action that can make a big difference to todays food systems. The impacts of which are far reaching; politically, socially, environmentally & nutritionally. And as a consumer you have the power to choose what to support. Vegan, veg or omnivore - we encourage you to question if your foods are being farmed in harmful or helpful ways and explore what that means. Find what local options are available, seek ways to shorten your food chain, attend farmers markets, visit farms, learn to eat in harmony with the seasons. Food sovereignty and security not only builds local communities and economies, it promotes transparent trade that guarantees just income to workers. Or engage directly! Pick a handful of your cooking staples and try growing them from seed, no matter how small your space! Tap into the absolute joy of tending to a garden, harvesting, cooking and eating something that you yourself have grown.
Why
Here?
BC's Undiscovered Rural Gem...
Deadman Vidette Road begins in the Skeetchestn Band and emerges into valley bottom farmland. The winding road and parallel river are sandwiched within a dramatic backdrop of colorful lava cliffs and hoodoos that flank the sides of the valley for many miles. Old pioneer homesteads, remnants of fur trade and gold mining industry can be found standing abandoned, relics of the Western frontier, dotted among the ranches and cabins that constitute the local population. North of the farmlands a series of six lakes lie next to the road. The grassy meadows on the plateau above conceal a great canyon, where the magnificent Deadman Falls spill over.
And steeped in history...
Within the valley are historic trading posts, routes & mines. Before the miners arrived early in the last century, a Hudson's Bay Company trading outpost was established in 1846. When gold, silver and copper veins became increasingly known to prospectors, a mine was put into production in 1933. With 335 meters of underground exploration and development, the Vidette Lake Gold mine produced a total of 1449kg of silver, 929kg of gold, and 43,825kg of copper and 161kg of lead between 1933 and 1939. It was this mine that provided jobs to many Kamloops men during the Great Depression. Gold panning in rivers and streams still produce gold to this day. The indigenous history in the valley far predates the gold rush activity and many landmarks, plants and animals still hold great cultural significance.
This valley is old...
In the Jurassic/Triassic period (more than 200 million years ago) when the Bonaparte Plateau met the eastern limit of the Pacific Plate, they crushed against each other with enormous force, forcing millions of tons of lava to spew over the surrounding landscape. This convergence of tectonic activity in the earths crust was further carved out and eroded by massive glacial drainage events around 10,000 BCE and creating what is known today as the Deadman Valley. The Deadman River follows this path originating in Hoover Lake on the Bonaparte and flows south to join the Thompson River near Savona, west of Kamloops Lake and has tributaries including Chris Creek and Arrowstone Creek within the valley.
