The call of the wild

Some can’t resist the lure of the Kootenay Rockies

Oliver Berkeley came to the Kootenays on vacation and ended up moving to the area and starting a family. — Douglas Noblet photo

The lifestyle opportunities in the Kootenays make the region an appealing place to raise a family.

Oliver Berkeley moved from Italy to Nelson after going to Whitewater Ski Resort to learn how to snowboard in 1998.

Berkeley was formerly a real estate developer in Italy and discovered Nelson while taking a nine-month tour of Asia—while in a remote part of Nepal, he met someone from the community who encouraged him to visit.

Berkeley only intended to stay for two months, but that all changed when he met Siara, a local Nelson girl.

He cut his ties with real estate projects in Europe and set up Kootenay Lake Village, a lakefront development property, where he now lives with his wife and three kids.