Our Story

Blue Dot Ranch is the realization of a dream and is a promise to our daughter of our commitment to providing her with a home where she can grow up understanding what it means to live a life of environmental stewardship. We wanted to create a space for her where she could learn about where her food comes from, a place where she could see the birth of a calf in spring, the sprouting of veggies in the garden, the picking of raspberries and apples in fall. We wanted a place where she could experience the cycle of life.  

Our journey started several years ago when Phil, who had worked in the construction industry for the last 35 years, longed for a chance to get back to the farm life in which he worked as a young man before deciding to go back to school for engineering. We started learning about the importance of regenerative agriculture and how vital it is to the health of the planet and knew this was our calling. 

Our decision to pick Athabasca County as the location to settle was influenced by Brooke, a relational horsemanship trainer, who has had an intimate relationship with the Athabasca area; this is where her mentor of 14 years lives. We decided to dive in headfirst and pulled up roots in Vancouver, moving to Athabasca in the summer of 2018. 

Phil has interned with Big Coulee Farms, a pasture-centred regenerative farm, since January 2019. In September of 2019 an opportunity for the farm of our dreams became a reality and we were now farm owners! Blue Dot Ranch consists of 160 acres of mixed forest and pasture on the West side of the Tawatinaw Valley overlooking the Hamlet of Meanook, which will be ideal for our pasture grazed livestock.