The best vacations are often staycations – the opportunity to make memories close to home.
A popular local vacation retreat is inviting Yukoners to do just that … and help feed families in need at the same time.
The innovative idea comes from Heather and Andrew Finton, owners of Sundog Retreat, home to private cabins set on 160 acres of boreal forest with beautiful mountain views across cultivated fields.
Typically, the summer season brings more international travellers to the retreat, ranked No. 1 on Trip Advisor for more than a decade. With COVID-19 curtailing visits from those outside the Yukon – and Yukon residents having to cancel the season’s travel plans – now is the perfect time to do something with locals in mind.
Well-suited to physical distancing, Sundog’s cabins are well-separated on the large rural property, with careful cleaning measures in place. Guests can enjoy independent activities, including hiking, mountain biking and fishing, with snowshoeing and northern lights viewing in the cooler months.
“We’ve welcomed a lot of local people over the years and this provides an opportunity to help them create those family memories while also helping increase food security here in the Yukon,” Heather says.
Your Getaway feeds Yukon Families from Sundog Retreat on Vimeo.
Family fun and food security
This year, Sundog Retreat is offering two “perk” programs, letting guests contribute to the Fintons’ goal of supporting local food security and youth employment in uncertain times.
Working collaboratively with local growers, including neighbours at Yukon Grain Farm, the project blends tourism and food production: Build an irrigation pond and large greenhouse to allow a longer growing season, and plant vegetables to harvest for the Whitehorse Food Bank and for sale to Yukon families.
- Choose a ‘vacation perk’ for a three- or five-night Whitehorse holiday with mountain views and a beautifully appointed cabin, plus the satisfaction of supporting the greenhouse project.
- With a ‘veggie perk,’ support Yukon youth working hard this summer to produce vegetables that will go to the Whitehorse Food Bank at harvest time.
Even if you don’t get away to Sundog Retreat, you can help support the Whitehorse Food Bank.
- Tell your friends and spread the word
- Volunteer to help with the project
- Follow and share the campaign on social media
The local food security initiative is the latest in a series of successful community projects from the Sundog team, including creating a commercial greenhouse and vocational skills for youth in Brazil, establishing a youth woodworking shop for the Youth Achievement Centre, and founding the Northern Cultural Expressions Society/Dugout Canoe.
To book your retreat, or learn more about Sundog Retreat’s initiative to feed Yukoners, check out their Indiegogo page. Questions? Email sundogretreat@gmail.com
