"Once you're up here, things change. You just become part of it. You love it," he said. "So I kept building and building."

While others have started tearing down, the Reese cabin is still intact. "I've still got hope, but everyone else thinks it's too late," Reese said.

A short walk along a forest trail, over roots and rocks and the omnipresent babbling creek, finds you at a wooden staircase leading to Alex Flostrand and his partner's place. The stairs are handmade - like everything else around here. Flostrand stands on the deck it took him three years to build and looks out at the water and the eastern shore.

Signs of ingenuity are everywhere. A barrel collects rainwater from the roof downspout. A solar shower bag hangs on a hook in the sun, heating water for the outdoor shower in the yard, not far from the kids' fort and generator house. "It's almost like a hobby - coming here, surviving the elements, making things work," Flostrand said.

When the weather's good, the couple is up every weekend from their Maple Ridge home. "Every chance we get." Every other weekend, they are joined by Flostrand's son and daughter, ages 12 and 14.

Here are a few of his favourite things: Waking up at 5 a.m., getting a cup of coffee and soaking in the view. Taking out his bird book and seeing how many species he can identify. Giving his kids a different kind of education than what they learn in suburbia. Having to rely on himself to solve problems that arise.

"Some people are taking down their cabins. We're going to, ourselves, enjoy the summer and see what happens in the fall," Flostrand said.

The couple has looked elsewhere for recreation property but nothing can match their Pitt Lake haven. "It's either this lake or nowhere."

Posing for a picture, he adds: "You can see I'm smiling because I'm not going to cry."