Marking 20 years
of bold journalism,
reader supported.
Culture
Media

Bitcoin Apparitions

ARTIFACT: On the Central Coast, a ghost hotel now inhabited by dreams of digital fortunes.

David Beers 26 Nov 2019TheTyee.ca

David Beers founded The Tyee and is editor for initiatives.

You are taking in the view from the stately confines of what was once the largest hotel in British Columbia. The Martin Inn, like most of the town of Ocean Falls on the Central Coast, was long ago abandoned, though never fully.

Now, amidst ruins overrun by rainforest, a bitcoin mining operation has taken up residence. It’s tapping into the still functioning hydro plant that until 1980 powered a pulp mill and homes for 3,000. When the mill shut down after seven decades, Ocean Falls became a ghost town.

Vancouver photographer Jackie Dives made the picture above for an article in Bloomberg Business on the unlikely rebirth of Ocean Falls as a bitcoin bet.

Mining digital currency requires large amounts of electricity to run specialized computers, and thanks to the hydro dam there is plenty still to be had, super cheap.

There’s not much fear the source of the power will run out. Ocean Falls is rainy. So much rain falls — 4,500 millimetres each year — that it could annually fill to the ceiling the room in the photograph above.

The two dozen or so people who remain in Ocean Falls live “with buildings literally toppling down around them,” says Dives. “I climbed the stairs of this crumbling hotel and feared falling through the floors while I looked around. But at the time it felt like a risk that was worth taking.”

In 1953, the original Martin Inn was deemed inadequate to the bustling needs of its community, so a 105-room annex was built, flanked by a brand new Hudson’s Bay store.

Ocean Falls’s mouldering decline has served as the muse of another photographer, Christopher Grabowski, a regular contributor to The Tyee. Find his images of nature overwhelming empire here.  [Tyee]

Read more: Media

  • Share:

Facts matter. Get The Tyee's in-depth journalism delivered to your inbox for free

Tyee Commenting Guidelines

Comments that violate guidelines risk being deleted, and violations may result in a temporary or permanent user ban. Maintain the spirit of good conversation to stay in the discussion.
*Please note The Tyee is not a forum for spreading misinformation about COVID-19, denying its existence or minimizing its risk to public health.

Do:

  • Be thoughtful about how your words may affect the communities you are addressing. Language matters
  • Challenge arguments, not commenters
  • Flag trolls and guideline violations
  • Treat all with respect and curiosity, learn from differences of opinion
  • Verify facts, debunk rumours, point out logical fallacies
  • Add context and background
  • Note typos and reporting blind spots
  • Stay on topic

Do not:

  • Use sexist, classist, racist, homophobic or transphobic language
  • Ridicule, misgender, bully, threaten, name call, troll or wish harm on others
  • Personally attack authors or contributors
  • Spread misinformation or perpetuate conspiracies
  • Libel, defame or publish falsehoods
  • Attempt to guess other commenters’ real-life identities
  • Post links without providing context

LATEST STORIES

The Barometer

Do You Think Naheed Nenshi Will Win the Alberta NDP Leadership Race?

Take this week's poll