For myself, the term describes a fairly intangible sense of calmness, and relationship with time. The pace is not as frantic as a large city, there are more excuses or opportunities to play outside and procrastinate on tasks. There is a reason why so many people from Calgary, Edmonton and other larger places choose to invest in and use second homes and recreation property in the area. There is also a reason that increasingly young families and young retirees are seriously considering making the permanent move to the area to live here year round. I like to refer to the calmness, the pace, the small town charm, and the positive attributes of these intangible things- as "Valley Time".
Being born and raised in Invermere, I left after high school to attend collage. After being away (I still came back on school breaks) for two years, I started to really appreciate how special the area is, and how different the sense of time is compared to larger centres. Also relatively simple things, having clean air, clean water, and a safe area- contribute immensely to feeling of calmness and the ability to love an area.
Although it is not meant to sound pretentious- based on my knowledge of the area, my experiences in small business, real estate investing, and local government- I have referred to my self as the "Valley Time" EXPERT, and I am happy to put this knowledge, experience, and passion to work for you!