In one of Mary St. George’s recent blogs (click here) she pointed out a house which was moved across Keuka Lake by boat. In another one of her blogs, she talked about how some folks convert their boathouses into guest bunk houses (click here). Mary St. George (Mary) specializes in matching up potential buyers to some of the finest homes that have been built around Keuka, Seneca, and Canandaigua Lakes (click here).
Her thoughts started my thinking about our visit to Victoria, BC about five years ago. There in the harbor were several floating houses each of which was built on a large floating dock – the home was anchored to the seabed by four huge lengths of pipe. As the water rose or fell, the house rose or fell with the tides! Canandaigua is known for its historical boathouses which are still being used for boat storage as well as a beautiful lake front view of the City Dock area. However, there are no water or bathroom facilities in these houses and they are meant only for daytime use.
We visited our friends at Treman State Marine Park in Ithaca over the Memorial Day weekend. They have a rather large boat docked there at the park which is primarily used as a floating weekend houseboat. The docking facility in the park offers electrical and water hookup and it’s a really nice way to enjoy Lake Front living as well as doing some boating on Cayuga Lake. At the northern end of Cayuga Lake, Seneca Falls also offers boat hookups in their Canal Harbor and there were perhaps a half dozen boats parked there just prior to Memorial Day. What a nice way to enjoy Lake Front living (ok, canal front living) and when you tire of the scene, you unplug, start up the engines, and move on to a different location!
Some 20 years ago, I visited a cottage on Star Lake in the Adirondacks. Star Lake is rather a small lake and most of the folks who live there know their neighbors. One of the neighbors had constructed a motorized dock which had a grill and a picnic table on the dock. When the family was ready for dinner, they un-tethered the dock, started the small outboard, fired up the gas grill, and slowly began their tour around the lake, waving at their neighbors as they ate their dinner, sometimes stopping briefly for a chat! Of all of the lake front scenes that come to mind, this one has to be “lake front living” at its finest!
Jim I always love to see pictures of the boathouses in Canandaigua on the lake. I think it may be the different colors that are used and their quaint setting. Whatever the reason, thank you for another great picture. I saw the picture of the group ding maintenance by boat on one of the houses..
What makes something valuable? Because the item is one of a kind, or very rare, or the item is no longer available. The Canandaigua boathouses have been “grandfathered” to the folks who own them but you can no longer drive piling into Canandaigua Lake and build a boathouse. (You would know more about these regulations than I. ) I worked with a lady who owns one of the boathouses along with her husband. I would love to just take a picture from her balcony….. now to me that would be a rare picture!
Jim let me know when you get to take that picture – I would love to see it.
Mary, OK I will work on it. I wonder if she still remembers me…