One of my friends is trying to do some writing research, so I am asking on her behalf.
She is looking for a lake in US, preferably somewhere warm, so it can be a summer home. The lake must be swimmable and have clear to semi-clear water for story reasons, so it can’t be completely opaque or filled with algae, and it must allow private ownership, because the property has to have a dock. She was asking about our local Canyon Lake originally, but Canyon Lake is managed by the US Corps of Engineers and you can’t have a private dock, you can only use public access.
The property also needs to be at least somewhat reasonable price-wise, because her family is middle class, so a $3,000,000 lake “cabin” is right out. They don’t own the entire lake, just a property on the shore.
Any thoughts?
How about LakeWaccamaw in Brunswick county NC? It would do any yes there is private ownership around the lake.
Any one of the finger lakes in upstate New York would work well.
Deep Woods Lake in Langlade County in Wisconsin. Practically trip over lakes around there. Deep Woods Lake is 71 acres, fishing for muskies as well as pan fish, swimming, boating etc. Interesting is that aside from the 4th of July, most of the residences during the week are empty, so you nearly have the lake to yourself during the week. I haven’t spotted any bear or cougar up there but I hear they are around, also wolves and of course coyote. And of course, mosquitoes! Bass Lake is a bigger lake but shallower and right next to Deep Woods. Good ATV trails there. There are a lot of year round homes on the lakes there, some more expensive than others, some your typical small summer cottage built back in the day. Look up lakes in Langlade County and get a drop down list of lakes. Well, I put my plug in. Have fun!
Lake Limestone in Texas. Beautiful like canyon lake but you can have a dock.
Lake Ossipee in New Hampshire is a nice vacation stop. My extended family has had a place here for a long time and my immediate family has had many happy summer vacations there.
Washington has tons of lakes.lake Samish and whatcom lake come to mind. But whatcom sells docks for private property. The houses are across the street.
Chatuge Lake which is partly in NC and partly in GA. Also Lake Glenville in NC.
The Great Lakes are phenomenal lakes. My cousin has a cabin on Lake Ontario and near the shore it is very clear, but the size of the lake makes you think of a small ocean. The sunsets are amazing. There are little coves that make these lake like small pocket lakes.
So, lake research sent me down a rabbit hole. There’s a lovely clear lake up here in Michigan called Higgins Lake, pretty enough to have not one, but two state parks adjacent. While looking for pics, I found a university study about the type of lake that maintains that clarity. For any interested readers on this; https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/handle/2027.42/49256/water_quality_study.pdf?sequence=2
Well, it’s only warm for two months out of the year but has she considered Maine or New Hampshire? There are numerous lakes that fit that description, including one that my parents live on in Stoneham, Maine called lake Keywaydin. Keezar lake is larger and right next door and Stephen King has a house there. Perhaps the fictional Stephen King could make a bizarre cameo. Or she could write my parent’s sweet, psycho cannonball of a Shichon into a scene. Oh, and my dad would make a good side character. He’s a cross between Richard Simmons, Mr. Magoo, Albert Einstein, and Pigpen.
Torch Lake in northern Michigan is fabulous!
Lake James, North Carolina. Beautiful mountains, woods, some state park and some private ownership. You can have docks, water is clear, nice in summer, and some affordable housing. The lake is near Morganton, NC.
We live in Vermont. It has one large lake that it shares with New York. Realty prices there are outrageous. But we have many smaller lakes where the cabins aren’t quite as expensive. Warm only in the summer. Beautiful scenery. You ought to put a small lupine pack in Vermont.
My parents had waterfront property in Marble Falls, but I don’t remember if it was a lake or a river. It was nice swimming if you didn’t mind an occasional snake.
We own a vacation home on a beautiful spring fed lake called Deer Back Lake in Marion County in central Florida. It is sand bottomed and full of fish! Beautiful, quiet and isolated. We have two rustic swings that sit next to the lake and I spend my time with my cup of tea and my Kindle on the phone as I blissfully swing in the soft breezes from the lake. Heaven!
Bear Lake is on the Northern Utah/Idaho border… it’s definitely a summer retreat and you can own property along the beach. Also, it’s deep and a delightful turquoise blue. And then there’s the lore of the Bear Lake Monster… and the lake feeds into wetlands to the north.
Also, property around the lake varies in price and style. It’s a cold lake, but gobs of people come to boat, swim and sail. (Sorry I’m late to the game…)
Flathead Lake, MT I was swimming in it last summer
Try Norris Lake in East Tennessee. Shoreline is government regulated, but private docks are allowed
Newfound Lake in New Hampshire is B-E-A utiful! You can sit on the shore of the
pristine lake and look at the mountains in the distance.
https://www.lakesregion.org/newfound-lake/