Vacation home/cabin use?

[Keim]

I agree with other comments. For my family it was important the cabin be nearby. In our case we defined that as with in a 1.5 hour drive. We drew a figurative circle on a map and looked almost exclusively within that area.

 

[Music Lover]

I agree with other comments. For my family it was important the cabin be nearby. In our case we defined that as with in a 1.5 hour drive. We drew a figurative circle on a map and looked almost exclusively within that area.

We're just 50 minutes from our lake house. It's close enough that you can just go for the day and friends who don't want to stay overnight will visit for the day on occasion. For us, 1:15 would probably be our upper limit.

We have friends that are 1:45 away from their place and the commute is starting to drag on them. But they're still working so it's weekends only except for vacation time.

 

[Keim]

We're just 50 minutes from our lake house. It's close enough that you can just go for the day and friends who don't want to stay overnight will visit for the day on occasion. For us, 1:15 would probably be our upper limit.

We have friends that are 1:45 away from their place and the commute is starting to drag on them. But they're still working so it's weekends only except for vacation time.

Ours ended up being exactly 1.5 hours/75 miles away. And, yes, that means we almost exclusively go for an overnight.

It's an easy drive. No traffic, and only driving thru one larger town. Hadn't been much concern.

 

[FIREd]

I will turn 50 in a couple of weeks and I am in the process of building myself a small cabin in the mountains. It’s located only 1/2 hour away from my primary residence so I plan on enjoying it on a weekly basis.

 

[Music Lover]

Ours ended up being exactly 1.5 hours/75 miles away. And, yes, that means we almost exclusively go for an overnight.

It's an easy drive. No traffic, and only driving thru one larger town. Hadn't been much concern.

We also have an easy drive, 88 kms (54 miles) all highway except for 2 kms at the start and 3 kms at the end.

 

[foxfirev5]

As a family project we built our lake house in 2001. It's only 17 miles away so DW and I use it weekly May-Oct. Being retired we go and enjoy the lake during the week and go back to town on the weekend. We just returned from a flying vacation and have decided we prefer the lake house to the crowds everywhere.

 

[ncbill]

Uninsulated cabin in the mountains built by grandparents early 1960s.

Even here in the South it is only usable May through October.

Finally got internet a couple of years ago when the co-op ran fiber...before that only a phone line.

 

[JP.mpls]

SJ,
I bought an old cabin with my cousin on the Horseshoe Chain of lakes near Cold Springs and Richmond, MN.

I really like how close it is.

I also like sharing the place, because I don't want to go up there every weekend. We share all of the maintenance and costs.

Good luck.
I wouldn't like the place as much, if it was a lot further away.

 

[arch57]

Ours ended up being exactly 1.5 hours/75 miles away. And, yes, that means we almost exclusively go for an overnight.

It's an easy drive. No traffic, and only driving thru one larger town. Hadn't been much concern.

We’ve had a lake house in Maine since 2006. It’s 250 miles and about 4 hours IF we don’t hit any traffic on the Mass Pike or I-495. The drive is tough and we often break it up by stopping halfway for lunch in coastal Maine but that turns it into a six hour trip.
The place is magical when we get there, we’ve made lifelong friends there and so many fond memories. We almost sold post-Covid when lake houses were getting 10-15 offers all above asking price but we couldn’t because of the emotional attachment. We did a lot of work ourselves and then a major renovation in 2017 with a contractor.
Since being retired in 2015 we try to make fewer trips but spend longer intervals, like 10-20 days at a time. But now with 2 grandkids (75 miles opposite direction from our home in CT) it’s becoming a challenge to stay long in Maine as we get so much enjoyment from spending time with them.

 

[Badger]

We built our timber frame cabin in the mountains on 5.5 acres starting about 25 years ago. It took us almost 10 years to build since it was a 9 hour drive to get there and I would have to go up during holidays and summers to swing a hammer. During that time we got to know the area well but also took a day or two just to bush-hog and clean the cobwebs from the previous visit. I enjoyed the construction as well as the time to explore the area but once it was finished we had been to most everywhere in a 50+ mile radius multiple times. Then even though there was plenty of hiking, lakes nearby, waterfalls, local festivals, etc. we still had to bushhog each visit and take a day before we left to secure the house. We eventually sold the house since taking care of 2 places was time consuming and cutting into our relaxing time.
I enjoyed the experience but if I had to do it again I would not. It would be easier and less expensive to rent a cabin in different places to explore.

 

[tryan]

My boys were 5 and 7 when I built on a small lake in a ski resort town. Now they are 25 and 23 and the lake house is being converted to a full time house. Trick is have dual seasons (we ski).

Could NEVER afford to do this now ... home values have more than tripled. Would never sell. It'll be passed on to the boys.

 

[tryan]

When I built there was no cable or internet. Poles were 5k each to bring electricity to the build site.

All that has changed ... now have fiber. Poles are 3x what I paid.

 

[Sunset]

When I built there was no cable or internet. Poles were 5k each to bring electricity to the build site.

All that has changed ... now have fiber. Poles are 3x what I paid.

But now you could skip the poles, go solar and wireless internet (in many places).

 

[tryan]

Little bit interesting .... I tried twice to get solar. Each time best they could due was 40% of available sun (we are in a valley).

My neighbor had wireless internet but dropped it .... unreliable here.

Your results may vary!

 

[kgtest]

We are in the "kids keep us busy" season of life in our 40s, and rent like you mentioned up on Alexandria each summer, then we spend Labor Day weekend at Grand View Lodge (VERY NICE!) A friend invites us up to another cabin for a weekend and then we meet family in Wisconsin Dells once each summer after baseball/soccer seasons wraps up.

Over the years our taste's have improved a bit. Each time I dare think about buying a nice vacation home, I realize for what I want I can just rent something even nicer for the limited time I do have...

BUT... like you said, if I am sitting around staring at the walls looking for something to do... renovating a lake property wouldn't be a bad way to spend time.

Living in MN I can't count the number of buddies and family stories of folks I know who have renovated a cabin. Seems like the thing to do in MN.

Takes me 10 minutes to walk to our community beach near White Bear Lake. I just BTD on $40 worth of blow-ups for the kids to abuse down their this summer.