The Pros: This is a sweet lake cottage, in the family for generations and clearly well loved and cared for. The location is just what we wanted for our family of 6 adults: situated right on the lake in a quiet, non-touristy area, with easy access to stores and outdoor activities. The house accommodated our family nicely with 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, well equipped kitchen, large combination living/dining area with large windows allowing nice views of the lake. There is a second living room/TV room, allowing people to spread out and engage in different activities. Beach/firepit area is great (no shade, FYI). Kayaking on the lake was lovely, swimming in the deep water off the floating swim dock was great. We also rented a stand up paddle board from a local company who delivered it to the house. Day trips to Sleeping Bear, tubing on the Platte river, day out to a brewery in Traverse City. Also a pretty 30 min walk down the road and through the woods to a beautiful undeveloped Lake Michigan beach (intensity of biting flies varies by day, but no parasites in the water!). Communicating with Mary Lou was easy and she was helpful and responsive.
The HUGE Con: Beware the shallow water. Three members of our group contracted swimmer's itch from the lake. This is a parasite that is apparently common in the lakes here but since we are not from the area so we weren't aware. While it is not dangerous to humans, the organism borrows into the skin causing extensive bite marks and severe itching. Two of our group had at least a hundred bites on their bodies and were miserable for most of the week due to itch, painful sores, difficulty sleeping, etc. Included in the house's information notebook was a pamphlet describing this problem, however, we would have appreciated a personal warning from the owner to take precautions. We now know these precautions include not spending time in shallow water, toweling off immediately, not sitting around in your suit, using oily sunscreen as a barrier. It surprised us that the description of the property even highlights how great it is for small children because the water is shallow for a long way out, without mentioning the risk of the parasite. At the end of the dock it is still only 1.5 feet deep. We used our SUP to get out to the deep water once we realized the swimmer's itch problem, and this probably kept the rest of us from getting it. It was a most unfortunate occurrence and spoiled and otherwise lovely week.
