Inspiration

An inspiration born from the grandeur of nature.
The spirit of the water… the language of the towering
pines speaking in the wind… the history carved into the
rugged rock formations….

This all spoke to us, from the first moments we set foot here.
There was no doubt in our minds.
This was a place of peace, of beauty…
a feast for the soul.

Building this home was a true labor of love. Our hope
was to do justice to the land, to create a place that
belonged… as though it had lived in peace with its
surroundings for a century.

Living here has been a gift… especially when we have
had the opportunity to share it with family and friends.

You need to see this 535 feet of private, lovely frontage on deep, clear, Deer Lake. There’s 13.23 acres and a beautifully designed and finished cedar-clad, three bedroom, 2.5 bath home between Marquette and Munising. You can move in at closing and enjoy it immediately.

Deer Lake is one of the largest lakes in the area with 266-acres, 100-foot deep water, large and plentiful fish, and an undulating shoreline to explore by kayak or canoe. NOTE: This is a wonderful lake. It is NOT the Deer Lake north of Ishpeming where the state reports high levels of naturally occurring mercury!
The setting is the classic wild U.P. that folks who just drive the roads never see, but here you are over the ridge and just beyond the sound of traffic on M-28, the best road in the northern U.P.

The home is a Nantucket Style 3 bedroom, 2 1/2-bath cedar shake exterior home with French windows and doors, hemlock-plank flooring, custom-cut hemlock beams, wainscoting and old-world stonework.

Green grapes, chicken, almonds, white wine… It is carefully sited on a ruggedly beautiful home site in a grove of monarch red pine and hemlock. Below the cantilevered deck dramatic land forms — majestic slabs of rock, boulders the size of Volkswagens, sandstone cliffs, secret caves, spring snowmelt streams and sparkling spring waterfalls adorn the property, the lake edge, and the surrounding area. Mother Nature conditions the air and it smells of pine.

If as William Wordsworth warned, (“The world is too much with us; late and soon, getting and spending, we lay waste our powers: Little we see in Nature that is ours”), here is the cure: a first home or vacation home with Walden-like privacy but with civilization near enough in Marquette when you want it.

“Civilization” means a modern library, playhouse-on-the-bay, Northern Michigan University with Division I sports (hockey), museums with interesting history of the north shore, mines and lakes, and deli’s and restaurants that will surprise you. It’s the smallest of ten cities that recently received the national “All-American City” designation, is one of this year’s “30 most livable communities,” and is recognized as an outstanding small arts community. Marquette has the regional hospital and a regional airport with scheduled jet service. Friendly, talented, well-traveled people settled here because they know. Deer feed on your doorstep. It’s Northern Exposure with comforts and convenience.

This land is wild and private. The home is set on a hillside in a grove of red pines overlooking the lake through the big trees. The opposing shoreline rises to hardwood hills that are a visual treat. You may see a moose or hear a wolf howl. You will hear loons. The Pictured Rocks, Grand Island, and Munising’s spectacular bay and harbor of refuge are just fifteen minutes to the east. From the Forest Canopy

This property and the whole west end of Deer Lake were protected through the years by the rugged nature of the land itself and still have the wilderness feel of the North Woods. Living here is an appealing lifestyle. There’s easy public access to Lake Superior nearby and the best sand beach you’ve ever seen where the AuTrain River flows into Superior. That means you can swim in the surf of the big lake in warm water comfort. The list of things to do is long, and I won’t recount it here. But you’ll tell your friends that when they come to visit you will do something with them that they’ll talk about the next time you get together.

The home is finished with an artist’s eye to detail and decorated with a palate of monochromatic earth tones and warm woods that complement the green of the pines and blue of the lake. You can read more detail on the house, equipment, and ownership by clicking here.

To understand Deer Lake and the land that frames it you need to know a little of its history. 9,000 years ago a two-mile long channel drained a post-glacial lake into Lake Superior. Powerful currents carved steep, rocky slopes on the sides of this valley and deposited sands and gravel on the valley floor. Those steep slopes have protected the old growth trees on the flanks of the valley and rocks ridges from logging through the years and diverse native species remain with trees of many age classes and a high, multi-story canopy.Just settle in

It is a dramatic forest setting born of elemental forces when the glaciers buried and carved the land. Hemlock, aspen, yellow birch, sugar maple and pines ranging from to 36 inches in diameter at chest height stand among huge blocks of sandstone. Some of these trees are nearing a century in age. Below those towering crowns a loamy, moist understory, soft with pine needles, nourishes a variety of ferns and flowering plants, wild mushrooms and orchids.

Unlike most areas with exceptional natural beauty, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula has not been over-developed and will not be. Half of the U.P. is in federal or state ownership, which gives the land permanent protection. The huge block of forest, streams and lakes that form Hiawatha National Forest lies just to the southeast, so you’ll never lack for room to roam.

Of the remaining, private 50% of the U.P., timber companies own 90% and mostly in square mile blocks. They view these lands as a strategic corporate asset to be held for the long-term production of forest products, so they are not sold and broken up. Instead they are usually enrolled in the Commercial Forest Reserve, or “CFR,” which provides a significant tax break in return for 1) holding the lands exclusively for the production of forest products, and 2) allowing public access for hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation. M. Bedroom, fireplace to left

The bottom line is that upwards of 90% of the U.P. remains wild and open to the public by law. Development is limited to just 10%. Clustered development with the surrounding land held open is more reminiscent of the European style than the United States. So give yourself a treat and come see the U.P.

The natural beauty and accessible seclusion of this land are exceptional, and words do not do it justice. The owner sent me a note and I was moved. Read it by clicking here. Wait till you see the moonrise and moonset. You need to experience this land and these woods to understand the opportunity, so give yourself a treat, take a day or two, and come enjoy a day of discovery in the Northern Michigan fall. It’s my favorite season of the year. Come now to see it at its best.