Your Lake Escape

We'll be back! Thank you, Cathy!!

Guest: Gatorgal (Port Charlotte, FL)
Date of Stay: 11/23/11 Review Submitted: 12/04/11

My family and I needed a break from our traditional Thanksgiving after the passing of my father. We could not have found a better place! The home on Blue Lake was spacious, comfortable, and peaceful. All seven of us (with our 4 small dogs) were able to spread out and relax. We spent time on the screened porch, fishing and nature watching on the dock and in the pedal boat, and reminiscing around the campfire. The completely fenced-in yard was a plus for the dogs to roam and explore. We even got up earlier one morning and hiked around the lake, noting deer and hog footprints on the grated road. Some of us went kayaking in Ocklawaha, and others went antiquing in Micanopy. We traveled in to Gainesville, about a 40 minute drive, for the Gator football game. Although the game did not go as we had hoped, our weekend was fantastic thanks to the home on Blue Lake!

Great family reunion

Guest: JenB (Orlando Fl)
Date of Stay: 10/14/11 Review Submitted: 10/17/11
The lake front home at Blue Lake was a great spot for our family reunion! We even had a family ping pong tournament! I highly recommend it! It was serene, fun, and peaceful all at the same time! And not far from UF. We did some campus touring as well! Cathy is great and awesome to work with!

Lake rental

Guest: WTG (Tampa)
Date of Stay: 08/08/11 Review Submitted: 09/27/11

We rented this property for our field employees working at a nearby jobsite. What a very pleasant experience we had. Cathy is a sweet heart to work with and was such a help with everything. Our employees loved the property. I would highly recommend this rental property.

last min getaway

Guest: lcribbs (edinburgh, United Kingdom)
Date of Stay: 05/21/11 Review Submitted: 09/13/11

Booked this home as a spur of the moment visit to the husband. The owners are lovely and booking and paying was nice and easy, even from the UK. The home has everything you could want and we had an amazing time. We would stay here again in a heartbeat. The house is clean, the grounds are clean, beds are comfy, the house is in a great secluded location but easy to get to. In a nutshell the the house is more than we expected and the owners were great. Stay here if you can.

Extremely Wonderful

Guest: Dana (Obion, Tennessee)
Date of Stay: 05/28/11 Review Submitted: 06/22/11

My family and I were so pleased to have found this place on short notice. The property was as described, clean, and well maintained. And Cathy is one of the best hostesses you could ever hope to have and so easy to work with. She went above and beyond when I had to be hospitalized during our stay. She spent time looking for and finding a babysitter for our 4 year old. That meant so much to us. We had an overall wonderful stay. We had plenty of room for our family of 4. Enjoyed being able to cook full meals instead of having to eat out daily. Its a very relaxing and serene place to stay. Loved sitting on the screened in back porch and having coffee in the mornings while listening to the birds and stuff come to life. If your looking for a private country setting thats close to several sightseeing places such as Gainesville, St. Augustine, etc then this is definately a place you want to check in too.

Perfect Place AND Our Pet's Were Welcome!

Guest: Perksclan (Largo, FL )
Date of Stay: 04/01/11 Review Submitted: 04/04/11

Just a quick 8 miles off 301 and you are in HEAVEN! Was greeted by Cathy, one of the nicest people on Earth. She just made you feel instantly welcome. She showed me how to work everything and told us to call if we needed anything. I could tell she would really take care of anything we needed right away. The peacefulness is just beyond words. There is a house on either side but you can't really see them and the neighbors were not noisy at all. You didn't even know they were there. We slept so well we even decided to sleep in till 10:30am instead of heading out early to hike in nearby Devil's Millhopper. It was so neat to hear the distant rooster call (but don't worry the rooster seems to be a late sleeper too as it was not at the crack of dawn and unless you were outside or the windows open you might have missed it). The house is very roomy and I love that it is a split plan so if you have kids you can put them on the other side of the house and have some peace of your own LOL. The Dish TV, Internet and cell coverage... all worked great but we spent most of our time on the porch enjoying the outside and tried to stay away from technology for a change as much as we could. We brought our 3 dogs and they couldn't have been happier. LOTS of room to run in the FULLY FENCED IN YARD! Even across the back by the lake it is fenced in so no worries of the pets or little kids getting into the lake by accident. Went out on the paddle boat Cathy has there for use and that was so fun (and a good little workout). Fed the tons of Blue Gill fish that swim below the dock. Part of the drive back to house is on paved road and part on good hard dirt road so no worries that a car can't get back there. My car did just great. No 4x4 needed. Dirt is as solid as a paved road. I can't stop telling my family and friends how wonderful this place is and at what a great price. Don't let distance to any places around Gainesville and Ocala make you feel like it is too far from this house as with hardly any street lights you get EVERYWHERE FAST! We are definitely going to return over and over and plan to bring our mother, siblings and nephews out on a visit or two as we know they would love it. It is a great place for family time and plenty of room for all or a great place to "get away from it all" for an escape for 2. There are about 4 steps to get in the home and a large step down to the patio if problems walking. Thank you Cathy for such a wonderful place for people to stay.

"Camp Hawthorne"...a restful retreat!

Guest: PandB (Cornish NH/Palmetto FL)
Date of Stay: 03/01/11 Review Submitted: 03/25/11

We are reaching the end of our stay on Blue Lake. It has been a relaxing and restful retreat from winter, and we especially enjoyed seeing a variety of birds - Swallow-tailed and Mississippi Kites, a Bald Eagle, Hummingbirds, Cardnials & Herons. We have been lulled to sleep by the sounds of the distant train and greeted in the a.m. with a rooster call. It is just 2 of us, so we had more space than we needed, but it was nice to be able to "spread out". Dish TV, Hughes Net for internet and Cell coverage... all fine. We have enjoyed the screen deck facing Blue Lake, and most of our evening meals have been enjoyed there. Charcoal grill available as is a fire pit. Cathy has been very attentive, was easy to work with to arrange this stay, and quick to respond. Easy access to Gainesville, Ocala, Jacksonville...etc. Would make a great place for University student parents to stay to visit their student children and take them away from campus too!

4.5 Stars of Peace and Wildlife!

Guest: Mark (California)
Date of Stay: 10/03/10 Review Submitted: 10/18/10

In town for a week, this is a great alternative to typical hotel living. Lots of room, fully appointed house with entertainment included. I spent peaceful mornings listening to early bird calls, saw deer and even a black bear during my stay! Convenient to Gainesville and Payne's Prairie. I would certainly recommend it to co-workers looking for an alternative to the Archer Road hotel strip, and the drive into town is not bad at all. Dinner at the Blue Water Cafe in nearby Melrose was a treat. All in all an excellent time, thank you Cathy for sharing your place and your hospitality!

Perfect Hideaway

Guest: Lori (Tampa)
Date of Stay: 08/28/10 Review Submitted: 08/31/10

This property was more than expected even after reading the reviews. It's everything and more than advertised and a perfect family getaway. The kids explored, swam, played volleyball, and painted while watching the sunset. AWESOME for everyone to enjoy!

Great Place

Guest: Tina (Jacksonville, Fl)
Date of Stay: 07/30/10 Review Submitted: 08/02/10

We made last minute plans for my birthday, and Cathy was able to help with opening her place up to us last minute. The place is wonderful, private and a great get away from the city life. We did not catch but a few small fish, but it was fun trying. It was nice to have the paddle boat to go out and explore the lake. We will be going back again. Thanks Cathy for all your help...

Had a great time =)

Guest: lila (swfl)
Date of Stay: 07/16/10 Review Submitted: 07/19/10

My family spent the weekend there for my husbands birthday weekend. Cathy was there to greet us when we arrived to show us around and make sure we arrived okay. Her place is REALLY private, any directions she gives you FOLLOW THEM lol. Once we got our bearings this place was wonderful, quiet, and refreshing. There is no cable or internet, but she is working on it and it's almost a shame she is doing so. I work from home so I am always "plugged in" it was sooooo nice to get away and not worry about emails, returning phone calls, or my child watching to much television. We filled our time checking out local state spring sites, swimming in the lake, playing ping pong and badminton, grilling, fishing, and enjoy the outdoors. At night we cuddled up as a family to watch a movie. We will definitley be returning and hopefully it'll be a little longer next time. Thank you soooo much Cathy for allowing us into your home

Beautiful

Guest: Denny (usa)
Date of Stay: 06/28/10 Review Submitted: 07/01/10

Had a wonderful time. Property exactly as advertised....peaceful, secluded, quiet. Would definitely visit again. Thank you so much, Cathy!