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It looks so small down there,
Water diamonds: Carolina lakes are jewels, creating a beautiful, peaceful
way of life for those who live around them. Scores of lakes are sparkling
here - mostly manmade, in cities, forests, near the ocean and in mountain
valleys.
Photo by Ron Rocz |
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When your home is your playground,
then chances are a lake is part of the picture. Besides a peerless view,
lakes provide family recreation. This home on Lake Greenwood in South
Carolina includes that must-have, the pontoon.
Photo Courtesy
of
Greenwood County
Economic Alliance |
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| Lake Living -- It's Superior! |
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he exuberant Miss Bentley exclaimed, "Who'd leave all this if they didn't have to? Look at it!"
She was talking about Lake Como in H.E. Bates' novella,
"A Month By The Lake." Although she was in Italy, she knew lakes hold a powerful
magic. She tells her holiday companion that staying a few extra weeks is "not
silly at all," but "the sanest, most sensible thing to do."
Miss Bentley's words echo in the Carolinas, where dozens of lakes sparkle in
the mountains and foothills, on golf courses and inside and outside busy cities.
Some stretch through forests; others are inland from the ocean. All are splendid
for those who love fresh- water living and a sense of peace.
“Lake Lure is the most beautiful lake I have ever been on,” says Gayla Hegwood from her home at Lake Lure Golf and Resort.
Originally from Indiana, she and her husband, John, were introduced to Lake Lure through a time share exchange in the area. They were instantly bowled over by the mountains surrounding that lake.
“We have hills in Indiana, but nothing like this,” she explained. “To experience those mountains from the middle of the lake, sitting in a boat with friends and watching the sunset, is like nothing you’ll ever see
anywhere else.”
The couple returned and tried to rent for a month to figure out if the area had staying power for them. During the visit, they went to a real estate office. “We bought three days later,” she laughed.
“We initially purchased a condominium, but always kept searching for
property,” she said. “Each year for four years, we spent every day of John’s four weeks of vacation here at Lake Lure.”
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hey found property they loved, which was also at Lake Lure Golf and Resort, and finished building their home in January of 2000. Then, they started investigating early retirement.
“Almost four years ago we moved here full time,” she explained, noting that the amenities in addition to the lake are “wonderful” and include several championship golf courses – a strong factor for the couple.
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"Heavens, this lake looks as deep as the end of time this morning."
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They weren’t boat people in Indiana, and, in fact, prefer relaxing with friends on their pontoon boats. She mused, “We went all around this area, but our hearts and minds kept returning here – I’m so happy we chose this community.”
Over in the middle of the state, another couple has found the same contentment on a different body of water.
"I think we'll probably live longer," theorizes Priscilla Morgan, who retired with husband John to Treyburn Country Club in Durham, North Carolina. Little River Reservoir is in their backyard, where Mrs. Morgan tends her roses and her husband tends his vegetables. Their stressful past as an overworked executive couple in New Jersey disappears.
"When people visit, the first thing they notice is the peace," she observes. "You can meditate out here. You can let the world go by."
But the Morgans are too active to let the world go by all the time. Duke University's sports and arts provide entertainment, as do Durham's fine restaurants. While they didn't want a traditional resort lifestyle, they did want water and a golf course. When they saw Treyburn, with its three lakes and reservoir, they were sold.
"That was the clincher," Mrs. Morgan says. Though she grew up near the ocean in New York, concerns about hurricanes and sun exposure steered her lakeside. "For us, it's a matter of the view. The icing on the cake is that we have so many friends here who are so wonderful."
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"It's absolutely out of this world."
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Our chatty Miss Bentley could be philosophical about her favorite holiday retreat. So can the Carolinians who’ve found their own paradise.
When Dale and JoAnn Erickson saw the pristine clarity of the water, they were hooked. “We’d lived all over the U.S. and ended up in North Carolina because of the proximity to mountains and sea coast,” said Mr. Erickson. The Minnesota natives decided upon Lake Auman and the Beacon Ridge community as soon as they saw it. “I’m a sailor at heart, and this water is the most beautiful I’ve seen,” he explained, noting that the presence of sailboats and absence of jet skis were pluses.
Now, they’ve met new friends, and discovered even more to like. The specific, yet reasonable covenants will help to protect their investment. “To live on a half-acre lot or choose 5-10 acres, and still be in a secure community with a golf course is unique among what we found,” he explained. The Ericksons are not golfers, but have chosen to live in an area surrounded by famous fairways and PGA legends. They do have the water, the peace, the seasons, and the mountains and ocean close by. Some places just seem to have it all.
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Lake living is like a "permanent" vacation.
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For enthusiasm about lake living, John Johnson can give Miss Bentley serious competition. The retired food company executive says moving to Savannah Lakes Village on the South Carolina/Georgia border was one of the best decisions he and wife Susan ever made.
“We both like to boat and wanted a lake of some size,” he explains. “I’ve been told this lake has 1,200 miles of shoreline, and that it’s the largest manmade lake east of the Mississippi.” That means plenty of water for gathering with friends in boats for floating cocktail parties. The Johnsons have bonded with other villagers; he compares it to college or military service. “Everyone here is retired, so we’re all in the same boat. People help each other out. In big cities, you don’t know your neighbors. Here, you know almost everybody.”
The village offers swimming, bowling, golf, fitness, arts and dining, and a fresh-air quality the Johnsons love. After 20 years in Lancaster, Pennsylvania – where one-sixth of the nation’s population lives within 150 miles – the open water and vast forest thrill the senses. “We like woods,” Mr. Johnson says. “The Corps of Engineers controls the lake so you can’t indiscriminately cut down every tree. In the summer, you feel like you’re up in Canada.”
Mr. Johnson enjoys watching deer, quail and turkey wander in the yard. But the lake is the main attraction. It’s devoid of mosquitoes, which he attributes to the constantly flowing Savannah River.
“It’s an always-changing lake,” he notes. “The water comes from the Smoky Mountains and we hear it’s clear as anywhere.”
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"Her thoughts were suddenly a racing jumble of bright impressions that included
the sky, the mountains, the oleanders by the lakeside and the lakeside itself,
stretched like a blue glass lioness in the autumn sun."
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Larry and Jackie Kellough are originally from Deerborn Heights, Michigan, but since 1989 when Mr. Kellough attended a seminar in Charleston, the couple has been thinking about retirement in the Carolinas. In 1992 they started looking, and while driving around Lake Marion, they got lost and stumbled into Wyboo Plantation.
“There was nothing but a trailer and some dirt,” Mr. Kellough explained from his Wyboo home. “But, we knew it would be a golf course community, and have lake access, and with those two amenities, we put a deposit on a piece of land.” They were the fourth family to buy at Wyboo, and in 1995, they built a future retirement home there.
“We just fully retired less than two years ago,” he explained, noting that because they had been using their home as a vacation getaway a week each spring and fall, it felt as though they were simply coming home for good.
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“It’s an always-changing lake,” he notes. “The water comes from the Smoky Mountains and we hear it’s clear as
anywhere.” |
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“They have lakes in the community, and a connecting canal that takes us to Lake Marion, so we have easy access, without the jet ski and boat noise,” he said with a chuckle. The Kelloughs were self-described “off-and-on boat people” but now, they enjoy their boat at least four times each week. He fishes for large mouth bass, catfish and rock fish. She fishes as well, but frequently accompanies her husband to simply enjoy the beautiful surroundings.
“We enjoy the seasons here, but most important are the people,” she said thoughtfully. “Unless you’ve lived somewhere other than here, you’d never realize how unusual it is to have such friendly people around you – and we just love that.”
All of these families have
discovered how to enjoy
lakeside living to its
fullest. Now, they have the
rest of their lives to enjoy
the experience. Poor Miss
Bentley. She only had a
month.
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Aida Rogers has worked in newspapers, magazines, legal newsletters and television.
The USC graduate and Lexington, SC native currently is managing editor of Sandlapper,
The Magazine of South Carolina, for which she writes a column about the
most popular restaurants in The Palmetto State. Call her with your favorites
at (803) 808-1664.
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