Fall at the Retreat

Fall is here and it's time to enjoy the color and smells of the season.
It was such a pretty day to enjoy the sights.
The yard is full of colorful leaves.

Comment - Retreat in the Woods - Sept 29-Oct1st, 06

We were looking for a great plcae to relax and unwind from the daily stress and grind of a big city. Although one of the days was rainy,the place was perfect. Even with the rain we enjoyed ouselves immensly. It lacked for nothing. Very comfortable,very relaxing and simply put just an absolutly fantatsic experience. Thank you for having us.

Rick Duken, Dayton, OH

Regarding the Rentals Below

I know that the two rentals below have nothing to do with our two Gladwin Michigan Vacation rentals, but we decided that we wanted to offer a couple of our weeks at these two resorts, up for rent. We simply don't have time to use all the vacation weeks that we currenly own at these two resorts.

Right now, we have one week at each place available for the rest of 2006. We also one week at each place available for 2007. That will still leave use one week to use in Virginia for next year.

We just got back from our Virginia trip a few days ago and absolutely LOVED it out there! We plan to go back some time next summer. The water park was a BLAST!!!

As for the Orlando rental at Vacation Village at Parkway... it's just about 10 minutes away from Disney. There is a ton of fun things to do in that part of Florida.

Please feel free to call or email us about any of our rentals.

Other "Out of State" Vacation Options!!!

Introducing the Eagle Trace Condos in the Shenandoah Mountains of Virginia!
We own two deeded weeks of vacation condo per year at the lovely Eagle Trace Vacation Condos in Massanutten Resort! We are looking to rent one of our weeks each year and use one week for ourselves. We'd love to get away for two weeks ourselves, but simply can't take that much vacation. First come, first serve! You pick the week you want and we'll make arrangements for you. Click here to take a VIRTUAL TOUR of this beautiful double unit condo!
Enjoy 4 Seasons of Fun at the Massanutten Resort! The resort offers Virginia's largest Indoor Waterpark, 2 golf courses, down hill skiing and tubing, swimming pools, hot tubs, spas, steam rooms, fitness room, playgrounds, hiking, skate boarding park, tennis courts and so much more! We have one double unit with lockouts. Rent the entire unit or rent either the upper or lower units for a lesser price. * The upper unit sleeps 4 and has 2 double beds, a large kitchenette, living room with fireplace, dining area & an awesome view!* The lower unit also sleeps 4 with a queen sized bed and a queen size sofa sleeper, full kitchen, living room, dining area & a great view!
Both units have access to a shared laundry area only accessable between those two units. Rent the entire unit (sleeping max of 8) for $1000 per week. Rent either the upper or lower lockouts (sleeping max of 4 each) for $600 per week. EMAIL US TO INQUIRE ABOUT THIS RENTAL

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Looking for an Orland Florida Vacation??? Here is Vacation Village at Parkway!

We also have one week every year that we'd like to rent out at Vacation Village.Located in the heart of Orlando, Florida’s entertainment area, Vacation Village at Parkway provides luxurious accommodations and amenities just minutes from the area’s world renowned attractions. Each two bedroom suite features1500 square feet of fully furnished living space for your comfort and relaxation. Swimming pools and recreational areas await your family’s enjoyment. Vacation Village at Parkway is located at the intersection of I-4 and U.S. 192, the crossroads of Orlando’s entertainment area. Five minutes from your door you’ll find the Walt Disney World® Resort where your family can enjoy the fun and magic of the Disney-MGM Studios, The Magic Kingdom ®, Epcot ®, Disney’s Animal Kingdom ® Theme Park, and more. Other nearby attractions include Discovery Cove, Sea World Orlando and Universal Orlando.

This unit is also a double unit with lockouts. Unit #1 sleeps up to 4 people and has a full kitchen and Jacuzzi tub.Unit #2 sleeps up to 2 people and has a partial kitchen (kitchenette). It's set up much like the units in Virginia, accept they are both on one level.Rent the entire double unit for just $1000 per week or rent Unit #1 for $600 per week or Unit #2 for $500 per week.

Click HERE to find out more about Vacation Parkway and the local attractions. EMAIL US TO INQUIRE ABOUT THIS RENTAL

Guest Comment - Retreat in the Woods - Aug.6-11,2006

Guest Comment posted to the Guestbook:

This was our 2nd time at the Retreat. Our expectations were exceeded even more than last year with the addition of the new hot tub, new grill, and new bench swing. Jim and Ivie are always looking to raise the bar when it comes to customer satisfaction. Fantastic hosts!

It was really great weather the whole week. The full moon and clear skies at night made for excellent stargazing. Kathy saw two shooting stars one night. There's nothing like soaking in the hot tub in the midnight hour and experiencing the sights and sounds of the surrounding wilderness.

The fishing was unbelievable this year. We caught so many small-mouth bass that we lost count after a couple days. On the last morning, Jim caught a huge bass in the canoe with only a fishing net and NO bait. Amazing!

Our daughter Ashley had lots of fun. She especially loved having Dad take her on canoe trips around the pond. Other activities included swimming in the pond, picking up frogs off the beach, and laying in the hammock. She definitely liked it when Heather and Ryan came to visit. Good kids!

Our dog Daisy loves coming here. She loves playing fetch in the open field and swimming in the pond. Keeping the raccoons, squirrels, and chipmunks away from the house was on her favorites list as well.

If you have never been here, you are missing out. We're already planning our trip to the Retreat for next year. It's that good!Thanks for everything Jim and Ivie!We look forward to seeing you soon.

Best Regards, Jim and Kathy, Warren MI

Retreat in the Woods - Hot Tub

Wow! This is great! Time to relax in the new hot tub at the Retreat in the Woods!

More fun times are the Retreat in the Woods!

What a beautiful day for a boat ride!
And a refreshing dip in the pond!
Great time to relax and talk with friends.
And a great day for BLUE SMILES???

The BEAR Visit at the Retreat! 8/6/06

There was a visitor at the Retreat in the Woods last night. A Raccoon? A Deer? Maybe a opossum? Hmmmmm.....
Or maybe a hungry Bear?

I came over to the Retreat to check in our guests this afternoon and this is how we found the bird feeder. It looks like our bear came by for a late night snack and bent the feeder pole right over. This is only the third visit we've had for the year. It's been since early July since the last visit.

Guest photos from the Retreat in the Woods!

Wow! Look at my fish!
Taking the crew out for a spin on the canoe...
Let's burn some yummy marshmellows! They're the best! YUMMMMMM!

Photos are compliments of the Van Buskirk Family. Thanks for the fun photos!

THE HOT TUB IS HERE!!! Report from the Retreat in the Woods

BEFORE!

and AFTER!!!!

Yes! It's finally here at the Retreat in the Woods. This nice 4 person hot tub has 81 soothing jets! AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! Just kick back and relax! It will be up and running by July 24th!

Important Information before Checking into the Retreat

The Hot Tub is Coming! The Hot Tub is Coming!!!

Just when you thought things couldn't get more relaxing at the Retreat in the Woods! They are! We have a Hot Tub being delivered to the Retreat towards the middle or end of July 2006! We'll have some photos of the Hot Tub once it's delivered. It will look pretty much like the one at the Chalet. I'll keep you updated!!!

Fun Times at the Retreat in the Woods

Time for some family fun at the Retreat. The fishing is always great. Great for kids!
Enjoy quiet lazy days with family and maybe your 4 legged friend. Dogs LOVE this pond as much as the kids do!
These guys are waiting for hand-outs. When they see people, they think that they might get some free food. These guys are easy to catch, but must be put back.

Report from the Retreat in the Woods

We've had some beautiful days this week, other than today we had some gloom and rain. I guess every day can't be beautiful and sunny. Things look great out at the Retreat. Now is the time to come an play at the pond.
The fish are looking for food. They are pretty tame and know that when people are at the pond, that often means they are going to be fed. These FAT bluegills LOVE hotdogs, bread and sandwich meat. They've been spoiled over the years with guests feeding them.

You can go fishing for these big fish, but it's catch and release ONLY to protect the current fish in this pond. We have a some monster fish is this pond. There are a couple of mega bass and lots of BIG bluegills. The Retreat is also a great place for canine friends to kick back and relax too... or to do a lot of playing and chasing!

New Pictures of the Retreat in the Woods

I took some fresh photos of the Retreat. The photo above is the east side of the pond.
We got a computer hutch over the winter for those people who want to bring a laptop up with them. There is a phone cord at the back. Sorry....there is only dial up available and you need to have a local number to dial in.
Look at this big fireplace. Lots of nice warm fires have warmed many toes during the winter season.
We also got a new headboard for the double bed in the master bedroom. I think it looks very nice.
It's a good evening to feed the fish.

Deer, Deer, Deer... or is it just deer?

TRICK PHOTO???

I did a little trick with this photo above. This is actually ALL the same deer. I took a bunch of pictures of her as she walked around in the road. I have a program that sewed the photos together and now it looks like three deer in the picture... But it's just one.
Here she is again. This is a close-up of her stairng at my car. Isn't she cute?
This photo was taken just down the road from the deer. There is a blue heron in the background. All of these photos were taken on the road leading to the Chalet.

Darn Bear!!! (Report from the Retreat in the Woods)

Darn Bear! He's back. We've been staying over at the Retreat the last week or so. I hadn't put any bird seed in the feeders until about 5 days ago. Well.... this morning we woke up to knocked down and bent bird feeders. He even bent my bear resistant one. I'll have to get it rewelded. The weld on it broke last year and I never got around to fixing it. Now I have to.

Usually we don't see any evidence of the bear until June... but it looks like he's visiting earlier.

We've never had a problem with the bears bothering people. They are more scared of you, than you of them. Every encounter we've had, they've run away went they see people or hear a loud noise.

Regardless... we still do not leave people food outside over night. It can attract other critters too.

Audio Report from Retreat in the Woods May 8th

Click on the audio link to get a report from the Retreat in the Woods:

The Walk

Do you want to go for an early spring walk with us? Visit http://www.gladwinrealestateagent.com/thewalk to go for a walk in the woods with Angel and I. These pictures were taken just a mile or two from the Up North Lakefront Chalet. You can drive there if you come a visit. Take the foot paths around two lakes surround by all state land. The landscapes are awesome at any time of the year. It's about a 3 mile walk around the two lake and depending on how fast you walk, it can take 1-2 hours from start to finish. I've done it in 55 minutes without stopping to look around much. Enjoy!

Spring time is here

Spring is here and it's time to think about booking your vacation. For several years, many people have enjoyed their visits to the Retreat in the Woods. This year we have a new addition to our rental homes.

In December, we purchased a cute cottage on a quiet fishing lake. Introducing the Up North Lakfront Chalet, located in the NE corner of Gladwin County on beautiful Blue Lake. (The photo to the right was taken in January).

This cute lakefront cottage is on a quiet, no motor lake, near 1000's of acres of state land and snowmobile trails. The house sits on 2 waterfront lots with a fantastic view of this beautiful up north lake.

Swim in the crystal clear waters from the private swim raft or jump into one of the boats and enjoy an evening of fishing or taking in the views around this quiet up north lake. The home has a large fireplace, living room, laundry facilities, kitchen with breakfast area, open deck, fire pit and charcoal grill. This vacation home is fully furnished and has 2 bedrooms/1.5 baths, and it sleeps up to 4 adults (6 with 2 being children).

Sleeping arrangements: 1 Queen Bed, 1 Double Bed and 1 Queen sized Futon, (in living room). This house also has a TV and VCR. The fully-equipped kitchen has a stove, refrigerator, coffee maker, microwave, dishes, and pots and pans. Linens and towels are provided. All the basics are there!

The rates for the Up North Lakefront Chalet are the same for both rental homes. Visit our web site for more information: http://www.GladwinVacationRentals.com