Boating, fishing, swimming, hiking, snow sports, biking – you name it; you can have nature your way all four seasons and have room for friends or enjoy the privacy of your own home and rent the other one out!

We are offering two homes on five acres of stunning Keuka Lake bluff property boasting 180 feet of waterfront. Both owner-built homes afford a magnificent, private lake view of Keuka Lake from a highly desirable bluff perch, situated on the west branch of one of the most uniquely-shaped lakes in the world.

Located on West Bluff Road, the lower house features two bedrooms, one and a half baths, and an open living/dining/kitchen area.  The lower deck provides extra outdoor relaxation and entertainment room for the summer months and a sublime lake view no matter what the season.

The larger home sits at the top of the driveway and boasts three bedrooms with two full baths with an open living and dining area, leading to an oversize front porch and lake view.

Truly private, this property holds the keys to any nature enthusiast’s heart.  It is perfect for cross country skiing, snowshoeing and hiking.  Traffic and road use is minimal as the bluff has no main thoroughfares. Nestled in abundant trees, the property also backs up to Keuka Lake State Park.  A raised deck and a dock with a boat hoist at water’s edge and there is a state-owned boat launch just minutes away at the park.

The Quiet Place To Be...

And the winner is Beaufort, NC after a hair-splitting race.  Congrats to Beaufort…

This contest started out with hundreds of small towns across the US being nominated and it came down to 10 finalist, of which Hammondsport, NY was one of the 10.  Once the ten finalists were identified Hammondsport, NY and Weaverville, Ca immediately started garnering all of the votes.  Both towns were vying for that first place position, then just like in a horse race, Beaufort, NC came out of the back stretch to bypass Weaverville and then the attempt to overtake Hammondsport, and they did even if by only tenths of a percent at a time.  This became a highly publicized and watched race for a good week.

Beaufort, NC    pop, 4309

Hammondsport, NY  pop, 725

Folks were keeping track on Facebook.  we are up , we are down.  Well all of us in the Finger Lakes gave it a valiant attempt given the fact that Hammondsport has 1/6 of the population as Beaufort.

Beaufort may have won with Budget Travel, but it is still number one in my book.  A special thanks to everyone that voted and encouraged ech other in this contest.   We are a world-class number two coolest place.  If you visit Hammondsport, you may find we really are number 1.

The reviews have been in, and they have all been great.  And I agree completely.

A friend of mine was with me while I went out to take some listing photos.  Hunger hit just as we were going through Hammondsport.  We thought about a burger, a barbecue meal and then noticed the Union Block Italian Bistro was open.  We looked at the menu from outside and decided ” Hey let’s go for a decent meal”,  after all we had missed lunch and I had been waiting to try the meals in this restaurant.  Many of my clients had raved about Union Block, told me all about their delicious meals and I just could not find the time.  So here I was inside ! 

We sat down and began a pleasant conversation with the server Nichole.  She brought me a nice warm and freshly brewed cup of coffee and my friend had a nice glass of  white wine, which I believe was a Pinot Grigio.  Now the menu, It appears simple and small, but….from the appetizers, such as the Antipasto Piatto, to the soups and salads, to  the entrees, we were enthralled.  Then came our server back with what seemed like an unending list of delectable sounding specials.  Oh my !

Our server explained that the Piatto comes with 1 each of 6 items and a salad.  It came made for 1 or 4.  We decided to order the Piatto which I dubbed an “Italian Pu Pu Platter” for two and split an order of the Macaroni and Cheese special, made with 4 cheeses, lobster and shrimp.  Before the meal came out, we received a warm basket of garlic and spice toast that melted in your mouth.  Between the bread and  the Antipasto Piatto platter would were pleasantly full.  Of course when the macaroni came, we had to try it.  It was creamy, the combination of the cheeses made it mouth-watering and the lobster and shrimp mixed in were like “the frosting on the cake”. 

We decided to have the mac packed up for later and decided to try the creme brulee with a fresh cup of coffee. What a pleasant and delectable end to a great meal.  The only downside for th Union Block, is that I am disappointed that I had not been there before.  Here we were in the middle of winter in a very seasonal town and the restaurant had a full house.  A great sign that the food is great.

I will be visiting again very soon and I am already thinking about my next selection !   Stop in and enjoy a great meal !

Save the date for this very popular event, Feb 11-12, 2012 – Cheese and Wine Lovers Weekend !

Love Cheese ?  Love Wine ?  Well…then this is the weekend wine event for you.  Come savor some of Keuka’s best wines with creamy and delectable cheeses that are locally produced.  Each winery will also have a dish prepared with a specialty cheese, a dish you may want to prepare at home.  This is a great platform to pair local wine with local artisan cheeses and one you will want to attend every year.

The following wineries are members of the Keuka Wine Trail and will be participating in the event:

• Keuka Spring Vineyards   
• Barrington Cellars
• McGregor Vineyard
• Ravines Wine Cellars
• Hunt Country Vineyards
• Stever Hill Vineyards
• Dr. Frank’s Vinifera Wine Cellars
• Heron Hill Winery          

 

 The winery events bring so many visitors to the area, making this an area to purchase lakefront homes and placing them in a property rental program.   Wine lovers, love to visit the wineries and spend a day or so in a lovely lakeside home or one with a view to sit back and enjoy a glass of their favorite findings.

I will be showcasing some great rental properties in future blogs. Some will be available for purchase as well…

All of the Finger Lakes are beautiful in their own right, but overall Keuka Lake seems to be the more desirable when you look at overall price ranges available.  Prices to live on Keuka Lake, or at least have access, range from $89,000 to a mobile in a lakeside, seasonal  mobile home community, to a lavish over the top 2 bedroom home with marble walls and unbelievable entertaining areas for $2.5 million dollars. 

Current Keuka Lake owners love their properties so much, they drive around with a little sticker on their car windows that deplays “QKA”.  These owmers feel that they aremore than fortunate to have found this hidden gem.

There are three main localities on the lake to choose to be near.  They include; Penn Yan, Hammondsport and Branchport.  In between these areas, you will find various hamlets and points. 

Some of the homes are intentionally seasonal with the owners only visiting during the summer months, others were built to be seasonal and left as is ( far uncommon anymore ) and most are year round homes, even if only used seasonally.

The choices are endless. In fact there are currently over 80 homes available for sale on Keuka Lake. Lot size, proximity to the style, vintage, garages, driveway, septic, sewer, public water, wells, bedrooms, bathrooms, the side of the lake and privacy are just some of the many variables that buyers look for. 

If you are looking for the perfect vacation home on Keuka Lake, Dave and I would be more than happy to assist you in your goal.  There are many beautiful homes to choose from in many different price ranges.  Dave is originally from the area and I have been in th are for 22 years, so we know the lake. 

We even have a property for sale that includes two homes, 5 acres of land and 170 feet of lakefront.  It offers so many options and all for $475,000.  For a more upscale option, we have a gorgeous 4600 square ft home complete with its own lakeside guest cottage 1 acre of land, wine cellar and 180 ft of lakefront on Keuka Lake.  Want to build your own home with a great view, we have that for you also.  And talk about views, we have an old converted barn with the most spectacular views of Keuka Lake located just minutes from Bully Hill and Dr Franks.

So give us a call and we will sit down and find something that fits your desires on Keuka Lake.

Budget travel is having a contest for the “Coolest Small Town” and after the initial rounds, Hammondsport, NY  has made the final cut with 9 other small towns across the US.  Vote for your favorite! You can vote once daily,  so be sure to get all your votes in before the contest closes on January 31st. And remember to vote for Hammondsport.  Let us make Hammondsport the “Coolest Small Town “.

So what makes Hammondsport special ?  You have to ask ?

• The wineries
• The quaint shops
• The Glenn H. Curtiss Museum
• The restaurants
• Keuka Lake
• The beauty of the hillsides
• Historical Homes
• Antiques
• Farmers Markets

There are so many reasons to love Hammondsport !   So vote today !

Coolest small Towns :     Beaufort, NC  Cape May, NJ  Cooke City, MT  Damascus, VA  Hammondsport, NY  Jerome, AZ  Nashville,  IN  Port Townsend, WA  St. Genevieve, MO  Weaverville, CA

Read more: http://www.budgettravel.com/contest/americas-coolest-small-towns-2012,11/#ixzz1ipREzLm8

Seneca Farms Ice Cream, a local landmark in Penn Yan, especially so for the summertime vacationers to Keuka Lake.  Everyone has to visit Seneca Farms at least once.  For many it has become a tradition.

Is it the home-made ice cream in an unending amount of flavors or is it the fresh strawberry sundaes made with fresh picked local strawberries that brings families back year after year. Or maybe it is all of the cute young ladies that serve the ice cream up.  Whatever it is, Seneca Farms has gone through a couple of expansions, including a full fast food menu with some of the best rated chicken and fritters.  (yes, I did say fritters, and yes we are up North )

For me it is a terrible atrocity when they open up for the season.  Why ? Because I only live a stones throw away and the temptation is just too great sometimes to just pass by or in my case walk by.

Since they have closed for the season, the temptations will be gone until March when they open back up and will be advertising their Easter Ice Cream cakes. 

This is a small reminder of how quiet and desolate it feels around the lake once the cold weather comes along.  The lake people have gone, the wineries are having their big weekends and then will be winding down until the early part of next year.  The only increase in vehicles will  be the salt trucks and the snow plows.  The go-cart track is closed until June and the empty parking lot is a reminder of that, with only empty tires outlining the course but no carts to be seen. A walk down to the park on the lake is easily shared with the geese that are not quite sure if they should migrate or not.

So for now, I patiently wait to see the ice cream sign light up, the lines of cars pulling with hungry visitors willing to place their order for a cold ice cream on an even colder day. Because, then I know everything will begin to fall in place right behind them,  Dougs Meaner Wieners and Keuka Karts.   For me that also means the lakefront buyers will be out looking to purchase the perfect waterfront property and I want to be ready for them !  Where do I take my new clients ?   Well Seneca Farms of course !

This information brought to you by your favorite waterfront Realtor, Mary St. George, Associate Broker, Wine Trail Properties, Your Personal Connection to Lakefront Living in the Finger Lakes, 315-719-8377  www.winetrailproperties.com

Keuka Lake, is one of the more desirable of the Finger Lakes, not because of its unique Y shape but because of the setting, the ambiance, the tradition, the quaintness, the little hamlets and villages and a little of all above.  Here you can find a $25,000 mobile home in a private park to a multi million dollar home rumored to have been purchased by John Travolta for his wife Kelly.

With homes like those that would attract a Travolta type buyer, you would expect to see many multi million dollar sales on this lake.  Quite the contrary… in fact there have only been 9 sales on Keuka Lake over a million dollars for as long as the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors has been tracking them.

The first and only home this year on Keuka Lake to sell for over a million dollars, just sold for $1,400,000.  It is located at 10219 E Lake Rd in the Town of Urbana, located at the Southern end of Keuka Lake.  It has a great private location that includes 305 feet of lake front, 1.2 acres, a boat house, in ground pool with pool house complete with bath, a 2 car garage with loft above and a traditional home of 2,717 square feet of living space. 

The luxury waterfront home was originally listed by Vang Real Estate for $2,375,000.00 in July of 2009 and a buyer was brought to the table by Mike Hanna of Realty USA in Hammondsport. 

There are not a lot of private and spacious settings left like this on Keuka Lake.  Here is wishing great times and newly developed memories to the new owners.  Keuka Lake is truly a delightful place.  I am quite sure the Wurtelle family will miss this great vacation escape that they have enjoyed for many, many years.

 This information brought to you by your favorite waterfront Realtor, Mary St. George, Associate Broker, Wine Trail Properties, Your Personal Connection to Lakefront Living in the Finger Lakes, 315-719-8377 www.winetrailproperties.com

If you are looking for a place on Keuka Lake, that offers more than just waterfront,  then 302 W Bluff Dr, Keuka Park, NY  14478 is for you.   This great property includes two homes on five acres and of course 170 feet of waterfront with a dock and boat hoist on beautiful Keuka Lake.  The five acres back up to state land offering great options for long walks and hikes,  snowshoeing and four wheeling.  Riding a bicycle on the bluff is an enjoyable experience, stopping to enjoy the views across the lake and the little places tucked in along the way, such as Garrett Chapel, a wonderful old church surrounded by a wrought iron fence or some of the vintage cottages that are still in tact.

During the winter everything quiets down and offers you the opportunity to explore your way through Keuka Lake State Park, as you will find numerous trails.  The beauty is inviting as you hike through snow-covered trails catching glimpses of wildlife throughout your trek. Photographers will love the opportunities for some great shots.

Need to put your boat in or out of the water ?  Well the State Park Boat Launch is just minutes away.   Don’t feel like cooking, well you can grab a quick bite at the Trading Post and pick up some needed items or stop by the Antique Inn for a delightful meal, both only minutes away.  A short drive to the North will put you in the Village of Penn Yan where you will find groceries, banks, drug stores and other assorted shopping needs.  To the South, you will come into the little hamlet of Branchport, offering you a hardware store, leather shop, gas station, corner grocer and mercantile shop.

At the water side you will find a deck, boat hoist and a waterside deck, a great place to sit and watch the sunset.  Enter the driveway directly across from the water and you continue up to the first house.  This is the smallest of the two homes with one full bedroom and full bath downstairs and a loft bedroom and half bath upstairs.  The kitchen, dining and living area are open to the front of the home and have an entrance to the deck that flanks three sides of the home and offers a calming view of the lake.  Up the driveway a little bit, you come up to the larger of the two homes, This wood sided home offers three full bedrooms with one downstairs and two upstairs.  There is a full bath up and down in this home.  The living and dining area are open up to the second story lending a feeling of openness.  You will also find a spacious deck on the lake facing side of this home with plenty of room for dining and lounging.

Both homes have been well-built by the owner and you can see the pride in each one.  Both homes come completely furnished and have a wonderful rental history with financials available to serious buyers.  You have nothing to do but show up with some personal items, the homes are all ready for you !  Having two homes on the property allows you options with the use of the property.  You can rent both, use one and rent the other or purchase for an exclusive family compound.  You decide, call me if you would like to view this delightful retreat.  These homes are waiting ro the right buyer -Is that you ?

Come to Keuka Lake, Come Enjoy, Come Stay !

This information brought to you by your favorite waterfront Realtor, Mary St. George, Associate Broker, Wine Trail Properties, Your Personal Connection to Lakefront Living in the Finger Lakes, 315-719-8377 www.winetrailproperties.com

The Seneca lake Wine Trail is celebrating it’s 25th year. And this may have something to do with their Deck the Halls wine event being sold out early. But  you can still order their 25th Anniversary Cookbook.  I would order a couple as they would make great gifts for family and friends.

You still have time to purchase tickets and attend holiday events on Keuka and Cayuga lakes. For Keuka Lake  information, go to www.keukawinetrail.com.  They are having events Nov 12 -13 and Nov 19-20. Keuka Holidays ticket holders will receive a handmade grapevine wreath at their starting winery and collect a Christmas ornament at each winery. Each winery will offer winter foods along with their wines. As always designated drivers receive discounts on their tickets. 

 For Cayuga Lake events visit www.cayugawinetrail.com.  Visitors  receive a souvenir wine glass, grapevine wreath, an ornament at each of the 16 member wineries, wine and food pairings plus great holiday recipes from each of the wineries. The event dates for the Cayuga wineries are Nov 18-20 and Dec 2-4.

These holiday wine events are some of the most visited wine events in the Finger Lakes.  Besides all of the little goodies you will walk away with, you will enjoy the a true holiday feeling with the food, the decor, the ornaments and of course the great wine.  Remember to pick up extra wine to have on hand for the holidays for last-minute gifts.  Everyone loves a great bottle of wine,  or two !

Besides the ability to purchase great wines, most of the wineries have other great gift options, such as cheese boards, hand painted glasses,  artwork, and wine flavored condiments to name a few.

If you have never been to  a wine tasting event in the Finger Lakes and have always wanted to attend one, this is the time to do it and enjoy a great holiday experience at the same time.  To make it even better, consider renting a lake front property for an even more enjoyable experience. I’ll be watching for you !

This information brought to you by your favorite waterfront realtor, Mary St George, Your Personal Connection to Lakefront Living in the Finger Lakes, Associate Broker @ Wine Trail Properties 315-719-8377   www.winetrailproperties.com