Winnipesaukee Forum - View Single Post - Living on an Island

escaped from NJ · 06-05-2006, 04:10 PM

After 20 years of working like a dog and saving every cent we could so that we could buy a property on water, we finally bought on an island last year. I have never been happier....who says material things don't buy happiness!!!

Seriously, it is the beauty, quiet and privacy that I love most. (You have no backyard neighbors on an island.) The view still takes my breath away every morning (It is not just an expression. I really do have to catch my breath every morning.) and the views as the weather/sky changes throughout the day are phenominal. The only negative is that living on an island requires some planning and discipline, primarily around food.

We debated a long time whether it was worth it to have the view/property on an island that we could only use 6 months of the year or have 1/2 the cottage on the mainland and still only use it ocassionally in the winter, given how far away we live from the lake. After giving that a lot of thought, we realized that would mean either keeping the heat on all winter to prevent freezing when we weren't there or winterizing it and not having water if we came up in the winter. So, we bet on an island property and now I realize it was the best decision I ever made. Also, we were going to hike out to the island this past winter but as luck has it, for the first time in a gazillion years, there never was enough ice to make me comfortable with that idea. When we closed last winter, I thought I was so clever and left all these little bottles of water so we wouldn't have to carry much water with us across the ice. When we got home and were unpacking, there, in the trunk of the car, were all my little water bottles. So, I learned that communicating the "plan" with my husband, would have been a good thing.

I echo some of the earlier posts...the flies and mosquitos are almost non existent and it is amazing that people really can't easily grasp the concept that you really live on an island. I bet I have said, "Really, only by boat." about 50 times. We love having quests come...the adventure of picking them up on the mainland and driving up to the cottage by boat is so cool!

I guess one recommendation I'd make is that having a washer/dryer has really saved having to transport "wash" back and forth on the boat which might get old eventually. As it is, everytime we come up, we only bring a few clothes and food, so loading/unloading the boat is nothing.

If we decide to go out to eat, because we are new to boating, we don't drive at night yet so that forces us to go out to eat early. At first I didn't like that but now that I am getting the hang of island living, I realize that the best views and times are at sunrise so we quickly change our sleeping patterns and get up at sunrise, take nice long naps and go to bed early. Also, we can get into any restaurant we want by going early.

Hope my perspective was helpful.

06-05-2006, 04:10 PM	#5
escaped from NJ Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 44 Thanks: 59 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts	Island Living....just do it. After 20 years of working like a dog and saving every cent we could so that we could buy a property on water, we finally bought on an island last year. I have never been happier....who says material things don't buy happiness!!! Seriously, it is the beauty, quiet and privacy that I love most. (You have no backyard neighbors on an island.) The view still takes my breath away every morning (It is not just an expression. I really do have to catch my breath every morning.) and the views as the weather/sky changes throughout the day are phenominal. The only negative is that living on an island requires some planning and discipline, primarily around food. We debated a long time whether it was worth it to have the view/property on an island that we could only use 6 months of the year or have 1/2 the cottage on the mainland and still only use it ocassionally in the winter, given how far away we live from the lake. After giving that a lot of thought, we realized that would mean either keeping the heat on all winter to prevent freezing when we weren't there or winterizing it and not having water if we came up in the winter. So, we bet on an island property and now I realize it was the best decision I ever made. Also, we were going to hike out to the island this past winter but as luck has it, for the first time in a gazillion years, there never was enough ice to make me comfortable with that idea. When we closed last winter, I thought I was so clever and left all these little bottles of water so we wouldn't have to carry much water with us across the ice. When we got home and were unpacking, there, in the trunk of the car, were all my little water bottles. So, I learned that communicating the "plan" with my husband, would have been a good thing. I echo some of the earlier posts...the flies and mosquitos are almost non existent and it is amazing that people really can't easily grasp the concept that you really live on an island. I bet I have said, "Really, only by boat." about 50 times. We love having quests come...the adventure of picking them up on the mainland and driving up to the cottage by boat is so cool! I guess one recommendation I'd make is that having a washer/dryer has really saved having to transport "wash" back and forth on the boat which might get old eventually. As it is, everytime we come up, we only bring a few clothes and food, so loading/unloading the boat is nothing. If we decide to go out to eat, because we are new to boating, we don't drive at night yet so that forces us to go out to eat early. At first I didn't like that but now that I am getting the hang of island living, I realize that the best views and times are at sunrise so we quickly change our sleeping patterns and get up at sunrise, take nice long naps and go to bed early. Also, we can get into any restaurant we want by going early. Hope my perspective was helpful.