Full Description of Rental: Vacation Summer Rental ($1000 WeeK, $3000 Month)...."Balsam" is a 1940's summer cottage with relaxed charm on quiet Balsam Avenue in the village of Caroga Lake, just a three-minute walk to a neighborhood association beach on West Caroga Lake, which has gorgeous sunset views and a great sandy beach with safe, shallow swimming for children.
Freshly painted barn red with creamy trim, "Balsam" has an authentic camp interior of "knotty-pine" paneling. Neat as a pin and comfortably furnished, much of "Balsam's" charm comes from its nostalgic decor, personalized with regional knick-knacks, floral paintings, vintage prints, fabrics, lighting, accessories, and flea market finds.
Comfortable maple furniture in the living room is covered in vintage quilts and coverlets; ruffled curtains hang at the windows, and an oval Colonial braided rug rests on the hardwood floor. The living room features a console TV (local stations only) with VCR and DVD player and a cabinet record player with a stack of LPs. There's a closet full of board and card games. Several floor and table lamps provide attractive light for activities; baseboard heat takes the chill off cool evenings.
An open shelf filled with a collection of knick-knacks which include bronzed baby-shoes and demitasse cups separates the living room from the eat-in kitchen. The fully-equipped kitchen has a refrigerator, electric range, enameled sink, microwave, toaster, toaster oven, and coffee maker. There are pretty dishes and serving pieces, as well as a full complement of cookware and utensils, in the classic knotty-pine kitchen cupboards with wrought iron hardware.
Beyond the kitchen is the bathroom, equipped with a shower, a sink with vanity cabinet and mirrored medicine cabinet, and low-flow toilet. The bathroom has ample space for storing towels and toiletries. There's natural light from a multi-paned window and a pretty vintage wall mirror.
Across a hallway running the length of the cottage are three bedrooms, each attractively furnished with a bed, a cushioned chair, a tall dresser, reading light, and small closet. Windows are draped in white Battenburg lace cafe curtains for privacy. The front bedroom has a queen bed, the middle bedroom and the back bedroom have full beds. Additionally, the sun porch spanning the front of the cottage has a fold-out full futon sofa.
All the beds are provided with pillows, blankets, and coverlets. You bring your own linens: sheets, pillowcases, and towels.
The sun porch spanning the front of the cottage is fully glazed, its windows lit with tiny paper lantern string lights and provided with narrow blinds for options of privacy or watching the world go by. At one end, a square table and chairs are set up for cards, games, or puzzles; at the other, the full futon sleeper-sofa and an easy chair make another comfortable sitting area.
"Balsam's" front garden has been planted with young apple trees and an assortment of perennials, with flower-boxes at some of the windows. A gravel driveway to the right of the cottage provides off-street parking for two cars. The backyard has a patio with picnic table, charcoal briquette barbeque grill, and Adirondack chairs facing a Franklin woodstove for an evening fire. The backyard's lovely view is of tall, fragrant balsam trees.
It's a two-block, three-minute walk to the neighborhood's "Lakeview Grove Association" beach. The beach is sandy with a shallow, hard-bottomed swimming area marked off by a rope of floats. There are park benches for enjoying the gorgeous views of the mountains surrounding West Caroga Lake, the charming buildings of Sherman's at the far end of the shore road with its Ferris wheel and carousel, and spectacular sunsets. The beach is also a great spot for launching a kayak or canoe, which you may rent for an additional fee.
"Balsam" is within walking distance of restaurants, taverns, post office, laundromat, general store, coffee shop, gas, ATM, video rentals, and a chapel. All the amenities of a friendly, small city are 15 minutes away in the historic sister-cities of Gloversville and Johnstown.
Hiking, golf, mountain biking and ATV trails, trout-fishing streams, state hunting land, and gorgeous views from a mountaintop fire tower are all nearby. The county has 44 lakes to enjoy, ranging from small hidden lakes on hiking trails to the 26 mile long Great Sacandaga.
Centrally located in the accessible southern Adirondacks, just 30 minutes north of the NY State Thruway, "Balsam" is a great location for easy daytrip excursions to Saratoga (Performing Arts Center, Thoroughbred Racing, and much more), Lake George, Great Sacandaga Lake, Cooperstown (Baseball Hall of Fame, Farmer's Museum, Fenimore Museum, Howe Caverns), the Albany capital region, and much of the six million acre Adirondack Park, including Blue Mountain Lake and Tupper Lake, homes of renowned Adirondack regional museums.
It's about an hour to Saratoga, Cooperstown, and Albany; about four hours to New York, Boston, Buffalo, and Montreal.
"Balsam" accommodates a maximum of six guests at all times. There is off-street parking for two cars. Sorry, no pets and no smoking. "Balsam" has a NO SHOES policy; bring slippers or flip-flops for indoor use.
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