Perfect Location for Vacation Cabin?

[Luke]

Someday in the future I may want to purchase a vacation cabin. Here are the criteria. What is your opinion of the perfect place and why?

1. 3 hours lor less driving distance from Leola, PA (Lancaster)
2. Very close access to excellent trout fishing opportunities
3. On a lake would be considered perfection, but required nearby outdoor swimming, hiking, and biking; wife and 3 young kids.
4. Nearby cultural activities to keep the wife satisfied (restaurants, shopping, etc.)

I have some ideas, but I would love to hear yours too.

 

[PaulK]

Don't exceed by a minute 2 Hours, and try to keep it at 1.5. 3 hours is too far to "run to" on a Friday night after work and you'll be leaving Sunday's too early before the evening rise. Extend the stay, which is why you want the place. my 2 cents

 

[NoMoreCornChuckin]

Centre County.

 

[TimMurphy]

PaulK wrote:
Don't exceed by a minute 2 Hours, and try to keep it at 1.5. 3 hours is too far to "run to" on a Friday night after work and you'll be leaving Sunday's too early before the evening rise. Extend the stay, which is why you want the place. my 2 cents

Dear Luke,

I tend to agree with Paul's logic on this. There is nothing like having a place to go to that you don't go to because it's too far away.

PA doesn't have many lakes and when you add in your additional criteria of a lake and activities for 3 young children and combine it with trout fishing you really limit yourself in my opinion.

If all those things are equally important I think you should be looking towards the Pocono's, or possibly the Raystown area.

I think you should also realize that you'll always be bringing two cars if both you, and your wife and children, want to go in seperate directions.

Just some things to think about.

Regards,

Tim Murphy 🙂

 

[Luke]

Thanks for the comments so far guys.

I think Paul's "2 hour rule" advice is very wise.

Tim, I never really thought about the two cars dilema either. I guess maybe I could keep an old $500 beater fishing car/truck at the cabin full time. Better yet, I just need to get my wife and twin 6 year old girls to love fly fishing as much as I do... problem solved.

 

[Mike]

Not anywhere close to a flood plain unless you have a good stomach or unless you have found a high spot within the surrounding flood plain. Ask those who suffer the anxiety with each major storm.

 

[TimMurphy]

Dear Luke,

To avoid the two car dilema maybe you can look at place that is on a rails to trails route like the Pine Creek area in Lycoming County?

You could bike to fishing spots and on other days your wife and children could bike and you could go to a different stream?

I'm sure you can find a place in an area that offers good enough fishing and enough things to interest the rest of your family with a bit of thought.

I don't mean to sound so negative but as the owner of a camper that never gets used I know what it's like to buy a getaway and never go.

Regards,

Tim Murphy 🙂

 

[sandfly]

there's a lot of Lancaster people with cabins in this area. 5 lakes, rails to trails, bike trails trout fishing galore, walleye, sm. bass etc. all here. Lots for family stuff..

 

[VTPAangler]

Luke,

I'm in the same boat as you. Wife and two young boys (a third young boy on the way). At some point in the next 5-7 years I'll be looking for a vacation cabin if the budget allows.

From a trout fishing standpoint one of my requirements is that it has to be in an area that offers year round fishing. Specifically, it has to be in an area where there are good options for trout in the summer. Secondly, it has to be in an area where there is top notch fishing. For me that means Penn State area, Delaware River system, and possibly South Central PA limestoners. I'll rule out all other areas because I'm not making an investment like that to be in an area that has anything less than the best fishing in the region.

I like the two hour rule if it's feasible. I live in the Philly suburbs so it will not be feasible for me. I also like the idea of being on a lake for the kids/family. The problem there is that there are really no lakes in the parts of PA that I would want to be that have real estate on them, with the possible exception being Raystown.

Best of luck, I hope you find the perfect situation.

 

[Fishidiot]

Luke,
You might take a look around here (Adams/Cumberland Co). Michaux State Forest has many cabins and would be a closer drive, more in the range of 50-70 miles. There aren't any large lakes but there are smaller ones in the SF in Pine Grove Furnace State Park that offer swimming and recreation. However, these lakes are crowded on weekends in summer. There are hiking and biking paths and Camp Hill Mall is 20 minutes up I81 for shopping. To be sure, the small freestone stream trout fishing cannot compare to what you'll find upstate but the limestoners are only minutes away and will provide year round fishing.
I think the state parks/forest offer some cabin rental opportunities on South Mountain - you might check out this option to see if you like the area.

 

[midnightangler]

You should take a few vacations and weekend trips to get to know different areas a bit before you buy.

The Raytown lake area would seem to match up well with what you want. There are a number of good trout streams in the vicinity, most notably yellow creek to the south and the little j to the north. There is also a very nice bike trail on the frankstown branch of the juniata.

 

[caveman]

My brother has a place near Letterkenny, on the Conodiguinet creek. Not far from a couple lakes. Cowans gap State park is not far, lots of trout fishing nearby and its only about 1.5 hours from here. Lots of state game lands nearby. Keep it close, my parents bought a place in west Virginia, 3.5 hrs and sold it within four months, Just to far. 1.5 to 2 hours tops, is an easy do after work on Friday.

 

[CRB]

get a camper, a tow behind, that way you'll always have the fexablity of going anywhere on vacation.

 

[jabink84]

Raystown lake area would be my reccomendation....you have a lake with plenty of things to do, swimming, boating, waterpark, fishing, a wal mart close by for things needed. and you have the little J within a short drive, plus trough creek state park holds some nice trout late into the year(stockies) plus theres tons of smallmouth in lower trough creek.

 

[Luke]

Thanks for the feedback. Keep it coming. We already camp a bit with my pop-up camper. Favorite desinations today are Poe Paddy and Hickory Run. I would love to find a place with good access to Penn's Creek. Being on a lake is the first thing that I would likely give up but I really want outdoor recreation (hiking, biking, swimming) to be right out the front or back door.

 

[wsender]

Pine Creek area, just watch out for the water trucks!

 

[wbranch]

I also agree about 3.0 hours beeing too long a drive. I have a cabin on the WB of the Delaware and even though I'm retired and can stay up 3 - 4 days during the week the 3 1/2 hour drive is just too far! Even three hours is too far - it isn't bad driving up because you are excited about the prospects of getting away to your hideaway but believe me the drive home is BORING! I've owned the place since 1996, when I was still working, and even when I would leave work at noon on a Friday I still would leave for home no later than 2:00 p.m. on a Sunday and I often had lots of traffic. Also a 3.0 hour drive is going to mean more $$$ spent for gas.

 

[FiveWeight]

Sounds to me like I already have it. Without the being right on a lake. I am on the Juniata River and the lake is only about 4 miles away. 2 hours 20 min drive from Lititz and all within 4 miles of Huntingdon. But sadly I think your search must continue.... The area is all full up, no vacancy in the area.... It may be a good spot for you to look into.

 

[bikerfish]

I know we beat this topic to death in the conservation forum, but before I'd buy any property anywhere, I'd do some research and make sure there wasn't any immediate plans for a gas well next door. just ask some of the folks on here that have camps in the northern forests. if I were spending money on a cabin, I wouldn't want to be in the middle of a gas field.
if it were me, I'd look at central pa, also, there are some very nice areas of WV and Virginia that are within your driving range, maybe just a tad further.

 

[Chaz]

I'f I'm going to the cabin for a weekend I usually make sure I take an extra day or 2for travel opening camp closing it down things like that. Going 3 hours for 2 days is very tough. Not that it isn't good to get away, but there is some work involved to it. Get the fire going turn on the gas, open shutters get lights on. open the outhouse. It may not sound like much, but it does take time away from things we enjoy.
I love going to camp hate coming home, but except for an exception once in a while, I go for long weekends.