Where are the lil lake communities with good vibes and few motorboats?

January 6, 2024 3:04 PM

We are interested in living on or very near a calm, swimmable, kayak-able, freshwater lake in the US for a month or two this summer. Open to anywhere in the US, but especially southwest-ish, like CA, CO, UT, NM, AZ. Even maybe Canada! Where are the sweet lake communities?

We're not looking for a boat or party scene, but something more serene and peaceful. Ideally, it'd be the sort of place where there's a little community of lake folks, you can paddle around on your own, there aren't a ton of loud motorboats, and where you can rent a fairly un-fancy house/cabin for a reasonable price. We don't really need to be within a close distance to a city as long as there's a town for groceries somewhere within an hour or so. Ideally it's more summer-camp-in-the-woods than party-boat-drunk-fireworks. We'd like a cabin/house rather than a tent/RV/campground, but definitely could go pretty rustic/rural. Small lakes are probably preferable to big lakes, but maybe there are parts of big lakeshores that have the right feeling.

Lakes we have previously loved include: Echo Lake/Fallen Leaf Lake near South Lake Tahoe in CA, Chain o Lakes/Waupaca in Wisconsin, and Saranac Lake/Tupper Lake/St Regis in upstate New York.

I'm also open to tips on how to search for these kinds of places outside of standard Airbnb, VRBO searches -- I keep generating results that are all the wrong vibes when I try "lakefront" properties. The similar previous asks have some ideas but are specific to certain areas and we are more wide open on location.

posted by luzdeluna to Travel & Transportation (6 answers total)

Identify state wildlife preserves in your regions of interest. Or federal Fish and Wildlife refuges. These lakes often have a 10hp limit, no wake rules, or even bans on motorboats. They also usually have very fractal boundaries with lots of private lands around. Once you find a candidate, search in that county on hip camp and vrbo etc.
posted by SaltySalticid at 4:54 PM on January 6 [6 favorites]

Green Valley Lake in the San Bernardino Mountains is pretty much exactly what you're describing. There are cabin rentals in the town, via Airbnb and the like. There's a tiny general store for some basic groceries. Big Bear is about 45 minutes away, and has full-size supermarkets, shops, restaurants, etc. Lake Arrowhead is about 30 min away, and also has lots of amenities.
posted by BlahLaLa at 4:55 PM on January 6 [3 favorites]

We have spent the last 12 summers in Canaan, NY, on Queechy Lake and now have a house nearby. Doesn’t fit your southwest requirements but checks all your other boxes. We love it. Happy to chat if you want to know more.
posted by Ollie at 5:13 PM on January 6 [5 favorites]

Lake County IL and Kenosha County WI have dozens of lakes, with Antioch IL being the place with a couple of supermarkets, drug stores and such. Some AirBnBs offer the use of their pontoon boats and jet skis as enticements.
posted by Short Attention Sp at 5:07 AM on January 7 [2 favorites]

I think Lake Murray in Oklahoma might be a good option for you. It’s located in a state park so there are a limited number of lakefront places to stay, which helps keep the lake clean. There’s much less of a party atmosphere than, for example, Lake Texoma. Especially because Murray has a lot of coves where you can anchor and relax.
posted by neushoorn at 3:00 PM on January 7 [2 favorites]

We stayed at a house by the northern section of Lake Cascade in Idaho. We kayaked and paddle boarded several days there. There were some motorized activities going on but they were so far away, they didn't bother us. Very chill. Highly recommend visiting McCall while you're there.
posted by perhapses at 7:58 PM on January 7 [2 favorites]