BadMonkey,

Have you looked at Cumberland in KY? It's a bit further north, but there's a lot of available shoreline. We have a place right at the junction of the Cumberland River (North Fork), South Fork and the Main Lake. We see all four seasons there, but the winters are pretty mild. It's 101 miles from one end to the other, 1200+ miles of shoreline, several large marinas, lots of coves to hide in and several large boating events every year. You're within fairly short driving distance to several other good size lakes, as well.

Thanks. Brad.
Model Machine and Precision LLC
(937)545-8991

Hartwell or Murray in SC, Norman in NC, Lanier in GA. Those 3 are on my list of retirement locations. Out on the coast, Emerald Isle NC is still pretty quiet.

Not sure on SC but GA has state income tax. Screw that I'm getting crushed enough and is why we have looked toward east TN. Make sure you find out if the lake has a speed limit, noise limit and able to boat when you want to due to water depth changes. I've seen northern GA lakes down 50+ feet from where ends of docks!

We looked at relocating my biz down to Gainesville and lake Lanier. Ended up buying a new shop local in Syracuse so we didn’t. But we looked all over. TN , FL , NC etc.

lots of nice areas. We seemed that north GA was best bang for buck for realestate with the best boating compared to other southern lakes. If you’re looking to retire , murray is really low key. And plenty of boating to be done

I apologize if this reply appears more than once. I haven’t used this forum very often, and I’m not sure I am doing it correctly. Anyway, if you’re considering the West Coast of Florida, I highly recommend taking a look at Crystal River. Crystal River is about 75 miles north of Tampa, but it is a world away in terms of the hustle and bustle. All the services you might need are nearby (things like grocery stores, Home Depot, SuperWalmart, lots of local eateries, bars, and some fine dining, two hospitals and other healthcare services, repair facilities, car dealerships, a Harley dealership, etc.), but there is very little traffic and we have a distinctive small town vibe. It’s rare that it takes more than one cycle to get through a light. There are almost unlimited boating opportunities, with hundreds of miles of lakes, multiple rivers, and the Gulf of Mexico. Although the speed limit going to the Gulf is 30 mph, it’s only about a 7 mile/20 minute ride, and of course once you’re in the Gulf you can go as fast as you’re able. I’ve boated extensively on the Chesapeake Bay, and I would say the average chop is roughly equal to the near shore Gulf. There are tons of other recreational opportunities in this area as well. We are called the Nature Coast, because Nature abounds. There is hiking, biking, mud trucking, hunting, tubing, and of course all kinds of fishing, diving, scalloping, hanging out in the springs, or on the sandbars, and so forth. We even have a small local airport if you’re into flying. You can buy a VERY nice house here on 1 to 5 acres for $350,000. For the same price, you might be able to find a more modest home on a canal, but those are becoming few and far between. Most canal homes are running $400,000-$600,000. For $250,000 or so, you could also buy a pretty nice house (3/2/2), but with maybe a half to 3/4 of an acre. Quite a few houses have pools. As you probably know, Florida has no state income tax, which is an attractive feature. One of the things I like best about the area, being that I originally came from Northern Virginia, is that we have seasons here. They are milder than up north (thankfully), but there is a winter, spring, summer, and fall. Although we seldom have a hard freeze, it’s not uncommon in the winter to get down to the high 40s/low 50s, which I find refreshing, and yet it almost always warms up to the mid 70s during the days, so boating is comfortable all year long. If you’re interested, you might want to check it out soon, because prices seem to be rapidly rising, and I think we’ve been “discovered.“ If there’s any other information I can provide, please let me know. Shannon.