Living the Life in Lake Retirement Communities

I grew up in Minnesota. One of my favorite things to do was go to my aunt and uncle’s house on Fish Lake. Whether it was summer or winter, there was always something fun for me to do. And I loved being on the lake with my aunt and uncle. There’s a new movement spreading across the U.S. known as Lake Life. What is Lake Life? “Lake Life; A lifestyle; A life at the lake full of enjoying freshwater, freshwater activities & freshwater sports.”

If I were going to retire, I’d want to retire on a lake. It’s home to me. But not in Minnesota. I’d want some place warm. Some place like Georgia or North Carolina—a place like Lake Lanier (Gainesville, Georgia), or Lake Hartwell (Toccoa, Georgia), or Bear Lake Reserve (Tuckasegee, NC).

Cresswind at Lake Lanier is a premier, gated, retirement community for active adults, in Gainesville, Georgia. Situated in an historic city in the northeast mountains of Georgia and beautiful Lake Lanier, Cresswind is less than an hour away from Atlanta.

Cresswind offers its retired community a rich lifestyle. There is a clubhouse with an indoor pool, craft rooms, billiards, aerobics, a ballroom, and rooftop bar, which has a scenic view of the lake. Also, there’s a private marina with covered boat slips, so you can enjoy the lake year-round, since the weather in Georgia is nearly perfect. You can also swim in the outdoor pool, play tennis, or walk in the preserved green space, which is a designated Audubon Sanctuary.

Georgia also offers a retirement community on Lake Hartwell. Currahee Club is located just North of Cresswind—about ninety miles outside of Atlanta. It’s also about an hour from Greenville, South Carolina. The community is 1200 acres located on Lake Hartwell. If you want to relax, there is a community garden or fire pits to enjoy a calm night under the stars.

Currahee Club has a large clubhouse where residents can take in the scenery of the surrounding mountains or lake. The lake is home to a private community with docks, hammocks, and kayaks. There’s also a sports club that offers a salt water swimming pool (with poolside dining), tennis, volleyball, bocce ball, and basketball. You can sign up for a golf and social membership, which offers a full array of activities, including mountain and lake excursions.

If North Carolina is more your scene, Bear Lake Reserve is a mountain-lake retirement community in the Great Smoky Mountains of Western North Carolina. The Adirondack-style Lake Club sits on the water’s edge, and enjoy a round of 9 on the Jack Nicklaus designed golf course and enjoy the view of the scenery that surrounds you. Living at Bear Lake Reserve is like a vacation. You can enjoy a vast array of resort-style amenities.

Indeed, you can live, vacation, or retire at Bear Lake Reserve. If you choose to live or retire there, you can choose a custom home or select from a Craftsman-Style Cottage. But if a house isn’t for you, move in to the Mountain Lodge Condos.

So, if you want to retire at the lake in a mountain home, you should check out Cresswind at Lake Lanier, Currahee Club at Lake Harwell, or Bear Lake Reserve. You might just find your perfect mountain-lake home to spend the rest of your days at.