Kitty's Lake House isn't your standard issue lake camp or rental—it is a living work of art, with surprises in every nook & cranny. It's a magical place, & we were extremely lucky to spend an entire month there during the Quaransummer of 2020. By the time we left, the whole family was deeply attached to this incredible place.
The photos are accurate, but they can't capture exactly how unique & quirky (in the best way!) the house is. Kim, one of the owners, built it with salvaged pieces from the stunning old high school in town, so beautiful old doors, windows, chunks of pillars, & cabinets form the fabric of the house. There are nooks and crannies everywhere—the kids loved the secret reading room off the top loft's bathroom, and we all used the library constantly. There's a great collection of records/a big record player, so we listened to albums while enjoying the sunset over the lake most evenings.
We have been renting houses for vacations for 15+ years, and the kitchen is one of the best-outfitted we've ever used. Lots of good pots and pans, kitchen gadgets, small appliances, etc., & generally well-supplied with all the things that are annoying to buy for a rental—ziplocks, saran wrap, tinfoil, pantry basics, etc. The bed linens were very nice, too.
The views are out of this world—that western light, the sunsets, the mountains in the distance… It’s a gorgeous lake, with crystal clear water & a rocky/sandy bottom.
Kim & Renee are excellent hosts. Great communicators, extremely responsive to our needs, fun to get to know, generally A+. We wish we'd had a chance to sit on the deck & share a socially-distanced cocktail!
What you should know: We had a 3 year old with us, & that’s about as young a child as I'd want to bring. The staircases are spirals and ladders, so a toddler would be a nightmare to keep in check. (One bedroom/bathroom is on the lowest level of the house, with just three steps up between the front door/living room/dining area & the kitchen/deck level, so there *is* a place to sleep for someone who can't handle the spiral staircase.) There are three bedrooms with walls and two lofts, but the walls don't meet the ceiling all the way (gorgeous exposed beams and wooden ceilings!), so if tight sound insulation is an important consideration for you, this might not be your place. But for a group wanting to hang out somewhere STUNNING & venture out to explore Baxter State Park/the surrounding areas, I can't think of a better home base.