Mountain living for city folk

Keisha and Daniel Noel are “big-city types.” Keisha’s from Chicago and Daniel is from New York City. They celebrated their July wedding in Mexico, they love to ski in Wyoming, they’ve traveled all over the world. So even they were surprised when they fell in love with a weekend cottage at High Pointe at Lake Arrowhead in northwest Georgia. We talked with Keisha about their purchase.

Why a vacation home? “We found ourselves so busy during the week that we wanted a way to make our weekends more relaxing. We started looking, hoping to find a place we wouldn’t mind driving to on a Friday night after work. We looked around Ellijay, but that was a little too rustic. I Googled ‘lakes near Atlanta’ and up popped Lake Arrowhead. The Realtor had a listing at High Pointe, and I didn’t even wait for her to take us to see the house. I begged Daniel to drive up the next night, and we fell in love. By the time we met with the Realtor on Saturday, we knew we wanted to buy in the neighborhood.”

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Photos by Christopher Oquendo / Special

Daniel and Keisha Noel have a spectacular view from the deck of their three-bedroom, cottage-style vacation home at Lake Arrowhead in Waleska in Cherokee County

Getting there

Take I-75 north to I-575. Take Exit 20 (Riverstone Parkway) and turn left. Turn right at Reinhardt College Parkway. At dead end, turn right and follow to the four-way stop in Waleska. Turn left onto Ga. 108 and follow four miles to the Lake Arrowhead south gated entrance. To visit Lake Arrowhead's gated community, you must be accompanied by a Realtor.

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What they bought: The Noels have a three-bedroom, two-bath cottage-style home that overlooks the lake. They selected their lot and were able to pick everything for their home. They’ve had the house a little more than a year and get there three weekends a month in spring and summer and once a month in the winter.

No rustic cabin: “Our living room and kitchen feel very Parisian, and our master bedroom depicts our love of Hispanic culture. Our art has been collected during our different international travels. We named the house ‘Jaxon’s Hole,’ which is a tribute to our Yorkshire terrier, Jaxon, but also to Jackson Hole, Wyo., where we love to ski.”

What they love about Lake Arrowhead: “From our house in Vinings to Lake Arrowhead it’s only 48 minutes, door-to-door. We wanted to be on a smaller lake that didn’t feel so crowded. The only way to put a boat in here is to own property on the lake. There’s such a nice group of people, a fun middle-age to young crowd, with some retirees, but mostly young people who are purchasing a second home for the first time. We’ve really bonded together.”

What they do at the lake: “Daniel loves to play golf; he thinks he’s Tiger Woods out there every weekend. I enjoy hiking, and we love to go out on our boat. It’s at the neighborhood marina right below our house. There’s a restaurant at the marina, and a new clubhouse is being built that will have a fine-dining restaurant.”

Lake Arrowhead

Keisha and Daniel Noel’s Realtor, Jodi Payne with Georgia Elite Realty, is a full-time resident of Lake Arrowhead. She’s excited about the new amenities and homes offered at this gated mountain community in Waleska. “Home prices range from $84,000 to $729,000,” she said. “Lake Arrowhead has an array of fun activities. Many folks are involved in various clubs, exercise programs, social activities and club parties and weekly golf and tennis round robins. There are eight miles of hiking trails, two pool complexes and lots of children’s activities. Lake Arrowhead attracts many boat and watersport buffs, and there are boat rentals for practically every type of watersport. And Reinhardt College offers many cultural and educational experiences and is just three miles from the north gate.”

Current listings

101 Elm Court, Lake Arrowhead: Five bedrooms, three full baths, two half baths; five-car garage, two separate masters on main; $524,900

106 Gorath Court, Lake Arrowhead: Five bedrooms, 3½ baths, on two lots, overlooks mountain stream; $319,900

113 Pinebrook Drive, Lake Arrowhead: Three bedrooms, 2½ baths; private wooded backyard adjoining green space; $199,900

For more information on Lake Arrowhead, visit Georgia Elite Realty or call 770-345-3817.

Do you have a vacation home? We’d like to learn about it and see some photos. Send us an e-mail at vacation@ajchomefinder.com with the details of your home and include some family snapshots that really show it off.

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