Who: Kip and Angie Dominy and their son, Noah, who turns 2 in August.

Where: Bear Lake Reserve, Tuckasegee, N.C.

Photos by Nick Breedlove (ENLARGE)

A canoe painting dominates one dining room wall. The three-bedroom Craftsman-style getaway is two-and-a-half hours from the owners' Athens residence.

(ENLARGE)

A 5-foot stuffed bear guards the fireplace in the Dominys' North Carolina mountain cottage. The home has hardwood floors and granite countertops.

(ENLARGE)

Kip, Angie and Noah visit about twice a month.

GETTING THERE From downtown Atlanta, take I-85 north to I-985 north, then merge with U.S. 23/441. Travel north through Franklin, N.C., and into Dillsboro, N.C. Turn right onto Business U.S. 23 (Main Street). Follow through downtown Dillsboro and Sylva. Main Street becomes N.C. 107 South. Follow N.C. 107 along the Tuckasegee River for 12 miles. Turn left onto Shook Cove Road. Continue on Shook Cove Road for approximately 3.9 miles. Turn right at main entrance and travel about 0.3 miles to the greeter's cottage.

When purchased: March

Their home: A three-bedroom, two-bath Craftsman-style cottage with about 1,650 square feet and features such as hardwood floors, granite countertops, a screened porch with a fireplace and deck with mountain views. "It's cozy and quiet," said Kip, a senior financial adviser with Taylor, Schroth and Dominy, a Wachovia Securities Financial Network, in Athens. They decorated the cottage, which they also have for rent, with items including a canoe painting in the dining room, a 5-foot stuffed bear situated by the fireplace in the living room and flat screen TVs.

How far from home: About 2 1/2 hours from Athens.

How often they're there: A couple of times a month.

What they do when they're there: "With this place, there was so much more to do" than other communities they looked at, Angie said. "It's just top-notch really." The couple was attracted by the views and family-friendly amenities. Those include the saltwater pool, theater, playroom, golf course, restaurants and nighttime activities such as making 'smores. If they want to leave the community, they visit other North Carolina towns such as Cashiers and are about an hour from Asheville.

What they love about it: "When I hit 10 yards north of Commerce, my stress level just goes [down]," Kip said. "The drive is easy. You start seeing the mountains and the foothills."

BEAR LAKE RESERVE

Western North Carolina

Bear Lake Reserve, which is about 165 miles from Atlanta, is expected to have 800 condos, cottages and homes when complete. One, two- and three-bedroom condos, priced $500,000-$685,000, are in seven one- and two-story buildings. Two-, three- and four-bedroom cottages, with 1,600-3,300 square feet, range from $187,000-$725,000.

The 2,100-acre community by Terramesa Resort Properties is in western North Carolina, where the Blue Ridge Mountains meet the Smoky Mountains.

Among the amenities: The Lake Club, which includes a restaurant and tavern, theater, kids' activity center, fitness center and more; pool and two hot tubs; nine-hole Jack Nicklaus golf course; amphitheater; 23 miles of hiking trails; trout pond; and Bear Creek Park, which has teepees, tent platforms and an open hearth fire for cookouts. Lake activities on its 13 1/2 miles of shoreline include swimming, boating, kayaking and water skiing. Robinson's Creek is a spot for trout fishing.

RECENT SALES

$616,000, 2-acre lakefront home site

$378,000, 2-acre home site located at the top of the property

RESOURCES

Bear Lake Reserve

Jackson County (N.C.) Travel and Tourism Authority

Jackson County (N.C.) government

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