Glen Arbor, Michigan
Smittys GA is a unique home situated on a very private seven acre partially wooded site, surrounded by flower gardens, featuring neo-classical inspired architectural elements uncommon to the area.
The main home features 3 bedrooms (2K,1Q), 2 loft bedrooms (1Q, 2T), 3 bathrooms, 2 spacious living rooms with 20' ceilings , an exercise room complete with a flat screen TV, stereo, universal weight machine, Precor elliptical glider and yes a ceiling fan. The home also features a screened in, fully finished, heated (hopefully not needed but there if it is) 3 stall garage with an all-weather ping pong table which can safely be taken outdoors, Tournament Foosball table (indoor only), stereo and also a lighted, marked, outdoor (driveway) 1/2 court basketball court also with stereo.
Inside the home the dining room opens to the formal living room (living room one) which runs the length of the house from Northern to Southern exposures. To the North the living room opens through double doors onto an airy enclosed screened porch featuring a 20' ceiling. The screened porch in turn, opens through double doors onto the rear of the homes two spacious decks. The rear deck overlooks a large and active organic fruit and vegetable garden which abuts the balance of the properties acreage. There are approximately 5 acres behind the home which in turn adjoin the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park land. The property is surrounded by another 28 acres of land held in the Leelanau Land Conservancy.
Returning to the main home, the formal living (East end of home) room opens to the south (front of home) through double doors onto a sunny 320sf redwood front deck. This deck is in the feature thumbnail picture and is surrounded by flower gardens so don't forget to use the zoom feature on this one.
The middle door in the photo is the mainly used entrance on the front of the home. It enters into a large foyer and mudroom built to separate the house into two zones where, for instance, kids could watch an action movie in one living room and parents could read a book in the other or vice versa. The foyer leads to the mudroom and both also feature Brazilian terra cotta tile as an aesthetically warm but thoroughly protective flooring area and space to shed the shoes. Here you will find a thoroughly stocked walk in pantry.
Through the mudroom turning to the right leads to the kitchen. Left at the mudroom leads to the second living room which intentionally incorporates many of the trim design elements of living room one. The spacious second living room was built to feel more casual and features high knotty spruce ceilings, two ceiling fans, an eight foot tall sliding window wall on the northern exposure and a spiral staircase to the 2nd loft bedroom as well cushy comfortable Natuzzi leather sofa, loveseat and chair and a Denon surround system.
Continuing west through the second living room takes you to the third bedroom featuring a queen bed, skylight for those spectacular starry nights and a sliding doorwall to the north deck. Continuing on you pass across the 'pass-through' which is the door nearest the garage. The 'pass-through' was designed to allow quick access between the front yard and the back yard. Accordingly this area also features Brazilian terra cotta tile and a place to 'kick off your shoes'.
Continuing on westward takes you past the 3rd bath and into the exercise room. Here you will find a universal weight machine, a Precor glider, flat screen TV, wet bar, a second refrigerator, and entrance to the garage which was described early on.
The finishes in the home were selected for both durability and comfort with floors being 75% hardwood, 15% quarry tile and 10% carpet. You will find carpet only in the master suite and the two loft bedrooms. The home features knotty spruce ceilings in both the 2nd living room and the exercise room. Countertops are ceramic tile in the kitchen and granite on both the kitchens breakfast bar countertop and the wet bar in the exercise room.
Appliances include a 2nd refrigerator just off the exercise room and front-load washer and dryer just off the kitchen. The kitchen features a Fridgidaire slide-in 4 burner range, over the range microwave, Kitchenaid dishwasher, blender, Bunn coffee maker and grinder, etc.
Above the garage is another 800 sf of living space. This “carriage house” apartment features hardwood throughout, one bedroom with a queen size pillow top bed, 1 bathroom with a shower stall, apartment sized “stacked” washer/dryer laundry unit, an open kitchen with a Jenn-Air electric range, Kitchen-aid refrigerator, appropriate cooking and dining utensils, skylights, a ceiling fan, flat screen TV and bar seating and an open dining area which together would easily seat 6 adults comfortably.
Currently the carriage house also has two additional sleeper sofas for additional sleeping space one of which may be substituted with a second queen bed for a small additional fee.
We stayed here with extended family for a long weekend in the fall of 2023. Beautiful place! Very good location, great communication with the owner & lots to do. Space is large and well appointed. Hot tub was a hit with all ages. Game room + fitness area was great for the kids. We had so much fun! Highly recommend!
Excellent decision to stay at Smitty’s GA. Three generations (total of 12 of us, ranging from age 70s to infant). Plenty of room. Kids loved the hot tub and game rooms. Everything previous reviewers have said is true; a great experience!
We had a wonderful week long stay. Very comfortable for our large family. The owners have thought of everything to make things easy and memorable. Great communication with the host James.
We gathered our adult kids and grandkids (totaling 14) to join us for a week together. We hiked, kayaked, shopped, ate ice cream, and played pickleball. Inside the grandkids were thrilled with the game room and we loved that it was separate from the room we adults enjoyed. The screened in porch is where we spent most of our time. We cooked our meals in the spacious kitchen. The walk to Glen Arbor was easy. And we LOVED all the flowers on the property - gorgeous. The part of the house we loved the most is that it is so spread out! It gave everyone the space they needed, and yet, we were all together.
Beautiful spacious house! We are an extended family of 15 and there was plenty of room for everyone. Owner was very responsive to our needs. If we return to Glen Arbor, this house would be our first choice!
Absolutely loved this property! We had an extended family of twelve people aged 11-75 who comfortably slept, ate, and played together here for a week. Property is a mile away from Glen Arbor and we walked there more than once. We all enjoyed the hot tub, ping pong table, basketball goal and fire pit. The grounds are beautiful and we were able to use some of the vegetables in the garden and wild berries from the woods. Would definitely book here again!
Property is more sprawling than pictures portray.very quiet wooded area and 1 mile from Glen Arbor. Building is multiple sections, perfect for sleeping children from multiple families. Owner was very responsive. Kitchen is more than amply stocked. Lots to do: grill, hot tub, fire pit, walk in woods, biking to Bear Dunes, Glen Arbor town
Very nice beautiful garden
Got married at the sleeping bear dunes s And stayed here for the weekend to enjoy our time and the place was wonderful! Very spacious and nice, we had a lot of fun, thank you so much!
James was always very quick to respond and answer any questions we had while staying. Listing tells you everything you need to know about the property, there were no surprises! The property has so many cool features and had room for all of our 13 quests to have their own spaces. The location can’t be beat, we will definitely be back!
Great house, great location, great owner.
6 Bedroom ( all the queen and king beds are pillow top and comfy) , great chef's kitchen, plenty of space to hang out with 2 living rooms. New Hot Tub. The house is spacious but needs more outdoor seating to relax in and big screen TV.
Beautiful, big home with lots of space to gather and have time to yourself. It’s close to the marina and downtown Glen Arbor. My favorite space was the sunroom ! Very peaceful
James was great to communicate with. Property was beautiful, unique, comfortable, expansive, and private with plenty of room for our 3 generational family with lots to do for everyone. It also was a perfect base for exploring all the area had to offer: hiking, biking, golfing, wine tasting, shopping, beaches, kayaking, and much more! It was a fantastic vacation experience!
Our family of six adults and our combined children were able to spread out comfortably! Smitty's GA has everything you need. We all had fun in the game room, hot tub and fire pit. The screened in back porch is a highlight, as well as the beautiful gardens on the property. James was wonderfully responsive and took care of our every need - we will be back!
This property exceeded what we expected from the reviews we read and the pictures we saw. The setting (surrounded by the north woods) was very peaceful..........probably the most relaxed vacation we have ever experienced. The house is great, the gardens are beautiful and it's minutes away from Glen Lake and Lake Michigan. Also minutes away from Glen Arbor which is a great town. To sum up how we liked the property....we are in the process of setting up a return for next year!
We were a group of 11 seniors who stayed in this lovely home 3 nights while biking the Betsie River Trail, the Leelanau TART trail, and Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail. What a fantastic location and beautiful property tucked into a maple/spruce forest and surrounded by nature preserves! We enjoyed grilling our meals for a couple nights and visiting area restaurants the rest of the time. There was plenty of space to spread out in the spacious, high-ceiling living rooms, 3-season room, game rooms, and a separate, self contained apartment above the garage. Picking asparagus in the lovely gardens and enjoying the hot tub were added bonuses. The owner was very attentive to a couple minor issues which were quickly resolved. We’d certainly stay here again if we return to the area!
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