Living the Waterfront Dream

This luxury compound is one of the most popular properties to visit by water according to its owners. During peak season boats can be seen lined up waiting to glimpse the cabana that boasts 1,258 square feet with tongue-and-groove pine ceiling, a Perlick single-tap kegerator, drawer beverage fridge, and ice machine and a roof topped with a scale replica of UNC’s old well - a pool waterfall and three and a half acre private peninsula.

A family retreat, the property also includes two large homes, two-slip boat dock, infinity pool and spa, 270 degree water views, an expansive fitness center and six hundred feet of manicured shoreline.

“We bought and renovated the main house and double boat dock in 2010.” the owner, who asked to be called “Heath”, said. “They were both built in 2009 and had no previous owners. We built the cabana in 2013 and the guest house in 2014. With so many indoor and outdoor activities this property is truly a 12 month family retreat. We’ve held rock concerts in February, meteor shower observation parties in the heated pool in December and pop-up chef dinners for 40 friends at the cabana in summer.” Heath described this Waterfront Dream as a refuge from the constant spotlight of a life of achievement and said for him it is a place to recharge and make memories.

“The spa and infinity pool are perfect for the less lake-water inclined,” he remarked, adding that there is ample opportunity for guests to relax and indulge as sunny chaise loungers on the pool patio, shaded cocoon swings or the daybeds beneath the covered porches surround the guesthouse. Those features are credited to Durham designer Heather Garrett who fully furnished and accessorized the guest house.

“Heather designed the guest house entirely turnkey without consulting us,” Heath remarked. “We had learned to trust her after several projects with her on our French Tudor style home at Chapel Hill Country Club. The lake guest house project is pure Heather Garrett design at its most raw form. We were out of town when she finished the installation so we arrived at the lake a few days later to see every fixture, rug, and piece of furniture for the first time. We love every inch of the house.”

Garrett said she used a fresh, clean, neutral pallet to create the ambiance of this property which facilitate a relaxation and enjoyment. Outside she incorporated a fire pit, a wrap-around porch, an outdoor living space with a fireplace that is perfect in the fall and spring, a pool deck area and the party deck on the lake. For the party deck, Heather said she employed the use of hardy Sunbrella upholstery and drapery.

The goal, she said, was to make a seamless conversion of the space’s use from entertaining and partying to lounging. According to Heather, one of the greatest challenges was to choose the perfect tile color for the pool to seamlessly match the lake’s reflection during the day. The home was purposefully built to be intimate – a place that brings people together. The spacious and homey main house features five bedrooms, three full baths, three half baths, a two car garage, stainless steel appliances, indoor fireplace, covered porch with gas fire table, covered sandbox, one thousand foot mountain bike trail and pump track and a half acre fenced yard. It is beautiful in its own right but it’s the guest house that draws the most attention.

“While yoga is most often practiced over the water in the cabana or on top of the boat dock, rock climbing, running, biking, TRX workouts, weightlifting, shooting hoops, and jumping rope are comfortably accommodated in the expansive indoor gym facility,” Heath commented.

Built by Corbitt Hills Construction, company owner Sid Cutts said the guest house is a modified version of a design by Eric Moser Design Group out of South Carolina. He described the framework as a “cottage.”

“Where this design is concerned, don’t take the term ‘cottage’ lightly,” Sid remarked. “It has classic elements. There’s nothing gimmicky. This is like a walk back in time. This is reminiscent of a time when people took the effort to put transoms over windows. There is art in the building but inside it’s a modern playhouse.”

When asked if there were any particular challenges presented, Sid smiled, then remarked, “The owner pushed the envelope on how much fun he could fit.” Heath was quite complementary of Corbitt Hills’ recommendations for Waterfront Dream. “Sid Cutts is an incredible builder - guiding us to choose exposed tongue and groove pine ceilings in the gym, the sweeping exterior porches, the on-water cabana and exposed four inch pine beams on the porch roofs,” Heath recalled. “He also helped us undertake our incredibly aggressive in-ground concrete pool design which required raising the grade on the lakeside of the guest house by eight feet then excavating back down to create an elevated sight line from the porches to the guest house by eight feet then excavating back down to create an elevated sight line from the porches to the water level then out to the lake. The house still feels like it floats in the air every time I sit in the living room or swim in the pool.”

Smartphone controlled, the 6000 gallon salt water pool with inset twenty foot infinity pool provides a lifetime of relaxation during the day and creates an exciting ambiance at night with its lighting features.

When asked about one of his favorite attributes, Heath said it had to be the floors.“We chose a singular flooring product for the interior and exterior floors of the guest house,” he shared. “Last minute we switched from Ipe to thermo-treated Ash in six inch wide planks so we could control the exact color of the wood inside and outside for years to come. Both the interior and exterior floors are joined, sanded and sealed like interior hardwood floors creating a single sightline inside to out through the eight large windows and four mahogany doors that surround the 2,000+ square foot first floor living space. The flooring supplier believes we’re the only interior and exterior installation of thermo-treated ash hardwood flooring in the United States. It creates an incredible experience in the space that is like nothing we’ve ever seen before. It’s always atop compliment when new friends arrive at the house for the first time.”

On the topic of the 29-foot rock grip climbing wall in the indoor gym Heath remarked “The system lets anyone climb safely solo without a belay partner by simply clipping into the automatic belay line,” he said. “When a climber drops, the system instantly and safely lowers them to the ground no matter their weight or height.” The manufacturer of the auto belay system believes this is the only residential installation of their system in the United States. “They sell the system exclusively to professional indoor climbing gyms and national rock climbing competitions”.

Surrounded by other beautiful homes in the tranquility of beautiful Poe Creek you might say that Lake Gaston’s Waterfront Dream Home is the ultimate in lake living and provides opportunities for rest and relaxation that go well beyond the everyday and mundane.

“Living your best life at the lake goes way beyond sitting in a boat,” Heath said.

You can learn more about the Lake Gaston Waterfront Dream home at www.lakegastonwaterfrontdream.com