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The Pinewood Lodge in Au Train, Michigan.
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Big Bay Lighthouse B&B in Big Bay, Michigan.
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The Thimbleberry Inn in Bayfield, Wisconsin.
Ever dream of owning a business by Lake Superior, starting a second career, working for yourself and living on the shore?
This might be the time for that move. Three bed-and-breakfast inns near the Lake are for sale.
One of those for sale is the Thimbleberry Inn in Bayfield, Wisconsin, owned by Sharon and Craig Locey. They intend to retire just down the road once it sells.
Sharon offers advice for those considering such a purchase – specifically, what you do and you don’t need to know.
“They don’t need experience. They need to like people. You can’t be a hermit and be a B&B owner. You don’t have to enjoy cooking, but that certainly helps. I think I’ve served 18,000 people breakfasts over the years.”
The Loceys have operated the inn for 21 years and hope the property’s new owners will continue the business. She promised this, as incentive: “We are only moving down the road. I’ll be here to be their mentor. And I’ll leave all my recipes!”
When Sharon and Craig opened the Thimbleberry Inn in June 1992, “I didn’t have any idea what it took for an innkeeper,” she says. “I really did think it was like the Bob Newhart show, with his little inn in Vermont. I thought, ‘Well, I could do that.’
“Three years later, a guest asked me how I got into the business and I told the Bob Newhart story. Then she said, ‘But Sharon, didn’t you see the last episode?’ And I said no, I missed it.”
In the final episode of “Newhart,” Bob’s character awakens to discover that his eight seasons as innkeeper Dick Loudon were all just a dream.
Sharon says her 21 years at the Thimbleberry were a dream, too, though in a different way. “We love the area. It’s been wonderful.”
The Thimbleberry Inn Bed & Breakfast, Bayfield, Wisconsin
The four-bedroom, four-bathroom house sits on four acres of land, including 360 feet of Lake Superior shoreline. The property includes a dock, two-car garage, workshop and spectacular views of the Apostle Islands.
Asking $799,000. 715-779-5757, 800-881-5903, www.thimbleberryinn.com
Pinewood Lodge, Au Train, Michigan
Jerry and Jenny Krieg built Pinewood Lodge in 1989 and have operated the two-story, 8,400-square-foot log cabin as a bed-and-breakfast inn ever since. Eleven bedrooms, seven full baths, an indoor sauna, gazebo and 335 feet of Big Lake shoreline on a 1.82-acre lot. A balcony off the second-floor master suite overlooks the Lake. Fully furnished.
Asking $1.6 million. 906-892-8300, www.pinewoodlodgebnb.com
Big Bay Lighthouse Bed & Breakfast, Big Bay, Michigan
The 117-year-old lighthouse and adjoining 14-room building were converted to a bed and breakfast in 1986. Sitting on a lakeside bluff, the historic tower rises 120 feet above the water and offers expansive views of the 3.65-acre property. With nine bedrooms, 8.5 baths, 670 feet of frontage, a 1,000-square-foot fog house (held the fog horn), concrete pier and gazebo, the B&B could also be sold as a one-of-a-kind residential estate.
Asking $975,000. 906-345-9957, www.bigbaylighthouse.com
