Andy Starnes, Post-Gazette Lakefront cottage on Pymatuning Lake in Jamestown is for sale for $395,000

By Gretchen McKay, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

PYMATUNING LAKE -- Pittsburghers looking for a nearby vacation home near the water often end up at Conneaut Lake. Yet prices in this Crawford County community have crept up over the past few decades to the point where even a teardown on the water can set you back several hundred thousand dollars.

Looking for better value, some would-be buyers are heading just a few miles west to Lake Pymatuning.

Linesville, Espyville and Jamestown are the three towns on this large, manmade lake with marinas and concession areas. It's still possible to get a small cottage within walking distance of the water for not much more than you'd spend on a luxury car, says George Walker, an associate broker with Kress/GMAC Real Estate in Meadville.

Andy Starnes, Post-Gazette This Jamestown cottage offers the best view of Pymatuning Lake from several rooms, say the current owners. Click photo for larger image. More information 1495 Lakeview Drive, Jamestown -- Deb Shook, Prudential Advantage Realty, 814-282-8224 or www.prudentialadvantage.com, MLS No. 90651. An open house will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. July 21. 1637 Shaker Road, Espyville, -- Anthony Boca, Howard Hanna Price Real Estate, 814-724-1121 or www.paohiorealestate.com, MLS No. 90614.

It won't be fancy, of course, but it'll provide you with a comfortable base for exploring the 17,088-acre Pymatuning Reservoir -- the largest lake in the state -- and its 70 miles of shoreline.

An 816-square-foot log-sided cottage on Lakeview Drive in Jamestown, near the Orchard Road boat launch, is being offered by Prudential Advantage Realty for $55,000. And mobile homes, of which there are plenty, can be even cheaper, says Mr. Walker, with some selling for as little as $20,000.

But there are larger, better-appointed waterfront properties as well, if you're willing to spend a little more. A three-bedroom stone home on Shaker Road in Espyville is being offered by Howard Hanna Price Real Estate for $149,900. It includes a three-car garage and an above-ground swimming pool.

And for those with even deeper pockets, on Edgewater Drive in Jamestown is a 1930s three-bedroom ranch on a cove listed by Rodgers Real Estate for $395,000.

Once an impenetrable forest with a vast swamp used to bury the dead, Lake Pymatuning was created in the early 1930s, when the state built a dam to regulate the flow of the Shenango and Beaver rivers. Its name, given by the Iroquois Indians, means "The Crooked-Mouthed Man's Dwelling Place."

Each area of the lake has its own distinct personality, says Mr. Walker. Linesville has the biggest downtown area, with several eating spots and a drug store. It's also a little quieter because there aren't as many cottages.

Jamestown has a larger, more modern marina as well as a deer park with 250 animals and birds. Espyville has the 2.5-mile causeway that links Pennsylvania and Ohio, and an 850-foot breakwall that doubles as an accessible fishing pier.

Lake Pymatuning won't appeal to everyone. The 10-horsepower limit on motorboats effectively puts the kibosh on jet skis, waterskiing and tubing. Conneaut, meanwhile, has no horsepower restrictions.

"It's a different kind of lake," says Nancy Rodgers, a longtime area Realtor who lives in Jamestown. "Conneaut is a party lake. This is a sailboat and fishing family lake."

Fishing, in fact, is what draws many of the lake's day-trippers and weekenders. Though it's best known for its walleye, anglers can also expect to catch large- and smallmouth bass, crappie, perch, bluegill and channel catfish. There's also giant carp, though most visitors prefer to simply feed them bread at the newly renovated spillway on Hartstown Road near Linesville.

	Andy Starnes, Post-Gazette An Espyville cottage with an above ground pool is selling for $150,000. Click photo for larger image.

It is also a place for birdwatchers, with bald eagles a frequent sight (there's a nest right by the Pymatuning Wildlife Learning Center in Linesville).

There's certainly plenty of room to settle in with a spotting scope or binoculars at the waterfront cottage on Edgewater Drive. Built in 1938 and kept in the family since, this charming getaway -- situated on the south shore of the reservoir -- sits on a half-acre lot. It has one of the best views on the lake, according to owner Janet Ringer. In July, she says, the sunset on the cove turns the lake to gold.

Interior details include an old-style galley kitchen with built-in "steps" on the bottom cupboards that help you to reach the high ones. It also has hardwood floors and a beamed ceiling in the living room and a separate dining room with slate floors and a wood-burning fireplace. Ms. Ringer's grandfather hand-carved the tiny ducks and geese in the living room mantel.

Like a lot of older cottages, the house was added onto over the years as the family grew. Today, it includes three bedrooms on the first floor along with a carpeted sewing room/office and a makeshift laundry in a closet. The largest is the 22- by 20-foot master bedroom, which opens onto a stone patio. Skylights provide natural light. The master bath has a platform whirlpool tub with a view of the lake and a walk-in shower. There's also a hot tub just outside the door.

For family get-togethers, the house has a huge sleeping loft that Ms. Ringer says can sleep 14 "without batting an eye." Any extras could sleep on an adjoining open-air sleeping porch. A large, covered porch faces the "front" or lakeside part of the house. "There's such a sense of community here," says Ms. Ringer. "It's where kids can go and still be kids."

You'd have trouble fitting too many youngsters into the 1967 cottage a few miles down the road at 1495 Lakeview Drive, Jamestown. It has two small bedrooms, one just big enough for a set of bunks and a dresser. It's cozy nevertheless, thanks to the living room's knotty pine walls, exposed rafters and large wood-burning brick fireplace. Close at hand are a kitchen with metal cabinetry and Formica countertops, and a small bath with a shower.

Recently updated with a new roof, gutters and electrical service, the cottage sits on a level lot and has a covered picnic pavilion and small fire pit area.

The two-story house at 1637 Shaker Road in Espyville is almost twice as large, with three bedrooms and two baths and almost 1 acre of land. Outfitted with both baseboard and propane heat, it could also be used year-round. The living room, warmed in cooler months by a Kodiak wood stove, measures 12 feet by 19 feet and opens onto both the master bedroom and the kitchen. There's also a full bath with a laundry.

The second floor has two bedrooms with paneled walls and a half-bath, and a small deck overlooking the side yard. A new sunroom offers a covered space for playing cards or watching TV. The property also includes a 27-foot, above-ground round pool with a deck and a three-car garage.

4919 Edgewater Drive, Jamestown -- Nancy Rodgers, Rodgers Real Estate, 724-932-2131 or www.nancycrodgers.com, MLS No. 06-203. An open house will be held noon to 2 p.m. July 14.