When we first looked at the Northwood Cabins we knew that if we purchased the property there would be a lot of work ahead of us, but we were not to be deterred. Nine small cabins each with their own bathroom, two with kitchens, plus a two bedroom main house. How hard could it be? Well, as we approach the end of our first year we can look back with a sense of satisfaction as to what we have accomplished. We went into this with a plan, as we had months between the time that our offer was accepted and when we actually took possession of the property. There was going to be new color schemes in each cabin, new bedding, new furniture. Big plans. Then the day came. We loaded up our pick-up. Then we filled up a U-Haul Truck, and hitched our car behind that. Our little convoy drove through the night so we could be there first thing in the morning. Once in Tupper Lake our first stop was Stewarts for coffee as nothing else was open yet. Then it was off to our attorney’s office, then a meeting with our new insurance agent and the accountant. Finally, wisely, the last stop of the day was at the Town Office to meet with the Building Inspector. By the time we finally got back to the motel with the keys it was mid afternoon, and the reality of what we had done sank in… we owned a motel.
The first week or two was a blur, moving thing out, moving things in. Cabin 7 became a storage unit. The front yard became a flea market with a “Free” sign advertising the unbelievable deals available. Oh, and all those well thought out plans…they went out along with all the old furniture. First order of business: a new driveway and the sign– that didn’t work either. So our first two projects chose themselves. From there we moved on to new roofs on all the cabins, replaced old fuse boxes in the cabins with all new circuit breakers and new wiring. New TV’s, all new underground cable lines, refrigerators in all the cabins, new stove for Cabin 4, and that was just July. From there we have moved on to the well and water system, replacing old clay drain title, and the occasional broken water line. But by the end of the season we had accomplished more then we would have thought possible at the start of the summer.
With the arrival of the cold weather preventing any more work outside we turned our attention to the Main House. We have put our touches on every room in the house, sometimes as simple as a fresh coat of paint and a good scrubbing, sometimes it took a little more. But as we prepare to start our second season at the Northwood Cabins it has started to feel like home.
We thought we would share a few “Before and After” pictures to show what we have done as we get ready to take on “Phase Two”