Anam Cara is the ultimate escape -- a wilderness retreat with modern amenities. Everyone from rugged outdoorsmen to city slickers will find themselves splendidly accommodated.

THE PROPERTY

Located an hour's drive from Marquette's Sawyer International Airport and within several hours' drive of the Midwest's largest cities, Camp Anam Cara hosts guests from the Great Lakes to across the globe.

The retreat is located about 4 miles from US-41; the last two miles is a private road and discreetly marked. The property is more than 150 wooded acres, surrounded by land permanently preserved from development.

The boundaries include 4,000 feet of Spruce Lake shoreline -- fully half the remote, 60-acre lake's perimeter. Also within the property lines are 2,000 feet of a trout stream below the lake, a marsh, and a few beaver ponds. The managed forest consists of a mix of hardwoods and conifers, including spruce, maple and birch.

There are two primary structures, the main house that sits high above the lake and a nearby building immediately adjacent to the shoreline that consists of a boathouse on the first level and a guesthouse on the second level.

A stairway connects the main house and deck with the shoreline, which features a new dock with swimming ladder and a fire pit on the beach. Tethered at the dock is a 5' x' 10' pontoon platform boat with electric motor that serves nicely for fishing, pleasure boating (with seating for several passengers), or sunbathing. A large and stable Poke Boat (cross between kayak and canoe) and a few kayaks are also available for use by the guests. Adult and youth life vests and rings are located in the basement. Fishing for pike, bass and panfish is very good, and walleye can also be taken from the lake.

Guests may enjoy ample hiking and berry-picking opportunities on trails throughout the property. Watchers of birds and other wildlife will find the lake and woods home to many species, including loons, moose, deer, bald eagles, bear, coyotes, and innumerable other creatures.

THE LODGINGS

The main house consists of a great room, kitchen, dining room (featuring a custom-built wood slab dining table), 2 baths, authentic cedar-paneled Finnish sauna room with shower, and three bedrooms. The upstairs bedroom is very large, with three queen-sized beds, and has its own walk-out balcony. The two downstairs bedrooms have one queen bed apiece. All beds in the house have recent, luxury-hotel grade mattresses and bed linens. The great room contains new over-sized furniture and an entertainment system with satellite television, stereo and DVD player. A game room contains a full-sized foosball table. Outside the great room, with its large picture windows, is an expansive deck with furniture and gas grill, providing a wonderful vantage high above the lake amid tall trees.

While air conditioning is unnecessary in the temperate summer climate, in-room gas heaters are available in the even of an especially cold night. The house is served by a deep, electric-powered well; the water is clear, cold and delicious. The refrigerator and freezer are gas-powered, and there is comprehensive electric lighting throughout the house and a microwave oven which are powered by a battery bank charged by an automatic, gas-fired generator. Guests may bring their own wireless phones if they wish to have telephone service during their stay.

The Finnish sauna contains contoured, raised cedar benches, cedar paneling, an iron gas furnace topped with smooth Lake Superior rocks (upon which is ladled water to provide steam), a dressing area, and a shower with hot and cold water. Try it a few times and you may never want to take an ordinary shower or bath again!

The guesthouse sits right over the lake and is surrounded by large windows. It contains three beds (including two double-sized bunks), gas heater, lighting, and TV-VCR.

NEARBY

At the junction of the access road with US-41 is a gas station and convenience store, offering most basic groceries as well as fishing and recreational supplies. Nearby is the legendary Mt. Shasta Restaurant, where scenes from "Anatomy of a Murder" were filmed. In the close-by, historic village of Michigamme are art galleries, a small museum, and a public beach.

Further down the shoreline on Lake Michigamme, one of the Midwest's most beautiful large lakes, is a full-service state park with a large, well-maintained beach. Nearby Craig Lake State Wilderness Area offers backpacking and carry-in boating and fishing opportunities. Urban amenities can be found in the cities of Ishpeming, Negaunee and Marquette, situated between 30 minutes' and an hour's drive east on US-41. And within an hour or two's drive are most of the Upper Peninsula's most renowned attractions, including the Keweenaw Peninsula, the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Grand Sable Dunes, Porcupine Mountains, Sturgeon River Gorge, and dozens of historic mining sites and gorgeous waterfalls.