Category:deep creek lake

Traffic Pattern Changes Enacted For DCL Boaters

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May. 20, 2010

Deep Creek Lake State Park officials have announced a new traffic pattern for boaters to use for direct access to the state park boat launch facilities. It is recommended that visitors towing boats or boat trailers go directly to the launch ramp access drive off of State Park Road (third left after crossing the Meadow Mountain Cove bridge) rather than entering the park at the day use gate.

“We have opened the launch ramp gate for 24-hour traffic, which we hope will relieve traffic congestion on State Park Road during the busy summer months,” said Ranger Mark Spurrier, assistant manager for the Deep Creek Lake Recreation Area. “Boaters no longer have to pass through the picnic and beach area entrance just to launch their boat onto the lake for the day.”

In addition to the change of access, boaters will no longer pay the day-use admission service charge, only the launch ramp service charge. There will be an employee at the ramp to collect the launch service charge and to answer questions.

“We feel it is a win/win situation,” said Spurrier. “The boaters will reach the launch ramp staging area faster and save a few dollars, and the beach visitors will not have to wait in boat traffic to enter the park.”

Read the rest here.

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

Study shows Deep Creek Lake water could be better

Kevin Spradlin
Cumberland Times-News

CUMBERLAND — Barbara Beelar pointed at the abundant blue-green algae visible from her dock situated in the southern cove of Deep Creek Lake.

“This is not good,” said Beelar, director of Friends of Deep Creek Lake, a watchdog group of local property owners that aims to protect, preserve and restore the watershed. “Unfortunately, algae is not being sampled (nor is it) scheduled to be sampled.”

While Beelar’s concerns Tuesday have so far not been addressed, a state Department of Natural Resources water quality study on Deep Creek Lake, the state’s largest and oldest lake, was released in draft format to stakeholders. Friends of Deep Creek Lake is one of the groups with a seat at the table.

John F. Wilson of DNR said the study aimed to produce a baseline of information about the 85-year-old lake that boasts approximately 3,900 surface acres. And the data collected from April 2009 through last month suggests the lake’s water quality is pretty good. Beelar agreed.

“Overall, this gives us really good news about the condition of the lake,” said Beelar, who has had an interest in the lake since 1949. “I am very pleased DNR has done the study. Overall, the lake has aged very well.”

Wilson said the study, which cost about $70,000 and was paid for through dock fees that become part of the lake’s operating budget, shows the water quality as being in between poor and great.

Deep Creek Lake is mesotrophic, with a moderate amount of dissolved nutrients, Wilson said — not eutrophic, which contain very high levels of nutrients and are prone to algae blooms.

“Some things are good and some things are worth watching,” Wilson said. “We really wanted to monitor the lake over time to establish some trends. To be honest, we didn’t really have a baseline to compare it to.”

Wilson said one bit of good news is that the lake’s conditions don’t seem to permit zebra mussels, an invasive species, to take root.

“That’s a concern,” Wilson said. “It’s been spreading throughout the country. It appears, currently, that it is not a suitable habitat. That doesn’t mean to say we’re good forever. We’ve still got to be ever-vigilant in making sure boats that are coming from waters that do have zebra mussels aren’t bringing them to Deep Creek Lake.”

Zebra mussels colonize on docks and clog discharge pipes. And while they can’t — at least for now — live at Deep Creek Lake, other invasive species such as aquatic plants, zooplankton and fish could “survive/thrive in the lake,” according to the report.

Wilson said the study shows the need for continued monitoring. In addition to water samples, this year DNR will map submerged aquatic life — which Beelar called “a major step forward.”

Beeler said she was grateful for the study, the first of a handful of reports about Deep Creek Lake that are expected to be released in the next few months. The state Department of the Environment, acting as an agent of the federal Environmental Protection Agency, as well as the U.S. Geological Survey also are conducting tests.

Friends of Deep Creek Lake has obtained a grant from the Chesapeake Bay Trust to cull together information from all available studies into a solid document, Beelar said, in order to gain a true picture of the lake’s health.

While happy with the overall good news, Beelar said the methods used in the 2009 study produced limited results because samples were taken only from the middle of the lake and not near the shoreline.

“What I’m concerned more about is what is referred to as ‘near-shore’ conditions and coves,” Beelar said. “This gives us a real good picture of the middle of the lake but doesn’t give us a picture of the coves.”

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

April Real Estate Update - Deep Creek Lake & Garrett County Maryland

April was a better month for real estate sales at Deep Creek Lake & Garrett County, Maryland. Out of the 17 total sales in April 2010 (up one from last month and ironically, one from last year during the same period), 6 of those sales were for full price – or higher! That seems much more like the real estate market that Deep Creek Lake & Garrett County sellers were accustomed to seeing a few short years ago. My interpretation of this is that sellers, buyers & agents alike are starting to get on the same page in terms of pricing. Prices have come down – everywhere. Now, the buyer activity seems to be picking up, as well. I’ve had more buyer calls about property in the last 2 weeks than….well, it’s been a while. People are looking to buy again. And there are some great deals out there.

There are 49 properties currently under contract compared to 44 last month.

9 of the 17 sales appear to me to be vacation homes, or at least in the Deep Creek Lake area. The rest seem to be primary residential homes.

The average list vs. ORIGINAL sales price was 70.67%, up 1% from last month. The biggest part of this number is the high listing numbers that sellers start with. I blogged about this a few months ago. Sellers are starting to get the picture now, and those who can afford to sell for less, are.

The ADJUSTED list vs sale price is 90.47% – up again from last month. Once the market reacts and adjusts to prices & competition, the Realtors who assist in pricing property can adjust the asking price of properties for sellers who are willing & able to react. This number is a very telling stat – it shows that we are starting to narrow in on the price points for the local real estate market. The best evidence of this stat I can offer is that the 6 sales that were full price or higher. We are narrowing in on the true market values.

The current number of active/for sale residential listings is 665 as of today. This is up from last month (605) and will continue to grow as the spring and summer continue. April & May are huge listing months in Garrett County & Deep Creek Lake – this year is no different. I fully expect 700+ listings by this time next month.

Here are the statistical breakdowns:

Average Sale Price: $332,294 (last month) $404,031

Average Days on Market: 219/219 (last month 220/275) (days on market with current broker/total days on market)

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

National Resource Police officer honored for Deep Creek rescue

From Staff Reports
Cumberland Times-News

SWANTON — A Maryland Natural Resources Police corporal was honored recently by the agency for his rescue of a man from Deep Creek Lake while on patrol Aug. 1.

Cpl. Jeffrey Sweitzer was presented a certificate of merit “in recognition of his dedication and professionalism while performing above and beyond the call of duty in a life-threatening situation,” according to an NRP spokesman.

Sweitzer was patrolling the Holy Cross area of the lake after midnight when he observed a vessel traveling at a high rate of speed that passed very close to another vessel that was stationary. Sweitzer attempted to pursue the speeding vessel, but the speed and restricted visibility on the lake prohibited him, so he proceeded slowly in the direction that the vessel was headed.

After he had reduced the speed of his vessel, Sweitzer heard a person calling for help. He located a person in the water who was intoxicated, disoriented and not wearing a personal flotation device.

When safely aboard Sweitzer’s vessel, the unidentified victim advised that he had just fallen off the family’s vessel, but he was unable to provide the address of the residence.

When the vessel failed to return to the location where the person was found and contact with the Garrett County 911 center with the name of the rescued person yielded no reports for assistance, Sweitzer continued to patrol in the direction of the vessel.

Eventually, the person’s residence was located, his family was contacted and the operator of the vessel was charged with negligent operation. Nine other passengers aboard the vessel were unaware that the victim had fallen overboard.

Sweitzer was honored during a ceremony recently in Annapolis.

Also honored were officers of Western Region Area 8, District 6, including Cpl. Harold Cage (Flintstone); Cpl. James Clise (Lonaconing); Cpl. Michael Friend (Friendsville); Officer Gary Crowe (Mount Savage); Officer Curt Dieterle (Rawlings); Officer James Satterfield (Frostburg); Officer Angela Englehart (Big Poole); Sgt. Michael Kueberth (LaVale); Cpl. Jeffrey Herndon (Clear Spring) and Lt. Bradley Stafford (LaVale).

All the officers were cited for “outstanding performance and dedication above and beyond the call of duty in a specific situation or incident.”

Cage was also promoted to sergeant of Garrett County.

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

Deep Creek Lake now at normal level

Cumberland Times-News

— Deep Creek Lake at normal level

MCHENRY — Deep Creek Hydropower is now operating within the rule band established by the Maryland Department of the Environment to retain Deep Creek Lake at its appropriate level.

Last month, MDE approved a request from Brookfield Renewable Power, the owner of Deep Creek Hydropower, to lower the water level to accommodate the winter’s record snow pack and subsequent melting.

Brookfield also brought in seven “ice eaters” to break up and remove ice and reduce ice pressure on the spillway. MDE and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources worked closely with Brookfield to monitor the situation.

The analysis of water content in the snow pack and the lower than expected rainfall has made spring flooding this year unlikely.

Lake levels are posted at www.deepcreekhydro.com.

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

Spring time at Wisp Ski Resort

It’s that time of year…I’m starting to see some bare spots on the Wisp Ski Resort. Overall, it was a great ski season and a record winter for snowfall. Spring is here at Deep Creek Lake and the warmer weather (and rain) has led to some bare spots on the mountain. Virtually all of the snow that was here on the ground has melted now. It snowed yesterday, but there was no accumulation. Keep checking back for more info from the I Love Deep Creek blog!

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

Investors Are Buying Houses Again

March 23, 2010 by cloeffler

Good news for the second-home market.

More home buyers are snapping up properties with cash, a trend driven in large part by investors returning to the market after four years of falling prices around the country.
The share of home sales involving all-cash transactions was 26% in January, up from 18% a year earlier, according to the National Association of Realtors. The figures come from a survey of members about their most recent transactions. Many home buyers also are paying cash, but investors are largely using cash so they can avoid paying interest charges on loans and get a larger return on their investment.

Other NAR data also show a pickup in investment activity.

Home purchases made by buyers identified as investors climbed to 17% in January, up from 15% in December and 12% in November.

“We bottomed out in 2008, and in late 2009, prices stabilized and investors have returned,” says Mark Fleming, chief economist at First American CoreLogic. “It’s a different type of investor going after foreclosed properties and expecting to hold on for longer time frames.”

Many investors say they’re financing their purchases with cash on hand, rather than borrowing.

Evan Spinrod of San Francisco bought three rental properties in November and February and now owns 21 in four states. The rent he collects gives him an 8.5% annual return on his investment. Some of his homes are worth about $165,000. “I’m still looking,” Spinrod says. “You can’t build these houses for the prices they’re selling them. I’ve always seen that the real wealth was in real estate. People have been sitting on cash, and there’s no interest from the bank (to pay).”

Leonard Baron, a real estate professor at San Diego State University, has bought three homes with cash in the

San Diego area in the past eight months, ranging in price from $100,000 to $130,000. He rents the properties.

Baron says now is an ideal time to make such purchases. “It’s because prices have dropped so much and rents really haven’t,” he says. “The deals were unbelievable.”

Some Realtors also say they’re seeing increased investor activity.

“Flippers, rehabbers, investors … are, in fact, buying,” says Lisa Johnson, with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Haverhill, Mass. “I’m getting builders who have stopped building and are instead buying up condos and single-family homes to fix them up and sell them. It’s a neat change I haven’t seen in four years.”

All-cash purchases also reflect a growing number of investors buying higher-end properties without credit, says NAR spokesman Walter Molony. That’s a sign that some investors see real estate prices as having nowhere to

go but up. All-cash offers give buyers a competitive edge on rival offers – even higher ones – that are dependent on financing. Cash deals can close faster and are less likely to fall through.

“You have to have cash to be able to close quickly and have negotiating power. Cash is king,” says Tanya Marchiol, president of Phoenix-based Team Investments, which buys about 70 properties a month with cash it raises from investors. “We do want to flip it or generate cash flow (through renting it out). Now is the time to buy for cash flow. We know the market is going to rebound.”

Some investors say the current real estate market is an ideal time to buy because homes are so low priced, they are bound to hold their value.

That’s the philosophy of Jim McClelland of Tinley Park, 111.

He is buying about 120 to 150 entrylevel homes in the Chicago area this year and owns a total of about 300 properties.

He says now is a good time to buy because properties going into foreclosure are no longer just one-bedroom, fixer-uppers but nicer, split-level brick homes with more bedrooms that will probably appreciate to a higher value.

That’s because so many prime-rate borrowers who bought more expensive homes have gone into foreclosure.

He puts about $60,000 into upgrading a property, then rents it out.

“Do I think this year will be a better time to invest than in 2009? Yes,” McClelland says. “There have always been foreclosures. The difference now is you get a better home for the same kind of money. You’re sitting on better inventory. People get into real estate for financial independence. It’s not a quick fix. It appreciates. It doesn’t happen overnight.”

By Stephanie Armour USA TODAY

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

HAPPY EARTH DAY! Deep Creek Lake & Garrett County Dirt for sale!

Celebrate Earth Day 2010! Buy some genuine Deep Creek Lake & Garrett County dirt 🙂 There are some great lots and land available for sale, ranging from view lots, farms, acreage, hunting land, building lots, lakefront property, lake access parcels, riverfront land and large recreational tracts. ANY KIND OF DIRT YOU WANT, I can help you find it!

Smileys Funzone at Deep Creek Lake - DCL FUN!

They have a very creative website, and it screams FUN! You can take a virtual tour here. Some more from their website:

_________________

Smiley’s Funzone & Pizzeria
75 Fort Drive, McHenry, MD 21541
Phone: (301) 387-0059
Fax: (301) 387-0049
www.smileysfunzone.com

Indoor & Outdoor Amusements at Smiley’s
You can never smile or laugh enough! So whether you’re inside at Smiley’s arcade games or outside on our adventure rides, you’ll hear lots of squeals and outright laughing out loud! Don’t be afraid to join in – there’s a game and attraction just waiting to tickle your funny bone.

Indoor Amusements
Rain or shine there is always fun to be had at Smiley’s Fun Zone! Come play at Smiley’s, fun for the whole family!

•Arcade Games
•Old Time Photos
•Parties
•Pizzeria Restaurant
•Lakeside Creamery

Outdoor AmusementsCome play outdoors at Smiley’s Fun Zone! Fun for the whole family with views of Deep Creek Lake!

•Go Carts
•Bumper Boats
•Batting Cages
•Laser Tag
•Mini Golf
•Play Ship

And finally, the viral video. That guy in the costume looks familiar…:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VynuluBlt6M&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00]

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

Deep Creek Lake from the SKY - great aerial shots of the lake!

This is pretty cool to see how everything pieces together at the lake. My good friend Todd Gibson took me up in his plane (prior to his days of flying jets over the Honi Honi:) a long time ago and did the same thing for me. Digital video cameras were ‘newer’ technology at the time (it’s been a while), and I couldn’t get nearly the detail that this guy’s camera gets. BUT, the coolest view was following the Youghiogheny River as it winds through the forests and then….WOW. Muddy Creek Falls. Awesome. I have better equipment now if anyone wants to volunteer the plane or chopper 🙂

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVzZkSa9QyM&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00]

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350