Recreational Land with Home for Sale in Blanchard, Michigan

Welcome to the Pine River Estate in "Up North" Central Michigan. This beautiful river is known for brook and brown trout fishing. The private secluded setting offers spectacular views as the river oxbows through the property along the stone bank at the base of the bluff atop which sits the spacious lodge. This is truly a "Woods-Water-Wildlife Paradise" where the owners are true Stewards of Living "Life on the Land".

Land

The Pine River Estate is an exceptional 80 acre hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation property that feels much larger with the hundreds of acres of State Game area bordering on the southeast and west. The property is shown on the land.id map.

The property boasts 1/2 mile of BOTH BANKS of the Pine River, with over 50 acres of cedar swamps, vibrant springs and a creek, along with the hardwood ridges of this property for an ecosystem for virtually all wildlife. The majestic white pines, beech, maple and poplar along with the 120 year old oaks are plentiful. The woods are home to deer, ducks, geese, rabbits, mink, martin, and bobcats. Birds such as a nesting pair of eagles and osprey, hawks, eastern wild turkey, partridge, woodcock, woodpeckers of all kinds, and herons are common sightings for the avid bird watcher.

The rustic off-grid cabin nestled against the woods overlooking the spring-fed pond stocked with bluegill, perch and catfish gives the feel that, this is God's Country!

The twelve foot wide custom built steel bridge with white oak planking, completed in 2018, allows for convenient access for vehicles up to 50 tons to the Back 40 cabin and maintained trails throughout. Food plots and elevated hunting blinds are placed in strategic locations.

The hundreds of acres of the adjoining State Game property, consisting of thick river bottom and cedar swamps, is the perfect habitat for mature bucks, and offers a lifetime of seasons for hunting, walking and hiking for antler sheds and morel mushroom foraging. "Mother Nature" shows off her exceptional beauty, making this Pine River Estate, Special!

Well on its way to off-grid living, this property is also a Homesteader's dream, featuring a large, fenced in fruit tree orchard and garden, pastures for horses, and a chicken coop that can provide home-sourced food.

The property has housed horses with approximately 6+ acres for grazing pastures, The horse barn can be re-fitted for up to 3 indoor stalls and there is an outside supply for an automatic water trough and supplies the wash room.

The fenced-in garden and orchard has its own well & electricity and contains apple, peach and pear trees. The fenced garden is great for growing a variety of fresh vegetables, with established sections of herbs and a wonderfully prolific strawberry patch.

Three hundred fifty feet of stone river retention wall was built in 2013, to mitigate bank erosion. The stone is placed on grade atop woven geo-textile fabric that provides a service road to drive on. Field stone terraces, retaining wall by the pool, and rock steps were added from 2016-2017. Stone landscaping around the house was added in 2018. All built by the owners with passion and a vision for future generations.

Improvements

For those who love the great indoors, this one-of-a-kind home/lodge leaves nothing to be desired!

This beautiful 3200 sq. ft. home offers 4 bedrooms, 3 1/2 bathrooms and 3 fireplaces with many quality custom features throughout.

As you walk into the knotty pine walled front entry, through the French doors and into the kitchen, you will be overwhelmed by the spectacular river view and by the magnificent layout of the kitchen and dining area. A beautiful gas log fireplace accents this area. The custom walkway overhead that connects the upstairs loft to the studio/bedroom is one of many unique interior features.

The kitchen features a leather-look granite, no finger prints counter top that surrounds two, stone-vessel sinks, oak cabinets and accented with hickory hardwood floors. A breakfast bar and the dining area make for a perfect gathering for family and guests.

As you enter the living room, once again you will be attracted to the two sliding glass doors that overlook the deck and the river and woods below. As with every other room in the house, the view is breathtaking! The prominent feature is the HECO wood stove. The black, porcelain stove is beautiful and the new vinyl plank flooring sets the room off. Turn around and see the massive cut field stone chimney that encloses a wood fireplace that once heated the house. Now it serves as a place to show decorative pieces or to burn candles for added ambiance. The wood and stone theme of the house carries through this room all the way up to the 17' high ceiling that is made of real plank cedar.

The master bedroom is spacious enough for a king bed and several large pieces of furniture. The master bath features a single vanity sink, private toilet and a tile spa tub and shower. A walk-in closet and stack washer/dryer are an added convenience. This suite is situated away from the main living area for solitude and privacy.

The guest bath is very large and has a new, soft-close toilet, aromatic cedar accent wall, and mounted makeup mirror. The centerpiece is a gorgeous stone vessel sink mounted atop a granite counter top, accented by maple hardwood flooring.

An open staircase allows you to ascend to the upstairs level, accented by a custom oak banister, railing and spindles, a newly added feature by the owners. As you ascend the stairs you're once again drawn through the view out of the massive cathedral windows that make it appear you are actually outdoors. At the top of the stairs enjoy the east view overlooking the swimming pool.

The upstairs bedroom features a full bath and a stone vessel sink. The room itself is uniquely done in cedar-shake shingles up to the ceiling and the view is gorgeous looking north over the rolling farmland.

The "loft" area is perfect for solitude as you look out the window to the east. As you walk through a private hallway and on to the bridge walkway that overlooks the kitchen, you enter the studio/bedroom. This secluded hideaway offers privacy, fantastic river views and a large balcony for outdoor access via the stairway. This room has its own unique climate control system.

The bridge walkway is appointed with one-of-a-kind cedar railings and wildlife designs, again, meshing with the woodsy, outdoor theme of the entire house.

From the main level, you access the lower level passing through the gorgeous stained glass door and down the lighted stairway that boasts a custom cedar log handrail.

The lower level guest suite has a wood fireplace insert, kitchen, bedroom, full bathroom, laundry room and living room with dual walk out glass sliders, leading to a covered patio overlooking the river. As with all areas of the house, it has a fantastic view of the river and woods.

As you walk out of any of the main-level sliders and doors, you step out onto a wrap around deck that has a see-through glass railing. The 14 x 9 shaded gazebo is a wonderful place to enjoy the tranquil river setting. The entire deck was re-surfaced in 2021 and has been weather sealed every summer since. The gazebo was a new outdoor addition in 2021.

The attached 24 x 28 garage is finished and heated with a convenient storage/mechanical room. The 2nd floor is the studio/bedroom, accessible from the upstairs level and via the balcony stairs. An enclosed storage area for the outdoor furniture is located off the deck.

Out Buildings: The shop measures 24' x 40' and has a concrete floor and an overhead storage loft. It is fitted with 220V service and is plumbed for compressed air. It has a sliding barn door on one end and an overhead garage door on the other end to allow drive-through ingress and egress.

The horse barn is 30 x 40 and is divided inside into two quasi rooms. The front has a pass door and a sliding barn door that allows entry into the front "room." This room has 8' ceilings and was at one time fully insulated and contained. Much of the insulation has been removed. Off this room is a small room containing a utility wash sink. This room can be heated if desired. There is heat tape on the plumbing to keep the water usable through the winter to water chickens. The main room of the horse barn has 16' ceilings. There is a sliding barn door that allows passage through the entire barn if necessary. This room at one time housed three horse stalls and a grooming station. There is abundant overhead storage above the entry room. Attached to the far end of the horse barn is a 30 x 15 lean-to with a dirt floor. This was used for hay and grain storage at one time, and before that, it was a shelter for the horses. The owners added lights and circulating fans. The lean-to has a chicken coop and nesting boxes built into the corner with a small door to allow the 15 chickens to come and go from the coop to the enclosed, critter-proof outdoor run.

A 24 x 24 garage is connected to the swimming pool area. It is used for pool activity in the summer and toy storage in winter. The concrete floor is finished with a two-part epoxy for easy clean up and visual appeal.

Custom built in 2013 is the 35? x 24? in-ground, low-maintenance saline swimming and wading pool. Lighted, heated and enclosed with a custom aluminum picket safety fence. The pool has a shallow wading area to a 3 foot depth into the 9 foot deep end with two accent fountains and an exit ladder in the deep end. Surrounded by concrete with additional concrete gathering area outside the fence. New control panel installed 2023, new chlorinating cell 2022.

Honeywell 13kw propane whole-house generator 2012 ($15,000). Provides electric power to critical circuits during off-grid emergencies. The 1000 gallon propane tank supply assures days of generator service if necessary.

Bosch whole-house geothermal heat pump 2012 ($15,000). Pump and dump system that provides heat in the winter, not needed with newly installed HECO wood stove that provides practically cost-free air conditioning in the summer.

Electric furnace/air conditioner for bonus room over garage 2012 ($3,500). Separate climate control for bonus room, rarely used because of newly installed HECO wood stove.

Sun-tracking solar panel 2014 ($8,500). With a 1.8 kW rating, it tracks azimuth and vectors of sun movement throughout the day. Back-fed directly into house electric panel, that can be retrofitted with batteries for off-grid power supply.

SkyStream wind generator 2013 ($17,500) With a 1.8 kW rating, the trailing railing wind technology uses no tail-fin and its 49 foot height falls below FAA height restrictions. Back-fed directly into house electric panel, that can be retrofitted with batteries for off-grid power supply.

On-Demand whole-house hot water heater 2021 ($3,500). Whole-house water softener 2023 ($1,750).

Fiber optic internet service in 2021 provided by Tri-County Electric Coop.

** Extensive features and improvements list available and provided at showings.

Recreation

Excellent whitetail deer, turkey, small game and waterfowl hunting.

Brook and brown trout fishing with over 1/2 mile of your own Pine River frontage.

Enjoy the Back 40 cabin while fishing in your own spring fed pond stocked with bluegill, perch and catfish.

Snowshoeing, cross country skiing, hiking and ATV riding are a fantastic way to travel the almost 3 miles of trails cut into the property.

The property has housed horses and there are cleared areas for grazing pastures.

Enjoy summer days around the custom L shaped in-ground, heated saline swimming pool, complete with pergola for shade, and plenty of surface area to lay in the sun.

Birds such as a nesting pair of eagles and osprey, hawks, woodpeckers of all kinds, and herons are common sightings for the avid bird watcher. The tranquil feel sitting on the decks listening to the river and wildlife is relaxation at its finest.

A giant swing set overlooks the river and will provide hours of fun for the kids and grandkids. It even has a romantic swing for the adults when the kids aren't around.

For evening solitude or enjoy the company of family and friends around a blazing bonfire while the owls and serenade you.Several inland lakes, rivers and golf courses are located in this beautiful area of Michigan.

Several inland lakes, rivers and world class golf courses are located in this beautiful area of Michigan.

"Life on the Land" at its Finest.

Agriculture

6 acres of grass fields for potential hay pastures.

Fenced/gated fruit tree orchard and homesteading garden in 2013. Deer and critter-proof.

Variety of apple, pear and peach trees furnishing ample harvest for canning and preserving.

Prolific perennial strawberry patch. Perennial herbs (dill, Egyptian walking onions, cilantro, rhubarb).

Thorn less blackberries, goji berries, elderberries. Great soil for green beans and dry beans for preserving.

2 chestnut trees newly planted.

A well supplies water for the fruit trees, garden, and new coniferous trees planted to the north.

Amenities in place for Self Sufficient Living at its finest.

Water/Mineral Rights & Natural Resources

Mineral rights will convey with the sale.

General Operations

Potential options and benefits with owning this awesome property.

A private waterfront setting with a secluded feel.

Family Homestead or Hunting and Fishing lodge.

Vacation Rental for Airbnb or Vrbo.

Wedding/Corporate retreat venue.

Region & Climate

Isabella County in Central Michigan has four distinct seasons.

This area is known for fertile soil with beautiful farms and rural countryside.

History

Owners since 2012, with the passion of leaving this land, even a better land for the next family legacy.

Location

Located in an area of Central Michigan with farming homesteads and Amish family farms.

Mt. Pleasant and the Soaring Eagle Casino are 22 miles away.

Detroit Metro area is 2 1/2 hours. Grand Rapids is 1 hour.