We are located 2 km southeast of the interchange of Highways 401 and 416, less than 40 minutes from Kanata, 55 minutes from downtown Ottawa and only 3.5 hours from Toronto & a 2 minute drive to Johnstown/Ogdensburg int’l bridge.
Minimum 3-night reservation only in the summer, 2 nights during other months. One night visit is a available off-season upon request. A nearby equally beautiful home is available to accommodate 4-14 more persons on long notice and under strict guidelines. See below.
Room sizes and a detailed description of the outdoor space and waterfront appear below.
DETAILS
A charming tree-lined entrance greets you as you enter the Johnson Riverlee Estate from County Road #2. The Adams family owned the residence for over 100 years. The majestic five-bedroom stone home was built in the early 1800s. It is situated on three acres of land and has a beautiful panoramic waterfront view. You can observe the big ships just south of the off-shore island and from the shoreline you have a terrific view of the Ogdensburg/Prescott International bridge to the west.
The stately residence has a lovely eat-in kitchen, spacious formal dining room, huge living room and two updated full bathrooms, an upstairs 4-piece bathroom that was completely refurbished in 2020 and a main level 3-piece bathroom. There are four spacious bedrooms on the second floor and a main level bedroom for elderly guests. Your guests will be impressed with the calibre of the accommodation. Old-world charm with modern conveniences starting with cable television as well as hi-speed cable internet / wifi that is phenomenal.
The flooring in the home consists of mainly turn-of-the-century pine as well as oak hardwood in the living room. The bathrooms have beautiful Allure flooring and the kitchen has a truly unique floor! There are NO carpets in this home. Laundry facilities also available on site.
Many updates have been done to the building over the years including re-pointing all the exterior stone work as well as aluminum soffit and fascia. There is beautiful oak hardwood flooring in the living room and main hall as well as pine floors in the grand dining room and all five bedrooms. There is a new 200 amp breaker service, new wiring, new plumbing, and a newer furnace. In the spring of 2006 we restored the upstairs of the home: We added new interior walls, vapour barrier, drywall and new bedroom closets and restored the beautiful pine floors. In 2008 we renovated the kitchen and the kitchen cupboards. We also added central air conditioning to keep you cool for those hot days of summer.
The home is fully equipped, having all modern conveniences including stove, refrigerator, dishwasher, microwave, toaster, colour television, and fully-loaded satellite dish last but not least, a coffee maker. We have suitable lawn furniture, however if you have a favourite lawn chair you may want to bring it along.
MAIN LEVEL ROOM SIZES – Flooring is pine plank, hardwood and vinyl in laundry & bathroom
Kitchen: 17’8” x 15’
Living room: 17’6” x 19’
Dining room: 18’ x 15’6”
Laundry: 6’ x 8’4”
3-piece bathroom: x 6’4” x 8’4”
5th bedroom 8’ x 8’
SECOND LEVEL ROOM SIZES– Flooring is pine plank and vinyl in bathroom
Bedroom #1 (SW): 13’3” x 11’4”
Bedroom #2 (SE): 14’ x 11’4”
Bedroom #3 (NW): 13’3” x 14’
Bedroom #4 (NE): 13’8” x 14’
4-piece bathroom: 6’ x 12’3”
3-Season sun porch 6’ x 16’
Bed sizes:
· Master Bedroom: one king-sized bed
· Bedrooms Two: one-double/full-size bed
· Bedrooms Three: one queen sized bed and one single bed.
· Bedroom Four: one queen sized bed.
· Bedroom Five: Two single beds, in fact a trundle bed.
· Grand hall upstairs: One double bed, pull-out couch
We make up all the beds with fresh bed linen. We have lots of pillows and blankets. However if you have your favourite, please bring it along. We provide everything, including the cutlery. Bring your own soap, shampoo, toiletries including toilet paper as well as Kleenex and paper towels. Daily or occasional cleaning service can be arranged upon request, at a slight extra charge, depending on your requirements.
EXTERIOR SPACE
The Riverlee Estate is located in a picturesque shallow bay, with very little boat traffic as the bay ends approximately one half km east of the home. The shipping channel is 2.5 kilometres offshore. Therefore there is little chance of someone being swamped in a kayak/canoe by the waves of a 1000 foot freighter. Bring your fishing rod, the fishing ranges from good to great! And the clear water swimming is amazing. No seaweed!
There is a massive yard area just to the east of the driveway that is level and flat, ideal for frisbee, croquet, baseball, football or….. In the fall of 2010 we built a huge patio near the 4-6 person hot tub to the west of the home. The interlock patio can hold a few dozen people to accommodate large family gatherings or small get together. We have hosted a few small wedding over the years. Pretty gardens and mature trees punctuate the landscape. Over the years we have planted a dozen evergreen trees as well as many other varieties including oak, maple, and birch trees. All this investment has brought the property back up to the five-star accommodation it was many years ago, and will be yours to enjoy summer after spring, winter after autumn. We are positive you will like the home so much that you will want to come back again!
From the huge 25 x 40 ft patio, it is a 250 ft walk down a gentle slope to the waterfront. Upon request, you are welcome to drive elderly guests down the hidden laneway to the waterfront picnic/dock area. The waterfront has a natural small rock retaining wall that has an opening to access both the fishing dock and the waterfront to swim. If the water is low, there is small beach area. If the water level is high there is a large sandy area near the dock area for the kids to play. There is a small storage building where you can retrieve the kayak/canoe paddles and life preservers. The kayaks are mounted on a storage rack. Some are newer, some are older. There is also a screened porch and a large canopy and tall tree to shade you from the afternoon sun. And of course there is the secondary fire pit for a waterfront night time fire. And there are two play structures for the little ones including a tree fort and swings. We also have a grass volleyball/badminton court. Volleyballs on-site! We usually have a few badminton racquets, baseball mitts, water guns, an inflatable water raft, sand toys & more!
Take advantage of a canoe or kayak ride to the off-shore islands. Most are uninhabited and home to many small animals and deer. You will feel like you are a pioneer back in the 1700s! FYI: Years ago, the Adams family used to bring their cows to Spencer Island, the closest large island each spring by swimming them across the shallow channel behind a small power boat. Therefore the nickname of the main island, Cow Island!
We may have some fishing gear on site, however cannot guarantee this. Fishing permits are available (nominal fee for Ontario residents/more for out of province/country) at the local McEwen gas bar, a short distance away, located near the International bridge.
We suggest you bring your own flashlight as well as a barbecue lighter for the barbecue and outdoor fire pits. There is one next to the patio and one by the river. Technically you need a permit to burn outdoors which can be approved on a few minutes notice-we will fill you in on details. Bonfires are therefore out of the question! You also need to bring some kindling. We usually have a limited quantity of firewood and often we will have a limited supply of kindling. If we run out of firewood there is a nearby place you can purchase it.
LOCATION
Although we are six kilometres from the highway, we have a central location to four major cities, easily accessible by automobile. Kingston is an hour west and Toronto is 3.5 hours west. We are an hour south of Ottawa and less than two hours east of us to Montreal, 90 minutes from Montreal/Dorval Airport.
There is also a bridge to the United States 2 km west. This rural part of America is home to beautiful landscapes and many tourist attractions.
The Great Lakes freighters pass by far across the river near the U.S. shore, and are lit up like Christmas trees at night. There are spectacular sunrises over the offshore islands. Occasionally the sunset will light up the islands in red or pink with their reflection on the mirror-like water. The spring tulips are beautiful and the incredible autumn colours are spectacular, depending on the exact week you rent and how quickly Mother Nature turns the colours of the leaves.
For nature lovers there is excellent bird watching along the shore and in the local wooded areas. The host of birds includes woodpeckers, cardinals and the awesome local blue heron. Be sure to feed the baby ducks!
IN CLOSING
We live close to the rental home, so we can help you with any requests or questions you may have during your visit. We can supply you with a few referrals upon request. As one guest told us "Everything is in good working order and very clean. Another commented, "very conscientious hosts that pay attention to detail." Within a few weeks of you adventure we will send you a detailed comprehensive rental guide.
Riverlee is available for your summer, fall or winter vacation for a maximum of 12-14 persons. If you need more space, we have an adjacent 2-bedroom unit available for rent in the owner’s nearby home. Or, if you have a huge group, we have the owner’s home could be made available for a few as 4 to as many as 14 other guests on advanced notice and under very strict guidelines.
Welcome to a truly fantastic place!
Your host Randy
