Welcome

Our Story

The Gamoke Cottage was established on May 31, 1986 when Bob and Pete Gamoke purchased the Don Fleming Cottage at 7717 Blue Lake Island Road in Minocqua, Wisconsin. This year will be our 37th anniversary of ownership. We have many fond memories of the good times spent at the Lake. We welcome all our family and friends to the Lake each year and hope to continue to do so for many more. This web site provides specific background, information and schedules for a stay at the Lake. Please take a moment to look around our site.

Our History

We mark the history of the cottage based on the major milestone events that occurred there. Major changes in the property and buildings comprise one way to view the years. After moving in, we did some quick fix ups to the place, including a replacement of almost all the plumbing in order to improve the winter freeze up situation. In 1990, we wisely bought the adjoining lot with 150 ft. of frontage on the Lake. In 1991, we added the Porch addition. It started out to be a porch but grew to the magnificent room with a view and basement game room we see now. Our porch ended up with knotty pine ceiling and wainscoting and a beautiful cherry wood floor. It was occupied in June of 1991. 

In 1994, we added a three car garage which still is not big enough for all our tools and toys. We started to build the gazebo in 2000 and completed it in July 2002. It was constructed almost entirely of cedar with an epay floor. In 2009 we added an addition onto the garage to store Pete's Chris Craft boat and provide for a workshop. In 2012 repairs to the boathouse stablized the structure.

We have continually updated the interior of the cottage. Some of the highlights include the increase in kitchen cabinets around the stove area and the replacement of the kitchen window. We updated the front bedroom, finishing it with old pine boards in 1989. The back bedrooms have gone through significant improvements, including raising the ceilings, new pergo floors and the infamous creation of the Barn Loft bedroom with the barn-board walls and loft bed. The bathroom has gone through a number of changes including the ceramic floor, new larger shower, new vanity and fixtures. Replacing windows is an ongoing project. In Winter 2013, we did extensive rework on the boathouse including replacing the pilings. In 2012, we began remodeling the basement game room with new maple vertical boards and stone wainscotting. An electric fireplace was added for heating the space. 

In 2013-2014, we retained Jason Sobotta to add a new kitchen, and bathroom. In the process we decided to excavate under the old section of the cottage to create a basement with 2 bedrooms, another bathroom and a proper laundry room. The basement has a walk out sliding door and windows overlooking the lake. As part of this remodel we redid the plumbing, installed a new well, changed to in-floor hot water heating and replaced the roof with metal. During the excavation, the old stone fireplace unexpectedly collapsed into the hole and was replaced with an efficient wood burning one. This all occurred in the Fall of 2013 and the Winter of 2014 which is now considered the harshest in recorded Minocqua history. We finished two basement bedrooms in the Spring of 2015. In 2016 we expect to finish the basement living area and hallway. The results provide great new space to enjoy the northwoods. In 2017 we installed cable railings on the boathouse as well as having WIFI access there. Remodeling of the original Bathroom is occurring in 2019 and 2020.

Another way to view the cottage history is based on significant events/parties held there. 1986 was the year of the tornado that went across the lake and damaged many properties. Forntunately, our place was minimally impacted.  We also celebrated the 10th anniversary of the cottage that same weekend. The cottage magnet was created that year with a picture of it to the left. The Farritor's created the banner pictured above to help celebrate the occasion. In 1998, the ice pack from the Spring thaw rammed the boathouse and wiped out more than half the piers supporting it. The front of the boathouse was in the water. Repairs to the boat house are a continuing effort so that we can continue to use it. In the 2000 storm, Pete/Kristyn were at the cottage when a log went throuh the roof of the garage and windows were broken. In 2001, we celebrated the Michelle Swinehart and Dennis Harris wedding shower at the cottage. We were excited to have them up from Arizona. In 2002, we were joined in up-north land ownership by the Gamoke/Abts cottage on Papoose Lake. In 2006 for the 20th anniversary we had a Gamoke family reunion that was a great success in July. A new magnet was created that year.

A different take on the history is through our ownership of boats. We bought an aluminum canoe from the Fleming's in 1986. In 1987, we bought a Bass Tracker fishing boat and replaced its motor with a new Johnson in 1989. Paul bought the sail boat for the cottage in 1988. Pete acquired the 14ft fishing boat with Johnson motor in 1988. In 1998 all the families pitched in to buy the paddle boat. In 2002, we sold the bass tracker and bought a runabout from Nate Abts. Bob bought the Current Designs kayak in 2002. Two additional kayaks were added to the fleet in 2003. In 2010, we sold the runabout to our brother Paul and purchased a Glastron ski boat and lift. Peter brought his Cris-Craft named "Blue" to join the fleet in 2011. In 2017 we started installing aluminum Piers at the boathouse.