Welcome to the Shady Crest. Gorgeous lakeside views at this spacious home located on peaceful, private Grave Lake. This home is perfect for your extended family get-together or a quiet get away with your own family. Conveniently located between Brainerd and Garrison. Enjoy the lake with kayaking and swimming, or relax and watch your favorite sports, play board games or a game of pool, roast s'mores by the bonfire, or just curl up with a book by the gas fireplace - this rental has everything!

The space
This lakefront home boasts many family-friendly spaces complete with a pool table and bunk room with a Lego table! Shady Crest is a two level home which can sleep 16 people. There are 5 bedrooms plus a Lego/ Bunk room, and 3.5 Baths. Everyone has a bed - 5 king beds and 10 twins. Enjoy the open floor plan, fireplace, wall of windows and deck looking over the lake and the peace and quiet you would expect with a property at the end of the road, next to the woods and on the lake. The yard contains a small apple orchard - late summer and early fall guests are welcome to pick and enjoy!

Fully stocked kitchen. Double oven and an extra full size fridge make cooking for a large group a breeze. A large island is perfect for cooking and gathering. There are plenty of place settings include drinking glasses, wine glasses, coffee mugs, kid friendly dinnerware, pots and pans, cooking utensils, mixing bowls, baking dishes, pizza pan, cookie sheet, toaster, crock pots, Instapot, can opener, wine opener, measuring cups/spoons, and coffee maker.

Indoor entertainment includes 5 smart TVs (family room, living room, both king bed-only bedrooms, and the new king/ twin bedroom in the lower level). These TVs are equipped with Rokus, Direct TV, Prime Video, and Disney Plus. Feel free to bring passwords to other accounts such as Hulu or Netflix - just be sure to logout when you leave! The high speed internet access is perfect for streaming as well as that work meeting you just can’t miss. The basement family room features a pool table and high top table for board games. The bunk room includes a well stocked Lego table for the kids and the kids at heart. We also have a large assortment of board games.

Outdoors you will have a taste of MN wilderness. Fox, turkeys, deer and the occasional bear will visit the backyard. The lake is great for swimming, kayaking, canoeing, and fishing. Kayaks and a canoe are stored near the lake, paddles and an assortment of life jackets are stored in the garage. Enjoy some S’mores around the bonfire after your day on the lake. The deck features a 6-person table and a gas grill. We have a spare propane tank onsite. If the tank runs out, please contact me and I will get you access to the spare tank.

To make traveling a bit easier with young children we have two pack-and-plays, a high chair, booster chairs, stools in the bathroom, toys (including Little People and Magformers). Guests have access to a full sized washer and dryer.

Guest access:
Guests have access to the entire house, yard and attached garage with the exception of the locked owner’s closet & utility room. The three car attached garage has many yard toys and is available for parking. The detached garage is not accessible to guests except by request.

Other things to note:
Summer (Memorial Day to Labor Day) has a 3-5 night minimum.

Labor Day - Memorial Day is a 2-3 night minimum.

Please note this house is in a quiet neighborhood. It is a private dirt road with a speed limit of 15mph. Please be respectful of our neighbors who are permanent residents.

Grave Lake is a private lake with no public boat launch. We have kayaks and a canoe for guest use May - Sept. Swimming is great for kids! The water starts out 10- 12 inches deep (no real beach) and get gradually deeper, it is 3.5 - 4 feet deep at the end of the dock. The bottom is hard sand with rocks and occasional weeds. The water in Grave Lake is tea colored due to tannins in the water. The tannins seep into the water from the roots of the trees around the lake and stain the water. It is safe to swim and boat. The water indoors is treated to remove tannins and iron to prevent damage to laundry.

Edit: Aug 2026 - with the hot, dry weather this summer we experienced an algae bloom on the north side of the lake including around our dock. The DNR recommends not swimming with the algae present. Whipple Beach and Serpent Park are great public beaches in the event of algae during your stay.

There is plenty of room to park your boat if you would like to explore nearby lakes. Nokay Lake is just across Hwy 18. Upper South Long and Bay Lake are also near by. Mille Lacs, Gull and Pelican are popular options but a bit of a longer drive.

Home is located one mile from the "18 Run Trail" which allows easy access to many county trails on snowmobiles. There is plenty of room in the driveway and garage to store snowmobiles and trailers when not in use. Check out midweek pricing if your schedule allows in the off season.

The exterior of the property is monitored by three cameras. One monitoring the front entrances of the home (located on the detached garage), one monitoring driveway (located on front of attached garage) and one monitoring the rear entrance to home (located on back of attached garage). All cameras record audio and video.