Phil and Linda Yeakel's home on IndigoBunting has beautiful views of Lake Petit. The home has seven fireplaces and a fascinating art collection.

Phil and Helen Carlock's home on McElroy Mountain Drive was the first Bob Timberlake home built in Big Canoe. This home also features a gorgeous terraced garden in the back.

Marc and Camille Resetar's craftsman-style home on Summit Drive overlooking the golf course is a beautifully designed and decorated home for an active family with children. Special features of this lovely home include unique family history photos, as well as decor items from Japan, where the Resetars met.

Roger and Eve Bartlett's home on Kilmartin Point overlooks the golf course. The family's collection of antique furniture and downstairs playroom for the grandchildren make this home particularly inviting.

People often ask how the homes are selected. It’s never an exact science, but the committee starts with a fairly long list of homes that have been recommended by members of the community. Diversity and accessibility are two of the most important factors. Many beautiful Big Canoe homes are too difficult for tour buses to reach, which narrows the list considerably. Finding homes of different styles, in different areas of Big Canoe, but not too spread out, is also very important.

Homes with interesting features or stories are something else the committee looks for. After consulting with the owners of the homes that are on the “short list” to determine if the owners are interested in being considered for the Tour, the selection committee, as a group, visits the homes. While a previewed home may not be selected for the Tour the year it is previewed, it is placed in the Tour Journal for consideration in future years.

“We have a lot of fun during the selection process,” says Louise Prescott, “but it’s not easy making the selections. We always wish we could include more homes. Being very gracious and appreciative of all the families who allow us to consider their homes is very important to us.”

The 2009 Tour will have one home on a mountain, designed by Bob Timberlake, with a beautiful garden; one home on the lake featuring seven fireplaces; and two beautiful homes on the golf course.

To see additional photos of the tour homes and for further information about the tour, visit www.bigcanoetour.org .