Although many people think of exotic locations when thinking about private islands, some of the best are located in regions of the US and Canada. In addition to being freehold islands, and located in wealthy countries with excellent access to resources, many of the islands also are located on fresh water lakes.

One of my favorite islands that recently came on the market is Goffat Island. Set in the beautiful waters of Lake Simcoe, Ontario. The island is just minutes away from the town of Orillia and just 1.25 hours away from Toronto.

The island is approximately 11 acres in size and includes a 64 x 237 ft mainland lot which has hydro and phone service. The island already has 6 developed buildings, which include 12 bedrooms, a kitchenette, lounge and washrooms. 

The size and development of the island makes the property ideal as a private residence or residential enclave.

For more information on this property visit Private Islands Online.

I was recently contacted by Iron Horse Auction, the firm handling the sale of the island.

They informed me that the island did not reach the reserve bid price.  In addition, I learned that the owners are quite motivated to sell reducing the price of the island to just $2,495,000. Although this may seem like a lot of money the island was once on the market for $6.5 million and as recently as August 2007 had a assessed tax value of over $5 million dollars.

This is an excellent opportunity to get a great island at an even better price. For more information visit Iron Horse Auction.

For more information on this property visit Private Islands Online.

If you are looking to feed your hungry guests, you may want to consider the Muvbox, an amazing modular fast food restaurant. Developed in Montreal Canada the Muvbox is modular restaurant that transforms from a box into a functioning restaurant in less than two minutes.

Constructed from a 20-foot shipping container, seats up to 28 people and uses a combination of propane and solar energy to generate power.

For more information on this product visit Muvbox.

The green revolution has also had a drastic impacted the island market.  New, sustainable and green technologies are ideal for islands and make island living easier and more affordable.

One new technology that I find particularly interesting is solar shingles. Solar shingles take advantage of one of the most wasted spaces in your home - your roof. Researchers recently unveiled a new breed of flexible and moisture resistant solar panels that are designed to be rolled out as energy generating roof tiles.

For island owners these solar shingles solve a number of problems. First they provide an affordable and continuous source of power. Secondly, they avoid the old bulky solar arrays and free up more space on your island.

To learn more about this product visit Inhabitat.

Yadua Island is a 27 acre property located in the popular Mamanuca.  Right now, until July 10th the current owners are accepting offers for full purchase or half share.

Although the island doesn’t have a great deal of sandy beach, but there is an extinct volcanic crater at the top of the island, ideal for the development of a salt water lagoon. 

The island is being touted as the ideal spot for a five star boutique luxury resort. For more information on this opportunity visit Private Islands Online.

Vanity fair recently did a cover feature on Johnny Depp. In the article Depp talked at length about his private island in the Bahamas. This article has increased interest in celebrities and their private islands, with several websites and publications writing about islomaniac celebrities. One such publication is the Frisky which features a number of celebrities rumored to own islands such as Lenny Kravitz and Robin Williams. Here’s a segment,

Robin Williams chills out up north on his private island in Pender Harbor, British Colombia. It’s just a spitting distance from Gene Hackman’s personal island. Wonder if they send each other messages in bottles?

To read the article visit the Frisky.

One of the scariest islands on the list is Ilha de Queimada Grande a deserted island where the forest floor writhes with the world’s most venomous vipers that have been known to kill an entire family while they slumbered in their cottage. The Brazilian Navy has forbidden anyone from visiting the place as it is estimated there is about one snake per square meter.

Other islands on the list include Poveglia Island an island in Venice where up to 160,000 people were quarantined during the plague and subsequently died and Ramaree Island and island home to hundreds of saltwater crocodiles that killed 500 out of 900 Japanese soldiers marooned on the island during World War II.

To read about the rest of the islands visit cracked.com. It is a fantastic and fascinating read!

Brazil is sneaking up on Belize and the Bahamas and slowly becoming a major player in the island world. One of Brazil’s latest entries into the island market is Paraty Island, aseductive 9 acre island located just 10 minutes from Paraty, Brazil one of Brazil’s most beautiful coastal environments.

This idyllic island is famous for its beautiful beaches and native tropical vegetation. The island is completely turn key including a beautifully appointed main house complete with four bedrooms, salt water swimming pool, sauna, covered terrace and gardens. In addition the island infrastructure includes a heliport, antenna tower, pier, floating pontoon for boats, service dock, telephone, internet, engine house, solar panels for electricity, two diesel generators, solar powered warm water supply, reservoir and treatment for water, cleaning of sewage, and a dam with a capacity of 300,000 liters.

For more information on this amazing island opportunity including price visit Private Islands Online.

In centuries gone by it was not uncommon to be exiled to some tiny island in a remote part of the world after committing a crime, or in the case of Napoleon a failed attempt at world domination.

Today, however individuals choose to exile themselves to remote islands for a number of reasons, privacy chief among them. I recently read an article in the Mail Online about Geoff Spice a 43 year old man who will be exiling himself to an uninhabited Scottish Island in August in an attempt to quit smoking.

The 56 year old retired banked, who reports smoking 30 cigarettes a day will be living in a tent on Sgarabaigh in the Outer Herbides for a month in an attempt to quit smoking and improve his health.  Mr Spice notes that ‘I’m hoping my month on the island may lead to many years of extra life that I’ll be able to spend with my family.’

What is not clear is how Mr Spice plans on sustaining himself. Although the seas around him team with fish, Mr Spice does not fancy killing the creatures. There are no rabbits, so there will be no other obvious source of wild fare.

To read the full article visit the Mail Online.