I have a fondness for the bunkie... It was the first livable structure that I built after the stairs down to the dock, has some great memories associated with it, and it served admirably as living quarters while the main cottage was being built.
But it did have one annoying feature - the porch on the front was just a pain in the neck to use because it was so small - and I suggest ultimately dangerous. Plus the was not cover from the elements so the door was taking some abuse from the rain - I just could never get a screen door to last more than a season before it got damaged in some way.
So I re-built the porch this Fall and added a roof. Now there is plenty of room to maneuver on th e porch - in fact more than one person can now actually stand on the deck of the porch. Luggage and supplies can easily be place on the porch deck from the stairway rather than trekking them all the way down to the lower deck and then up the stairs to the bunkie.
Not one for immediate aesthetics I reused as much of the lumber from the previous deck to save on cost for the project. The result is a bit of a mismatch on the colour of the wood in various places -- but give it a year or two and all will be that glorious grey weathered look. The lattice work was left over material from latice used on the main cottage deck.
Next Spring I intend to add a screen door. There is also a bit of work left inside the bunkie itself - but that will have to wait until next Spring as well. There is a bed up in the loft so a retractable ladder needs to be built. Plus all the trim work including baseboards and molding around the windows was never completed in the initial building project - isn't that always the case...
Our plans include bringing clean water down to the bunkie, and an outdoor shower (solar heated of course). Combined with the nearby outhouse the bunkie can be a private, self-contained vacation get-away. We are hoping that it will perhaps provide a bit of revenue.
;-)