It's seems hard to find a lake or river near this area that doesn't have issues with water quality. Over the past decade we've stayed at Deep Creek 2x, Lake Anna 3x, and at an airbnb ON the Shenandoah River 2x. Every time we've read in advance about no swim warnings, algae blooms or other bacterial problems... most if not all of which seem to be the result of runoff from nearby farmland.

Generally speaking this doesn't concern us because we typically just go boating, water skiing or tubing, and fishing. We don't hang out swimming in the water. But specific to Lake Anna, you WILL definitely find (less informed) people who refuse to believe the water is safe due to the nuclear plant. Which only really matters if you plan to rent out the place.

Anonymous wrote:Read up on the brain attaching amoeba. It's rare but fatal and found in lakes that do not get cold.

Lake Anna has unsafe water.

Lake water is getting increasingly dangerous with flesh eating bacteria, algae, and brain eating amoebas. Not to mention the ever present risk of e. Coli, giardia, and other Bactria and parasites.

I’ve been to lake Anna, but I keep swimming to a minimum.

Anonymous wrote:The location is super convenient and you aren't confined to 95 or 29 when getting there from Nova.

Overall the water quality is fine. The north side of the lake is shallow and sparsely populated.

We ultimately decided to go with Smith Mountain Lake in Moneta, VA. We like being close to hiking trails/mountains and we found the water quality to be excellent. It is further from Nova (it takes us 3.5 hours to get to our place)

Lake Anna water quality issues https://www.cbf.org/blogs/save-the-bay/2022/08/lake-anna-added-to-virginia-dirty-waters-list.html

SML had water issues this summer too https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/blog/2023/06/07/harmful-algal-bloom-in-smith-mountain-lake-prompts-swimming-advisory/

The location is super convenient and you aren't confined to 95 or 29 when getting there from Nova.

Overall the water quality is fine. The north side of the lake is shallow and sparsely populated.

We ultimately decided to go with Smith Mountain Lake in Moneta, VA. We like being close to hiking trails/mountains and we found the water quality to be excellent. It is further from Nova (it takes us 3.5 hours to get to our place)

Anonymous wrote:Family of 5. Mom, Dad, 10, 13, and 15 who all love spending time at a lake. We love tubing, kayaking, paddle boarding, jet skiing. swimming, boating, fishing, etc. So we started thinking of maybe getting a place. Someone brought up Lake Anna to us. The location is ideal for us living in NOVA with family in Petersburg. I don't know much about Lake Anna. Before I get deep in my research, I was hoping DCUM can help me out with the pros and cons of having a vacation home at Lake Anna. I am told that it has a public and private side. Not sure about what that's all about. Is one better? Why? We would hope to rent it when we are not using it. Is there much of a rental market there? Safety? Is the lake patrolled well? How is the water quality in general? Does the lake ever get super low? They are just some general questions but please share all your pros and cons. Thanks.

We started going down in 1985 and it does get busier every year. I would recommend the warm side. It gives you more time to be in the lake. Also, the temperature of the warm side varies so when the water goes back into the cold side it's the same temperature. Louisa county generally has lower property tax than Orange and Spotsy. Louisa was looking to prohibit rentals; however, i'm not sure if they have acted on it.

Read up on the brain attaching amoeba. It's rare but fatal and found in lakes that do not get cold.

OP here. Thank you for all the information. Keep it coming!

Definitely stay away from the northern/western fingers of the lake. We stayed in a nice house there years ago, but there are a lot of algae bloom issues recently. If it were ever to get low, the ends of those fingers would be the most impacted. It is usually OK south of the state park beach. There is not a ton around the lake, a Food Lion and a few restaurants, although it isn't far from 95, or visiting battlefields.

I grew up going here and I will say the algae is a bummer, it was way better before. Being on the warm side is honestly kind of weird at first but once you get used to it it's nice to swim during Thanksgiving .

Anonymous wrote:I know they have water quality issues in some sections of the lake. Not sure if I can post a link so here’s a synopsis from an article I found:

This marks the sixth straight summer algae blooms have resulted in a no-swim advisory at the 13,000-acre Lake Anna, a popular recreational destination that also cools the Dominion Energy North Anna nuclear power plant. Last year, the lake was added to the state’s list of impaired waterways because of the algae blooms.

Also, the warm side of the lake is only warm because it’s where the water from the cooling tanks from the nuclear reactor end up. I wouldn’t have an issue, I personally think nuclear power is the cleanest energy source of all, but some people may not like it.

The no-swim advisory is just for the northernmost sections of the lake, where there is more farming and shallower water.

We have had a place down there for nearly 10 years.

Pros:
+convenient to DC (especially with the new section of the I95 express lanes opened last week)
+lots of variety in neighborhoods and sections of lake
+restaurant/music scene pretty good and getting better quickly
+Cutalong golf club recently opened if you are into that
+good rental market, if you want to rent your place
+nice wildlife; we have nesting bald eagles and great blue herons, groundhogs, rabbits, turtles, and tons of fish
+big lots without close neighbors are available

Cons:
-nuclear plant turns many people off
-some sections of the lake, especially on the northern end, have water quality issues
-house prices have doubled there since we bought, which is good for us, but makes it less affordable than it was
-minimal hiking access; the state park has some nice trails, but not a ton of variety, and there is no way to hike around the lake and no nearby mountains
-it's pretty white and a little Trumpy sometimes
-unlike places like Deep Creek, there are no real winter activities there; I personally like it, as it's really peaceful and I mostly just want to hang out at my house or go listen to music, but that's not everyone's thing.

If you decide to explore it, we LOVED our real estate agent: Linda Fosdick with Lake Anna Realty (https://www.discoverlakeanna.com/). She is beyond patient and knows the lake like the back of her hand.

It's getting busier. I know three families building there now.

I know they have water quality issues in some sections of the lake. Not sure if I can post a link so here’s a synopsis from an article I found:

This marks the sixth straight summer algae blooms have resulted in a no-swim advisory at the 13,000-acre Lake Anna, a popular recreational destination that also cools the Dominion Energy North Anna nuclear power plant. Last year, the lake was added to the state’s list of impaired waterways because of the algae blooms.

Also, the warm side of the lake is only warm because it’s where the water from the cooling tanks from the nuclear reactor end up. I wouldn’t have an issue, I personally think nuclear power is the cleanest energy source of all, but some people may not like it.

Family of 5. Mom, Dad, 10, 13, and 15 who all love spending time at a lake. We love tubing, kayaking, paddle boarding, jet skiing. swimming, boating, fishing, etc. So we started thinking of maybe getting a place. Someone brought up Lake Anna to us. The location is ideal for us living in NOVA with family in Petersburg. I don't know much about Lake Anna. Before I get deep in my research, I was hoping DCUM can help me out with the pros and cons of having a vacation home at Lake Anna. I am told that it has a public and private side. Not sure about what that's all about. Is one better? Why? We would hope to rent it when we are not using it. Is there much of a rental market there? Safety? Is the lake patrolled well? How is the water quality in general? Does the lake ever get super low? They are just some general questions but please share all your pros and cons. Thanks.