But what if you packed in the same way and then drove in the opposite direction—inland, away from the coast? Your quiet drive stays that way. Farmlands induce a hypnotic trance as you cruise by. Somewhere in the middle of the state, you might encounter a dealership selling brand new boats, miles from shore. Your final destination is beyond a few tight bends in roads with no painted lines. There is water and a beach—but, oddly (since you’re in the country), they are man-made and not the majestic work of Mother Nature. Paddleboats powered by giggling adolescents meander by. Close to the shore, a fisherman cuts his engine and casts a line. Homes peek through the trees, and boat docks replace garages. You come for the day and a swim. Or you aim to fish in a cove, or tow your children behind your boat on a round inflatable. If the kids are older, maybe they go roaring around on personal water craft (PWCs), which are much louder than anything you encountered on the road trip. This is lake living—and, in Virginia, as in many other states, it seems to get more popular every year.
According to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, there are 112 lakes in the state. Amazingly, only two—Mountain Lake, in Giles County, and Lake Drummond, in the Great Dismal Swamp, southwest of Chesapeake—are natural. The rest are man-made. Many are so-called electric lakes—created by power companies damming up rivers. There are dozens of electric lakes in Virginia, but three stand out for reasons of size, popularity and history. They are Lake Anna, spread across three counties—Louisa, Orange and Spotsylvania; Smith Mountain Lake, a boater’s paradise near Lynchburg and Roanoke; and Buggs Island Lake, in Mecklenburg County on the North Carolina border, a magnet for freshwater fishermen and one of the few places in the country where one can fish at night. They are the three biggest lakes in Virginia—big, blue ink stains on a Commonwealth map.
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