Leesville Lake

Shhhhh!  Leesville Lake is one of the best kept secrets in Virginia outdoor recreation, and we'd kind of like to keep it that way.  So, mums the word!  Leesville Lake,  just like its big sister, Smith Mountain Lake, was created in the 1960s by carefully flooding rivers, creeks, valleys in the greater Roanoke River Basin, and the construction of the two hydroelectric dams (one on Smith Mountain and one on Leesville).  Leesville Lake is approximately 7 miles long and constitutes approximately 3,400 acres of water. 

Bill Cochran of Bill Cochran Outdoors describes the lake best in one of his recent articles as following:

For more than 30 years, Leesville Lake has taken a back seat to its popular upstream brother, Smith Mountain Lake. It is a runt in comparison, 3,400-acres vs. 20,000 acres.

It is remote to the point that a long, winding haul through rural pine and tobacco country can be required to reach a launching ramp. Leesville's unglamorous purpose in life is to collect and hold water to be pumped back to Smith Mountain, a lake that has taken on a country club appearance at the expense of its blue-collar sibling. 

This means that Smith Mountain fluctuates little while Leesville goes up and down like a window shade. As it moves, it collects heaps of debris, something anglers must deal with, along with the oddity of water that flows upstream when the turbines are reversed at Smith Mountain Dam.

So, with the limitations Bill so candidly describes, there are not a lot of high speed power boating, and aquatic-hell's-angels-on-jet-skis storming Leesville's waters.  It's the ultimate "pontoon boat" cruising lake.  It's a wonderful fisherman's paradise, without all the fuss of its bigger brother, Smith Mountain. 

If you're into quiet and peaceful bonding with nature, Leesville Lake may just be the "not-so-hot" spot you've been looking for.