BABY BIZ
Flash Photo slide show
Moneta, Virginia
The main feature is the 40-mile long, 20,600 acre lake, (with 500 miles of shoreline,) nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains . Smith Mountain Lake was created to generate electricity, and to help manage water flows downstream and nearby. The damming of the Blackwater and Roanoke Rivers formed Smith Mountain Lake in a filling process that began on September 24, 1963 -- and ended almost 2.5 years later on March 7, 1966.
Smith Mountain Lake's surface covers 32 square miles. Its highest normal water level ("full pond") is 795 feet above sea level. There is typically very little seasonal variation in the water level.
Surrounded by mountains, SML's deepest point is about 250 feet, near the dam itself. Outside the lake's many coves, 100-150 feet is typical. Smith Mountain Lake water purity is excellent. Water temperatures invite swimming from May through September.
