Advice for Smith Mountain Lake and Lake Gaston, both in Va.

Jessie

Jessie

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The wife and I are thinking of starting the retirement search for a place on the water.
1-5 acres, wooded, Dockable with a view. If we’re going to move, this will be the last time standing and we want to get as close as possible to checking all the boxes.
Plan is to pour a slab with septic and utilities, use it for a few years with our trailer then build the house on it.
Anybody familiar with either place? Pros and cons.
I like the mountain views at Smith Mountain but it may have become too developed?
Thanks for any thoughts..
 
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You probably know that Lake Gaston is in NC and VA, you may want to check out property taxes etc. before deciding which side of the line you want to settle on.Smith mountain would get the nod when it comes to amenities, medical care and such.
 
Smith Mtn. Close to Roanoke and Lynchburg for shopping, Med care, etc. during summer lots of boat traffic on weekends but after Labor Day and weekdays ok. Two main areas. Roanoke River channel (Bedford County) and Blackwater River channel (Franklin and Pittsyvania Counties). Try to find something in a deep water cove as main chanel lots can be noisy on weekends with boats. Think building codes in all counties about the same. Bedford County probably has better fire and police protection. TGolf courses in area also. Bedford County side of lake has quicker and easier access to Roanoke and Lynchburg and Town of Bedford.
 
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Thanks. I knew about Gaston being half in NC, which means non resident fishing license plus Virginia’s. I’ll do that if the fishing warrants.
Good point on the coves. I assume Dockable covers that, right?
I have to keep the medical aspects in sight also since this will be retirement, as much as I’m fighting it!
 
Be careful! I retired to a vacation hotspot years ago and there are problems. We moved out after a few years. Your community empties out during the week and during slack periods. You have few full time neighbors. Traffic can be unbearable at times. Vacationers are generally in a party mood...loud.

Having said all that, I was at Lake Gaston a few months ago and really liked it.

Ed
 
Lake Gaston is just down stream from Kerr Lake. The Army Corp of Engineers use Kerr Lake to regulate the level of Gaston, so Gason's water level is pretty much the same year round regardless of weather. That is factoring out hurricanes.
 
About the coves......you want your lot to be situated so that the prevailing wind/wave patterns aren't slapping your shoreline/dock/berthing area. Cuts down on erosion control and makes life a whole lot easier with the boat. Take a real good look at the water depth off the lot. The current water depth may not be year around and in case of a drought, your boat might have to stay on the lift for a long time. Just about anything is "dockable" if you have enough money.

Never been on either lake, but having been on another "prime lake", the only time to go out on the lake is after dark on holidays or many summer weekends. Too many clueless/drunks. Often better to skip Sat-Monday, giving an extra day for the excess 2 cycle oil to get off the lake to avoid scum ring around the boat.
 
There’s an rv park at Smith Mountain. May just park there for a few days vacation and explore there and drive to Gaston. No more than a hour away I would think.
 
I live on the other side of Roanoke as compared to SML,,

We are getting fiber optic high speed internet,, in a week or two,,

It has been on the news, there is no plans to run fiber optic in the Franklin County area of Virginia,,

If you go to SML,, expect your only entertainment available to be moonshine,,,:eek:

Sure fiber optic will be there, some day,, are you willing to wait 5 years,, ??

(the reason the internet has been on the news is the children have no way to do school work at home, if they do not have internet)
 
Jessie said:
There’s an rv park at Smith Mountain. May just park there for a few days vacation and explore there and drive to Gaston. No more than a hour away I would think.
Click to expand...

Better pack a lunch, Jessie. You're looking at about a three-hour drive depending on which end of Lake Gaston you decide to visit.

Fishing's good in Gaston for the usual freshwater suspects: largemouth bass, bream, crappie, catfish, etc. However, the real advantage to living there is the proximity to an amazingly good striped bass (locally known as "rock," or "rockfish") springtime fishery on the Roanoke River below the Lake Gaston dam. For several miles along the river, either bank fishing or boat fishing will be excellent for these fish, which are coming upriver to spawn.

I've never been to SML, so I can't comment on it compared to Lake Gaston, but I can tell you there's plenty of water, a goodly amount of development from low end to very high end, not much nearby in the way of populous cities, and a relaxed lifestyle that suits a lot of folks who live or vacation there. Worth a look, in my opinion.
 
vigil617 said:
However, the real advantage to living there is the proximity to an amazingly good striped bass (locally known as "rock," or "rockfish") springtime fishery on the Roanoke River below the Lake Gaston dam.
Click to expand...

SML has the striped bass
(Rock Fish is the name when the come from the James River,,
Maybe the Rock name it typical to when they are in a river?)

Anyways, I ain't a fisherman, but, I have talked to a lot of guys that have caught them in both SML, and the James River,,

The Rock that are caught in the James give WAY better fights than the lazy, weaker fish in the Lake.
I guess having to swim against the side almost constantly in the James will put muscle on the fish.
There is no tide in the lake, so, no "workout" for the fish,, :(

My nephew used to "retrieve " Rock fish from the James during spawning,, he could bring home more than a pickup truck full in one night.

The fish were sold to a some guy that took them back to NYC,,
He had two of the dual wheel ton trucks, with insulated bodies, full of ice,

He would drive one south with no fish, give my nephew a stack of $$$$ cash,, then drive the loaded truck north.

Some of the Rock Fish were 60 pounds, or more.

Most of the fishing, and truck movements were done during the non-daylight hours!! :D
That type of fish must have sold for BIG $$$ in NYC, considering the money that was exchanged,,

This was when the James had a high level of Kepone in it.
Fishing was supposedly restricted,, but, all the locals continued to eat the fish, and think nothing of the Kepone.
Then, the position on Kepone was reversed,, I am not positive as to what ever happened to Kepone levels.

The only fish I ever had that ,, to me,, was better than ribeye steak was fillets off of one of those 60 pound Rock Fish.
My BIL figured out how to cut the Rock Fish fillets without ever needing to "clean" the fish.
That made getting the fillets easier than going to a store,,, :eek:
 
One plus for Lake Gaston would be much closer to some major medical centers if the need arose since it's about an hour away from both Duke and Chapel Hill where some of the best medical centers in the country are.
 
SweetMK, they are STILL saying you limit the amount of fish you eat coming from the James or its tributaries after all these years. There are still remnants of Kepone there and it shows up in the fish from time to time.
 
I don’t think there will be much commercial fish purchases for New York in the foreseeable future.
It appears that both places have their pros and cons. We’re just going to have to put boots on the ground and see what checks the most boxes for us.
 
Deceasedeye said:
You probably know that Lake Gaston is in NC and VA, you may want to check out property taxes etc. before deciding which side of the line you want to settle on.Smith mountain would get the nod when it comes to amenities, medical care and such.
Click to expand...

On the VA side of Gaston it's mainly in Mecklenburg County. Lowest real estate taxes in VA.
 
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