This area recently opened. It has a gravel parking area (handicapped spot is paved), with concrete…read moresteps leading down to the Ararat river. Two wooden beams down the middle of the steps for boat access.

Went here and had a good time, it was hard to find public access but once i found it it was a good…read moreplace to walk around the lake and set up a spot to sit, swim, or fish. Look up Pine Hall Boating Ramp or Piney Bluff Access Ramp for public access spots

I'm spoiled from living in the land of 10000 lakes for so long. this is a big enough lake to…read moreenjoy a boat ride or fish or kayak in! swimming was worrisome to me as i'm afraid of alligators and snakes so i was being apprehensive i'm not used to swimming in nc lakes. water was hot and had a distinct smell. my skin was also itchy but that was probably a mental thing as i was also worried about pollution. there were no boat up bars that i found either.

Had a day to kill waiting for my daughter to finish finals at Roanoke College so I made a trip out…read moreto see the lake. I had no plan to rent a boat but the fleet looked well cared for (almost new) and I jumped. The crew was really nice and helpful. I took out a "Tritoon"with a 200hp Yamaha. The lake is huge and there is some amazing sightseeing. I found a cove, anchored, finished up some work and then went for a swim. My 2 hour rental flew by and when I arrived back at the dock, the crew was waiting to help dock and replace my used fuel. I couldn't have asked for a better experience. For a spur of the moment adventure it was amazing. I highly recommend Bridgewater Marine.

We've rented boats from there twice and the boats have been in great shape and the rental process…read morewas quick and easy. My only complaint is that the price they charge per gallon of gas is ridiculous.

Pit stop on our trip out west! We were traveling out I-81 South and decided to break up the trip…read morewith a stop at Claytor Lake. Researching online, I found Mountain 2 Island and ended up booking a 10:30am Tiki Tour boat ride of the lake. It ended up being a private tour with just me & my boyfriend. Jimmy was our captain, and he was super friendly and knowledgeable about the area. We had a great tour of the lake and a nice lunch at the Tiki Hut afterwards! Highly recommend this company...they also do boat, kayak and paddleboard rentals as well.

We found Mountain 2 Island Paddleboarding through Claytor Lake State Park (exit 101 off I-81)and…read morechecked out their website. They offer lessons and paddleboard rentals. Lessons are cheaper when you bring more people with you. When we gave them a call no one answered, but someone called right back. The man was extremely nice and answered all of my questions. They were also pretty flexible with reservations days and times which I thought was great. Mtn2Island is next to the Claytor Lake State Park visitor center. You have to pay the $5 dollar Park entrance fee (for park maintenance people, totally worth it!) Transactions were completed through Square using iPads (love that). They fitted us for a paddle, gave us a lifejacket (he said VA law requires you have one with you), and then we got to it. They had the paddleboards down by the dock, and the Mtn2Island people put them in the water for us. The instructor, Issac, was very calm and extremely patient while my younger sister (who is in her 30s by the way) was in hysterics about getting in the water. Another young lady, Rachel, came down to help coax her into giving it a try. It took them about 30 minutes to get her to get in the water, but she did. It was definitely harder than I thought it would be and I don't recommend doing squats the day before because my legs were killing me after, but it was a lot of fun and I would do it again. The waves from the nearby boat made it difficult for me to keep my balance and about that time my sister fell in (she was wearing her life jacket and was totally fine), but she got back on her board and we made it back to the docks.

Our group of 8 rented a pontoon boat from SMBR this weekend. The owners Jason and Jenny were great…read moreto work with. They even delivered the boat and picked us up to return. We will definitely return and rent from them again. Friendly, flexible and accommodating - thanks so much Jenny!

We had seen this reservoir on a list of "natural" things to do in the Roanoke area so went to check…read moreit out. Fairly soon after crossing under I-81, the road becomes quite curvy and narrow. As you approach the park area, there's a $7/car fee, that goes to the Water Authority. (The reservoir supplies water for the city of Roanoke). We were there in mid-October, and the area was beautiful with the lake reflecting the colors of the changing leaves on the nearby hillside trees. There are many recreational opportunities from fishing on the piers, to renting single- or double-kayaks (through late October), and hiking the nearby trails. Clean restrooms are available.

My 20-year old son and I were staying in Roanoke in May 2026 and decided to visit Carvins Cove…read moreNatural Reserve. When you drive into the main parking lot, a staff person will step out to collect a $7 per vehicle entry fee. Lots of pluses. First, the area has clean restrooms and a well-marked trail. Second, it's a peaceful and quiet setting as you walk along the Happy Valley trail. Third, we saw many kayakers on the lake and a few people fishing by the dock and along the left bank of the lake. However, I was surprised by the low level of lake water (you can see exposed rock). This is a family-friendly location to rent a kayak or take a peaceful walk along the reservoir.

Great customer service the whole squad was super dope. Nice attentive and respectful. Rained me out…read morebut I don't regret it. Great Job.

Great experience and outstanding customer service--went to great lengths to ensure our time on the…read morelake was fun. Highly recommended!

Exceptional service.. lovely houseboat - the one we stayed on for 3 days was called the Millie…read more"T".. we rented jet skiis and a motor speed boat for one of the days.. we had such a blast! The houseboat had a slide on the rooftop deck that was so fun to use. We had packed food for ourselves so that we did not need to leave the houseboat for those 3 days. That way we maximized our time in the water! Would love to do this trip again!

The pricing here for a pontoon boat is one of the best you'll find in Smith Mountain. The trade off…read morefor that price is boat speed. Our boat was SLOW. Ever other boat was passing us in the lake, including every other pontoon boat. The boat itself was clean and worked well but was a bit torn up and dented in places. Only other complaint was the horn and radio not working - supposed to be used to signal danger, etc. They said we had to use the whistle instead of the horn. We asked if we could just get a different boat and the woman replied "I think none of our boats have horns that work."

Don't let all my NJ posts fool you. I was born and raised in southwest Virginia and most of my…read morefamily still lives there. Although I am forever grateful that my parents moved us out of the area when we were younger - especially when I get a peek at the local electoral maps - my heart remains in the mountains. Can't say my brains remain here though because it took until today to realize Claytor Lake was 1) a state park and 2) gorgeous and amazing. All these years I just thought it was nowhere special that my cousins would go fishing. And to think I road trip all the way to NH and Maine every year and could have just driven 7 miles from my grandmother's for an equally rewarding experience. I had cabin fever today at my granny's and caught the local Outdoors magazine write up about Claytor Lake. There's camping?? Swimming?? Trails?? I watched a few videos on YouTube then got in the car to see for myself. Need to know: -There's a booth at the entrance - closed after 4pm. $7 parking fee for most paid by the honor system with cash or check or by card through the QR code during after hours. There are 4 campgrounds - I only saw Campground D open and it was overwhelmingly being used by those with RVs, teardrops, and campers. These are NOT wooded lots, rather gravel pull-ins and you'll likely be very close to your neighbor. A lil too close for me but I can see it not being a huge deal since everyone had campers to sleep in. I took a drive through this campground to see if I would feel comfortable and I didn't see any displays that would make me think I wouldn't (you picking up what I'm putting down?) Trails and paved paths galore. I saw one trail today but didn't get to explore much. Apparently the only shoes I packed for this trip were Crocs. Paved paths snake through the park and are accessible for those with mobility devices. The "lake" was created by damming the river. The water is clear by the shore. We love clean river water! Tons of shelters, grills, benches. There is something for everyone! Not sure if shelters are first come first serve or if you need to book them in high season - check the website. There's a gift shop but it was closed. I was bummed because you know I love stickers! I am counting down the days until I can return in the warmer weather. I would not be opposed to camping here or swimming once they reopen the beach for the season. I also look forward to exploring the trails. Fantastic solo outing. What a gem in my little country corner of the world.

I came to this campground after I looked on line to see if I could fish during the night for…read morecatfish. The answer came back that registered campers could but not general public. Park day use areas close down at 10 PM. According to the Internet, they only close these fishing areas at 10 PM for daytime visitors but last registered campers fish all night. At 10PM, we were asked to leave the fishing pier. I mentioned what the Internet said and the ranger seemed baffled and said that it's not true so we had to leave. He did say he would look into it because it was important to him that people had the right info. Problem is, during the summer, in this part of the country, the water gets hot and the fish go deep. Being a bank angler, it's impossible to catch any catfish during the day, they only come shallow at night. The bass fishing is the same. Fishermen and hunters pay for the bulk of what it costs to keep these parks operational yet when we would like to use them, we get the shaft. This quote is from the VA Outdoors Management : A lot of our funding to help conserve wildlife and habitat comes from public spending on things like fishing and hunting licenses, tags, or stamps, boat registrations, and via a federal excise tax on firearms and ammunition. Those sources of financial support have helped us protect hundreds of species and their habitat for over 100 years, but there's always more we can do for Virginia's wildlife. That's where you come in. You too can become a steward of the outdoors by supporting our work or working with us -- whether you hunt, fish, and boat or simply enjoy the outdoors. So, you can see what I'm saying. It is not right or fair that everyone else gets to do what they want but we flip the bill for it. Then our rights keep getting tanked. They put hiking trails and bike trails and beaches for swimming, but keep taking away hunting and fishing rights and they keep raising the prices. Hunters and fishermen are always on the bottom of the list of whom these people cater to. It's not fair or just. At the very least, we should be able to fish when we want especially when that is the only time those fish will bite!!!