Above Dam Lake
Albemarle County, VirginiaView mapDirections
This is the name Virginia DEQ records for this water. It can describe one sampling location rather than the water as a whole.
Virginia DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Above Dam Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Oligotrophic
- Public access
Above Dam Lake in Albemarle County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 13.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 1.6 µg/L.
Above Dam Lake is a cold, clear oligotrophic lake in Albemarle County, Virginia. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available. Compared to the 7 other monitored lakes in Albemarle County, Above Dam Lake ranks #1 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2024-10-16. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Above Dam Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Clear water13.1 ft of visibility
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLow algae
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Above Dam Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Above Dam Lake
These are the measurements Virginia DEQ publishes for Above Dam Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Good clarity, visible to about 13.1 ft. Phosphorus 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 1.6 µg/L. TSI 38.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 13.1ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 10µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 1.6µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 38 | Oligotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Low nutrients, clear water. No reading is a swimming clearance.
Ask about Above Dam Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
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Fishing Above Dam Lake
Nearby Lakes in Albemarle County
Frequently asked questions about Above Dam Lake
Where is Above Dam Lake?
- Above Dam Lake is in Albemarle County, Virginia. This is the name Virginia DEQ records for this water. It can describe one sampling location rather than the water as a whole. Its water-quality measurements are published by Virginia DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Above Dam Lake?
- Above Dam Lake in Albemarle County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 13.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 1.6 µg/L.
Is Above Dam Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Can I fish at Above Dam Lake?
- Public access to Above Dam Lake is listed as yes on the lake record. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Virginia's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Explore Above Dam Lake across LakeQuality
Planning a trip around Shenandoah?
Above Dam Lake is about 31 miles from Shenandoah National Park. Crowds there swing hard by season, so the month you pick changes both how busy the park is and what lodging costs.
Best time to visit Shenandoah →More lakes in Virginia
Other Lakes in Virginia
Oligotrophic Lakes in Virginia
Where this data comes from
258 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2012–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB258 samples · 2012–2024
Analytical methods
- Tyler, John. 1968. The secchi disk, Limnology and Oceanograpy, 13(1):1-6.
- Total Phosphorus After Block Digestion
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 2130 B ~ Nephelometric Method
Monitoring station identifiers (2)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.