Fairy Stone Lake
Patrick County, Virginia170 acresView mapDirections
Nutrients and algae sit mid-range for this region.
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Mercury
- #5 of 6 in the county
- 29 ft max depth
Fairy Stone Lake in Patrick County, Virginia has a water quality grade of C (Fair). Water clarity: 6.4 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.2 µg/L. Surface area: 170 acres.
- Clarity
- 6.4 ft
- Max depth
- ~29 ft est.
- Area
- 170 acres
- Type
- Mesotrophic
- Phosphorus
- 20 µg/L
- Chlorophyll-a
- 3.2 µg/L
- Trend
- → Stable
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Watch Fairy Stone Lake’s letter
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Fairy Stone Lake is a 170-acre mesotrophic lake in Patrick County, Virginia with an estimated average depth of about 29 feet. Water quality is graded C based on 2 sampling years through 2026. Phosphorus level is improving over recent sampling years. Compared to the 5 other monitored lakes in Patrick County, Fairy Stone Lake ranks #5 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2026-06-10. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Fairy Stone Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Camping1 public campground nearby
Swimming Safety
Grade onlyModerate
Based on clarity and algae grades from past sampling — we do not hold live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
The C is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Fairy Stone Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, oxygen depletion (low DO), temperature. Check local advisories before you swim.
Water Quality Grade: C (Fair)
Murky, only visible to about 6.4 ft. Phosphorus 20 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 3.2 µg/L. TSI 47. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 6.4 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | 20 µg/L | Fair |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 3.2 µg/L | Good |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 47 | Mesotrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~29 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~19 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 170 acres |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Virginia has not published bathymetry for Fairy Stone Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Recreation & Access
Public campgrounds near Fairy Stone Lake
- Fairy Stone State Park Campground0.7 km
Nearest public campgrounds in the USGS National Map inventory, within about 3 miles. An empty list means USGS records no campground that close, which is not the same as camping being unavailable. Where the source gives an official reservation link, it is used; the cabin and hotel search does not cover campsites. More camping lakes
Fishing Fairy Stone Lake
Water Quality Trend: → Stable
Based on 5 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | → Stable | +0.024 m/yr | 4 |
| Phosphorus | ↑ Improving | -1.28 µg/L/yr | 4 |
| Chlorophyll-a | ↓ Declining | +0.7 µg/L/yr | 5 |
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Fairy Stone Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Fairy Stone Dam, built primarily for recreation on the Goblintown Creek; earth-type dam, 50 ft tall and 350 ft long.
- Surface area
- 170 ac
- Normal storage
- 1,900 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 2,688 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 20.3 sq mi
- Hazard class
- Low
- Owner
- Department of Conservation & Recreation - Division of State Parks
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID VA141003 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.08 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Fairy Stone Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit VAW-L51L_GOB01A02 · Official waterbody report · Matched by proximity (1.91 km)
County Ranking
Ranked #5 of 6 lakes in Patrick County
Nearby Lakes With Higher Grades
Fairy Stone Lake holds Grade C. 3 nearby lakes hold higher nutrient-and-algae grades — useful for a swim day, not a reason to skip lodging here.
See full comparison →Nearby Lakes in Patrick County
Frequently asked questions about Fairy Stone Lake
Where is Fairy Stone Lake?
- Fairy Stone Lake is a lake in Patrick County, Virginia. LakeQuality grades it C for nutrients and algae. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
What is the water quality grade for Fairy Stone Lake?
- Fairy Stone Lake in Patrick County, Virginia has a water quality grade of C (Fair). Water clarity: 6.4 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 20 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.2 µg/L. Surface area: 170 acres.
Is Fairy Stone Lake safe to swim in?
- The C is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Fairy Stone Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury, oxygen depletion (low DO), temperature. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Fairy Stone Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Fairy Stone Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 29 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 170 acres.
Are there campgrounds on Fairy Stone Lake?
- Fairy Stone Lake has 1 public campground from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Fairy Stone State Park Campground. This is a location join, not a booking. Cabins and hotels are listed separately; campsite reservations use the official link when the source provides one.
Explore Fairy Stone Lake across LakeQuality
More Virginia Lake Rankings
Other Grade C Lakes in Virginia
Mesotrophic Lakes in Virginia
Where this data comes from
127 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2015–2026. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB127 samples · 2015–2026
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
- 446.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophylls and Pheopigments in Phytoplankton by Spectrophotometry
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
Grade thresholds from the EPA National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See how grades are calculated and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles