Hungry Mother Lake Sta
Smyth County, Virginia124 acresView mapDirections
Clarity, phosphorus, and algae all sit in the cleanest band for this region.
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Mercury
- #1 of 1 in the county
- 15 ft max depth
- Public access
Hungry Mother Lake Sta in Smyth County, Virginia has a water quality grade of A (Excellent). Water clarity: 8.7 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.1 µg/L. Surface area: 124 acres.
- Clarity
- 8.7 ft
- Max depth
- ~15 ft est.
- Area
- 124 acres
- Type
- Mesotrophic
- Phosphorus
- 10 µg/L
- Chlorophyll-a
- 3.1 µg/L
- Trend
- ↓ Declining
- Public access
- Yes
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Watch Hungry Mother Lake Sta’s letter
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Hungry Mother Lake Sta is a 124-acre mesotrophic lake in Smyth County, Virginia with an estimated average depth of about 15 feet. Water quality is graded A based on 2 sampling years through 2024. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2024-10-23. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Hungry Mother Lake Sta is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
Swimming Safety
Grade onlyLow algae
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 A is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Hungry Mother Lake Sta is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
Water Quality Grade: A (Excellent)
Moderate clarity, visible to about 8.7 ft. Phosphorus 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 3.1 µg/L. TSI 42. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 8.7 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | 10 µg/L | Good |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 3.1 µg/L | Good |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 42 | Mesotrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~15 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 124 acres |
| Public Access | Yes |
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Virginia has not published bathymetry for Hungry Mother Lake Sta.
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
- Hungry Mother State ParkPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Fishing Hungry Mother Lake Sta
Water Quality Trend: ↓ Declining
Based on 3 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | → Stable | -0.014 m/yr | 3 |
| Phosphorus | ↓ Declining | +0.82 µg/L/yr | 3 |
| Chlorophyll-a | ↓ Declining | +0.09 µg/L/yr | 3 |
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Hungry Mother Lake Sta is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Hungry Mother Dam, built primarily for recreation on the Hungry Mother Creek; earth-type dam, 45 ft tall and 600 ft long.
- Surface area
- 124 ac
- Normal storage
- 1,350 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 2,500 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 12.93 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- Department of Conservation & Recreation - Division of State Parks
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID VA173001 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.12 km)
EPA Impairment Status
Hungry Mother Lake Sta 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 VAS-O04L_HUN01A02 · Official waterbody report · Matched by proximity (0.9 km)
County Ranking
Ranked #1 of 1 lakes in Smyth County
Nearby Lakes in Smyth County
Frequently asked questions about Hungry Mother Lake Sta
Where is Hungry Mother Lake Sta?
- Hungry Mother Lake Sta is a lake in Smyth County, Virginia. LakeQuality grades it A for nutrients and algae. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
What is the water quality grade for Hungry Mother Lake Sta?
- Hungry Mother Lake Sta in Smyth County, Virginia has a water quality grade of A (Excellent). Water clarity: 8.7 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 10 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 3.1 µg/L. Surface area: 124 acres.
Is Hungry Mother Lake Sta safe to swim in?
- The A is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Hungry Mother Lake Sta is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for mercury. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Hungry Mother Lake Sta?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Hungry Mother Lake Sta, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 15 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 124 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Hungry Mother Lake Sta?
- Hungry Mother Lake Sta has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Hungry Mother State Park. Public access is listed as yes.
Explore Hungry Mother Lake Sta across LakeQuality
11.2 mi away · 15 ft
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
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Where this data comes from
82 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2017–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB82 samples · 2017–2024
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
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)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory