Lake Culpeper
Culpeper County, Virginia250 acresView mapDirections
Nutrients and algae run above the regional average.
↓ down from C at the last regrade
- Eutrophic
- #2 of 2 in the county
- 38 ft max depth
- Public access
Lake Culpeper in Culpeper County, Virginia has a water quality grade of D (Nutrient-rich). Water clarity: 2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 55 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 24.9 µg/L. Surface area: 250.4 acres.
- Clarity
- 2 ft
- Max depth
- ~38 ft est.
- Area
- 250 acres
- Type
- Eutrophic
- Phosphorus
- 55 µg/L
- Chlorophyll-a
- 24.9 µg/L
- Trend
- ↓ Declining
- Public access
- Yes
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Stays near Lake Culpeper
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Lake Culpeper in Culpeper County, Virginia — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water. The water-quality grade measures nutrients and algae, not lodging — cabins and rentals around Lake Culpeper are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Lake Culpeper
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Watch Lake Culpeper’s letter
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Lake Culpeper is a 250-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Culpeper County, Virginia with an estimated average depth of about 38 feet. Water quality is graded D based on 2 sampling years through 2022. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing. Compared to the 1 other monitored lakes in Culpeper County, Lake Culpeper ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2022-10-06. Grade methodology: LakeQuality methodology.
What Lake Culpeper is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
Swimming Safety
Grade onlyAlgae risk
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 D is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Water Quality Grade: D (Nutrient-rich)
Very murky, less than 2 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 55 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 24.9 µg/L. TSI 64. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
| Metric | Value | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity (Secchi Depth) | 2 ft | Not graded |
| Phosphorus | 55 µg/L | Poor |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | 24.9 µg/L | Poor |
| Trophic State Index (TSI) | 64 | Eutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Lake Details
| Characteristic | Value |
|---|---|
| Maximum Depth | ~38 ft est. |
| Average Depth | ~14 ft est. |
| Surface Area | 250 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 Lake Culpeper.
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
- Lake PelhamPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Fishing Lake Culpeper
Water Quality Trend: ↓ Declining
Based on 4 years of monitoring data (2020-2025).
| Metric | Trend | Change/Year | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Clarity | ↓ Declining | -0.019 m/yr | 4 |
| Phosphorus | ↓ Declining | +1.5 µg/L/yr | 4 |
| Chlorophyll-a | ↓ Declining | +2.21 µg/L/yr | 4 |
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Lake Culpeper is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Mountain Run Dam #50, built primarily for flood risk reduction on the Mountain Run; earth-type dam, 55 ft tall and 868 ft long.
- Surface area
- 250.4 ac
- Normal storage
- 1,906 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 10,706.7 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 26.2 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- Town of Culpeper
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Recreation;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID VA047003 · Operator website · Matched by proximity (0.77 km)
County Ranking
Ranked #2 of 2 lakes in Culpeper County
Nearby Lakes With Higher Grades
Lake Culpeper holds Grade D. One nearby lake has a higher nutrient-and-algae grade — useful for a swim day, not a reason to skip lodging here.
See full comparison →Nearby Lakes in Culpeper County
Frequently asked questions about Lake Culpeper
Where is Lake Culpeper?
- Lake Culpeper is a lake in Culpeper County, Virginia. LakeQuality grades it D for nutrients and algae. The letter is not a swimming clearance.
What is the water quality grade for Lake Culpeper?
- Lake Culpeper in Culpeper County, Virginia has a water quality grade of D (Nutrient-rich). Water clarity: 2 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 55 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 24.9 µg/L. Surface area: 250.4 acres.
Is Lake Culpeper safe to swim in?
- The D is nutrients and algae, not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Lake Culpeper?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Lake Culpeper, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 38 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 250.4 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Lake Culpeper?
- Lake Culpeper has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Lake Pelham. Public access is listed as yes.
Explore Lake Culpeper across LakeQuality
2 documented falls within 23.1 mi, nearest Dark Hollow Falls
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
Where to stay at Virginia's top lakes, each with its grade
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Virginia's cleanest and most-polluted lakes, ranked
Planning a trip around Shenandoah?
Lake Culpeper is about 24 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 Virginia Lake Rankings
Other Grade D Lakes in Virginia
Eutrophic Lakes in Virginia
Where this data comes from
239 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2014–2022. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB239 samples · 2014–2022
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)
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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory