Roanoke Rapids Lake
Halifax County, North Carolina4,600 acresView mapDirections
NC DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Roanoke Rapids Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- 43 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Roanoke Rapids Lake in Halifax County, North Carolina has water-quality measurements published by NC DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 6.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 30 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 6 µg/L. Surface area: 4600 acres.
Roanoke Rapids Lake is a 4,600-acre mesotrophic lake in Halifax County, North Carolina with an estimated average depth of about 43 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 2 public boat landings.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, NCDEQ, last sampled 2024-10-15. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Roanoke Rapids Lake covers about 4,600 acres in Halifax County. It has 2 public boat landings, so a lakefront rental is not the only way to get a boat on the water. For a place on the water, look through cabin and lake-house rentals near Roanoke Rapids Lake on Vrbo. For a hotel or motel room, Booking.com and Expedia both search around the lake.
What Roanoke Rapids Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch2 documented ramps
- Big water4,600 acres
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLimited data
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 Roanoke Rapids Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Roanoke Rapids Lake
These are the measurements NC DEQ publishes for Roanoke Rapids Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 6.1 ft. Phosphorus 30 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 6 µg/L. TSI 51.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 6.1ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 30µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 6µg/L | Fair GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 51 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Roanoke Rapids Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~43 ft est.
Surface area
4,600 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by NC DEQ
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. North Carolina has not published bathymetry for Roanoke Rapids Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
8,483 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
28.4 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
141 ft
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
- GastonPublic
- Fifth Street LandingPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Roanoke Rapids Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Roanoke Rapids Lake in Halifax County, North Carolina — 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.
Top-rated places to stay near Roanoke Rapids Lake
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Fishing Roanoke Rapids Lake
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Roanoke Rapids Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Roanoke Rapids (completed 1955), built primarily for hydroelectric on the Roanoke; gravity-type dam, 72 ft tall and 3,050 ft long.
- Surface area
- 4,600 ac
- Normal storage
- 77,140 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 80,690 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 8,400 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- Virginia Electric and Power Company
All listed purposes: Hydroelectric;Fish and Wildlife Pond;Recreation;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID NC00827 · Operator website
Nearby Lakes in Halifax County
Frequently asked questions about Roanoke Rapids Lake
Where is Roanoke Rapids Lake?
- Roanoke Rapids Lake is a lake in Halifax County, North Carolina. Its water-quality measurements are published by NC DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Roanoke Rapids Lake?
- Roanoke Rapids Lake in Halifax County, North Carolina has water-quality measurements published by NC DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 6.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 30 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 6 µg/L. Surface area: 4600 acres.
Is Roanoke Rapids Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Roanoke Rapids Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Roanoke Rapids Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 43 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 4600 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Roanoke Rapids Lake?
- Roanoke Rapids Lake has 2 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Gaston, Fifth Street Landing. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Roanoke Rapids Lake?
- Roanoke Rapids Lake has 2 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by North Carolina's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Explore Roanoke Rapids Lake across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
60 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North Carolina Dept of Environmental Quality NCDEQ-DWR WQX
21NC03WQ60 samples · 2024
Analytical methods
- WSSSOP
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 2130 B ~ Nephelometric Method
Monitoring station identifiers (3)
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.
Other records on this page
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory