Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake
Spotsylvania County, VirginiaView mapDirections
Virginia DEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Hypereutrophic
- Impaired · Algal growth
- Limited data
Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake in Spotsylvania County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 0.7 ft visibility. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 33.4 µg/L.
Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake is a highly nutrient-loaded hypereutrophic lake in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. Compared to the 6 other monitored lakes in Spotsylvania County, Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake ranks #7 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, Virginia DEQ, last sampled 2026-07-07. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyRecreation use not supported
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. Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for algal growth, pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Upper Branch of Terry'S Run 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 Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake
These are the measurements Virginia DEQ publishes for Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Very murky, less than 0.7 ft of visibility. Chlorophyll-a 33.4 µg/L. TSI 74.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 0.7ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 33.4µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 74 | Hypereutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Very high nutrients, dense algae, poor clarity
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Stays near Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake in Spotsylvania 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 readings cover nutrients and algae, not lodging. Cabins and rentals around Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake are listed below.
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Fishing Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake
Water Quality Trend: Stable
Based on 10 years of monitoring (2013–2026).
Water clarity
Stable10 years
Phosphorus
Stable+0.05 µg/L/yr9 years
Chlorophyll-a
Stable-0.55 µg/L/yr9 years
EPA Impairment Status
Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2022 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Fish consumption, Recreation.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit VAN-F07L_TRY01A04 · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Spotsylvania County
Frequently asked questions about Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake
Where is Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake?
- Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake is a lake in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. Its water-quality measurements are published by Virginia DEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake?
- Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake in Spotsylvania County, Virginia has water-quality measurements published by Virginia DEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 0.7 ft visibility. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 33.4 µg/L.
Is Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for algal growth, pCBs. Check local advisories before you swim.
Explore Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake across LakeQuality
Planning a trip around Shenandoah?
Upper Branch of Terry'S Run Lake is about 38 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
Hypereutrophic Lakes in Virginia
Where this data comes from
20 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2025–2026. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
21VASWCB20 samples · 2025–2026
Analytical methods
- Tyler, John. 1968. The secchi disk, Limnology and Oceanograpy, 13(1):1-6.
- 445.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophyll and Pheophytin in Algae by Fluorescence
- 446.0 ~ EPA; Chlorophylls and Pheopigments in Phytoplankton by Spectrophotometry
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
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
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database