Best Virginia Lakes for Fishing

18 Virginia lakes meet our fishing bar — each has a cited public-access or conditions signal behind it. Top of the list: Lake Moomaw in Alleghany County. Ranked by public fishing access, stocking, and piers; surface acreage and live readings are shown where published.

Public fishing areas, stocking, and piers come from VDWR open data; surface acres from USGS NHD or cited research.

  1. 1

    Lake Moomaw

    Alleghany County, VA2,530 acres

    2 fishing piers

    See full conditions & things to do
  2. 2

    Flannagan Reservoir

    Dickenson County, VA1,145 acres

    2 fishing piers

    See full conditions & things to do
  3. 3

    Smith Mountain Lake

    Bedford County, VA20,600 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  4. 4

    Lake Anna

    Louisa County, VA13,000 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  5. 5

    Claytor Lake

    Pulaski County, VA4,472 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  6. 6

    Lake Chesdin

    Chesterfield County, VA3,100 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  7. 7

    Philpott Lake

    Franklin County, VA2,900 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  8. 8

    Briery Creek Lake

    Prince Edward County, VA845 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  9. 9

    Burke Lake

    Fairfax County, VA218 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  10. 10

    Nottoway Lake

    Nottoway County, VA188 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  11. 11

    Lake Orange

    Orange County, VA124 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  12. 12

    Lake Frederick

    Frederick County, VA117 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  13. 13

    Hungry Mother Lake

    Smyth County, VA108 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  14. 14

    Amelia Lake

    Amelia County, VA100 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do
  15. 15

    Lake Keokee

    Lee County, VA92 acres

    1 fishing pier

    See full conditions & things to do

More best-of lists for Virginia lakes

Virginia fishing — frequently asked

What is the best lake for fishing in Virginia?

Lake Moomaw in Alleghany County tops the list — 2 fishing piers. 18 Virginia lakes qualify for this list overall.

How is this Virginia fishing list ranked?

Every lake on the list has a cited public-access or conditions signal — never an opinion. We rank by stocking program presence, species count, fishing-pier count, and number of public fishing areas — all from VDWR. LakeVibe doesn't invent rankings: a lake only appears here when the data already supports it.

Which Virginia lakes are best for fishing?

Our top picks are Lake Moomaw, Flannagan Reservoir, Smith Mountain Lake, Lake Anna. Tap any lake for its full conditions, things to do, and where to stay.