gillybrit

Looking for a family vacation spot where we can rent a house and bring our boat. Came across SML but don't really know much about it. We have stayed in the finger lakes and wondering how SML compares. Rental prices are considerably lower at SML but not sure if there is enough to do. In the finger lakes we spend quite a bit of time on the water but also do trips to the wineries and a little hiking. If anybody is familiar with SML and can give me any insight, including pros and cons of different areas that would be great. Thanks!

Virginia1990

Depending on where you are looking at staying at SML, Roanoke is a reasonably close option. It has a nice little downtown area that you could walk through, and there is also the Mill Mountain Star that includes a little hike. You can get to some pretty good hiking for a day trip off the Blue Ridge Parkway in that area that you may enjoy, check McAfee's Knob or Dragon's Tooth hikes. Not necessarily a whole lot of wineries in the area, but I believe there are some good breweries in Roanoke that may be fun to do one afternoon. If you can give me a little more info about what part of SML you are looking at, I can possibly recommend some other things as well.

sf7307

How big is Smith Mountain Lake (circumference)? I'm curious because of Virginia's post that implies it depends on "what part of SML you are looking at". For comparison purposes, Lake Tahoe is 71 miles in circumference, and while it does have distinct "sides" and towns, with a car, you can easily get anywhere you want to go for a day trip.

Virginia1990

Not exactly sure on the circumference of SML, but I looked it up and according to this website it has about 500 miles of shoreline (http://smithmountain.uslakes.info/Statistics.asp). The thing with SML is that is has a alot of coves, so it's not really just a lake you want to drive around. Unless you want to drive all the back roads, you almost have to come all the way back out to the main roads to drive around. At least, we never have when I've been. We have, however, come back out to Roanoke during teh day and that's been fine. But Roanoke is definitely a good option. Maybe it's because I'm from the area, so when we go we just go and stay at the lake and don't really do day trips

sf7307

it has about 500 miles of shoreline

Well, that's huge (and why I asked)! It's obviously very different from Lake Tahoe, where the "main road" around the lake actually hugs the lake most of the way.

gillybrit

Thanks. I was actually hoping for some advice as to which area to stay in. Where do you recommend as a base. Day trip to Roanoke sounds good, especially since the hubby would actually prefer breweries to wineries!
Thanks for your help