Summersville Lake is the cleanest clearest freshwater lake east of the Mississippi River according to "Skin Diver Magazine!" "Skin Diver Magazine" calls it "The Little Bahamas of the East!" Summertime visibility varies from 20-40 ft. depending upon rainfall. Surface temps run from 78-86 degrees from June thru September. The lake is 320 feet deep at the base of Summersville Dam. The lake supports one full-service dive shop (Sarge’s Dive Shop 304-872-1782), one full-service marina (Summersville Lake Marina, Inc. 304-872-1331) and two campgrounds.
The average visibility (no recent heavy rains) is about 20-25 ft.
However, in mid to late August when there has been much less rainfall, I
have seen visibility of 40+ ft. I have had the rare priviledge of
experiencing visibility of 80+ ft. of vis at a depth of 125 feet on
three occasions. This event is rare. In two incidences it was late
August and had not rained for approximately a month and the nights had
gotten cooler. In one incident it was late June and had not rained for
several weeks. When we do get heavy rains, the vis usually drops down
to somewhere between 12 ft. to 18 ft.
If you are a dive shop owner / instructor and you
schedule a group of 10+ divers / students to charter with Sarge’s, they
will let the instructor and one assistant charter for free and will give
the instructor and one assistant free tank fills each day of the
charter(s). This helps to offset expenses of travel and is a way to
show our appreciation for your business.
Sarge’s Dive Shop (
http://www.sarges.net ) is a full-service ERDI / SDI / NAUI dive facility. We offer air, rental gear, sales & service, repairs, and diving, swimming and snorkeling charters to the best sites on the lake. Come dive Long Point, Bubble’s Cave, The Wall, The Overlook, and Copperhead Cove to name just a few sites. The depth of these locations vary from 30 feet to 100+ feet. Our dive boat is a 32’x10’ Kayot pontoon boat that is simple in design and is easy to exit and board. A typical 2-tank charter runs about 3 hours. Please call in advance to make your reservations.
Sarge’s Dive Shop is an authorized dealer for Sherwood, Akona, Genesis, Henderson, OTS Full-face masks, DUI drysuits, SeaLife Cameras, Dive Rite Mfg., Deep See, Spare Air, Pelican Lights and Cases, and Underwater Kinetics Lights. Sarge’s also offers assorted scuba certifications with ERDI, SDI, and NAUI. We offer beginning scuba, advanced scuba, search & recover, scuba rescue, dive master, full-face mask, DUI drysuit, and ERDI Public Safety Diver classes. More information is available at our website:
http://www.sarges.net or you can call the dive shop at 304-872-1782 or me for more info.
Beautiful images of the lake and other areas can be viewed and purchased at
http://www.scenicfotos.com. You can purchase prints, canvas gallery wraps, IPad & IPhone covers, mugs, shirts, and sweat shirts with any image of your choice placed upon any of the products available online.
Happy Divling! Come and dive with us!
Mark T. Allen
ERDI / SDI / NAUI Instructor - Instructor Trainer