Belews Lake – close by, yet a world away

from Northwest Observer / At Home Spring 2022

by pscommunications

A&Y Greenway, a hidden treasure

BE INSPIRED Belews Lake –

close by, yet a world away

GRANITE | QUARTZ | MARBLE | SOLID SURFACE

find your inspiration at mainlandstoneworksnc.com jeff@mainlandstoneworks.com | 336.773.0714 The recreational area of Duke Energy’s reservoir north of Stokesdale is preparing to spring back to life as warmer weather draws families with boats, jet skis and shing poles

By CHRIS BURRITT

STOKESDALE – Andrew and Dana Angel Andrew and Dana Angel have a short drive from their home to have a short drive from their home to Belews Lake, where they often head in Belews Lake, where they often head in warm weather with their two children and warm weather with their two children and 23-foot boat in tow.

“We say we can be on the water in “We say we can be on the water in seven minutes,” Dana said. “It’s not a bad seven minutes,” Dana said. “It’s not a bad gig.”

While the Stokesdale couple fi shes While the Stokesdale couple fi shes year round, the real fun begins as the year round, the real fun begins as the weather warms up and the Angels and weather warms up and the Angels and their friends anchor their boats in a cove their friends anchor their boats in a cove for a day of wake boarding, tubing and for a day of wake boarding, tubing and just hanging out. They start early, eating just hanging out. They start early, eating breakfast at Humphrey’s Ridge Marina breakfast at Humphrey’s Ridge Marina where they launch their boats, followed where they launch their boats, followed by lunch at the Deck at Carolina Marina by lunch at the Deck at Carolina Marina and a sunset cruise before heading home. and a sunset cruise before heading home.

“Our friends joke that a 12-hour lake “Our friends joke that a 12-hour lake day is nothing for the Angels,” Dana said. day is nothing for the Angels,” Dana said. “It’s a special place for our family and so “It’s a special place for our family and so many others. There are no iPads, no many others. There are no iPads, no phones, no email.”

The tradition goes back almost half The tradition goes back almost half a century, when Duke Energy created a century, when Duke Energy created the nearly 3,900-acre reservoir in Stokes, the nearly 3,900-acre reservoir in Stokes, Rockingham, Guilford and Forsyth Rockingham, Guilford and Forsyth counties as a cooling reservoir for the counties as a cooling reservoir for the Belews Creek Steam Station. Water used Belews Creek Steam Station. Water used for the generation of electricity in the for the generation of electricity in the coal and natural gas plant is piped into coal and natural gas plant is piped into the lake, resulting in warmer-than-normal water temperatures.

While fi shermen report seeing boats occasionally pulling skiers during frosty weather, the traditional summer season – from Memorial Day to Labor Day – is the

Photo by Chris Burritt/NWO Stacked signs on a pole direct visitors to a lake villa on Belews Lake as well as the nearby dock, restaurant, and tourist spots as far away as Myrtle Beach.

Photo courtesy of Dana Angel Brooklyn Angel gets an exhilarating ride on a wake board, a popular activity at Belews Lake. busiest for the lake. As a general rule, fi shermen set out early and quit by midmorning to avoid recreational boats that create big wakes – great for surfers but no fun and potentially dangerous for fi shermen in smaller craft.

“It’s hard to fi sh out there in the spring and the summer because of the wake boarders and ski boats,” said Hunter Gatewood, owner of Fisherman’s Cove, a bait and tackle shop in Stokesdale. “I’m not saying everyone does it, but Belews Lake is one of the biggest party lakes I’ve ever seen.”

The lake, which has 88 miles of shoreline, has become even more popular in the two years since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Dan Kasper, Carolina Marina’s director of member services, recalled that on a particularly warm day in the spring of 2020, vehicles were backed up nearly a mile to launch their boats.

Rising demand for easy access to the lake has created a waiting list for dock slips and dry-stack spaces, according to Kasper.

“When COVID started, there were not a lot of places you could go,” Kasper said. “You couldn’t go to the movies or a water park. Boating was one of the few things you could go out and do safely.”

Dating back to the early years of the lake, 400-square-foot trailers, known as park models, on the marina’s property are also growing in popularity. One rainy afternoon earlier this month, the neighborhood of vinyl-clad houses was mostly vacant. In coming weeks, it will be fi lled with families socializing on decks and launching their boats.

Owners scoot around on golf carts to visit one another and buy supplies from the marina, which is partly stocked by the Bi-Rite in Stokesdale. Over the years, a stop at Bi-Rite for groceries has been part of the experience of spending a weekend at Belews Lake, Chuck Higgins said.

Higgins and his wife, Dwala, of Summerfi eld, have owned a park model at Carolina Marina for about 30 years. He wanted to teach his continued onpage 28