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Mount Storm (VEPCO) Lake
 Route 93, Bismarck, Mount Storm, WV 26739
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Max Depth: 131-140ft/40-43m
Average Viz: 16-20ft/5-6m
Entry Type: Boat
Bottom Composition: Rock
Aquatic Life: Might See Something
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Rating: 3.23 by 22 divers
Spring: 71-75°F/22-24°C
Summer: 71-75°F/22-24°C
Fall: 71-75°F/22-24°C
Winter: 71-75°F/22-24°C
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Mount Storm (VEPCO) Lake is a boat accessible fresh water dive site, located at Route 93, Bismarck, Mount Storm, WV 26739. This dive site has an average rating of 3.23 out of 5 from 22 scuba divers. The maximum depth is 131-140ft/40-43m. The average visibility is 16-20ft/5-6m. Training platforms are available.
Mt Storm Lake in Davis, WV is an artificial lake built in 1965 to cool the nearby coal-fire power plant, heating the lake a good 20-30F degrees above any other local dive sites. This makes it a very popular location for diving in between traditional dive seasons. Unfortunately, the site is also very popular with other water sports, namely boating and fishing, which don’t usually mix well with scuba.
In recent years the ability to swim, dive, and boat in up to 90F+ water has brought record numbers to Mt Storm lake. The parking lot is overflowing. The path is actually pretty steep and the steps dug into the hillside are uneven and quite tall. Even fit divers have some difficulty with them after a long dive. Children and those with knee and hip problems find them almost impossible. Still, most divers trekked up and down the hillside between dives and gave boaters a wide berth (which is more than I would say for them). Fishermen and other boaters routinely ignore our dive flags and cast into diving areas or zip by overhead without concern for the lives they could be jeopardizing.
Mt. Storm is a "heated lake". What I mean by this is that it is a cooling lake for the Mt. Storm power plant which is located across from the dive site entrance. The lake is "turned over" every two days. In the summer I have seen the temperature at 98 degrees. We usually start diving the lake in March or April and have dve it comfortably into November. In January the water temp is in the mid to high 50’s. If you are looking for great viz, forget it, the best I have seen is 10 to 12 feet and that is rare. There are two training platforms at 25 feet, one at 60 feet and one at 90 feet. There is a large gravel parking area for divers and boaters, but get there early in the summer, it’s a pretty popular place for both. Entry is made by walking into the water down a set of steps that you have to be careful on the bottom of due to wash out.