How many of you have seen the movie Evan Almighty? In that movie, there is a beautiful green valley with a dam at the top of it. Behind the dam is a reservoir that is as beautiful as it is serene. This is called the Sugar Hollow Reservoir. It is located west of Charlottesville and north of Crozet, Virginia. It is within an hour of our homebase in the Shenandoah River Valley. So, you know the Nomads had to explore it.
We left a little later in the day so we were rushing against the daylight to get there. Total distance to get there was only about 30 miles or so. However, the roads to get there were steep with switchback type turns and narrow passages. So, it turned a 30 mile trip into just over an hour of road time. If you plan on going there, adjust your time tables accordingly.
I will say this, on the way there, even though many of the roads were “off the beaten path,” we saw multiple vineyards, stables and other farms with big homes and wooden fences as far as the eye could see.
We finally arrived at the Sugar Hollow Reservoir. There is parking on the east side of the reservoir. This is where the dam is located. There is room for 5 or 6 cars to park there. Since we visited in winter time, there was only one other car so parking was a breeze. I would imagine if you came during spring or summer, it is likely to be more crowded. If this is the case, we did notice many places on Sugar Hollow Road, that ran along the edge of the reservoir, where you could easily park your vehicle on the side of the road.
We parked at the dam and began to explore the reservoir’s edge. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. We can only imagine how much more full of life it looks during the Spring and Summer. As we trekked along the water’s edge, we saw a few others who were fishing in the reservoir. I saw a sign that said you needed a permit to fish but that the reservoir was stocked.
The Sugar Hollow Reservoir is fed by the North Fork and South Fork Moorman’s River. They keep the reservoir full. At the base of the dam, the overflow creates a combination of the North and South Fork into the Moorman’s River.
We hiked and explored the base of the dam and along the Moorman’s River. There are lots of large rocks and boulders at the base of the dam with a moderate river flow and some driftwood. There are miles of trails, a few swimming holes and waterfalls around the Sugar Hollow Reservoir. You can see a map of it here. They are along the northwest section of the reservoir. Due to the fact that we only had a few hours of sunlight, we were only able to explore some of the water’s edge and a short jaunt along the base of the dam. We are hoping to go back and explore the hiking trails.
