By Barbara Aikens - May 2026

To promote safe boating on public waters, Virginia has adopted a system of uniform regulatory markers or buoys. Virginia Code mandates that “a system of regulatory markers and a lateral buoyage marking system of aids to navigation be adopted on all public waters of the Commonwealth not marked by an agency of the United States”.  All state laws regarding regulatory waterway markers designating controlled, hazardous, or exclusionary zones are applicable to Lake Anna. Lake Anna does not have navigational markers.

The hundreds of buoys on Lake Anna are critical to the safety of everyone on or in the water, whether they are boating, skiing/wake surfing, jet skiing, fishing, kayaking, paddleboarding, or swimming.

TYPES OF BUOYS

There are three types of regulatory buoys on Lake Anna.  

Controlled Area:  Signified by an open circle. 

These buoys mark areas where speed, wake, or other activity is controlled for safety reasons.  Found at the bridges, waterfront businesses and marinas, HOA Common Area boat slips, heads of narrow coves, and along the shoreline of individual or groups of waterfront property owners, these buoys comprise the majority of buoys on Lake Anna.  They primarily mark designated areas of NO WAKE/IDLE SPEED and are enforceable by officers patrolling the Lake.  There are also DWR approved NO WAKE SURFING regulatory buoys in the northern channels of the lake where it is generally too shallow or narrow to safely wake surf. 

Danger Area:  Signified by an open diamond. 

Give these a wide berth.  They mark areas that are hazardous to vessel operation – submerged rocks, unexpected shoals and shallows and other underwater hazards. 

Exclusion Area: Signified by a cross in the center of an open diamond.

These mark a limited number of areas on Lake Anna where vessels are prohibited – the dam, in front of the North Anna Nuclear Power Plant, and the area of the effluent pipe at the Lake Anna Townhomes.

The author is not aware of any Informational waterway markers (square symbol) located on Lake Anna.

WHO APPROVES THE PLACEMENT OF BUOYS ON LAKE ANNA?

The placement and removal of ALL buoys (No Wake, Hazard, and Exclusion Area) on the public side of Lake Anna is fully regulated by the Boating Division of the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) per Virginia code. The application and approval process is uniform for ALL applicants – businesses, marinas, waterfront property owners, HOAs, the Lake Anna State Park, and the Lake Anna Advisory Committee on behalf of the three counties.  Even Dominion must file an application with DWR to place a marker on the public side. 

Dominion is the sole authority for the placement and removal of all buoys on the WHTF.

The application process begins at the county level. Detailed information on how to apply for a buoy on Lake Anna is available on the Louisa County website at https://www.louisacounty.gov/1800/Buoys. 

Note that the Lake Anna Advisory Committee (LAAC) does not approve or deny buoy applications.  LAAC serves only in an advisory capacity on behalf of county officials by forwarding their recommendations to DWR or Dominion as part of the overall application process.

WHO OWNS AND MAINTAINS BUOYS ON LAKE ANNA? 

Once the placement of a buoy has been approved by DWR or Dominion, maintenance of that buoy becomes the responsibility of the individual/s, business, or county/agency who made the application.  Any marker or buoy that is not in conformance with state regulations may be removed by DWR. Written approval of DWR or Dominion must be obtained before relocating or removing any buoy.

The Lake Anna Advisory Committee is mandated by Louisa, Spotsylvania, and Orange Counties to maintain over 60 approved buoys.  Currently, LAAC maintains 28 NO WAKE/IDLE SPEED buoys at ten bridges and 38 HAZARD buoys. All are marked with lights which must be replaced on a regular basis.   

HOW DOES LAAC MAINTAIN THE COUNTY BUOYS?

The three counties allocate varying levels of yearly funding to support LAAC’s Buoy Maintenance Program. Those allocations were used solely to procure buoys, lights, rehab materials, and anchoring hardware.

Labor support for the Program was performed by a team of dedicated volunteers managed by Jean McCormick, former Chair of LAAC’s Safety & Navigation Subcommittee. This work included retrieving/setting (often using their personal boats), regularly monitoring, rehab/repair of buoys, outfitting buoys with anchoring systems, and ordering supplies. Much of the maintenance work involves heavy physical labor and many of the volunteers were senior citizens. The Program was fortunate to also have volunteer labor assistance from the Spotsylvania County Dive Team and the former owner of TowBoat US. 

In 2024, the Program lost its primary labor support volunteer when the owner of TowBoat US sold his company. Even then, the volunteers labored to get the work done, sometimes with the assistance of the Spotsylvania County Dive Team. However, it quickly became apparent that this was not a feasible long-term solution. 

Thus, in 2025, LAAC applied for and, in January 2026, was awarded a $9,600 grant from the FY26 Amazon Rappahannock Region Community Fund.  These funds will now be used to procure supplies, freeing up county allocations to fund labor support services.  LAAC already has a contract in place with the new owners of TowBoat US for labor support services.

HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT SAFETY ON LAKE ANNA?

We all know that the last few years have witnessed a significant increase in the recreational use of Lake Anna. Moreover, the types of watercraft on the lake have also increased in size, speed, and the amount of wake they generate. These images depict common problems we encounter on a weekly basis in the summer – stolen and vandalized lights, vandalized caps which allow the buoy to take on water and eventually sink, and serious boat strikes.  In addition, buoys drift off location, go missing, and some are simply aging beyond repair. 

Buoy damaged beyond repair by boat strike and failing/sinking buoy

LAAC’s buoys are safety buoys, not convenience buoys.  When they are damaged or go missing, the potential for safety related incidents and accidents increases.  LAAC faces an ever increasing and urgent need to replace or repair damaged and destroyed buoys.  

BUT LAAC can only retrieve and repair buoys in a timely fashion if they know about the problem in a timely fashion. This is how the community can help LAAC keep the lake safe. 

ADOPT A BUOY

LAAC is asking you to spread the word about our new “Adopt A Buoy” Program.  Based on a similar program at Smith Mountain Lake, it is simply an updated version of Jean McCormick’s “Buoy Watchers”.  Adopters select a specific buoy that they can monitor from their homes or businesses on a year-round basis and notify LAAC immediately if they note any problems, damages, vandalism, etc.  LAAC will then record the notifications and establish maintenance priorities.  So far, 29 buoys have been adopted by 13 adopters since launching the Program late last fall.  But...we still have over 30 buoys that need to be adopted! Many of those are on the northern end of the lake.

ADOPT A BUOY

LAKE ANNA ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Adopt-a-Buoy Volunteer Program

Help keep Lake Anna safe by “adopting” one of over 60 Regulatory Buoys owned and maintained by the three counties - either a No Wake Buoy at one of the bridges or a Hazard Buoy. Adopters will monitor a single buoy or set of buoys they can see from their homes or businesses on a regular basis. They will quickly notify LAAC if these buoys are missing or damaged, including lights.

Interested residents please inquire and receive a list of adoptable buoys and their locations.

LAACBUOYS@GMAIL.COM

Barbara Aikens

Lake Anna Advisory Committee, Safety & Navigation Subcommittee Chair

aikensb60@gmail,com