
Many locals didn’t anticipate the news that awaited them that day. It was the day their favorite (and only local) dive bar would close for good.
Lovingly called the “Hidey,” “Holeaway,” “Hideyhole,” and … “Diveaway”… The Lake Anna Hideaway endeared in the hearts of many here at Lake Anna. To the dismay of some for being a true-to-expression “Dive” bar, The Hideaway may have been in the eyes of many “falling apart”, but it held a very special place for locals. Including, yours truly.
Let this be a very special and personal farewell from all of the locals here at Lake Anna – for providing a place of no judgment, making tons of new friends, something to always look forward to and depend on… the place of occasional karaoke… and the place where everyone knows your name!
A very special thanks to Stephen and Lee Lee… all of the amazing bartenders, including Starrie, Lisa, Cricket, Bicknell, Julianne, Heather and the rest of you – you guys are the best!
Thank you, Amy Lou Beebe… for this a first-hand account from when you got the news:
“Today wasn’t an ordinary day….
I woke up and as I sipped on my coffee. I got the news. My dive bar was closed. Now! Maybe to many it wasn’t special. But. This place was special to me and to all my peeps here at the lake….
See. This place wasn’t just a bar. Wasn’t just a place to get a drink to help after a hard day or after a great day. Wasn’t just walls, stools, tables and floors.
This place was a dwelling that saw many people become friends. Family. This place became a structure that held many memories that saw a lot of hurt, happiness, celebrations, laughs, cries and just plain life events that we all endure as Moms, Dads, sisters, brothers, Grandmas, Grandpas, cousins and so forth. It saw ME.. Amy Lou Beebe. It saw me start a new life, eventhough I was scared to death.
See, I know grief. And this place housed many people in my life that supported me through it, hell through it all. And here it feels like we are grieving a loss of a friend. Grieving over a building. Grieving over memories made. I sat many of times crying and processing my feelings under that roof while clinging onto my friends/family.
As I sat there today helping unbolt screws and moving tables that sat people full of life and hardships, it stopped me in my tracks. Again. The reality set in for me. I just celebrated my 50th birthday there dammit!! I met people that became my family dammit. It made me reminiscence all the moments like flash cards being strung out in my head.
I sat there with tears in my eyes because of a BAR!! Can you believe it? A bar. But this was more than a bar to me. This was a building that saw a lot of humans walk through that door, that had stories to share. Had a history of many baggages, from one person to the next. Today, really showed us the meaning of change. The reality of hurt that had presented to us again.
A place that helped me through a marriage of hardship and death. Helped me spring into my new life as Amy Beebe on my own. At the lake. A place I had been given advice to from all my new family. One of the owners, Lee lee, who would totally sit there with me and tell me how it really was, as she did for many of us.
It was MY Dive bar dammit….mine!! As I sat behind the bar today/tonight helping with what I thought I needed to do, I saw a lot of broken hearts that were processing all of this and just trying to graspe it. I was behind the threshold of the actual bar trying to make us all laugh and to make today not sting so badly…yet it still didn’t help the ‘DIVE’ from shutting down. The time had come. HIDEAWAY was closing its doors for the last time. IT IS CLOSED. My heart hurts. Not just for me but all for of us. You can’t just take away all that love and friendships that this Dive provided.
Thank you Mom for stopping there years ago for shrimp and crabs and intrucing me to what would start a lifetime of friendships and for never knowing what would become of entering through that bell dinging door.
From sitting on that gross L shape couch, to the leaky roofs that became a lake in the outside smoking room, the never ending issues with the water in the ladies room, to making a list of all our ‘stripper’ names at our collage table…..here’s to…….
‘LAST CALL!’!!
Thank you ‘DIVEAWAY’, Lake Anna Hideaway…CJ’s….you did your job!!! And will forever be in our hearts and memories!!!”

Hi! I’m Jennifer Bailey and I partner with entrepreneurs who have massive ideas that could change the world. Most marketing is meaningless. Filled with empty promises, its only job is to bring in new traffic, new leads, and new customers. But I’ve drawn a line in the sand, and I’ve learned that marketing can do so much more than reach business goals and build profit. My methods give businesses the fire and soul they need to reach the right people, set the groundwork for sustainable relationships, and offer true value to the people on both the giving and receiving ends of marketing.
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Many locals didn’t anticipate the news that awaited them that day. It was the day their favorite (and only local) dive bar would close for good.
Lovingly called the “Hidey,” “Holeaway,” “Hideyhole,” and … “Diveaway”… The Lake Anna Hideaway endeared in the hearts of many here at Lake Anna. To the dismay of some for being a true-to-expression “Dive” bar, The Hideaway may have been in the eyes of many “falling apart”, but it held a very special place for locals. Including, yours truly.
Let this be a very special and personal farewell from all of the locals here at Lake Anna – for providing a place of no judgment, making tons of new friends, something to always look forward to and depend on… the place of occasional karaoke… and the place where everyone knows your name!
A very special thanks to Stephen and Lee Lee… all of the amazing bartenders, including Starrie, Lisa, Cricket, Bicknell, Julianne, Heather and the rest of you – you guys are the best!
Thank you, Amy Lou Beebe… for this a first-hand account from when you got the news:
“Today wasn’t an ordinary day….
I woke up and as I sipped on my coffee. I got the news. My dive bar was closed. Now! Maybe to many it wasn’t special. But. This place was special to me and to all my peeps here at the lake….
See. This place wasn’t just a bar. Wasn’t just a place to get a drink to help after a hard day or after a great day. Wasn’t just walls, stools, tables and floors.
This place was a dwelling that saw many people become friends. Family. This place became a structure that held many memories that saw a lot of hurt, happiness, celebrations, laughs, cries and just plain life events that we all endure as Moms, Dads, sisters, brothers, Grandmas, Grandpas, cousins and so forth. It saw ME.. Amy Lou Beebe. It saw me start a new life, eventhough I was scared to death.
See, I know grief. And this place housed many people in my life that supported me through it, hell through it all. And here it feels like we are grieving a loss of a friend. Grieving over a building. Grieving over memories made. I sat many of times crying and processing my feelings under that roof while clinging onto my friends/family.
As I sat there today helping unbolt screws and moving tables that sat people full of life and hardships, it stopped me in my tracks. Again. The reality set in for me. I just celebrated my 50th birthday there dammit!! I met people that became my family dammit. It made me reminiscence all the moments like flash cards being strung out in my head.
I sat there with tears in my eyes because of a BAR!! Can you believe it? A bar. But this was more than a bar to me. This was a building that saw a lot of humans walk through that door, that had stories to share. Had a history of many baggages, from one person to the next. Today, really showed us the meaning of change. The reality of hurt that had presented to us again.
A place that helped me through a marriage of hardship and death. Helped me spring into my new life as Amy Beebe on my own. At the lake. A place I had been given advice to from all my new family. One of the owners, Lee lee, who would totally sit there with me and tell me how it really was, as she did for many of us.
It was MY Dive bar dammit….mine!! As I sat behind the bar today/tonight helping with what I thought I needed to do, I saw a lot of broken hearts that were processing all of this and just trying to graspe it. I was behind the threshold of the actual bar trying to make us all laugh and to make today not sting so badly…yet it still didn’t help the ‘DIVE’ from shutting down. The time had come. HIDEAWAY was closing its doors for the last time. IT IS CLOSED. My heart hurts. Not just for me but all for of us. You can’t just take away all that love and friendships that this Dive provided.
Thank you Mom for stopping there years ago for shrimp and crabs and intrucing me to what would start a lifetime of friendships and for never knowing what would become of entering through that bell dinging door.
From sitting on that gross L shape couch, to the leaky roofs that became a lake in the outside smoking room, the never ending issues with the water in the ladies room, to making a list of all our ‘stripper’ names at our collage table…..here’s to…….
‘LAST CALL!’!!
Thank you ‘DIVEAWAY’, Lake Anna Hideaway…CJ’s….you did your job!!! And will forever be in our hearts and memories!!!”

Hi! I’m Jennifer Bailey and I partner with entrepreneurs who have massive ideas that could change the world. Most marketing is meaningless. Filled with empty promises, its only job is to bring in new traffic, new leads, and new customers. But I’ve drawn a line in the sand, and I’ve learned that marketing can do so much more than reach business goals and build profit. My methods give businesses the fire and soul they need to reach the right people, set the groundwork for sustainable relationships, and offer true value to the people on both the giving and receiving ends of marketing.
Subscribe for Updates
Sponsors
latest articles
Virginia’s 4 PM Burning Law Now in Effect Across Lake Anna Counties

REC Crews Respond to Outages Caused by Powerful Wind Storm
Love Local Shop Hop: A Valentine’s Weekend Shopping Adventure

Louisa County Declares State of Emergency as Winter Storm Approaches
REC Urges Locals to Prepare for Storm on Saturday

Bear Dens: Spotting and Avoiding Winter Habitats


The Cove Holds Steady to ‘Lake Time’ Amidst Local Development Boom
Article By Jen Bailey
