Short answer: on a hillside, the surface you pick matters less than the ground under it. Pavers, natural stone and poured concrete can all work on a Cave Spring slope, but each fails in its own way when the base, the edges or the water plan is weak. This page compares them for the conditions that come with sloped lots here: clay-bearing soil, hard winters, fast runoff, and tight access.
Why are Cave Spring lots a special case?
Roanoke County's Cave Spring Community Planning Area plan, adopted in September 2024, puts it plainly: "Despite the challenge of steep slopes, homes occupy many of the area's hillsides." The plan's goals include protecting steep slope areas, and some land was moved to a Conservation designation partly because of slopes steeper than 33% grade.
For a homeowner, that means a level patio often has to be built. Soil is cut from the uphill side, or fill is placed and held on the downhill side, and usually a wall or steps tie it together. The surface then sits on ground that was moved. That is where material choice starts to matter.
What do the soil and weather do to each surface?
The regional Local Design Criteria sheet lists a 24-inch frost depth for Roanoke County, "Severe" weathering, and clay-bearing soil classes. Clay holds water. On a slope, it can also creep and settle, mostly where fill was placed. Water that freezes under or inside a surface pushes it up.
How the three surfaces react:
- Concrete pavers are separate units over a compacted gravel base. If fill settles, a dip forms, but the units can be lifted, the base fixed, and the same pavers reset. Edge restraint is critical on a slope, because pavers at an unsupported edge can creep downhill.
- Natural stone set on gravel behaves much like pavers and can be reset. Stone set in mortar on a slab behaves like concrete. Ask which method is proposed. Dense stone handles freeze-thaw better than soft or layered stone.
- Poured concrete spans small soft spots but cracks when settlement is large. On new fill, that risk is higher. Repairs rarely match the original.
What about the water coming down the hill?
On a hillside, rain runs across a patio, not just onto it. Every surface needs a planned path for water coming from uphill, often a swale, drain or wall drainage behind the cut. Without that, water undercuts paver bases, pushes on walls, and spills over concrete edges onto the lawn below.
The planning area's streams, including Back Creek, Ore Branch, Murray Run and Mudlick Creek, carry the runoff from these hillsides. The plan reports that 215 acres of the area are in the 100-year floodplain. If your lot is near one of these streams, check FEMA's flood maps before planning any regrading. The water behind a retaining wall guide covers what happens when that water is ignored.
Does access change the answer?
Often. Many hillside yards cannot take a concrete truck or a large machine to the back. Pavers and stone can be moved in smaller loads, by hand if needed, and built in stages. Poured concrete needs the pour done in one go, so it usually needs a pump or a clear path. Access cost is covered in the slope work cost guide.
How do steps and walls affect the choice?
Hillside patios rarely stand alone. Steps and walls are usually part of the same job, and matching them helps:
- Pavers pair with segmental block walls and paver or block steps.
- Natural stone pairs with stone walls and stone treads, and suits wooded lots.
- Concrete pairs with poured or block steps, but it shows cracks at joints with other materials.
Walls that retain soil can need a County building permit and, as they get taller, a plan or a design professional. Check the County's retaining wall permit guide before fixing the patio's level, since the wall height follows from it. The County wall rules page on this site sums it up.
Side by side for a slope
- Settlement on fill: pavers and dry-laid stone can be reset; concrete cracks.
- Edges on a slope: pavers need firm edge restraint; stone needs a solid border; concrete needs a thickened edge.
- Access: pavers and stone come in small loads; concrete needs a truck or pump.
- Look: stone suits wooded hillsides; pavers give the most shape and color choice; concrete is plainest.
- Upkeep: paver and stone joints need refilling; concrete cracks need sealing.
What to gather before you ask for a quote
- Photos from the top and bottom of the slope, and from the house
- A rough idea of how much the ground drops across the patio area
- Where water runs during heavy rain, and any wet spots
- How a wheelbarrow or small machine would reach the spot
- Whether the lot is near a mapped stream or floodplain
- Any HOA or covenant rules on materials
Local rules and sources on this page were checked on October 8, 2026. Requirements change; confirm with the responsible office before work begins.