Adobe Creek Reservoir
| Adobe Creek Reservoir | |
|---|---|
| Blue Lake | |
 The reservoir in 2025 | |
  Adobe Creek Reservoir The reservoir's location in Colorado | |
| Location | Bent and Kiowa counties, Colorado, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 38°15′42.84″N 103°14′47.09″W / 38.2619000°N 103.2464139°W |
| Type | reservoir |
| Adobe Creek Inlet Canal[1] Fort Lyon Storage Canal | |
| Adobe Creek Reservoir Outlet Ditch[2] | |
| Basin countries | United States |
Managing agency | Fort Lyon Canal Company |
| Designation | Adobe Creek Reservoir State Wildlife Area |
| Built | 1904 |
Surface area | 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) |
Water volume | 122,360 acre-feet (150,930,000 cubic meters) |
Shore length1 | 16 miles (26 kilometers) |
Surface elevation | 4,131 feet (1,259 meters) |
| References | [3][4][5] |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
Adobe Creek Reservoir lies in a remote area of Bent and Kiowa counties in Colorado, U.S. The reservoir is an off-stream storage impoundment used to store water for agricultural irrigation. Only a few small unnamed intermittent creeks flow into the lake. The lake is chiefly fed by the Adobe Creek Inlet, a human-made ditch that draws water from nearby Adobe Creek and from the Fort Lyon Storage Canal. The reservoir's outlet is the Adobe Creek Reservoir Outlet Ditch, which empties into Adobe Creek. The reservoir, which lies at an elevation of 4,131 feet (1,259 meters) on Colorado's Eastern Plains, is a former Colorado state wildlife area.[6]
Names
Adobe Creek Reservoir is also often called Blue Lake, especially by locals in the area around the lake.[5]
Dam
The Adobe Creek Dam, NID ID CO00515, is a 41-foot (12-meter) high earthen dam that can store up to 122,360 acre-feet (150,930,000 cubic meters) of water. It was built in 1904 and is 7,375 feet (2,248 meters) wide. The dam and reservoir are owned by the Fort Lyon Canal Company.[4]
State wildlife area
The lake and the immediate area around made up the former Adobe Creek Reservoir State Wildlife Area. In 2026, the lake's owner decided to end its lease with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, effectively ending public access to the lake and the area around it.[6] Fishing was the wildlife area's chief activity. Specifically, anglers were able to catch black crappie, blue catfish, channel catfish, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, saugeye, walleye, and wiper.[7]
See also
References
- ↑ "Adobe Creek Inlet". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. December 31, 1981. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
- ↑ "Adobe Creek Reservoir Outlet Ditch". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. December 31, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
- ↑ "Adobe Creek Reservoir". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. October 13, 1978. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
- 1 2 "Adobe Creek". National Inventory of Dams. United States Army. December 22, 2022. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
- 1 2 "Adobe Creek Reservoir SWA – Las Animas". Uncover Colorado. n.d. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
- 1 2 Miller, Dean (June 12, 2026). "Public Fish Salvage June 12 to July 15, Adobe Creek (Blue Lake), Thurston reservoirs" (Press release). Lamar, Colorado. Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Archived from the original on June 12, 2026. Retrieved June 12, 2026.
- ↑ Colorado Parks and Wildlife (n.d.). "Adobe Creek Reservoir". State of Colorado. Retrieved March 25, 2025.
External links
- Adobe Creek Reservoir state wildlife area
- Colorado Birding Trail page for the reservoir
- Fort Lyon Canal Company
Media related to Adobe Creek Reservoir at Wikimedia Commons