Lakes in Colorado -- Sailing? Fishing? (Denver, Aurora: rentals, loans, buying)

[CA****4]

I'm just trying to learn which lakes are better than others in reguards to sailing and fishing.

I love to sail
Husband loves to fish

I've checked out different lakes (online) but I want opinions from people who live there. Which ones are the most common, the most populated?

Are there any strong 'sailing' communities or 'fishing' communities nearby a lake?

Is there anywhere we might be able to rent a sailboat for the day? I could get my sailing in and he could catch a few fish.....


Also --- Pictures would be great if anyone wants to take the time to post them.

Thanks

[whirnot]

Although not a Sailor myself, from what I have seen Dillon resevoir is probably the most popular. Pretty strong community there.

As far as fishing, we have so many lakes full of fish they are too numerous to mention. Spinney resevoir is a big draw. River and stream fishing is probably even hotter. We have some of the best fly fishing in the world.

[sunsprit]

In the "hills" ... Dillon, Carter, Granby, Reudi res are the most "popular" sailing lakes in Colorado. Dillon has a full service marina, and boat rentals ... although if you are interested, there are a number of regatta weekends at the Dillon YC and generally a fair number of skippers looking for crew.

Grand Lake is also a popular sailing lake, although membership at GLYC is not available to non-lake frontage improved property owners, and they're pretty persnickity about reciprocal priveleges from visiting sailors ... although nicer if they host an "open" regatta. But a nice lake to sail and enjoy the outing.

At all of these lakes, you'll be trailer launching your boat, with the exception of Dillon, which also has a hoist at the marina. Dinghy's are the best option to access many of the lakes, although a swing-keel boat like a Catalina 22 is a good option for the "multi-purpose" boat on these lakes. You'll see a fair number of J-24's and similar 22-28' boats on Dillon at the marina. Ensigns and C-22's used to have sizable active racing fleets, but that's from some years ago. Snipes are a good option, as well as C-15's.

While not as popular a sailing lake as those above, you can also sail at Horsetooth Res.

On the Front Range, sailing is popular at Chatfield, Cherry Creek, Boyd Lake, and Aurora Res.

In Denver, Washington Park or Sloans Lake are popular. You may want to contact the local sailing clubs for their schedule of races or family events through the season.

Down South, Pueblo res is also a good place to sail ... a larger body of water, lots of shoreline, and a good set of ramps and camping sites at the lake.

On the plains, I like to sail at Bonny Res. Nice places to camp, and a decent sized lake for a Laser or comparable dinghy.

Keep in mind that sailing in Colorado is different than many other places in the USA. Much of the recreation pool of water is subject to the calls from the irrigation users, and levels can drop quickly through a season. Which leaves you without much water to sail.

Also, be aware that the prevailing wind conditions here are highly variable. It's possible to be in calms, storms, 50-60 mph blowouts, 12-15 kts breezes, and anything in-between ... all several times in the same day. On lakes such as Dillon or Carter, you may be on a tack in planing conditions and have another boat just a few boat lengths from you hard on the opposite tack .... similarly, you may be on a wide reach or downwind and the adjacent boat can be strapped in tight going upwind.

While all kinds of boats will be found here, I'd advise you to sail only those that have good righting/rescue characteristics. The mountain lakes, especially, are very cold and hypothermia is a real threat if you are in the water ... literally a minute or two is all you may have if you aren't wearing at least a shorty wetsuit. With the sudden and strong gusts from any direction possible on many lakes, a capsize is always possible ... it's not a case of if, but a case of when and how many times over a season. It's a good idea to always wear your PFD while sailing in this area on a dinghy or when in a smaller boat on any of the lakes.

As mentioned, fishing is just about anywhere you want to find it in Colorado. There are a host of lakes where sailing isn't very popular, but the fishing is a big deal ....

[80skeys]

There are a lot of sailboats kept and moored at Ruedi lake, which is located in the Basalt/Aspen area of the state.

Fishing in most colorado mountain lakes is not particularly productive. If you are a normal angler that hasn't studied the particular characteristics of a lake and developed specific techniques, then it will be a hit and miss outing for you. You may spend all day and not get any bites. In order to make it more productive, you'll need to ask around which lures are working for which species at particular depths. At Ruedi, the fishing is just fair to okay for stocked rainbow trout from the surface, but much more difficult for other forms of fish that live in the the lake.

I second the previous comment about wind. I don't use a sailboat but I have a 16' aluminum fishing boat and you've gotta be careful about changing wind conditions.

[Ticky909]

If i'm not mistaken, I think Rand has a yacht club.

[sunsprit]

Originally Posted by Ticky909

If i'm not mistaken, I think Rand has a yacht club.

Are you thinking of the Rand Yacht Club (BAR/Restaurant) in Georgetown, CO?

The town of Rand that I know of is south of Walden in the middle of nowhere, but there are a number of small ponds for fishing in the area. It's pretty popular for hunting & fishing recreational spaces ...

[treedonkey]

I have a KMZ (google earth) file of all the boatable lakes in CO. If you would like a copy, please DM me and I'll send it to you.

[CA****4]

Thanks for all that information. We would be getting a Catalina-22. I wouldn't just go out and start sailing there, I would have to ask around and help out as a deck hand for other boats first so I could learn as much as I could before buying and sailing on my own.

I never knew about the hypothermia aspect of it. I wasn't expecting that. Are there any lakes that do not have this worry, or are all the lakes in CO pretty chilly? Anyone have a chart/graph of the average water temps for the lakes of CO?

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by CA****4

Thanks for all that information. We would be getting a Catalina-22. I wouldn't just go out and start sailing there, I would have to ask around and help out as a deck hand for other boats first so I could learn as much as I could before buying and sailing on my own.

When I lived in D.C. I took a sailing class on the Potomac. It wasn't big sailboats or anything, but it was very instructional and useful as far as teaching me how to sail. Perhaps a similar class in Denver?

I never knew about the hypothermia aspect of it. I wasn't expecting that. Are there any lakes that do not have this worry, or are all the lakes in CO pretty chilly? Anyone have a chart/graph of the average water temps for the lakes of CO?

Definitely a big problem in mountain lakes. I wouldn't want to fall overboard and be stuck in the water for more than a couple minutes. Being an angler, I don't use wet suits.

I would imagine the lakes in the plains east of the front range would be much warmer. I've never been on them, but from knowing that there are mostly warm water fish in those lakes and they are at a much lower elevation.

Here's a useful link - Colorado specific:

Fish Explorer Colorado Lakes and Reservoirs - Colorado Fishing Map

[sunsprit]

Any of the mountain lakes have a very narrow thermocline ... in some, especially early in the season with a lot of fresh snowmelt ... the frigid layer may be only an inch or two below the surface.

Most of the plains lakes are much warmer, and the thermocline layer may be a couple of feet below the surface, or even more on an irrigation storage pool.

But it's best to be very prepared for the cold water before you land in it.

Good choice ... a C-22 swing keel with a beach launchable trailer. I prefer to not have a "pop-top" boat or a front hatch for Colorado's conditions, but most of the C-22's will have at least the front deck hatch. I've spent a lot of hours on these boats in Colorado, be sure you get a blade jib as well as the jenny ... and a spinnaker is a "must" as far as I'm concerned for the challenge and fun of using it in appropriate conditions. Best, also, to get a boat that hasn't had a lot of interior modifications ... the basic box stock boat is the roomiest (which is a relative thing, given how Frank Butler tried to do so much with only so much interior volume).

Check out Denver Sailing Association for people to hook up with who would take on beginner crew on a one of these or a similar boat ... you won't get "formal" instruction, but you will get an opportunity to sail with some nice folks and pick up some pointers plus the experience of sailing Colorado lakes. Or head down to the marina's at Cherry Creek or Chatfield and ask around .... it helps to bring some food and beverages and be appropriately dressed ... wear deck shoes, have your own sailing gloves (if you need them, I do ....), hats, sunglasses, sunscreen, your own safety vest (which can be a lightweight comfortable one that fits you), etc. Basically, you want to be as little a burden to the boat owner as possible to be "welcomed" as an asset and sailing companion.