Whats the boat situation? (Denver, Colorado Springs: rent, loan, house)

[benjaminnn]

Moving to denver from long island ny, which is surrounded by water. Was curious if there are any lakes or spots for boats, jetskis, watersports or hang out spots. Just like being outside and waters a plus. Is it worth it having a boat? Picture denver more snowy. Any springs or natural landmarks to explore?

[reed303]

Boating in CO ? Try this website https://www.colorado.com/activities/boating

Snow ? Denver slightly more than LI, but no hurricanes (yet)

Springs ? Colorado Springs, Eldorado Hot Springs, Idaho Springs, Steamboat Springs, Pagosa Springs, Glenwood Hot Springs, more

Natural Landmarks ? Pike's Peak, Great Sand Dunes, Cliff Dwellings, Loveland Pass, Black Canyon, Dinosaur Monument, Colorado River, Red Rocks, St Mary's Glacier, Rocky Mt National Park, more

[SkyDog77]

My boat:


We have lots of outdoor recreation, but boating like you are used to is not among the things to do here. Our reservoirs are small. Best advice is to take up any one of our other numerous outdoors activities as a new hobby.

[ChrisFromChicago]

google maps

then colorado

its near desert. yeah, white water rafting may be in your future

but boating - doesn't seem worth the coin to bring a boat

[ELCO5280]

Was this boat in sea water? I had a friend by a boat that sat in salt water. He basically had to pay a "boat" load of money to get it decontaminated before he could dock it in a fresh water lake. He also pays almost $600/mo to house his boat during the summer and I think the gas on-site runs like $10/gallon. On top of that he has to commute an hour to even get to the lake where his boat is at.

I'd copy Skydog's boat situation.

[2bindenver]

Cherry Creek state park Res - Colorado Parks & Wildlife - Cherry Creek

Aurora Res https://www.auroragov.org/thingstodo...voir/index.htm

Chatfield Res Colorado Parks & Wildlife - Chatfield

I once sold a house to a guy who wanted to be near his boat, in Trailmark - across Wadsworth from Chatfield.

[sunsprit]

Originally Posted by benjaminnn

Moving to denver from long island ny, which is surrounded by water. Was curious if there are any lakes or spots for boats, jetskis, watersports or hang out spots.

As long as it's not during significant drought years, you'll find many opportunities for boating activities in the area. Lakes, reservoirs, and access from public lands or parks is pretty good.

What you'll have to do is scale your expectations to the smaller size of these bodies of water.

Even in Denver metro area proper, there's everything from Wash Park to Sloan's Lake ... nearby small places, but opportunities to get out on the water or hang out.

Larger bodies, such as Cherry Creek Res or Chatfield Res or others aren't too far away, and you've got opportunities for watersports there.

Still other opportunities present in the large Res's out on the plains, or in facilities where they've got water ski clubs on small bodies of water ... such as in Greeley. Or in the mountain lakes, such as Dillon Res, or Grandby, or others that range within a hour or so of Denver to a couple hours away. Pueblo Res is a sizable body of water, with beach areas and lots of places to hang out around the shoreline.

Further away are places such as McConnaughy Res in NE. 30 miles long x 5 miles wide, lots of excellent beaches, room to beat around on a power boat/jetski, or hang out.

Just like being outside and waters a plus. Is it worth it having a boat?

Only you get to justify your dollars for these activities. If you like being out on the water, there's plenty of opportunities for you to pursue ... some within minutes of your location, some hours away.

If you're like me, you'll have a fleet of boats and watercraft. I think it's worth it.

Picture denver more snowy. Any springs or natural landmarks to explore?

Lots of opportunities for springs, landmarks ... and good access throughout the state. Don't forget the hotsprings, with many small springs throughout the mountains and then big development such as Glenwood Hot Springs.

[woodsier]

In my opinion, metro Denver is not exactly a boater's paradise. The most popular reservoirs are probably Chatfield and Cherry Creek, and they're going to seem puny when compared with what you're used to. I grew up in Colorado but spent summers at a grandparent's lake home in the midwest. It's just not the same.

That said, there are some options. A) get into kayaking/rafting/canoeing. B) Lake Dillon for sailing. C) if you're hardcore in to finding a sportboating lake you could trek out to Lake McConaughy for long weekend trips.

[steamboater]

I sold mine just last week. Not worth the trouble of winterizing etc for a couple uses on a tiny reservoir. If you want to get out on a lake, checkout the marina on Lake Dillon, looks like they rent an 18 foot runabout for about 130 for a few hours of use. Will probably use that myself this summer a few times.

[Mike from back east]

Originally Posted by steamboater

I sold mine just last week. Not worth the trouble of winterizing etc for a couple uses on a tiny reservoir. If you want to get out on a lake, checkout the marina on Lake Dillon, looks like they rent an 18 foot runabout for about $130.00 for a few hours of use. Will probably use that myself this summer a few times.

Thank you! For years I've been preaching on this site that people should RENT these toys (RVs, Boats, Skidoos, Snowmobiles, etc) when they want to use one and then walk away from it at the end of the day with their retirement and other funds intact. Same for second homes; just go to a resort for a week.