Water Levels at John Martin Reservoir May Impact Memorial Day Visitors

Courtesy Photo of fishing in the spillway at John Martin Reservoir

HASTY, Colo. – Visitors to John Martin Reservoir over Memorial Day Weekend can expect a few changes due to the effects of recent storms.Water levels at the reservoir have risen significantly, leading to changes that will impact guests and those planning on visiting in the near future should take note of the following:

• Most areas on the south side of the reservoir are under water. Areas where trailers can be parked will be limited.
• Hasty Lake campground at the state park is full for Memorial Day Weekend, and the few spots left in the Point campground are filling quickly.
• Areas closed to protect nesting areas for the endangered Piping Plover and Least Tern are marked with signs and roped off. A map marked with currently closed areas can be found at the kiosk at the south side entrance into the state wildlife area.
• Visitors cannot leave a camper, tent or motor vehicle unattended for more than 48 hours on the state wildlife area. As a result, equipment can not be left unattended during the week in preparation for the holiday weekend.
• Visitors must stay on established roads.

John Martin Reservoir gained almost 27,000 acre feet of water in the past week due to storms. As of May 18, the reservoir had 77,600 acre feet of water and was still rising, compared to about 31,000 acre feet and dropping fast last year at this time.

# # # 

CPW is an enterprise agency, relying primarily on license sales, state parks fees and registration fees to support its operations, including: 42 state parks and more than 350 wildlife areas covering approximately 900,000 acres, management of fishing and hunting, wildlife watching, camping, motorized and non-motorized trails, boating and outdoor education. CPW’s work contributes approximately $6 billion in total economic impact annually throughout Colorado.

Like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ColoradoParksandWildlife
Follow us on Twitter @COParksWildlife
For more news about Colorado Parks and Wildlife go to: http://cpw.state.co.us
For more information about Colorado Parks and Wildlife go to: http://cpw.state.co.us.