Barr Lake State Park- Colorado
Barr Lake State Park is part of Colorado's network of 42 state parks. These state parks attract over 11 million visitors each year. The Colorado State Park system offers a wide range of outdoor activities for residents of Colorado and visitors from all around the world. Whether you want to go fishing, boating, hiking, camping, mountain biking, bird watching, hunting or even rock climbing, there is a state park that will offer what you are looking for. The parks are located all over the state, from the plains of the eastern part of the state, to deep withing the Rocky Mountains. Barr Lake is located north east of Denver and offers a number of opportunities for enjoy nature.
Barr Lake State Park
Barr Lake State Park Activities
As the name would suggest, Barr Lake State Park is located surrounding a 1,950 surface acre lake. The lake is relatively shallow and nutrient rich, this leads to large amounts of plant and fish growth. The lake is also used for irrigation by nearby farms, so water levels can fluctuate during the summer months.
As with any lake, boating is a major attraction at Barr Lake. The south half of the lake is dedicated as a wildlife refuge and closed to both boating and fishing. The north half of the lake is open to sailboats, canoes and boats with electric or gasoline motors of less than 10 horse power. Some people look down at Barr lake for the boating restrictions, but if you are the owner of a small boat, Barr Lake can be a great place to get out on a good sized reservoir without worrying about larger boats disturbing you with their wake. The lake is a great place for hand powered smaller craft and smaller craft, such as belly boats or inflatable pontoon boats.
Over the years the Colorado Division of Wildlife has stocked Rainbow Trout, Walleye, Channel Catfish, Smallmouth and Largemouth Bass, Bluegill, Wiper and Tiger Muskie. The south part of the lake and the dam are closed to fishing, but the rest of the shore and boats offer excellent fishing opportunities for these species.
There are over ten miles of trails available at the lake, including an unpaved trail that goes around the entire lake. Most of the trails are open to hiking, biking and horseback riding. A couple of the shorter boardwalks off of the main trail are closed to horses and bikes.
Thanks to the wildlife refuge portion of the park, wildlife sightings are frequent. Some of the animals that you might see are Mule and Whitetail Deer, Coyotes, Foxes, Rabbits and Squirrels. There have been over 350 different species of bird spotted at the park, so don't forget to bring some binoculars and a camera.
There is no camping at the park, but there are additional state parks with an hour to two hours drive from Barr Lake. During the waterfowl hunting season there are fixed blinds available to hunters on Wednesdays and Saturdays during the legal season.
If you haven't been, make sure you check out Barr Lake State Park. Get out on the water, try to catch some fish, or just go for a hike and look for some animals. No matter what you do, Barr Lake will provide a relaxing day in nature.