indian peaks wilderness lakes fish survey and
TRANSCRIPT
Regulations
Possession or use of live fish
for bait is not permitted.
Statewide bag/possession
limits apply (see regulation
brochure for more information).
General Information: Located in Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forest, the high alpine lakes within the
Indian Peaks Wilderness offer fishing for greenback cutthroat and brook trout. The lakes are difficult to
reach with sampling equipment, hence a small number of lakes are surveyed each summer. Stocking of
many of the lakes is primarily completed by DOW pilots that deliver 1 inch native cutthroat trout.
Location: Nearby Towns: Nederland, Lyons, Allenspark, Jamestown, Peaceful Valley, Ward, Winter Park.
Recreational Management: United States Forest Service
Purchase a fishing license: https://www.co.wildlifelicense.com/start.php
Fishery Management: Coldwater angling
Indian Peaks Wilderness Lakes
FISH SURVEY AND MANAGEMENT DATABenjamin Swigle - Aquatic Biologist (Fort Collins/Boulder)
[email protected] / 970-472-4364
Amenities
High Mountain Hiking
Camping sites available at
Brainard Lakes and Peaceful
Valley.
Backcounty camping available
with permit June 1 – September
15.
Consult a quality map for
further information.
Previous Stocking
2014
Native Cutthroat Trout
2012
Native Cutthroat Trout
2010
Native Cutthroat Trout
Sportfishing Notes
Cutthroat
Following ice off, trout enter a
2-3 month feeding frenzy to
fuel themselves over long
winters.
Scuds make up a large portion
of their diet.
Fly anglers and spinning rigs
generally offer equal success.
Brook Trout
In some Indian Peak Lakes
brook trout severely outcompete
native cutthroats.
Below: Skyscraper Lake (left) offers angling for large greenback cutthroat while Woodland (top-right) contains smaller cutthroats in greater numbers. The cutthroat pictured measured 15 inches and was caught in Skyscraper Lake.
Above: Lower Coney Lake can be reached via the Coney Creek Trail which begins about a quarter mile west of the Coney Flats Trailhead. Hike about 2.3 miles on the Coney Creek Trail to the lake. To get to the trailhead take Highway 7 west from Lyons approximately 12 miles or Highway 7 south from Estes Park about 18 miles to Highway 72. The 2008 survey netted 32 cutthroat trout between 5 and 15 inches (average = 8.6).
Above: Many high mountain lakes in Colorado are stocked with native cutthroat trout by DOW pilots. For more information on aerial stocking view an article which appeared in field and stream : http://www.fieldandstream.com/photos/gallery/fishing/2009/10/stocking-rocky-mountain-cutthroat-trout-planes-colorado
Table (above). Summary of the gillnet surveys for lakes within or near the Indian Peak Wilderness. Most lakes contain onlynative cutthroat trout (CUTTs). In Mitchell Lake we found both greenback and brook trout (BRK). Lost Lake only containsbrook trout. The survey from Lower Diamond Lake identified splake (brook x lake trout). Although I do not endorse anyparticular map, trails illustrated by National Geographic (#’s 102 and 103) are a good source while fishing the Indian PeaksWilderness. A Fly Fishing Guide to Colorado’s Indian Peaks Wilderness . Lake shown in bold were most recently updated.
Below: Betty Lake , August 2009. Only greenback cutthroat trout were sampled,A 16.5 in cutthroat sampled from Bob Lake 2016.
Above: King Lake (standing on top of the continental divide at13,200 feet). Bob and Betty Lakes are also near this lake which can be accessed from Winter Park or the Hesse trailhead west of Nederland. Cutthroat trout sampled from King Lake measured 6.9-13.1 inches.
Jasper Lake 2014Brook & Cutthroat
Storm Lake 2014Cutthroat
Upper Neva Lake 2014 – 75% ice covered August 2014Sampling found zero fish but the Lower Neva Lake has a decent population of cutthroat.
Lower Neva Lake
Lake S. Acres Year #CUTTsAve. Length
(Range)#BRK
Ave. Length
(Range)#Tigers
Ave.
Length
(Range)
Notes
Blue Lake 24 2008 22 9.3 (4-12) 0 - - 2 nets
Isabelle Lake 34 2008 24 11.3 (9-15) 0 - - 2 nets
Lower Coney 10 2008 32 8.6 (5-15) 0 - - 1 net
Arapahoe (Lower) 9 2008 5 11.8 (5-14) 0 - - 1 net
Devil's Thumb 11 2009 30 10.3 (6-17) 0 - - 2 nets
King 10 2016 11 11.05 (7-16) 0 - - - 1 net
Skyscraper 13 2009 28 11.4 (8-16) 0 - - 1 net
Woodland 10 2009 56 9.9 (5-16) 0 - - 1 net
Gibralter 5 2010 39 9.0 (7-11) 0 - - angling
Lower Diamond* 14 2010 7 10 (4-13) 44 10.1 (5-13) - 2 nets
Mitchell Lake (Big) 14 2015 2 9.1 (8-11) 78 8.4 (5-15) 0 0 2 nets
Long Lake 40 2015 2 13 (13-14) 39 8.4 (4-14) 0 0 2 nets
Lost Lake 5 2013 0 - 49 9.6 (5-12) - 1 net
Dorothy 14 2014 12 14.1 (10-18) 0 - 1 net
Jasper 19 2014 1 7.7 22 8.8 (6-11) - 1 net
Storm 6 2014 45 8.9 (6-11) 0 - - 1 net
Lower Neva 7 2014 8 13.4 (9-16) 0 - - 1 net
Upper Neva 9 2014 0 - 0 - - 1 net
Yankee Doodle 3 2015 0 0 0 0 21 10.0 (4-14) 1 net
Jenny Lake 4 2016 0 0 9 10 (8-11) 1 7.4 (7-8) 1 net
Forest Lake, Upper 6 2016 0 0 28 10 (5-19) 0 0 1 net
Forest Lake, Lower 2 2016 0 0 41 9.2 (7-12) 0 0 1 net
Betty 6 2016 29 9.3 (7-12) 0 0 0 0 1 net
Bob 6 2016 15 13.4 (11-17) 0 0 0 0 1 net