Barr Lake
Adams County, Colorado1,830 acresView mapDirections
Colorado WQCD publishes the water-quality measurements for Barr Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Metals (other than mercury)
- Public access
- Limited data
Barr Lake in Adams County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.9 ft visibility. Surface area: 1830 acres.
Barr Lake is a 1,830-acre lake in Adams County, Colorado. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, CDPHE, last sampled 2024-07-09. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Barr Lake covers about 1,800 acres in Adams County. Vrbo is where to look for cabins and lake homes around Barr Lake, and Booking.com and Expedia search hotels near the lake for your dates.
What Barr Lake is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Big water1,830 acres
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Barr Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for metals (other than mercury), oxygen depletion (low DO), pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Barr Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Water Quality Control Division of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Barr Lake
These are the measurements Colorado WQCD publishes for Barr Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 3.9 ft. TSI 58.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 3.9ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | No reading The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. | |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water. | |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 58 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Barr Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Surface area
1,830 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Colorado WQCD
No bathymetric survey has been published for Barr Lake, so its depth is not documented here.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Barr Lake
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Fishing Barr Lake
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Improving2 years
Phosphorus
Improving-41.86 µg/L/yr6 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+5.14 µg/L/yr6 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Barr Lake is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Barr Lake (completed 1893), built primarily for irrigation on the Beebe Draw; earth-type dam, 43 ft tall and 7,150 ft long.
- Surface area
- 1,830 ac
- Normal storage
- 31,645 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 47,000 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 13 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- FARMERS RESERVOIR AND IRRIGATION COMPANY (EDGAR, S
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID CO01888 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Barr Lake is officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the 2024 EPA reporting cycle (IR category 5).
Causes of impairment
Designated uses not supporting: Drinking water, Aquatic life.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit COSPMS04_A · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Adams County
Frequently asked questions about Barr Lake
Where is Barr Lake?
- Barr Lake is a lake in Adams County, Colorado. Its water-quality measurements are published by Colorado WQCD and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Barr Lake?
- Barr Lake in Adams County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3.9 ft visibility. Surface area: 1830 acres.
Is Barr Lake safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Barr Lake is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for metals (other than mercury), oxygen depletion (low DO), pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Can I fish at Barr Lake?
- Public access to Barr Lake is listed as yes on the lake record. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Colorado's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
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Where this data comes from
4 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2022–2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS4 samples · 2022–2024
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Impairment status from EPA ATTAINS 303(d) database