Jackson Reservoir
Morgan County, Colorado2,427 acresView mapDirections
Colorado WQCD publishes the water-quality measurements for Jackson Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- Impaired · pH / acidity
- 77 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Jackson Reservoir in Morgan County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 60.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 22.3 µg/L. Surface area: 2427 acres.
Jackson Reservoir is a 2,427-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Morgan County, Colorado with an estimated average depth of about 77 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, CDPHE, last sampled 2023-11-07. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Jackson Reservoir is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Big water2,427 acres
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLimited data
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Jackson Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Jackson Reservoir 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 Jackson Reservoir
These are the measurements Colorado WQCD publishes for Jackson Reservoir, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Very murky, less than 2.1 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 60.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 22.3 µg/L. TSI 64.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 2.1ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 60.5µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 22.3µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 64 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Jackson Reservoir
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~77 ft est.
Surface area
2,427 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by Colorado WQCD
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Colorado has not published bathymetry for Jackson Reservoir.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
67 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
8 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
4,442 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Recreation & Access
- Jackson Lake State ParkPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Jackson Reservoir
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Jackson Reservoir in Morgan County, Colorado — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water. The water-quality readings cover nutrients and algae, not lodging. Cabins and rentals around Jackson Reservoir are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Jackson Reservoir
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Fishing Jackson Reservoir
Water quality readings over time
2 seasons of samples on record (2021–2022). Calling a direction takes at least 4 years of the same measurement.
Water clarity
Worsening2 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+28 µg/L/yr2 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+13.4 µg/L/yr2 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Jackson Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Jackson Lake (completed 1900), built primarily for irrigation on the South Platte River-Tr; earth-type dam, 39 ft tall and 13,000 ft long.
- Surface area
- 2,427 ac
- Normal storage
- 27,256 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 60,800 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 15 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- JACKSON LAKE RESERVOIR CO. (CYNTHIA LEFEVER)
All listed purposes: Irrigation;Recreation.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID CO00016 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Jackson Reservoir 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: Aquatic life.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit COSPLS03_D · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Morgan County
Frequently asked questions about Jackson Reservoir
Where is Jackson Reservoir?
- Jackson Reservoir is a lake in Morgan County, Colorado. Its water-quality measurements are published by Colorado WQCD and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Jackson Reservoir?
- Jackson Reservoir in Morgan County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.1 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 60.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 22.3 µg/L. Surface area: 2427 acres.
Is Jackson Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Jackson Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for pH / acidity. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Jackson Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Jackson Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 77 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 2427 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Jackson Reservoir?
- Jackson Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Jackson Lake State Park. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Jackson Reservoir?
- Jackson Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. 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
18 measurements from 3 monitoring stations, 2021–2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Colorado Dept. of Public Health & Environment-WQCD
21COL001_WQX18 samples · 2021–2023
Analytical methods
- Secchi disk depth measurement
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
- Nitrogen in Water by Pyrolysis Detection
Monitoring station identifiers (3)
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
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory