Milton Reservoir
Weld County, Colorado2,660 acresView mapDirections
Colorado WQCD publishes the water-quality measurements for Milton Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Metals (other than mercury)
- Limited data
Milton Reservoir in Weld County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.6 ft visibility. Surface area: 2660 acres.
Milton Reservoir is a 2,660-acre lake in Weld County, Colorado. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, CDPHE, last sampled 2024-07-09. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Milton Reservoir covers about 2,700 acres in Weld County. If you are planning to stay, you can search lake houses and cabins around Milton Reservoir on Vrbo, or look for a hotel room near the lake on Booking.com or Expedia.
What Milton Reservoir is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Big water2,660 acres
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Milton Reservoir 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 Milton 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 Milton Reservoir
These are the measurements Colorado WQCD publishes for Milton 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 2.6 ft of visibility. TSI 63.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 2.6ft | 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. | 63 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Milton Reservoir
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Surface area
2,660 acres
No bathymetric survey has been published for Milton Reservoir, so its depth is not documented here.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Milton Reservoir
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Milton Reservoir in Weld 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.
Top-rated places to stay near Milton Reservoir
Prices for Oct 23–25, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
Availability and prices from Stay22 partners (Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia). We may earn a commission from bookings, at no extra cost to you.
Planning a whole trip? See where to stay at Colorado’s top lakes →
Follow Milton Reservoir’s readings
Email me when new measurements post for this lake. Updates stay free.
Or email
Fishing Milton Reservoir
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 6 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Phosphorus
Improving-45.57 µg/L/yr6 years
Chlorophyll-a
Improving-5.47 µg/L/yr6 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Milton Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Milton Lake (completed 1911), built primarily for irrigation on the Beebe Seep Canal; earth-type dam, 55 ft tall and 6,099 ft long.
- Surface area
- 2,660 ac
- Normal storage
- 21,695 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 44,650 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 120 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- FARMERS RESERVOIR AND IRRIGATION COMPANY (EDGAR, S
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID CO01899 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Milton 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: Drinking water, Aquatic life.
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) plan has been approved.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit COSPMS04_B · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Weld County
Frequently asked questions about Milton Reservoir
Where is Milton Reservoir?
- Milton Reservoir is a lake in Weld County, Colorado. Its water-quality measurements are published by Colorado WQCD and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Milton Reservoir?
- Milton Reservoir in Weld County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 2.6 ft visibility. Surface area: 2660 acres.
Is Milton Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Milton Reservoir 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.
Explore Milton Reservoir across LakeQuality
13.1 mi away · cable-pulled, no boat wake
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
Where to stay at Colorado's top lakes, each with its readings
Colorado's cleanest lakes, ranked on agency measurements
More lakes in Colorado
Other Lakes in Colorado
Eutrophic Lakes in Colorado
Where this data comes from
1 measurement from 1 monitoring station, 2024. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- North American Lake Management Society
NALMS1 sample · 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