Pueblo Reservoir
Pueblo County, Colorado5,671 acresView mapDirections
Colorado WQCD publishes the water-quality measurements for Pueblo Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Mesotrophic
- Impaired · Oxygen depletion (low DO)
- 95 ft max depth
- Public access
Pueblo Reservoir in Pueblo County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 6.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 15 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 4.9 µg/L. Surface area: 5671 acres.
Pueblo Reservoir is a 5,671-acre mesotrophic lake in Pueblo County, Colorado with an estimated average depth of about 95 feet. Overall water quality is improving over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 5 public boat landings.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, CDPHE, last sampled 2023-09-25. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
At about 5,700 acres, Pueblo Reservoir is large enough that where you stay decides which shore you see most of. It has 5 public boat landings, so a lakefront rental is not the only way to get a boat on the water. For a place on the water, look through cabin and lake-house rentals near Pueblo Reservoir on Vrbo. For a hotel or motel room, Booking.com and Expedia both search around the lake.
What Pueblo Reservoir is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch5 documented ramps
- Big water5,671 acres
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyLow algae
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. Pueblo Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Pueblo 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 Pueblo Reservoir
These are the measurements Colorado WQCD publishes for Pueblo Reservoir, 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 6.5 ft. Phosphorus 15 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 4.9 µg/L. TSI 47.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 6.5ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 15µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 4.9µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 47 | Mesotrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
Moderate nutrients, good water quality
Ask about Pueblo Reservoir
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
→ Pueblo Reservoir water level: the live USGS gauge reading
Lake Details
Max depth
~95 ft est.
Surface area
5,671 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 Pueblo Reservoir.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
4,601 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
37.6 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
4,892 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
- Pueblo Reservoir State Wildlife AreaPublic
- Pueblo Reservoir State Wildlife AreaPublic
- Lake Pueblo State ParkPublic
- Lake Pueblo State Park - Northshore MarinaPublic
- Southshore MarinaPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Pueblo Reservoir
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Pueblo Reservoir in Pueblo 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 Pueblo Reservoir
Prices for Oct 23–25, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
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Fishing Pueblo Reservoir
Water Quality Trend: Improving
Based on 4 years of monitoring (2020–2023).
Water clarity
Worsening4 years
Phosphorus
Improving-1.45 µg/L/yr4 years
Chlorophyll-a
Improving-0.59 µg/L/yr4 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Pueblo Reservoir is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Pueblo Dam (completed 1975), built primarily for flood risk reduction on the Arkansas River; buttress-type dam, 245 ft tall and 10,230 ft long.
- Surface area
- 5,671 ac
- Normal storage
- 322,949 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 489,116 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 4,613.1 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- BUREAU OF RECLAMATION
All listed purposes: Flood Risk Reduction;Irrigation;Fish and Wildlife Pond;Recreation;Water Supply.
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID CO00299 · Operator website
EPA Impairment Status
Pueblo 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.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit COARMA20_A · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Pueblo County
Frequently asked questions about Pueblo Reservoir
Where is Pueblo Reservoir?
- Pueblo Reservoir is a lake in Pueblo County, Colorado. Its water-quality measurements are published by Colorado WQCD and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Pueblo Reservoir?
- Pueblo Reservoir in Pueblo County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 6.5 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 15 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 4.9 µg/L. Surface area: 5671 acres.
Is Pueblo Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Pueblo Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for oxygen depletion (low DO). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Pueblo Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Pueblo Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 95 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 5671 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Pueblo Reservoir?
- Pueblo Reservoir has 5 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Pueblo Reservoir State Wildlife Area, Pueblo Reservoir State Wildlife Area, Lake Pueblo State Park, Lake Pueblo State Park - Northshore Marina, among others. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Pueblo Reservoir?
- Pueblo Reservoir has 5 documented boat landings 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.
Explore Pueblo Reservoir across LakeQuality
Depth, room, public access, and the state wake-sport rules
Species activity outlook by water temperature and season
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Where this data comes from
412 measurements from 8 monitoring stations, 2020–2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- USGS Colorado Water Science Center
USGS-CO400 samples · 2020–2023 - Colorado Dept. of Public Health & Environment-WQCD
21COL001_WQX12 samples · 2022–2023
Analytical methods
- Secchi disk method
- P, wu, WCA, persulfate CF color
- Plant pigments, sonication & 445
- HACH, sensor model 2100 AN, R-On
- YSI EXO turbidity sensor, FNU
- Secchi disk depth measurement
- Phosphorus by Colorimetry
- 10200 H ~ Chlorophyll a-b-c Determination
- Nitrogen in Water by Pyrolysis Detection
Monitoring station identifiers (8)
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