Road Canyon Reservoir
Hinsdale County, ColoradoView mapDirections
Colorado WQCD publishes the water-quality measurements for Road Canyon Reservoir. Here is what has been measured.
- Impaired · Metals (other than mercury)
- 25 ft max depth
- Public access
- Limited data
Road Canyon Reservoir in Hinsdale County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 62.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 5.1 µg/L.
Road Canyon Reservoir is a lake in Hinsdale County, Colorado with an estimated average depth of about 25 feet. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 1 public boat landing.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, CDPHE, last sampled 2023-06-20. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
What Road Canyon Reservoir is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch1 documented ramp
- Camping2 public campgrounds nearby
Swimming conditions
No readingLimited data
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Road Canyon Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for metals (other than mercury). Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Road Canyon 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 Road Canyon Reservoir
These are the measurements Colorado WQCD publishes for Road Canyon 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 5.6 ft. Phosphorus 62.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 5.1 µg/L. TSI 54.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 5.6ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 62.5µg/L | Measured, not scored The nutrient that most limits algae growth in freshwater. More phosphorus, more algae potential. |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 5.1µg/L | Measured, not scored 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. | 54 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Road Canyon Reservoir
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~25 ft est.
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 Road Canyon Reservoir.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
10 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Surface area
136 acres
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
2.9 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
9,285 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
- Road Canyon Reservoir State Wildlife AreaPublic
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Public campgrounds near Road Canyon Reservoir
- Road Canyon1.8 km
- Crooked Creek Dispersed Area3.0 km
Nearest public campgrounds in the USGS National Map inventory, within about 3 miles. An empty list means USGS records no campground that close, which is not the same as camping being unavailable. Where the source gives an official reservation link, it is used; the cabin and hotel search does not cover campsites. More camping lakes
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Road Canyon Reservoir
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Top-rated places to stay near Road Canyon Reservoir
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Fishing Road Canyon Reservoir
EPA Impairment Status
Road Canyon 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.
Source: EPA ATTAINS assessment unit CORGRG38_D · Official waterbody report
Nearby Lakes in Hinsdale County
Frequently asked questions about Road Canyon Reservoir
Where is Road Canyon Reservoir?
- Road Canyon Reservoir is a lake in Hinsdale County, Colorado. Its water-quality measurements are published by Colorado WQCD and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Road Canyon Reservoir?
- Road Canyon Reservoir in Hinsdale County, Colorado has water-quality measurements published by Colorado WQCD, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 5.6 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 62.5 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 5.1 µg/L.
Is Road Canyon Reservoir safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Road Canyon Reservoir is listed impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) (IR 5) for metals (other than mercury). Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Road Canyon Reservoir?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Road Canyon Reservoir, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 25 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
Are there boat ramps on Road Canyon Reservoir?
- Road Canyon Reservoir has 1 documented boat landing in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include Road Canyon Reservoir State Wildlife Area. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Road Canyon Reservoir?
- Road Canyon 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.
Are there campgrounds on Road Canyon Reservoir?
- Road Canyon Reservoir has 2 public campgrounds from USGS The National Map within 5 km, including Road Canyon, Crooked Creek Dispersed Area. This is a location join, not a booking. Cabins and hotels are listed separately; campsite reservations use the official link when the source provides one.
Explore Road Canyon Reservoir across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
6 measurements from 2 monitoring stations, 2023. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Colorado Dept. of Public Health & Environment-WQCD
21COL001_WQX6 samples · 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 (2)
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
Public campgrounds from USGS The National Map Structures, within about 3 miles