Three dams help form Carter Lake Reservoir. The Reservoir is one of two final storage locations for water diverted from Colorado's West Slope via the Colorado-Big Thompson Project. Water exits the reservoir through Dam #1 and the St. Vrain Supply Canal serving communities ranging from Longmont to Boulder and Fort Morgan, Colorado before water is returned to the South Platte River system.
Dam No. 1, the largest, occupies a gap across the Dakota sandstone hogback, and ifs founded on Morrison shale and limestone and the Sundance sandstone. The abutments are Dakota sandstone and shale, and all the strata have about 15 degree dip downstream.
The geology of Dam No. 2 is somewhat more complex. Due to sharp echelon folding, the hogback structure ends abruptly against a southward plunging anticline. The result is that the foundation strata dip to the southwest into the right abutment, with dips varying from 5 degrees on the right abutment to 70 degrees on the left abutment. The dam rests on upturned edges of the Morrison shale and limestone, Sundance sandstone and the Lykins formation.
Dam No. 3 rests entirely on Lyons sandstone.
General
Project
Colorado-Big Thompson
Longitude
-105.2117
Latitude
40.3250
Watercourse
offstream Storage
Reservoir
Carter Lake
Original Construction
1950-1952
National ID Number
CO01650
Dimensions
Crest Elevation
5769.0 ft
Structural Height
214.0 ft
Hydraulic Height (Normal Operating Depth at Dam)
190.0 ft
Crest Length
1235.0 ft
Top of Active Conservation Pool (Elevation)
5759.0 ft
Top of Inactive Conservation Pool (Elevation)
5640.0 ft
Top of Dead Storage Pool (Elevation)
5618.0 ft
Streambed at Dam Axis
5579.0 ft
Hydraulics & Hydrology
Outlet Works Capacity at Elevation
1200 cfs at 5763.0 ft
Drainage Area
3.7 sq mi
Hydrometeorological Report (HMR)
HMR 55
Normal Water Surface Elevation
5759.0 ft
Auxiliary Spillway
No
Contact
Owner
Title: Area Office Manager Organization: Eastern Colorado Area Office Address: 11056 W. County Rd 18E City: Loveland, CO 80537-9711 Fax: 970-663-3212 Phone: 970-667-4410
Operator
Organization: Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District Address: PO Box 679 City: Loveland, CO 80539 Phone: 970-667-2437
More Information about the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation