Cherry Creek Reservoir, Aurora Colorado - Cherry Creek State Park, located just south of Denver, was one of the first state parks in CO and remains one of the most visited with over 1.3 million visitors per year.
Cherry Creek Reservoir, an 880 acre flood control reservoir built in the 1950’s, is an integral part of this 3,900 acre urban park. The natural prairie environment of gentle, rolling hills has been preserved, while offering complete outdoor recreation facilities, including camping, picnicking and facilities for group events. Beyond the traditional park activities, many unique activities like model airplane flying, horseback riding and a family shooting range are available too. Well visited it is not unusual for visitors to be turned away on peak summer weekends once the park reaches capacity. Weekdays, early spring, late fall and winter provide a quieter experience.
Fishers should not let the heavy traffic deter them, as Cherry Creek continues to be an exceptional fishery. As many know the state record walleye was caught on Cherry Creek and this attracts many walleye fishermen. Trout are frequently stocked and a perennial favorite. Other species fishers pursue are wiper, largemouth bass, crappie and yellow perch. The “creek” is also known to produce an occasional monster catfish.
CDOW Fishing Survey Results
Annual surveys include the use of gill nets and boat electrofishing. The 2008 results show that walleye comprised the majority (41%) of the sample, followed by gizzard shad (20%), white sucker (16%), and then wiper (9%). Species in the “other” category included largemouth bass, black crappie, and yellow perch
Walleye up to 28” were collected in 2008. This lake can grow very large walleyes, due to the abundance of gizzard shad, their main food source. Rainbow trout are typically stocked at about 10” in length.. The larger rainbows over 15” are fish that have lived in the lake several years. Although the largest wiper collected in 2008 was only 18”, larger fish (over 10 pounds) are seen during the annual walleye spawning operation and during other operations at the reservoir.
Getting there: From I-225 exit on Parker Road . Go south on Parker Road and turn west on Lehigh Avenue to enter the park. Fees: Annual Park Pass Fees, includesBasin Authority fee ($3) Yearly Park Pass $63.00 Yearly Multiple $26.00 Aspen Leaf Annual* $33.00 Aspen Leaf Multiple* $16.00
Daily Park Pass $ 7.00 May 1 – Sept. 30 $ 8.00
Boating: All Boats Allowed. No restrictions.
3/2/2009 East and West boat ramps are open for launching from 6 am until 10 pm. Ice Fishing: Ice fishing allowed
9/1/2010 - Cherry Creek Reservoir - Fishing has picked back up, since the lake turned over two weeks ago. The shad have appeared in schools throughout the lake. Cast into the schools of shad with a different looking bait, like green worms, for the walleye. Trout are hitting worms, salmon eggs, and orange power bait. Nightcrawlers dropped straight down, off the boat docks, are providing anglers with good success for Large Mouth Bass. More bass have been caught this year than in recent memory. A few crappie have been caught by any of the concrete structures. This last week, a 22 lb. catfish was caught off the rip rap. Shore fisherman should fish off the bottom using marshmallows or inflating worms to avoid the crayfish.
Conditions History
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