Ruedi Reservoir is a reservoir on the
Western Slope of the
Continental Divide
A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...
on the
Fryingpan River. It sits about upstream of the town of
Basalt, Colorado
The Town of Basalt is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule municipality located in Eagle County, Colorado, Eagle and Pitkin County, Colorado, Pitkin List of counties in Colorado, counties, Colorado, United State ...
, near Aspen.
[U.S Department of the Interior: "Water and Power resources Service, Project Data." U.S. Government Printing Office, 1981] The reservoir is located within the
White River National Forest
White River National Forest is a United States National Forest, National Forest in northwest Colorado. It is named after the White River (Green River), White River that passes through its northern section. It is the most visited National Forest ...
, and straddles the county line between
Pitkin County
Pitkin County is a county in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,358. The county seat and largest city is Aspen. The county is named for Colorado Governor Frederick Walker Pitkin. Pitkin County has the sev ...
and
Eagle County
Eagle County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 55,731. The county seat is the Town of Eagle and the most populous community is Edwards. The county is named for the Eagle River.
Eagl ...
.
The reservoir and the Ruedi Dam were built from 1964 through 1968. They're both owned and operated by the
United States Bureau of Reclamation
The Bureau of Reclamation, and formerly the United States Reclamation Service, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees water resource management, specifically as it applies to the oversight and opera ...
. One purpose of the reservoir is to help compensate for diversions to Colorado's East Slope, taken further up in the Fryingpan Basin as part of Reclamation's federal
Fryingpan-Arkansas Project. Another purpose of the reservoir is to provide water for West Slope interests.
The dam is located in Eagle County.
Ruedi stores approximately of water.
Water in the reservoir is released through Ruedi Dam down the Fryingpan primarily for municipal, industrial, and agricultural interests. A side benefit of the reservoir is recreation. Boating, fishing and camping are popular at the reservoir itself, while the downstream portion of the Fryingpan River has become well regarded as a Gold Medal fishery.
Typically, releases from Ruedi follow a seasonal pattern. The USGS page for streamflow below Ruedi Dam provides up-to-date information for water released to the Lower Fryingpan in cubic-feet-per-second
[http://nwis.waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?09080400 USGS gauge page] measurements.
Hydroelectric power plant
A hydroelectric power plant that sits at the base of the dam produces 5.0 megawatts of electricity. Built in 1985, the plant supplies electricity to the
City of Aspen and is owned by the city.
See also
*
List of largest reservoirs of Colorado
This is a list of the largest reservoirs in the state of Colorado. All thirty-eight reservoirs that contain greater than are included in the list. Most of the larger reservoirs in the state are owned by the United States Bureau of Reclamation and, ...
References
External links
*
Ruedi Reservoir water levelsUSGS gauge page
{{Authority control
Buildings and structures in Pitkin County, Colorado
Lakes of Eagle County, Colorado
Lakes of Pitkin County, Colorado
Protected areas of Pitkin County, Colorado
Reservoirs in Colorado