FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Horsetooth Reservoir’s water level dropping by about 4 feet per week in July and August certainly hasn’t gone unnoticed by concerned boaters.
The water level of the popular reservoir dropped from 97% full at the beginning of the season to about 60% last week. Despite the drop, all boat ramps will be usable through Labor Day weekend, but not so much come mid-September.
Jeff Stahla, Northern Water spokesman, said an unusually dry and hot summer created increased water demand by agriculture and municipalities, resulting in the sharp drop in the reservoir's water level. He said the rate of that decline is expected to slow the rest of summer and early fall as water demand lessens.
"If we would have received rain and the weather wouldn’t have been so hot, you wouldn’t have seen such a sharp drop," Stahla said. "Still, historically this is about right where the water level would be at this time of year."
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