Where to Go Antero Reservoir
Current Reports
Summer HOURS 6 am to 6 pm Daily
Current Conditions:
Antero Reservoir remains entirely closed to all recreational activities, including camping and fishing, for the 2026 season.
Denver Water has moved the water previously held in Antero downstream due to its high evaporation rate during drought conditions. Historically, Antero Reservoir has been completely emptied or significantly drained eight times since Denver Water took ownership in 1924. The most recent times happened in 2015 and 2002. It is frustrating to lose one of our favorite fisheries for the summer. This does give the Reservoir a nice "reset", allowing the sucker population to start from scratch once again. CPW aquatic biologists used electrofishing on the outlet to capture and salvage almost 1,000 trophy-sized rainbow, brown, cutthroat, and cutbow trout. These fish were immediately trucked and released into Eleven Mile State Park, selected because it is in the same South Platte basin and already tested positive for New Zealand Mudsnails. There is even word of a few Tiger Muskies that snuck into the South Fork of the South Platte River.
Antero Reservoir is a shallow reservoir with healthy plant life and more scud shrimp than you can shake a hook at. Because it is so loaded with these protein-rich scuds the trout feed on, their growth rate is significantly higher than fish in most other reservoirs within a reasonable driving distance. So if you have an appetite for catching large and beautifully colored Rainbows and Browns, consider Antero.
This is an area we specialize in and are permitted to guide, so give us a shout if you have any questions or if you are interested in allowing one of our Orvis-Endorsed guides show you how best to conquer Antero Reservoir.