Sunday, June 9th, 2019
By Kathryn Mutz
Standley Lake is a multi-use recreation and water-storage facility, and is the drinking water supply for Westminster, Northglenn, and Thornton. With 1,063-acres of surface area, Standley Lake is Westminster’s largest body of water. It is also the Denver metropolitan area’s third largest reservoir. And it is a darn nice place to paddle on a Sunday morning!
Our trip of five tandem canoes included 11 participants ranging in age from 8 to 72. The weather was a bit chilly (upper 40s to mid-50s?), but we had little wind and beautiful views of the mountains. The recreation area has at least temporarily banned motor boats, so we had a peaceful paddle of about 2 miles, launching at the Pelican Cove beach and paddling along the western shore. Because of the ban on motor craft, we could ignore the “No boats” buoys, but be sure to ask (we did) as they might change the rules.
The highlight of the morning was paddling around Bird Island which is tiny, but hosts a cormorant and great blue heron rookery. Dozens of cormorants and a few great blues, including their young, hung out in the Bird Island trees. Great blues and white pelicans also plied the beaches and did multiple flyovers and flybys. We also saw some HUGE carp, many geese (but no babies, which seemed odd), a few ducks, killdeer, and a notable, but very sorry looking prairie dog.
We did not see the resident bald eagles or their nest while paddling, but the area has an eagle viewing blind. There is also a nature center with a variety of stuffed wildlife and an active beehive, but it was temporarily/briefly closed when some of us tried to visit.
Be aware that the price of park admission ($15 per car, including one boat; $5 additional per boat) includes a hot water bath for your boat. The spray for undesirables is mandatory, but it is a quick procedure. We had to take our boats off of our vehicles and place them on a rack, but that is apparently not always required.
This was the first RMCC Standley Lake paddle (as far as we know), but it should be an annual tradition. It really was lovely despite the slightly marginal weather.
Photos by Dave Gill and Kathryn Mutz
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