Never far from Phoenix

The town of Breckenridge sponsored a town clean up on May 21. This event wasn't just for seasoned veterans but for all ages of the community. This family trio, Erica, Phoenix and Erik, were instilling the value of taking pride in ones community and respect for the waterway as they made their way along the Blue River Bike Path into the heart of town. Little Phoenix was a dedicated cleaner upper who was most enthused about reaching the Riverwalk Center for the bbq "party". Outside motivation never hurts.  Thanks for taking time to cleanup the town and thanks for chatting with MYOW.

My Your Our Water

Blue River Inlet

This is where the Blue River flows into the Dillion Reservoir, the confluence of its tributaries, Ten Mile Creek and the Snake River are on the horizon. Blue River fly fishing in the inlet can be extremely productive. Monster trout move into the river during the spawning runs of the spring and fall. 

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June in May

Breckenridge has a rich history that combines hard core mining and the unique endeavors of progressive individuals. MYOW met June at the Barney L. Ford  house/museum in historic Breckenridge. June not only shared the interesting story of Mr. Ford but she shared her own remarkable story of growing up in Japan, buying the water rights to her property, her family lineage to weather forecasting in the west, and  her connection to the water quality and quantity.

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Arm of the Snake River

The Snake River is a short tributary of the Blue River, approximately 15 miles long, in central Colorado. It drains a mountainous area on the west side of the Front Range in southeastern Summit County east of Keystone. The Snake rises near the continental divide near Webster Pass and descends through a steep canyon to the north past the former mining camp of Montezuma, then turns west to flow past Keystone, where it joins the Blue from the east as an arm of Dillon Reservoir.

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Sam I Am

This renaissance architect/ painter/ conservationist / solar power using /father from Boulder, Colorado stopped to chat with MYOW. Sam was in Breckenridge to lead a watercolor workshop at Breckcreate when the tricked out trike caught his eye as it took a water break outside of the Old Masonic Hall. Sam shared his stories of  water in Colorado, his thoughts on rain harvesting, self composting toilets, honey bears and his talents in watercolor. Sam thanks for doing your part, it was a treat to chat.

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Dillion Reservoir : Denver's Water

Completed in December 1963, Dillon Reservoir is the largest water storage facility in the Denver Water system holding over 40% of Denver's water. The entire town of Dillon, Colorado, and a hydroelectric plant were relocated to build the dam. The dam was built to divert water from the Blue River Basin through the Harold D. Roberts Tunnel under the Continental Divide into the South Platte River Basin. Dillon Dam is an earth-fill dam, 5,888 feet long by 231 feet above the Blue River stream bed. Dillon Reservoir's surface area of 3,233 acres and 26.8 miles of shoreline.

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Jim and Kevin 

Breckenridge is known by most as a ski destination but it beckons to others during mud season as well. These two gentlemen were visiting for a college reunion of sorts. Jim and Kevin chatted with MYOW about a variety of topics, Dallas Mavericks, the Wizard of Oz and most importantly the astonishing water footprint of their favored beverage, coffee.

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Ten Mile Creek

The Town of Frisco is located in central Summit County on the west shores of Dillon Reservoir and east of the base of Royal Mountain. Ten Mile Creek runs in an easterly direction through the city and ultimately into the Dillion reservoir which serves Denver Water. Ten Mile Creek is relatively small in size and flow, primarily featuring pocket water. It is known as an uncrowded stream for some good fly fishing except during runoffs when the high flows in the creek can be almost unfishable due to its steep gradient. 

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Town Clean Up

Saturday was town cleanup day in Breckenridge. Locals gathered at the Riverwalk Center for gloves and garbage bags at 9am. They then set out to give back by picking up. This dynamic duo, Meghan and Ray, hauled in over 4 bags of trash just from around the dredge pond. These two were eager to share stories about their engaged community that they recently call home. We chatted about the Colorado River, water rights, cookie cutter subdivisions and the amazing water pressure in their home that rivals a Seinfeld episode. Thanks for being so welcoming to an outsider from Arizona and thanks for being so engaged in your local and world community.

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Breckenridge Water

The Town of Breckenridge's water division facilitates everything from water treatment, to water delivery, to water bills. Currently the town's water supply runs through Gary Roberts Water Treatment Plant, located near the Goose Pasture Tarn reservoir 2 miles south of town. The current plant is rated at 4 million gallons per day. With the current growth rate of the area, a feasibility study for a second water treatment plant was conducted in 2011. The study came to the recommendation that an additional 3 MGD plant be built to meet future population demands, provide redundancy to the existing treatment plant, provide alternative water supplies in case of wildfire in the watershed, and provide additional service to the existing homes and lots near the existing water system boundary. 

My Your Our Water