Colorado lakes and reservoirs

Dillon Reservoir Fishing

A 3,345-acre Colorado reservoir in Summit County at 9,022 feet.

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Photo: Clyde Charles Brown, CC BY-SA 4.0

Summit County

Getting to know Dillon Reservoir

Its mapped shoreline gives Dillon Reservoir close to 3,345 acres, all charted in Summit County. At around 9,022 feet, it is high-country water. CPW files it under Dillon Reservoir. The closest town on the Census list is Dillon, some 2 miles away. It belongs to the CPW Northwest Region.

Its fish on the CPW roster: brown trout, cutbow, kokanee salmon, rainbow trout, largemouth bass and walleye. Boaters have 2 boat ramps to choose from. CPW sets the boating rule as Motor boats (gasoline). The Fishing Atlas rates access as easy and fishing pressure as low. Through the ice season: ice fishing listed as yes.

3,345acres
9,022feet elevation
2boat ramps
12species listed

CPW Quality Waters: Variety angling in a single park, each pond really has something different to offer. Exceptional for families and new anglers and great ice fishing. Park staff is quite incredible with a breadth of fishing knowledge. Blue Heron Pond has excellent largemouth bass, great for walleye/saugeye, channel catfish, crappie, and redear sunfish. This is the largest water on the park and trailered boats can launch.

CPW Fishing Atlas 2025 layers (waterbody outline, Boatable Waters, fishing locations), Census places, retrieved October 25, 2026.

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Species

Which fish Dillon Reservoir holds

These Dillon Reservoir species rest on CPW listings and records, not a full net survey.

CPW Boatable Waters species field, CPW state records and stocking report, retrieved October 25, 2026.

Access

Ramps CPW maps at Dillon Reservoir

  • Dillon Marinaboat ramp, ANS inspection
  • Frisco Marina on Dillon Reservoirboat ramp, ANS inspection

Fishing access points at Dillon Reservoir

Backup boat ramps near Dillon Reservoir

  • McDonald Flats Ramp on Green Mountain ReservoirGreen Mountain Reservoir, 20 miles northwest

CPW boat ramp and Fishing Atlas fishing location layers, retrieved October 25, 2026.

Water supply

How full Dillon Reservoir is

158,243 acre-feetstorage, Dillon Reservoir

Co. Division of Water Resources storage telemetry for Dillon Reservoir (station DILRESCO), recorded October 25, 2026; retrieved October 25, 2026. Provisional data from CDSS.

Water rights, not anglers, set the level at Dillon Reservoir.

Limits

Fish legal to carry home from Dillon Reservoir

SpeciesBag and possessionSeason
Trout, arctic char, grayling, salmon and whitefish (not kokanee)Daily bag 4, possession 8, in aggregateOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Brook trout 8 inches or less (bonus)Daily bag 10, possession 10Open all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Kokanee salmonDaily bag 10, possession 10Open all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Walleye, saugeye and saugerDaily bag 5, possession 5, in aggregateOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bassDaily bag 5, possession 5, in aggregateOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Smallmouth bassNo bag or possession limitOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
White bass, striped bass and wiperDaily bag 10, possession 10, in aggregateOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Channel, flathead and blue catfishDaily bag 10, possession 10, in aggregateOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
White and black crappieDaily bag 20, possession 20, in aggregateOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Bluegill and other sunfishDaily bag 20, possession 20, in aggregateOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Yellow perchNo bag or possession limitOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Tiger muskieDaily bag 1, possession 1; at least 36 inches longOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise
Northern pike and bullheadNo bag or possession limitOpen all year, day and night, unless a special regulation says otherwise

The drainage column of the limits chart puts Dillon Reservoir west of the Continental Divide. Waters stay open day and night all year in Colorado; the chart rows set the bag at Dillon Reservoir.

Special regulations written for Dillon Reservoir

Water as printedRuleBrochure
Dillon ReservoirArctic char under 20 inches must be returned to the water immediately. Bag, possession and min. size limit for Arctic char is 1, 20 inches long. Brown trout over 14 inches long must be returned to water immediately.p. 17

Special regulations as printed in the 2026 Colorado Fishing brochure (CPW, season March 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027), pp. 11 to 39, checked against CPW Chapter W-1 (as approved 13 November 2025); retrieved October 2026.

Statewide bag and possession chart, 2026 Colorado Fishing brochure (CPW, season March 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027), p. 10, retrieved October 25, 2026.

Stocking

The stocking record for Dillon Reservoir

CPW logged Dillon Reservoir 11 listings on its stocking list, the newest dated October 2, 2026.

3listings in 2026
4listings in 2025
4listings in 2024
Report dateWhat CPW lists
October 2, 2026catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
June 19, 2026catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
May 29, 2026catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
November 14, 2025catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
August 29, 2025catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
June 27, 2025catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
May 9, 2025catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
October 11, 2024catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
September 18, 2024catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
August 8, 2024catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region
April 26, 2024catchable trout, CPW Northwest Region

CPW Fish Stocking Report (catchable trout of about 10 inches; the date is when CPW added the water to its weekly list), 2024 to October 2026, retrieved October 25, 2026. Colorado stocking.

Records

Big fish from Dillon Reservoir on the record list

SpeciesCategoryWeight or lengthAnglerYear
Brown Troutcatch and release length30.00 inDustin Noha2025
Arctic Charcatch and release length25.38 inTravis Divis2024
Arctic charweight7-7.68 (lbs.-ozs.)Pete McDonnell2023

CPW state records by weight and catch-and-release length, 2026 Colorado Fishing brochure (CPW, season March 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027), retrieved October 25, 2026. All Colorado records.

Compare

Dillon Reservoir beside its neighbors

LakeDistanceAcresElevation ftBoat rampsOn the trout report
Dillon Reservoir3,3459,0222yes
Officers Gulch Pond6 miles southwest129,4500
Copper Mountain Pond8 miles southwest139,6660yes
Shelf Lake14 miles east711,9830
Hassel Lake14 miles northeast611,3400
Jefferson Lake15 miles southeast8910,6920yes

CPW Fishing Atlas, ramp layer and stocking report, retrieved October 25, 2026.

Nearby

Around Dillon Reservoir on the map

Reservoirs and ponds near Dillon Reservoir

  • Officers Gulch Pond6 miles southwest
  • Copper Mountain Pond8 miles southwest
  • Shelf Lake14 miles east
  • Hassel Lake14 miles northeast
  • Jefferson Lake15 miles southeast

Stores that stock up Dillon Reservoir trips

  • The Colorado Anglerfly shop, Summit, 2 miles
  • Fly Fishingfly shop, Silverthorne, 2 miles
  • Big Ed's Fishing Venturesbait and tackle shop, Dillon, 2 miles
  • Dillon Marinamarina, Dillon, 2 miles
  • Frisco Marinamarina, Summit, 2 miles
  • Trouts Fly Fishing, 309 Main Stfly shop, Frisco, 2 miles

Hiring a guide for Dillon Reservoir

  • Alpine Fishing Adventuresfishing guide, Frisco, (303) 885-6292
  • Cutthroat Anglers LLCfishing guide, Silverthorne
  • Integrity Fishing Ventures Incfishing guide, Dillon
  • Mountain Anglerfishing guide, Breckenridge, (970) 453-4665
  • Silver Flask Fishingfishing guide, Dillon
  • Summit Fishing Guidesfishing guide, Dillon, (970) 680-3474
  • The Affable Angler Corp.fishing guide, Breckenridge
  • Stonefly Angler LLCfly fishing guide, Breckenridge

Nearest towns to Dillon Reservoir

  • Dillon2 miles
  • Frisco2 miles
  • Silverthorne4 miles

Dillon Reservoir on the county pages

  • Summit Countyseat: Breckenridge
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In photos

Photo views of fishing water near Dillon Reservoir

Blue River, Colorado
Blue River 9.6 mi
Photo: Jeffrey Beall, CC BY 4.0
Green Mountain Reservoir, Colorado
Green Mountain Reservoir 21 mi
Photo: Jeffrey Beall, CC BY 4.0
Turquoise Lake, Colorado
Turquoise Lake 28 mi
Photo: Jeffrey Beall, CC BY 4.0
Arkansas River, Colorado
Arkansas River 33 mi
Photo: Jpmcmahon1, CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers

Colorado anglers ask this about Dillon Reservoir

In what part of the state is Dillon Reservoir?

Summit County, CPW Northwest Region, about 2 miles from Dillon.

Is Dillon Reservoir a big reservoir?

About 3,345 acres, at about 9,022 feet.

Can a trailered boat get onto Dillon Reservoir from a mapped ramp?

There are 2 boat ramps; Frisco Marina on Dillon Reservoir heads the list.

Are trout part of the fishery at Dillon Reservoir?

Expect brown trout, cutbow, kokanee salmon, rainbow trout, largemouth bass, walleye and saugeye.

What bag limit does the CPW chart set at Dillon Reservoir?

Trout, arctic char, grayling, salmon and whitefish (not kokanee): Daily bag 4, possession 8, in aggregate. Check the special regulation rows above as well.

Is a CPW license required to fish Dillon Reservoir?

Colorado sells no separate trout stamp; a CPW fishing license covers trout ($44.87 for adult residents, $124.01 for nonresidents), and anglers 16 and older need one.

Has CPW listed Dillon Reservoir for stocking recently?

It shows 11 listings on the CPW catchable trout report (3 in 2026, 4 in 2025, 4 in 2024); latest October 2, 2026.

Which store on the list is nearest Dillon Reservoir?

The Colorado Angler, about 2 miles away.

Who reports the water level at Dillon Reservoir?

Above: Colorado Division of Water Resources telemetry.

Has Dillon Reservoir produced a Colorado state record?

Brown Trout, catch and release length 30.00 in, by Dustin Noha in 2025.

Is Dillon Reservoir an ice fishing spot?

Its winter entry reads ice fishing listed as yes; drill test holes first.

Put Dillon Reservoir on this season's list

License prices and the full limits chart are on one page.