Two-year dam rehabilitation project will limit some recreation on Pikes Peak
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- A two-year dam rehabilitation project at the South Catamount Reservoir will begin after Pikes Peak’s North Slope Recreation Area (NSRA) closes for the season Oct 15.
According to the City of Colorado Springs, the project will enhance the safety and performance of the 87-year-old dam.
The city said the work on the dam, which includes resurfacing of the dam’s steel face and extensive infrastructure replacement, will last through the 2024-2025 seasons and will limit some recreation opportunities in the NSRA.
"The last time the reservoir was drained, was in 1978.," said project manager Larysa Voronova, of Colorado Springs Utilities. "That was the last time we did major overhauls. This time, we're doing the same thing. We'll take the dam to the dead pool (lowest level), and then we'll do visual inspections and other inspections."
South Catamount Reservoir was significantly lowered and will not be available during the dam project; certain trails in the NSRA will also be temporarily closed.
The nearby North Catamount Reservoir will remain open to the public for recreation via hike-in access only during the dam project; vehicle access from South Catamount to North Catamount will not be available for the 2024-2025 seasons, according to the city.
Crystal Creek Reservoir reopened to the public this spring following similar dam rehabilitation work.
Voronova said that the South Catamount project shouldn't be vulnerable to delays experienced by the Crystal project due to supply chain issues with construction materials during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jason Baer, of Jacksonville, Florida, didn't get to visit the Pikes Peak summit because of weather conditions, but he was relieved to have hiked trails along North and South Catamount before the closure begins in two weeks.
“Yeah, I guess I understand they’ve got to maintain it for the future," he said. "But whatever it takes to get it back up and running to allow us visiting folks to come and see. I didn’t know about it, so it’s nice to know about it."
Henry Hessen regularly fishes at North Catamount and doesn't believe the two-year closure will affect him.
"Because we’re pretty committed to fishing," he said, including his wife and dog. "If we can’t fish here, we’ll go across to Rampart and fish there on the other side. It was great to go in South Rampart and take as many fish out as we wanted. We even took some down to the Raptor Center in Pueblo to feed to eagles and other birds of prey."
Voronova said that the Crystal project cost $10 million, and no estimate is available yet on the South Catamount project because a contractor has yet to be selected.
For more information on the South Catamount Dam Rehabilitation Project and how it will affect recreation in the NSRA, visit https://www.csu.org/Pages/SouthCatamountProject.aspx.
