Just five days into spring, boaters were able to get out on the water for the first time this year as Boyd Lake opened its boating season Friday morning.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife announced earlier this week that Boyd Lake in Loveland would open 8 a.m. Friday for the coming boating season.
Jason Clay, Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson for the northeast region, said Boyd Lake is one of the first lakes in the region to open up to boaters, with more opening in the coming weeks.
He said this is partially to do with the conditions of the water as the temperatures rise and staffing at the park.
“It worked out at Boyd Lake that the winds beat up (the) ice pretty good and they had their staff all in order to open up,” he said.
Nearby Larimer County reservoirs also will be opening for boats soon. Horsetooth Reservoir and Carter Lake are both tentatively scheduled to open at 7 a.m. April 1, according to the website.
A number of boaters flocked to Boyd on Friday with many heading out to try their hand at catching some fish across the lake’s 1,700 surface acres of water.
Scott Wenger and his son Luke traveled to Loveland from Lakewood to give Luke a chance to catch some bass, a pastime he enjoys so much that he competes in it.
They took their Skeeter boat out on the water to fish off it for the first time. Scott Wenger said while he is not as much of a fisherman as his son is, he enjoys getting to head off on a boat.
“I love going out on water, it’s a favorite of ours,” he said. “When we are out here in mornings and stuff its amazing.”
Luke Wenger said he doesn’t come up to Boyd Lake to fish very often, but he enjoys the opportunity to try and catch both large and small mouth bass.
“You get a little of the best of both worlds,” he said.
Arvada resident and Vietnam veteran Darrell Hadaway brought his Lund tiller boat to Boyd Lake on Friday morning to try his luck at catching some walleye in the lake — the waters where he said he once caught a 33-inch long walleye.
“It’s a maiden voyage for the year,” he said as he prepared his boat before heading out on the water.
Clay said in 2020, CPW saw an increase in state park visitors as the pandemic influenced many indoor events and activities. He said while numbers weren’t as high in 2021 as they were in 2020, they were still higher than non-pandemic years.
“We expect this summer will be similar to what we saw last year,” he said. “Pretty high visitation and people getting out and enjoying the (park) resources.”
Boyd Lake has two boat ramps, one by the marina and another further north at Heron Cove where non-motorized and personal watercraft can be launched.
In Colorado, all boats are required to undergo inspection for aquatic nuisance species before launching into Colorado waters.
At Boyd Lake, the aquatic nuisance species inspection station hours will be 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. for the remainder of March, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in April and 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. from May 1 through Labor Day, according to the parks release from March 23. The inspection station is located at the marina, and will be open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week.
The park office is open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday for boat registrations. More information on the park and lake can be found at cpw.state.co.us.
