Sugar Loaf Dam
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Sugar Loaf Dam[1] is a dam in Lake County of mid-Colorado, 4 miles (6.4 km) west of Leadville.
It has a height of 135 feet (41 m) feet and is over 2,000 feet (610 m) long at its crest, impounding the
The Fry-Ark diverts water across the continental divide from the Colorado River basin. This water is delivered to the more arid plains east of the Rocky Mountains. Although the predominant use is agricultural, some water is available to several cities east of the continental divide, including:
Turquoise Lake is the reservoir created by the dam.[3] It has a surface area of 1,780 acres (720 ha) and a capacity of 129,440 acre-feet (159,660,000 cubic meters).[4] The lake and its surrounding land provide various recreational activities for visitors in both the summer and winter.[5]
Climate
Sugar Loaf Dam has a subarctic climate (Köppen Dfc).
| Climate data for Sugar Loaf Reservoir, Colorado, 1991–2020 normals, 1900-2020 extremes: 9738ft (2968m) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 59 (15) |
55 (13) |
60 (16) |
74 (23) |
78 (26) |
90 (32) |
95 (35) |
97 (36) |
88 (31) |
78 (26) |
68 (20) |
60 (16) |
97 (36) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 48 (9) |
48 (9) |
53 (12) |
59 (15) |
69 (21) |
78 (26) |
81 (27) |
78 (26) |
74 (23) |
66 (19) |
55 (13) |
48 (9) |
82 (28) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 31.5 (−0.3) |
32.7 (0.4) |
39.2 (4.0) |
44.3 (6.8) |
55.2 (12.9) |
68.0 (20.0) |
72.7 (22.6) |
69.6 (20.9) |
61.9 (16.6) |
51.0 (10.6) |
39.3 (4.1) |
30.9 (−0.6) |
49.7 (9.8) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 17.5 (−8.1) |
18.0 (−7.8) |
24.3 (−4.3) |
31.1 (−0.5) |
41.0 (5.0) |
51.1 (10.6) |
56.1 (13.4) |
53.9 (12.2) |
46.7 (8.2) |
37.2 (2.9) |
26.6 (−3.0) |
18.4 (−7.6) |
35.2 (1.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 3.4 (−15.9) |
3.4 (−15.9) |
9.3 (−12.6) |
17.9 (−7.8) |
26.8 (−2.9) |
34.3 (1.3) |
39.5 (4.2) |
38.2 (3.4) |
31.4 (−0.3) |
23.5 (−4.7) |
13.9 (−10.1) |
5.9 (−14.5) |
20.6 (−6.3) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −14 (−26) |
−15 (−26) |
−10 (−23) |
2 (−17) |
15 (−9) |
26 (−3) |
33 (1) |
31 (−1) |
21 (−6) |
9 (−13) |
−5 (−21) |
−13 (−25) |
−19 (−28) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −55 (−48) |
−49 (−45) |
−44 (−42) |
−22 (−30) |
−11 (−24) |
17 (−8) |
25 (−4) |
23 (−5) |
4 (−16) |
−9 (−23) |
−32 (−36) |
−38 (−39) |
−55 (−48) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.97 (25) |
1.43 (36) |
1.34 (34) |
1.71 (43) |
1.40 (36) |
0.93 (24) |
1.86 (47) |
2.10 (53) |
1.42 (36) |
1.05 (27) |
1.30 (33) |
1.06 (27) |
16.57 (421) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 16.0 (41) |
16.7 (42) |
14.8 (38) |
13.6 (35) |
5.5 (14) |
0.2 (0.51) |
trace | trace | 0.3 (0.76) |
4.5 (11) |
12.2 (31) |
13.6 (35) |
97.4 (248.27) |
| Source 1: NOAA[6] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: XMACIS (snowfall, records & monthly max/mins)[7] | |||||||||||||
References
- ^ "Sugar Loaf Dam". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ "Project details - Fryingpan-Arkansas Project - Bureau of Reclamation". Archived from the original on 2012-08-23. Retrieved 2012-05-18.
- ^ "Turquoise Lake".
- ^ "Colorado Water Science Center".
- ^ "Turquoise Lake: Leadville's Sparkling Gem". 31 December 2016.
- ^ "Sugar Loaf Reservoir, Colorado 1991-2020 Monthly Normals". Retrieved November 3, 2023.
- ^ "xmACIS". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved November 3, 2023.