On Oct. 25, stakeholders from Northern Water, Grand County government and Colorado Parks and Wildlife gathered on the bank of the newly created Colorado River Connectivity Channel in Granby. The group watched as the first flows of water passed through the connectivity channel around a restructured Windy Gap Reservoir.

These flows marked the successful trial of the channel, which has been three decades in the making. The channel is designed to improve the health of the Colorado River, benefiting the 40 million water users who rely on it.

Northern Water published a video of the milestone event on their YouTube channel.

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“This is certainly one of the most significant and exciting days of my entire career,” said John Ewert, an aquatic biologist with CPW, in the video. “This is the largest aquatic habitat connectivity project that’s ever been undertaken in the history of the state. It’s a big deal.”

The channel reconnects the river upstream of the dam and downstream at the confluence of the Colorado and Fraser rivers, also allowing for a new floodplain. To connect the river, the reservoir’s southern embankment was moved, reducing the reservoir’s surface area by about 30%. The river has been separated since Northern Water created Windy Gap Reservoir almost 40 years ago.

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“There’s still a lot more work to go, but this should really, really heal our river,” said Grand County commissioner Richard Cimino in the video as he gazed at blue water flowing through the channel. He attended the event with fellow commissioners Randy George and Merrit Linke, and county manager Ed Moyer.

Jeff Stahla, Northern Water’s public information officer, told Sky-Hi News that the channel is in an “interim trial period.” Water will run in the channel through winter, and at spring runoff most of the river flow will go through Windy Gap Reservoir. Stahla explained that diverting heavy spring and early summer runoff back to Windy Gap will protect the channel while crews continue working in the area.

Although the channel is functioning, there’s still lots to do at Windy Gap to ensure the area’s health. This spring, crews will grade out the floodplain, finish construction on the new diversion structure and complete other finishing touches. This work is expected to be completed by fall 2024. Crews will also plant vegetation on the shores of the channel through the next couple years.

By 2027, the channel will be open to the public to enjoy. Anglers can then access over a mile of public fishing access in Gold Medal waters, and visitors can enjoy meandering along the banks of the channel. Although the channel won’t be actively stocked, fish know the way without needing human help – Stahla said that the fish are already using the new waterway, traveling almost the same path they took before the reservoir was created.

Windy Gap water to be stored in Chimney Hollow Reservoir

The channel is part of a $90 million package worth of environmental measures related to Northern Water’s construction of Chimney Hollow Reservoir. The reservoir, which is nearly complete, is designed to improve Northern’s storage of Windy Gap Reservoir water.  

Windy Gap provides water before it is pumped to Front Range communities supplied by Northern Water. The water takes a long path to reach its users – it travels from the Colorado River, into Windy Gap, then goes through six miles of pipe to be stored in Lake Granby. From Lake Granby, water travels to Grand Lake, then flows underneath Rocky Mountain National Park through Adams Tunnel, finally arriving to Front Range communities.

In 2021, Northern began construction on the Chimney Hollow Reservoir west of Loveland to ensure the reliability of its deliveries of Windy Gap water. Instead of being stored in Lake Granby, water from Windy Gap will travel through Lake Granby, under the Continental Divide, to be stored at Chimney Hollow instead.

As Northern began planning Chimney Hollow, they took on the connectivity project, knowing how essential it was – not only to its water users – but to the Colorado River and the environment as a whole.

Although Front Range communities are the beneficiaries to Windy Gap water, the river paid a price for the reservoir’s construction. Damming the river caused sediment build up, rising water temperatures and loss of aquatic life, including a 38% loss of macroinvertebrate diversity, according to Colorado Trout Unlimited.

The idea to reconnect the Colorado River began in the late 1990s with naturalist Bud Issacs. Dismayed at the loss of aquatic life, Isaacs teamed up with Trout Unlimited to create the Colorado River Connectivity Channel Project. Grand County government eagerly joined forces with the project.

Then in 2011, Northern pledged to also spearhead their environmental measures related to Chimney Hollow for healing the Colorado River. Perhaps the most significant of the measures – the connectivity channel – is anticipated to be valued at nearly $31 million once completed. Other measures to help Grand County are: water provided to the local water districts, streamflow and aquatic habitat improvements, and funding to improve the Fraser Valley Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Grand County directly benefits

Lots of diverse groups are celebrating this project, from environmentalists to local leaders. Stakeholders such as Trout Unlimited and Grand County officials shared their thoughts with Sky-Hi News after the channel’s successful trial.

“Reconnecting the Colorado River is the most important project ever done in Grand County and probably Colorado for the restoration of stream health,” Kirk Klancke, president of the Colorado River Headwaters Chapter of Trout Unlimited, wrote to Sky-Hi News. “I’m proud to live in a county that sets this type of example.”

Grand County Manager Ed Moyer said it was a historic day.

“It was almost surreal to witness water flowing down the channel for the first time, and seeing the mighty Colorado River reconnected,” Moyer said. “This important project was accomplished thanks to the work, time, effort and energy put forth by all those who collaborated to make it a reality. We’d like to thank the project partners, and all of the people – including those project champions who are no longer with us, but who would be so proud – that have worked together for decades on the Connectivity Channel Project. This project will have lasting positive impacts not just for aquatic life, but will also reestablish a vibrant, healthy Colorado River to benefit generations to come.”

Other connectivity channel project members include: Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Colorado Water Conservation Board, Colorado River District, Upper Colorado River Alliance, Natural Resources Conservation District and more.