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Scroll down for more views and maps of the Fishing Canal that pours into the south end of Shadow Mountain Lake.
The fishing canal is almost two miles long with many scenic bends. It is part of the Colorado Big Thompson Project.
It transports a huge amount of water (up to 600 cubic feet per second pumped) from Lake Granby to Shadow Mountain Lake.
The concrete-cube Farr Pumping Plant at the north end of Lake Granby lifts the the lake water (snowmelt) approximately 150± feet
(depending on the lake's storage level) to a natural ridge overlooking Lake Granby. From there is flows by gravity through the
canal to Shadow Mountain Lake. The huge flow creates excellent habitat for trout and (delicious) kokanee salmon where it
spills into the south end of Shadow Mountain Lake. The water is a long ways from its designated use in the Great Plains
(originally to grow sugar beats to beat Cuban sugar cane .... that's another story on the quirks of history and geopolitics).
The water starts its downward flow through the canal and eventually to the natural Chanel from Shadow Mountain Lake
 to Grand Lake. It then finds its way to tunnel below the surface of the Grand Lake near her east end. The water tunnels
under The Continental Divide for 13 miles to Estes Park. From Estes Park, the water still has a two thousand foot fall to
The Great Plains via the Big Thompson River and Canyon. Hydroelectricity is generated in the almost 10 foot wide tunnel
to power the Farr Pumping Plant and more. Additional electricity is generated in the long drop to the Great Plains.


The Fishing Canal is great for dog walks. It almost never freezes because it carries water in the winter that has been pumped up from Lake Granby. Scroll down for winter fishing.


Scroll down for a summer view.


Scroll down to turn around and see the view to Lake Granby from here at the beginning of the canal.


Underground pipes run from the Farr Pumping Plant (a concrete cube beyond the right edge of the photo)
to the top of the hill with the view shown here. Directly below is the easement for the pipes angling off to the right to the "concrete cube" by the lake.
Hydroelectric transmission lines near the pumphouse run are across the land from here to Grand Lake's eastern shore.



In the Winter, the canal area can be serene and poetic. Scroll down for 4 misty morning views.







If you would like to get to know the area on your own and spend a night along the canal . . . at Mountain Lake Lodge.


Scroll down to zoom in on the goose that is using the canal as a flyway.


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