Bowles Lake in Arapahoe County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  You will find Bowles Lake in Arapahoe County, Colorado. Height above sea level is 5,463 feet. Surface area is around 93 acres, which gives you real water without needing a boat. Bank access stretches around 1.4 miles in total. Columbine Valley lies 1.6 miles from the water. Further out sit Littleton (1.9 miles) and Columbine (2.4 miles). A county line runs close by, so local bylaws can differ within a short drive.

• Where to Fish on Bowles Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. Draw-down through summer strips the margins, so follow the water out. Rip-rap along the wall holds fish that the open bank never does. Arapahoe County records list common carp, white sucker and walleye among the fish reported. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. On Bowles Lake that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 73°F, with January the cold end at about 31°F. Temperature moves within a narrow band, and so does the fishing. It should never be assumed safe, whatever the month says. The hot months push the fishing to dawn and dusk. Anyone fishing Bowles Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Ownership and access are not documented in what we hold. There is a launch about half a mile from the bank. A marina sits half a mile off, so fuel and a proper ramp are close. Public data has parking about half a mile from the shore. Mapping shows a jetty some half a mile off. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Upper Tule Lake sits 0.3 miles off and takes the overflow. Nothing on Bowles Lake should be assumed from this page alone.