Fishing at Cottonwood Lake Number Five, Delta County, Colorado

• Overview

  Delta County in Colorado is where Cottonwood Lake Number Five sits. The land about it is rolling bush. At about 32 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. Shoreline comes to about 0.9 miles, small enough to learn in a day. Few waters listed in Delta County are bigger. Cedaredge sits 13 miles from here and is the nearest stop. Then Orchard City, 18 miles, and Palisade, 21 miles. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Cottonwood Lake Number Five

  We hold no depth figure for this one. The old creek line under the surface is the feature worth finding. Points where the flooded channel swings in are the reliable ones. County-wide records name rainbow trout, white sucker, flannelmouth sucker and bluehead sucker. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Take Cottonwood Lake Number Five a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Seasonal averages run from 19°F in January up to 60°F in July. Four clear seasons, with a proper winter at one end. Winter locks it down, and late April brings it back. Expect the water usable from around late April until roughly late November. Fishing peaks soon after break-up and again before the cold returns. Expect Cottonwood Lake Number Five to follow that timing.

• Tackle & Baits

  Our records carry no access rule either way. No launch point is recorded nearby, so this is a bank water unless you carry a boat in. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Kitson Reservoir, 0.5 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. None of that is settled for Cottonwood Lake Number Five in what we hold.