This page features drone-captured photos and videos of Paonia Reservoir on Colorado’s Western Slope.
Located 16 miles northeast of Paonia, the reservoir lies along Muddy Creek, upstream from the confluence with Anthracite Creek. Those two creeks form the North Fork of the Gunnison River, a tributary of the Colorado River. The project was built to provide irrigation water, flood control, and recreation benefits.
When Paonia Dam was completed in 1962, the reservoir had a capacity of 18,150 acre-feet, but sedimentation has reduced its storage to 15,600 acre-feet, according to the Bureau of Reclamation. See this High Country News story for more on the sedimentation issue at Paonia and other reservoirs.
| Date | December 25, 2020 |
| Location | Paonia Reservoir, Colorado (map) |
| Photographer | Mitch Tobin |
| Organization | The Water Desk at the University of Colorado Boulder |
| Rights | Free to reuse under Creative Commons license, with credit to Mitch Tobin, The Water Desk |
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