Parvin Lake Tour

The Historical Society visited Parvin Lake in August 2006. Parvin Lake located near Red Feather Lakes is a Division of Wildlife Research.

Parvin Lake Fish Hatchery
Parvin Lake Fish Hatchery

In the early 1920’s, the State Game and Fish decided to look for an ideal place for raising their own trout eggs, due to the scarcity and high cost of purchasing them. The site chosen was the 160 acres homesteaded by Martin Peterson. The State Game and Fish purchased the property in 1925, as this was an ideal spot for a spawning reservoir. The reservoir would be filled by damming up the Lone Pine Creek east of Red Feather Lakes.

The reservoir was planned by State Game and Fish Commissioner,  R. G. Parvin. It was accessible through Log Cabin via the Poudre Canyon. A forty-five man crew constructed the dam with horse and wagon teams, completing the project by 1926. A caretakers home was also built. Abe Akin lived in it.

The lake was first stocked with 1 million rainbow trout eggs. It was used as a fish hatchery, producing over 30 million eggs a year. The eggs were collected and shipped by Franklin oxygenated trucks to other parts of the state.

By 1945, Parvin Lake had so many fish that it was open to the public for fishing. It was used to evaluate fishing with flies and lures only. It worked so well that the state adopted the regulation at other lakes in Colorado. The lake was stocked with several other types of fish to see how they would acclimate. The Fish Hatchery was closed in 1980, and the lake was opened to fishing.

In 2003, the hatchery was opened as a research station to test different strains of fish for whirling disease. It is also used to test strains of fish to see which strains are best suited for lakes and streams.