Twin Lakes, Lake County, Colorado | |
|---|---|
 Mount Hope from Twin Lakes. | |
 Location of the Twin Lakes CDP inLake County, Colorado. | |
  Twin Lakes Location of the Twin Lakes CDP in theUnited States. | |
| Coordinates:39°06′43″N106°19′18″W / 39.11194°N 106.32167°W /39.11194; -106.32167 (Twin Lakes CDP, Colorado)[1] | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Colorado |
| County | Lake County |
| Government | |
| • Type | unincorporated town |
| Area | |
• Total | 1.661 sq mi (4.302 km2) |
| • Land | 1.644 sq mi (4.258 km2) |
| • Water | 0.017 sq mi (0.044 km2) |
| Elevation | 9,600 ft (2,900 m) |
| Population | |
• Total | 204 |
| • Density | 124/sq mi (47.9/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-7 (MST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-6 (MDT) |
| ZIP Code[4] | 81251 |
| Area code | 719 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2583308[1] |
Twin Lakes is a pair of glacier-carved alpine lakes about 15 miles (24 km) south of historicLeadville, Colorado. They are downstream along theArkansas River, whose headwaters are by Leadville. The lakes, however, are on a tributary, Lake Creek, which joins the Arkansas just below the lakes. After dredging, the lakes now have a surface area of 2,700 acres (11 km2), and they serve as a reservoir to store water for use in theFront Range. Both east and west lakes are recreation areas for boating and fishing.[5]
Twin Lakes is also the name of an adjacentcensus-designated place (CDP) and apost office in and governed byLake County,Colorado, United States. The Twin Lakes post office has theZIP Code 81251.[4] At theUnited States Census 2020, the population of the Twin Lakes CDP was 204.[3]
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Lake County, one of the original 17 counties created by the Colorado legislature in 1861, was named for the Twin Lakes. As originally defined, Lake County included a large portion of western Colorado to the south and west of its present boundaries. TheTwin Lakes District has been listed on theNational Register of Historic Places since 1974.
The Twin Lakes and the Twin Lakes CDP are located about 15 miles (24 km) south ofLeadville, thecounty seat. The CDP is bounded on the east byU.S. Route 24 (US 24), on the south byColorado State Highway 82 (SH 82, and on the north and west by County Highway 24. About 4 miles (6 km) west of the CDP is the original community of Twin Lakes, near the west end of what is now the Twin Lakes Reservoir. The reservoir lies south of SH 82, outside the CDP. SH 82 leads west acrossIndependence Pass 40 miles (64 km) toAspen, while US 24 leads north to Leadville and south 20 miles (32 km) toBuena Vista.
The altitude of the Twin Lakes area ranges from 9,200 feet (2,800 m) to over 9,800 feet (3,000 m), all of it somewhat lower than Leadville. Mount Elbert, the highest peak in Colorado, rises directly west of the CDP to its 14,433-foot (4,399 m) summit, just 6 miles (10 km) west of the center of the CDP.
The Twin Lakes CDP has an area of 1,063 acres (4.302 km2), including 11 acres (0.044 km2) of water,[2] (much less than the surface area of the Twin Lakes themselves).
| Climate data for Twin Lakes Reservoir, Colorado, 1991–2020 normals, 1967-2020 extremes: 9236ft (2815m) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 57 (14) | 58 (14) | 61 (16) | 69 (21) | 82 (28) | 85 (29) | 88 (31) | 85 (29) | 83 (28) | 75 (24) | 68 (20) | 60 (16) | 88 (31) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 49.3 (9.6) | 49.8 (9.9) | 54.9 (12.7) | 61.5 (16.4) | 71.3 (21.8) | 79.3 (26.3) | 83.0 (28.3) | 79.7 (26.5) | 75.6 (24.2) | 68.1 (20.1) | 57.9 (14.4) | 50.3 (10.2) | 83.6 (28.7) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 33.7 (0.9) | 34.8 (1.6) | 41.2 (5.1) | 46.3 (7.9) | 57.7 (14.3) | 69.6 (20.9) | 74.4 (23.6) | 71.3 (21.8) | 64.5 (18.1) | 53.4 (11.9) | 42.2 (5.7) | 33.8 (1.0) | 51.9 (11.1) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 19.4 (−7.0) | 20.0 (−6.7) | 27.3 (−2.6) | 33.8 (1.0) | 43.7 (6.5) | 53.1 (11.7) | 58.6 (14.8) | 56.5 (13.6) | 49.9 (9.9) | 39.9 (4.4) | 29.5 (−1.4) | 20.7 (−6.3) | 37.7 (3.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 5.1 (−14.9) | 5.2 (−14.9) | 13.3 (−10.4) | 21.3 (−5.9) | 29.7 (−1.3) | 36.6 (2.6) | 42.8 (6.0) | 41.6 (5.3) | 35.2 (1.8) | 26.3 (−3.2) | 16.8 (−8.4) | 7.6 (−13.6) | 23.5 (−4.7) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −13.7 (−25.4) | −14.2 (−25.7) | −5.7 (−20.9) | 7.2 (−13.8) | 18.6 (−7.4) | 28.6 (−1.9) | 36.3 (2.4) | 35.0 (1.7) | 24.6 (−4.1) | 11.9 (−11.2) | −0.6 (−18.1) | −10.4 (−23.6) | −18.5 (−28.1) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −40 (−40) | −45 (−43) | −29 (−34) | −19 (−28) | −7 (−22) | 13 (−11) | 23 (−5) | 22 (−6) | 13 (−11) | −2 (−19) | −18 (−28) | −31 (−35) | −45 (−43) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 0.44 (11) | 0.57 (14) | 0.70 (18) | 0.83 (21) | 0.92 (23) | 0.72 (18) | 1.67 (42) | 1.56 (40) | 1.13 (29) | 0.82 (21) | 0.46 (12) | 0.49 (12) | 10.31 (261) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 4.3 (11) | 6.3 (16) | 6.6 (17) | 6.0 (15) | 2.0 (5.1) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.1 (0.25) | 2.3 (5.8) | 4.3 (11) | 5.1 (13) | 37 (94.15) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 4.3 | 5.0 | 5.7 | 6.1 | 7.7 | 7.1 | 11.6 | 12.3 | 6.7 | 5.4 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 79.6 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 0.1 in) | 3.2 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 2.8 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.2 | 2.4 | 3.0 | 21 |
| Source 1: NOAA[6] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: XMACIS (snow, records & monthly max/mins)[7] | |||||||||||||
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 171 | — |
| 2020 | 204 | +19.3% |
| Source:United States Census Bureau | ||
TheUnited States Census Bureau initially defined theTwin Lakes CDP for theUnited States Census 2010.
Municipalities and communities ofLake County, Colorado,United States | ||
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| City |  | |
| CDPs | ||
| Ghost and former towns | ||