The Island (Cheesman Reservoir)

Last updated
The Island
The Island (in Cheesman Lake in Douglas County, Colorado) (54917054102).jpg
Aerial view of The Island in Cheesman Reservoir
USA Colorado location map.svg
Red pog.svg
The Island
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
The Island
Geography
Location Pike National Forest, Colorado, United States
Coordinates 39°11′02″N105°17′14″W / 39.18389°N 105.28722°W / 39.18389; -105.28722
Adjacent to Cheesman Reservoir
Area0.003 km2 (0.0012 sq mi)
Length0.33 km (0.205 mi)
Width0.20 km (0.124 mi)
Highest elevation2,111 m (6926 ft)
Administration
United States
State Colorado
County Douglas County
Demographics
Population0

The Island is a small, uninhabited island in Cheesman Reservoir in Douglas County, Colorado, United States. It lies within the Pike National Forest between Denver and Colorado Springs. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Geography

The Island is in the upper part of the reservoir. It is about 0.33 kilometres (0.21 mi) long and 0.20 kilometres (0.12 mi) wide, with a vegetated area of roughly 0.3 hectares (0.74 acres) (0.003 square kilometres (0.0012 sq mi)). The highest point reaches about 2,111 metres (6,926 ft) above sea level, while the reservoir surface is as high as about 2,087 metres (6,847 ft), giving the island ~24 metres (79 ft) of local relief. Some datasets report an elevation of 2,098 metres (6,883 ft) for the feature. [4] At low water the island can be connected to the shore by a narrow bar.

Geology

Like much of the surrounding region, the island is composed of coarse Pikes Peak granite. Vegetation consists of scattered shrubs and trees. [5] [6] [7]

Administration

The county line between Douglas County (east) and Jefferson County (west) runs along the middle of the reservoir; The Island lies off the eastern shore and is therefore part of Douglas County. [8] [1] [9]

Reservoir setting

Cheesman Reservoir trends roughly north–south for about 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) with a maximum width of about 600 metres (2,000 ft); the water surface can reach an elevation near 2,087 metres (6,847 ft). The reservoir lies within Pike National Forest, which covers about 4,478 square kilometres (1,729 sq mi) across Clear Creek, Teller, Park, Jefferson, El Paso and Douglas counties.

Climate

Based on global datasets, the broader area has a cool, semi-arid climate by the Köppen climate classification. [10] Mean annual temperature is ~9 °C (48 °F); the warmest month is July (~24 °C (75 °F)) and the coldest is February (~−6 °C (21 °F)). Mean annual precipitation is about 534 millimetres (21.0 in); September is the wettest month (~96 millimetres (3.8 in)) and November the driest (~19 millimetres (0.75 in)). [11] [12]

2002 Hayman Fire

In June 2002, the Hayman Fire burned roughly 550 square kilometres (210 sq mi) of the Pike National Forest (well over ten percent of the forest's area). It is unclear whether the fire affected The Island directly. [13]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Cheesman Lake, Colorado (7.5-minute US Topo) (PDF) (Map). 1:24,000. US Topo Quadrangle. U.S. Geological Survey. September 6, 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2025. Labels "The Island" within Cheesman Lake; shows the Douglas–Jefferson county line across the reservoir.
  2. ↑ "Cheesman Dam". SAH Archipedia. Society of Architectural Historians. 16 July 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2025. The 875-acre lake is set in Pike National Forest.
  3. ↑ "Cheesman Canyon Trailhead". U.S. Forest Service. Pike–San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands. Retrieved 11 November 2025. Gill Trail #610 follows the South Platte River through Cheesman Canyon and ends at the upper Cheesman Reservoir trailhead.
  4. ↑ "The Island (GeoNames 5426265)". GeoNames.org. Archived from the original on 2025-11-12. Retrieved 11 November 2025.
  5. ↑ "Pikes Peak — Geolex Unit References". USGS National Geologic Map Database (Geolex). U.S. Geological Survey. Retrieved 11 November 2025. Pikes Peak is described as coarse-grained … with a grain size of 0.5 to 2 cm.
  6. ↑ Wild and Scenic River Eligibility and Classification Determinations: Appendix D (PDF) (Report). Coalition for the Upper South Platte. Retrieved 11 November 2025. According to Chronic (1980), the predominant geologic formation is Pikes Peak Granite … Vegetation types range from wetland and riparian species … to cottonwoods, pines, spruces, and drier forbs and short grasses.
  7. ↑ Kaufmann, Merrill R.; Fornwalt, Paula J.; Huckaby, Laurie S.; Stoker, Jason M. (2001). "Cheesman Lake—A historical ponderosa pine landscape guiding restoration in the South Platte Watershed of the Colorado Front Range". In Vance, Regina K.; Edminster, Carleton B.; Covington, W. Wallace; Blake, Julie A. (eds.). Ponderosa Pine Ecosystems Restoration and Conservation: Steps Toward Stewardship. Proceedings RMRS-P-22. Ogden, Utah: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. pp. 9–18. Retrieved 11 November 2025.
  8. ↑ "Special Regulations: Fishing Waters". Colorado Parks & Wildlife (via eRegulations). Retrieved 11 November 2025. CHEESMAN RESERVOIR — DOUGLAS, JEFFERSON.
  9. ↑ "8 CCR 1206-2, Part 4". Colorado Secretary of State. Retrieved 11 November 2025. …the main stem of the South Platte River where it forms the boundary between Douglas and Jefferson Counties…
  10. ↑ Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen–Geiger climate classification". Hydrology and Earth System Sciences. 11 (5): 1633–1644. Bibcode:2007HESS...11.1633P. doi: 10.5194/hess-11-1633-2007 .
  11. ↑ "NASA Earth Observations Data Set Index". NASA. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
  12. ↑ "NASA Earth Observations: Rainfall (1 month – TRMM)". NASA/Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
  13. ↑ Graham, Russell T.; McCaffrey, Sarah; Jain, Theresa B. (2003). Hayman Fire Case Study: Summary (PDF) (Report). USDA Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-114. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 8. Retrieved 11 November 2025. By June 28, the Hayman Fire impacted more than 138,000 acres of the Colorado Front Range.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.