West Fork Lake
- Jun–Aug
- best months
Is West Fork Lake open right now?
Alert in the area
The Forest Service lists 3 alerts for Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest.
Access Impact: Big Creek Lakes Dam Project
Agency alert covering Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest · USFS · Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest
Trail & Access Impact: Stillwater Reservoir Project
Agency alert covering Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest · USFS · Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest
Snowy Range - 2026 Active Vegetation Operations
Agency alert covering Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest · USFS · Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest
As of · Source: USFS · Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.
West Fork Lake is a 11-acre lake near Cowdrey, Colorado, at about 9,287 feet. It is managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
Local outfitters
- Backdoor Sports30 mi away
- Deer Haven RV Park38 mi away
Not on Roamze yet. Their page has how to reach them.
- Trail CreekHiking1.3 mi
- Manzanares Cutoff TrailHiking1.4 mi
- West Fork Encampment RiverCanoeing2.6 mi
- Encampment RiverCanoeing3.3 mi
- Big Creek FallsWaterfall6.6 mi
- Mica BasinRock climbing6.9 mi
Mount ZirkelSummitPhoto: TomKonrad, CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)7.7 mi
Big Creek Lakes CampgroundCampingPhoto: Recreation.gov (RIDB) / public domain8.1 mi
Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)
- Seven LakesLake fishing · ~8 min drive
- Encampment RiverRiver fishing · ~36 min drive
- North Platte RiverRiver fishing · ~39 min drive
- Brush Creek/Hayden Ranger DistrictRiver fishing · ~1h 2m drive
- Big Creek LakesLake fishing · ~13 min drive
- Big Creek Lake Boat AccessLake fishing · ~14 min drive
- Blue LakeLake fishing · ~17 min drive
- Hog Park ReservoirLake fishing · ~17 min drive
- Pearl LakeLake fishing · ~19 min drive
- Ptarmigan LakeLake fishing · ~26 min drive
Best time to visit West Fork Lake
Best months: June–August. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.
Jan
27° / 2°
8 wet
Feb
30° / 4°
8 wet
Mar
39° / 13°
8 wet
Apr
47° / 20°
9 wet
May
58° / 28°
10 wet
Jun
69° / 34°
9 wet
Jul
76° / 38°
10 wet
Aug
74° / 36°
10 wet
Sep
66° / 29°
8 wet
Oct
53° / 21°
7 wet
Nov
38° / 12°
8 wet
Dec
28° / 3°
8 wet
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Walden, CO, 27.9 mi away at 8,056 ft. The station sits about 1,200 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
