Print it. Bag it. Bring it.Phones die, screens crack, and most of this water has no signal. Print this map, fold it into a zip-top bag or dry bag with your license, and you have a backup your electronics can’t give you. Every marker is numbered so you can say exactly where you are.
| # | Point | Type | Lat, Lon | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cayton Campground USFS · CO 145 above Rico | Campsite | 37.77153, -107.97673 | Highest campground on the Dolores; the river here is a small freestone stream in the San Juans. |
| 2 | Louis M Jones Memorial Park Town of Rico | Park / conservation area | 37.69044, -108.03237 | Riverside town park in Rico, on the upper river well above McPhee Reservoir. |
| 3 | Twin Spruce Ponds State Wildlife Area CPW · upper Dolores | Park / conservation area | 37.55269, -108.37742 | CPW property with a river-side lot; the lot is unnamed on CPW's own facilities map. |
| 4 | Dolores River State Wildlife Area CPW · above McPhee Reservoir | Park / conservation area | 37.49573, -108.40777 | CPW river frontage above the reservoir; its parking lot is unnamed on CPW's own map. |
| 5 | Dolores River Campground Private · CO 145 east of Dolores | Campsite | 37.47582, -108.45348 | Private riverside campground east of town; OSM carries two nodes for the same site. |
| 6 | Dolores City Park Town of Dolores | Park / conservation area | 37.47486, -108.49119 | |
| 7 | Lone Mesa State Park Visitor Center CPW · Dolores | Agency / conservation office | 37.47483, -108.49253 | CPW's office in Dolores; OSM's address data labels the same building 'Dept Of Wildlife Office'. |
| 8 | USGS 09166500 — Dolores River at Dolores USGS · Dolores, CO | USGS gauge | 37.47250, -108.49760 | The gauge the water page reads; it sits on the river in town, above McPhee Reservoir. |
| 9 | Joe Rowell Park Town of Dolores | Park / conservation area | 37.47079, -108.50934 | Main riverside park in Dolores. Flanders Park and Wagner Rotary Park are two smaller town lots nearby, not separately marked. |
| 10 | Dolores Ranger District / Tres Rios Field Office USFS & BLM · Dolores | Agency / conservation office | 37.46132, -108.51719 | Shared Forest Service and BLM field office; the permit and river-information desk for the lower canyon. |
| 11 | Canyons of the Ancients Visitor Center & Museum BLM · above McPhee Reservoir | Agency / conservation office | 37.47616, -108.54606 | BLM visitor centre and museum; OSM still carries its former name, Anasazi Heritage Center. |
| 12 | McPhee Campground USFS · McPhee Reservoir | Campsite | 37.49695, -108.55306 | Largest campground on the reservoir; the adjoining McPhee Group Area is not marked separately. |
| 13 | McPhee Recreation Area USFS · boat ramp, McPhee Reservoir | Access / boat ramp | 37.50027, -108.55343 | Main ramp on McPhee. It reads 1.0 km off the line because the line here is the drowned river channel, not the shore. |
| 14 | House Creek Campground USFS · House Creek arm, McPhee | Campsite | 37.51651, -108.53678 | Campground and ramp on the north arm; the House Creek Recreation Area node is the same site. |
| 15 | McPhee Dam Dolores Water Conservancy District | Dam / hazard | 37.57688, -108.57273 | Head of the tailwater — releases here set the river below. The unnamed weir just downstream is the outlet works and is not marked. |
| # | Point | Type | Lat, Lon | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Metaska Recreation Site USFS · first site below the dam | Park / conservation area | 37.57721, -108.58371 | First river site below McPhee Dam, inside the reach CPW bounds at the Bradfield Bridge. |
| 17 | Ferris Canyon Campground USFS · Lone Dome SWA | Campsite | 37.61549, -108.63541 | Tent campground in the tailwater; CPW files the same ground under Lone Dome State Wildlife Area. |
| 18 | Dolores River State Wildlife Area — lower tract CPW / USFS · tailwater | Park / conservation area | 37.62221, -108.67982 | CPW maps the tailwater ground from Ferris Canyon to Bradfield as Lone Dome SWA; OSM marks two nodes under the Dolores River name, of which this is the lower. |
| 19 | Lone Dome Recreation Area USFS · tailwater | Park / conservation area | 37.62853, -108.67989 | |
| 20 | Cabin Canyon Campground USFS · tailwater | Campsite | 37.62943, -108.69343 | Recreation site and campground; CPW's Lone Dome SWA layer maps a tent campground at the same spot. |
| 21 | Bradfield boat launch USFS · Bradfield Bridge | Access / boat ramp | 37.65645, -108.73582 | Unnamed slipway in OSM; this is the put-in for the Lower Dolores run below McPhee, at the Bradfield Bridge. |
| 22 | Section limit — Bradfield Bridge CPW special-regulation reach | Regulation section limit | 37.65832, -108.73677 | Lower limit of the CPW reach that runs about 11 miles down from McPhee Dam. Check Colorado's regulations for what applies inside it. |
| 23 | Bradfield Campground USFS · Bradfield Bridge | Campsite | 37.65905, -108.73713 | Campground and picnic area at the bridge, beside the launch. |
| 24 | Mountain Sheep Point Boat Ramp BLM · upper Dolores Canyon | Access / boat ramp | 37.79538, -108.82598 | Ramp in the upper canyon; OSM also carries a separate 'Boat Launch' node for the same site. |
| 25 | Box Elder Campground BLM · upper Dolores Canyon | Campsite | 37.80401, -108.81927 | |
| 26 | Gypsum Valley Boat Ramp BLM · CO 141 at Gypsum Valley | Access / boat ramp | 38.13388, -108.88074 | |
| 27 | Gypsum Valley Camping Area BLM · CO 141 at Gypsum Valley | Campsite | 38.13443, -108.88019 | |
| 28 | Bedrock Campground BLM · Bedrock | Campsite | 38.30376, -108.89437 | |
| 29 | Stateline Rapids Lower canyon, just inside Utah | Dam / hazard | 38.75170, -109.06060 | Named rapid about 1.3 km west of the Colorado–Utah line, so it actually lies in Utah. |
Gauge: USGS 09166500 — DOLORES RIVER AT DOLORES, CO. Live flow on the web page.
Species: Brook Trout, Brown Trout, Cutthroat Trout, Rainbow Trout, Smallmouth Bass
Regulations: cpw.state.co.us/rules-and-regulations
Emergency: call 911 and give the number of the nearest point on this map plus its coordinates.
Rico and the upper Highway 145 pull-offs - small-stream freestone water in the San Juans.
Stoner and the middle valley - roadside access on the upper river.
Town of Dolores river park - the reach this gauge reads, with easy bank access.
McPhee Reservoir boat ramps - still-water launching above the dam.
Bradfield Bridge - the standard put-in for the canyon float below McPhee Dam.
Dove Creek Pumps - a common canyon take-out on shorter floats.
Slick Rock - the lower canyon access toward the Utah line.
Spring: snowmelt on the upper river, and the annual decision on whether a canyon boating release will happen.
Summer: good wading and dry-fly fishing above the reservoir as the upper river drops and clears.
Fall: low clear water, strong brown trout fishing around Rico and Stoner, and very few anglers.
Winter: cold and quiet, with the upper valley snowed in and limited access.