Lake Dillon: The Rocky Mountain High of Sailing
While Latitude 38 covers West Coast sailing, we always appreciate stories from the inland lake sailing scene. Clear Lake, Huntington Lake, Folsom Lake and Tahoe all have great sailing conditions, especially after a rainy winter. But if you want to get even higher, you could go farther east to sail Lake Dillon, which is a bit over an hour west of Denver. It’s at 9100 feet of elevation and just about due east of us, lying at 39N and 106E. My brother Steve and his son Nathan sent a couple of photos after joining the crew aboard the Melges 24 Brinkmaster for their Friday night beer can races.
Conditions on the lake for the Friday night beer can racing were sunny and warm, with gentle breezes. It’s a scene repeated on lakes across the West, and never better than in summer, when the water levels are high and the temperatures are hot. As an added bonus, Brinkmaster came in first.
The Snipe Class held their Nationals there a few years ago. Everyone thought it was a great venue. It’s a beautiful mountain lake with decent breeze and great scenery. If you are traveling on Hyway 70 from Denver to the west Coast, it’s definitely worth a lunch stop, if not a boat ride.
Incredible evening with Incredible crew. Thanks to Steve and Nathan and as always Jeff on trim or Bass Guitar.