Fishing in Colorado
Ice fishing rules and safety in Colorado
Fishing licenses, tip-ups, second rods, hole size, shelters, fires, exact-water rules, and a calm check on changing ice.
Lines and holes
A tip-up is a fishing line
One line
The ordinary rule is one personally attended rod, hand line, or tip-up with no more than three common hooks.
A second line
A second-rod stamp allows one additional rod, hand line, or tip-up. It does not add another bag limit.
Hole size
An ice-fishing hole may not be more than 10 inches in diameter or more than 10 inches on any side.
Shelters and fires
The setup has end-of-day duties
Portable shelter
Where portable shelters are allowed, remove the shelter from the ice at the end of the day.
Permanent shelter
Where permanent shelters are allowed, the shore-facing side must show the owner's or user's name and CID number in contrasting letters at least 2 inches high.
Fire and litter
A fire on the ice must be enclosed in a container. No litter may be left on the ice.
The exact water
A frozen lake is not automatically open
Fishing rule
Search the water for bait, tackle, fish limits, closures, and any rule against ice fishing.
Access rule
Check park or land-manager hours, parking, gates, snowmobile rules, and shelter restrictions.
Current conditions
Use the water manager's current report. Conditions can change across one lake and during the same day.
Ice safety
No thickness number makes every patch safe
CPW says ice strength changes with age, color, snow, current, pressure ridges, submerged objects, and location. Test as you go, carry self-rescue gear, avoid uncertain ice, and turn around when conditions do not look right.
Take this with you
Before stepping onto the ice
- ✓ The water is open to ice fishing and current access is confirmed.
- ✓ Your license, second-rod stamp, bait, and catch limits are settled.
- ✓ Hole, shelter, fire, and litter rules are clear.
- ✓ You checked current conditions and carry a realistic self-rescue plan.
Official sources and review
Check the current rule before you act
These links go to the agencies that control this part of the trip. Use the exact page, license, listing, map, order, or confirmation for your situation.
Use this carefully: CPW rules of thumb do not guarantee safe ice. Conditions vary by location and time. Check the water manager, test as you go, and stay off uncertain ice.
Keep going
More about fishing in Colorado
Trout fishing
The statewide trout limit, named-water exceptions, brook trout, protected cutthroat, legal lines, and the rules to check before keeping a fish.
Kokanee and snagging
Ordinary kokanee angling, the narrow snagging exception, statewide limits, fish identification, and the named-water rules that control the season.
Walleye, saugeye, and sauger
The shared statewide limit, the eastern drainage exception, named-water size rules, identification, and ordinary fishing methods.
Northern pike and tiger muskie
The very different statewide limits, fish identification, legal methods, named-water rules, and live-fish restrictions.
Bass, catfish, and panfish
Statewide warm-water limits, shared species groups, western and eastern exceptions, named-water sizes, and fish identification.
Bait and live bait
Where ordinary bait is allowed, why chumming is illegal, and how elevation, the Continental Divide, source water, and receipts affect live baitfish.
Licenses and limits
Who should check for a Colorado fishing license, how statewide limits work, and why the exact water listing matters before you keep a fish.
Where to fish
How to use the CPW Fishing Atlas, find public access, and check the bank, streambed, parking, and land-manager rules for a Colorado fishing spot.
Rules for the exact water
How to read Colorado's special fishing regulations for a named lake or river stretch, including methods, closures, limits, and release rules.
Boats and Clean, Drain, Dry
The Colorado checks for boat registration, aquatic nuisance species stamps, inspections, launches, and cleaning gear between waters.