Blue Mesa is a large reservoir past Gunnison on the way to Montrose. I hadn’t really thought of it as a water-skiing alternative to our local Ruedi (30 minutes from Basalt) or the staple Lake Powell (5 hours from Basalt) but if you drive over Kebler Pass then turn onto Ohio Pass about 7 miles before reaching Crested Butte it is only 2.5 hours from Basalt which is ok for a weekend trip. And the drive is spectacular! So I was lucky enough to manage three water-skiing trips to Blue Mesa this year and hope to return next summer. Here are some photos of the lake and the drive taken in September and early October.