Recognizing their total dependence on the upper group states, whose mountain snow melts contributed the most water to the river system, the states of the lower group, California, Nevada, and Arizona, began to build dams, such as the Hoover Dam, to create storage reservoirs on their parts of the river system.

To grant the four states the authority to begin this process, Congress passed the Colorado River Storage Act on April 11, 1956.

[5] The resulting reservoirs, Blue Mesa, Morrow Point, and Crystal, would not only make possible water storage for transfer to the lower group states, but also for local agricultural use.

In 1965 the Park Service formed a cooperative agreement with the Bureau of Reclamation that established Curecanti National Recreation Area, a new unit that would encompass all three reservoirs, as well as short sections of the river above and below, build campgrounds, marinas and lake access points, protect, research and interpret the natural environment and local history, and manage game and fish populations.

[7][5][8] Beginning on the river approximately 5 miles west of Gunnison, and ending on the river at the eastern border of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Curecanti contains four main areas: Created by the construction of Blue Mesa Dam in 1966, Blue Mesa Reservoir is Colorado's largest body of water.

The majority of the park's visitor and recreational facilities are located around Blue Mesa and can be accessed by that section of U.S. 50 between Gunnison and Montrose, which traverses the entire length of the reservoir.

Located in the upper reaches of the Black Canyon, the narrow, steep-sided Morrow Point offers visitors a very different environment than the expansive Blue Mesa.

The smallest of the three reservoirs, Crystal can be accessed from U.S. 50 at Cimarron, where a short road takes visitors to the water immediately south of Morrow Point Dam.

Curecanti offers a number of recreational opportunities, including boating, fishing, boat-in, developed, and primitive camping, hiking, horseback riding, and hunting.

[10] Recreational opportunities at Morrow Point Reservoir include boating (hand-carried craft only), primitive camping, and hiking.

Mesa Creek Trailhead is located immediately west of Point Morrow Dam, and can be accessed from a one-mile road running north of U.S. 50 at Cimarron.

[11] Other recreational facilities at Curecanti include horse corrals, for equestrian campers, at Dry Gulch, Ponderosa, and Soap Creek, and the Dillon Pinnacles Trail, a moderately strenuous 4 mile round trip to the Dillon Pinnacles, a ridge of strikingly eroded volcanic rock that has become one of the most identifiable images of the park.

[11] The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad Narrow Gauge Trestle is located in Cimarron Canyon near Morrow Point Dam.