Serving the High Plains
This fishing report, provided by Bill Dunn and the Department of Game and Fish, has been generated from the best information available from area officers and anglers. Conditions encountered after the report is compiled may differ, as stream, lake and weather conditions alter fish and angler activities.
Northeast
Cabresto Lake: The lake and campground closed May 14 and will stay closed while the dam is being rebuilt.
Charette Lakes: Closed for the season.
Cimarron River: Water flow below Eagle Nest Lake as of Monday was 3.6 cfs and fishing was slow. We'll report this one again starting in spring.
Clayton Lake: Closed for the season.
Conchas Lake: The Cannon Cove Campground boat ramp is open and fully functional. All other boat ramps remain closed. Fishing was slow and fishing pressure was light. The surface temps were in the low to mid 50s.
Coyote Creek: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Eagle Nest Lake: Kokanee snagging was good near the boat ramp with best results coming early and late in the day. Anglers are reminded that there is no snagging permitted on the boat ramp. Fishing for trout was good using Power Bait, roe sacs and salmon eggs for fish up to 18 inches. Perch fishing was fair to good for anglers using worms. We had no reports on northern pike.
Hopewell Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Lake Maloya: Fishing was good using light colored Power Bait, salmon eggs and wooly buggers for rainbow trout.
Los Pinos: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Manzano Lake: Trout fishing was slow to fair using Power Bait, salmon egg corn combinations and spinners.
Maxwell Lake 13: Closed for the season.
Monastery Lake: Trout fishing was fair to good using Power Bait and salmon egg combinations.
Morphy Lake: Closed for the season.
Pecos River: Water flow near the town of Pecos on Monday was 17 cfs. Trout fishing was fair using single salmon eggs on a small hook and small bead-head nymphs.
Red River: Water flow below the hatchery was 24 cfs. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Red River City Ponds: Closes for the season Nov. 15.
Rio Grande: The water flow Monday at the Taos Junction Bridge was 247 cfs. Trout fishing was slow to fair using salmon eggs, copper John Barrs, Power Bait, wooly buggers, worms and Panther Martin spinners. We had no reports on other species.
Rio Hondo: Water flow near Valdez on Monday was 16 cfs. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Rio Mora: Water flow near Terrero on Monday was 6.9cfs. Trout fishing was slow.
Rio Pueblo: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Santa Barbara: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Shuree Ponds: The water level on the ponds has been quite low and fishing was reported as slow.
Springer Lake: Fishing was slow for all species.
Storrie Lake: Trout fishing was fair using Power Bait, cheese, corn, spinners and salmon eggs. We had no reports on other species.
Stubblefield Lake: The lake has reopened with a new agreement reached with the Vermejo Conservancy District. However, with the current low water conditions, fishing is discouraged at this time.
Ute Lake: Fishing for walleye and white bass was very good this past week as anglers reported catching several limits. They were using slab spoons and blade baits and fishing over 25 to 35 feet of water. Fishing for smallmouth bass was slow but there were a few taken by anglers using finesse baits in 10 to 15 feet of water. We had no reports on other species. The surface water temp was in the low to mid 50s.
Southeast
Bataan Lake: Trout fishing was fair using spoons, spinners, worms and Power Bait. Kevin Ortiz checked this one out last week and reported fair fishing using spoons.
Blue Hole Park Pond: Trout fishing was fair using Power Bait and spinners.
Bonito Lake: Closed.
Bosque Redondo: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Bottomless Lakes: Fishing was slow.
Brantley Lake: Anglers are to practice catch-and-release for all fish here as high levels of DDT were found in several fish.
Carlsbad Municipal Lake: Trout fishing was fair using Power Bait, salmon eggs and assorted spinners.
El Rito Creek: Trout fishing was fair using salmon eggs.
Green Meadow Lake: Fishing was good using Power Bait and spoons for rainbow trout.
Grindstone Reservoir: Trout fishing from the bank was fair using Power Bait and salmon eggs.
Jal Lake: Trout fishing was fair using Power Bait and homemade dough bait.
Lake Van: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Oasis Park Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Pecos River: Water flow on Monday below Sumner Lake was 19 cfs. Fishing was slow for all species but there were a few catfish taken by anglers using stink bait and worms.
Perch Lake: Trout fishing was fair to good using salmon eggs and Power Bait.
Ruidoso River: Water flow at Hollywood on Monday was 7.1 cfs. Trout fishing was fair using salmon eggs.
Santa Rosa Lake: Fishing pressure was very light and fishing was slow for all species. The boat ramp has been closed but the lake is accessible for canoes and kayaks.
Sumner Lake: Light fishing pressure was the story again this past week along with high winds over the weekend. Fishing was slow for all species. The boat ramps have reopened and will remain open as long as lake levels permit.
Northwest
Abiquiu Lake: Fishing was slow for all species. Fishing pressure was extremely light, the water was murky and the surface water temp ranged from the low to mid 50s. It's that time of year to check the deeper flats and work them with spoons and blade baits if you are looking for the walleye.
Albuquerque Area Drains: All of the area drains were stocked this past week. Trout fishing in the Bernalillo and Belen Drains was fair using small nymphs, small spinners and salmon eggs.
Animas River: As of Monday morning flow near Aztec was 191cfs. Fishing was slow.
Bluewater Lake: Trout fishing was good using spinners, Power Bait and salmon eggs. Tiger musky fishing was a bit slow but there were a few taken by anglers using swim baits, spinner baits and Power Bait. We had no reports on other species.
Canjilon Lakes: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Chama River: Monday morning water flows below El Vado and Abiquiu were 57 cfs and 70 cfs respectively. Flows below El Vado are expected to increase over the next several days. Fishing below El Vado was good using Panther Martins, worms, Power Bait and salmon eggs for a mix of browns and rainbows. Below Abiquiu trout fishing was fair using worms, salmon eggs and wooly worms. A section of the river from El Vado Lake to the west boundary of the Rio Chama Wildlife and Fishing Area opened to salmon snagging October 1 but we had no reports from anglers working this area.
Cochiti Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.
El Vado Lake: Kokanee snagging opened October 1 and runs through Dec. 31. Fishing pressure was extremely light and fishing was slow.
Fenton Lake: Trout fishing was slow and over the weekend the area received two to four inches of snow. There is some ice forming around the edges of the lake. Fishing pressure was very light.
Heron Lake: Kokanee salmon snagging opened Friday Nov. 9 and opening day was great for most anglers as several limits were reported. Saturday was a bit tougher with bad weather moving in. We had no reports on other species.
Jackson Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Jemez Waters: Water flow on the Jemez as of Monday morning was 9.2 cfs. Trout fishing on the Jemez River was fair using salmon eggs. We had no reports from the other streams.
Laguna del Campo: Closed for the season.
Lake Farmington: We had no reports from anglers this week.
Navajo Lake: Kokanee snagging opened here and on the Pine River Oct. 1 and runs through Dec. 31. There is an off limits fishing and snagging area at the Pine boat ramp. For more information contact the State Park office at 505-632-2278 or visit http://www.nmparks.com. Snagging was reported as good near the dam and near the Sims Marina. The previous weekend, Steven Montoya and his wife Katelynn and father Henry Montoya had a great trip snagging their limits in an hour's time. Steven described it as the heaviest salmon run he had ever experienced. Fishing was fair using jerk baits, crank baits and spinner baits for northern pike. Fishing was fair using Power Bait, roe sacs and salmon eggs for rainbow trout. We had no reports on other species. The surface water temp was in the low 50s.
Ramah Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.
San Juan: Water flow below Navajo Lake as of Monday morning was 369 cfs. Trout fishing through the Quality Waters was good using parachute adams, dead chickens, flash back pheasant tails, RS2s, pink and red egg patterns, sparkle worms and small streamers. Fishing through the bait waters was very good using Power Bait, salmon eggs, copper John Barrs and wooly buggers.
Santa Cruz Lake: The boat ramp has been closed due to low water conditions. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Seven Springs Brood Pond: We had no reports from anglers this week. This water is open to fishing for youth under the age of 12 and an excellent place to take youngsters and get them interested in fishing. The pond is well stocked to offer youngsters a great fishing experience.
Tingley Beach: Trout fishing at the main pond was good using Power Bait and salmon eggs. Trout fishing at the Catch and Release Pond was good using Pistol Petes, zebra midges and leeches.
Southwest
Aggie Pond: This water is also known as Alumni Pond. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Bear Canyon: Trout fishing was fair using Power Bait, homemade dough bait and salmon eggs.
Bill Evans Lake: The lake level is currently drawn down due to water quality issues on the Gila since the big fire. The lake will remain open to fishing and camping but boat ramps will be inaccessible. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Caballo Lake: All boat ramps have been closed and will remain closed until such time as water levels rise and is deemed safe for launching. Fishing pressure continued to be very light and fishing was slow for all species.
Elephant Butte: This week's report was almost a duplicate of last week with fishing slow to fair using tubes, hula grubs, jigs, spoons and crank baits for a mix of smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, white bass and crappie. Most of the black bass were found on rocky banks and points in 10 to 12 feet of water. The big change came over the weekend when the cold front moved through and slowed everything down. The water color ranged from murky to muddy and the surface temp ranged from the low to mid 50s.The Monticello, Dam Site and Rock Canyon boat ramps remain closed due to low water conditions.
Escondida Lake: Fishing was fair using Power Bait, salmon eggs, salmon egg corn combinations and Pistol Petes for rainbow trout. We had no reports on other species.
Gila River: Water flow on the Gila as of this past Monday was 63 cfs. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Glenwood Pond: Trout fishing was good using Power Bait.
Lake Roberts: Trout fishing was good using Power Bait, salmon eggs, corn and spinners. We had no reports on other species.
Percha Dam: The water was low and fishing was slow for all species.
Quemado Lake: Fishing was good using spinners, Power Bait and salmon eggs for rainbow trout up to 16 inches. We had no reports on other species.
Rio Grande: Trout fishing was good using worms, Power Bait, salmon eggs and homemade dough bait.
Snow Lake: With access roads open and a recent double stocking of rainbow trout, put this lake high on your list for some fall fishing from the bank. The roads in are a little bumpy and the water is low but fishing should be great. We had no reports from anglers this week.