Scenes from kokanee salmon snagging season at Navajo Lake on Nov, 2019.
Farmington Daily Times
Snagging season gets underway Oct. 1 at Abiquiu Lake, Rio Chama, Navajo Lake, Pine River, El Vado Lake and Eagles Nest Lake.
Salmon snagging on Rio Chama is allowed from El Vado Lake to the west boundary of the Rio Chama Wildlife and Fishing Area.
At Navajo Lake, salmon snagging is allowed at most places. Locations excluded from snagging include the buoyed no-wake areas and the shoreline within the no-wake areas at the Pine River Boat Ramp and Simms Boat Ramp. These areas will open to salmon snagging on Nov. 9.
Salmon snagging season continues through Dec. 31.
While salmon snagging, which involves hooking the body rather than the mouth, starts Oct. 1, kokanee salmon have been being caught through non-snagging methods. However, fishing for kokanee salmon has been slow at Navajo Lake. Meanwhile, bass fishing has been fair to good using watermelon plastic tubes and crankbaits.
Outdoors: There’s good trout fishing on the San Juan River with midge pattern flies
Eagles Nest Lake has had good fishing for perch using worms and good fishing for pike using orange spinners.
Here’s a look at reports the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish has received from anglers:
San Juan River: The quality waters continue to attract anglers, who have seen good fishing for trout using size 22 black midges, chocolate foam wing emergers, black and brown crystal midges, red or orange annelids and size 12 olive bunny leeches.
Charette Lakes: Trout were biting on different lures depending on time of day, however anglers reported good trout fishing. During the mornings, trout were biting on worms, Fireballs and nymph flies. In the evening, trout were taking dry flies.
Rio Grande: Trout fishing in the Taos area was good using dry fly dropper setups and nymph rigs with flies such as Poundmiesters, mayflies and caddies nymphs. Meanwhile, fishing for catfish below Elephant Butte was fair using liver bait. The river level has been low and anglers have been fishing for catfish in the remaining pools of water.
Cimarron River: While the water level was low, anglers reported good fishing for using fly dry dropper setups with zebra midges and tricos.
Lake Roberts: Fishing for catfish was good using beef liver and worms. Fishing for largemouth bass was good using fire tiger pattern crank baits and lipless rattle trap lures. Fishing for trout was good using pink and orange PowerBait, flavored salmon eggs and gray/black flies.
Clayton Lake: Anglers have had good luck fishing for trout using PowerBait.
Elephant Butte Lake: There are lots of species of fish biting at Elephant Butte Lake. Anglers reported good white bass fishing trolling white crankbaits and casting sassy shad. Walleyes fishing has also been good trolling crankbaits close to the bottom of the lake. Meanwhile, catfish have been biting on hot dogs and smallmouth bass fishing was good using a grey jig head with a four-inch gulp smelt minnow.
Conchas Lake: Bass fishing has been good using green pumpkin plastic tubes and white buzz baits.
Hopewell Lake: Fishing for trout was fair to good using brown and green Pistol Petes and silver Mepps spinners.
Lake Maloya: Fishing for trout was fair using PowerBait.
Pecos River: Anglers fishing at the Pecos River reported good trout fishing using salmon eggs, worms, hare’s ear nymph and bead head nymph flies.
Red River: Anglers say trout fishing has been good using dry fly dropper rigs with small black, red and brown nymph flies like zebra midges and RS2’s.
Rio Hondo: Fishing for trout was fair using small attractor dry flies.
Rio Pueblo: The low water level was not good for fishing.
Ute Lake: There are lots of fish biting at Ute Lake. White bass fishing was fair using medium diving crankbaits and fishing for both large and smallmouth bass in water 10 to 15 feet deep was fair using Senko worms, chatterbaits and swimbaits. Walleye fishing was slow and fishing for catfish was fair using punch bait.
Abiquiu Lake: Anglers should use four-wheel-drive vehicles to launch boats and watch for obstructions in the shallow water. Bass fishing was slow to fair using Ned rigs and fishing for walleye was fair using jigging spoons and bottom bouncers tipped with nightcrawlers.
Bluewater Lake: Fishing for tiger muskie was good using spinner baits, Rapala lures, soft plastic lures and water dogs.
Brazos River: Fishing for trout was good using prince nymph flies.
Canjilon Lakes: Fishing for trout was good using black dry flies.
Chama River: Fishing for trout below El Vado Lake was fair to good using nightcrawlers. Fishing for trout below Abiquiu Lake was fair using bead head nymphs.
Fenton Lake: Fishing for trout was good using salmon eggs, PowerBait and worms.
Jemez Waters: Fishing for trout was fair using worms.
Laguna del Campo: Fishing for trout was good using yellow garlic scented PowerBait.
Bear Canyon Lake: Fishing for crappie was fair to good using grey flies and minnows.
Gila River: Fishing for rainbow and Gila trout was good near Middle Fork using peacock nymph flies.
Glenwood Pond: Fishing for trout was good using top water flies.
Quemado Lake: Fishing for trout was good using PowerBait and worms.
Trees Lake: Fishing for catfish was fair to good using liver and stink bait
Alto Lake: Fishing for trout was good using green and yellow PowerBait.
Bosque Redondo Lake: Fishing for catfish was fair to good using hotdogs.
Brantley Lake: Fishing for bass was good using watermelon and pumpkin-colored plastic worms.
Grindstone Reservoir: Fishing for trout was good using peach salmon PowerBait.
Jal Lake: Fishing for catfish was good using homemade dough bait.
Lake Van: Fishing for catfish was good using cut beef bait.
Pecos River: Fishing for catfish was good using worms and minnows.
The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish publishes weekly fishing reports.
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