By GEORGE MORSE
Sports And Outdoors
Los Alamos Daily Post
Thanksgiving is behind us and Christmas just a few weeks away. Traditionally, this is a time to spend with family giving thanks for our blessings.
Outdoor enthusiasts, hunters, anglers and those who simply enjoy the New Mexico landscape through the windows of their vehicles sometimes take the abundance of wildlife that we now enjoy for granted.
The reality is that at the beginning of the 20th Century, wildlife populations here in New Mexico and throughout the nation were dwindling. In New Mexico, elk had been exterminated, including a unique subspecies called the Merriam’s elk. The vast herds of buffalo that roamed the Great Plains, including Eastern New Mexico were a memory. Deer were rare and pronghorn antelope uncommon.
Unregulated hunting and habitat destruction in the previous century during which the United States experienced great growth and westward expansion had taken its toll on wildlife.
Fortunately, some far-sighted individuals saw what was happening. These included President Theodore Roosevelt and early conservationists like Aldo Leopold in New Mexico started a movement to protect our wildlife and open spaces. Hunting seasons, bag limits and licenses were established. Market hunting, where game was killed and sold at market, was outlawed. Big game species were reintroduced into areas where they were formerly found-like elk back into New Mexico.
So this Holiday Season, give thanks for the abundance of wildlife we now have and recognize the efforts of those early pioneers of conservation. Protect and support the effort to assure future generations have the same opportunities we now enjoy.
Santa Cruz Lake near Chimayo has good fishing. It was stocked Nov. 21 with 2,052 rainbow trout. There are also some big wild brown trout. The Overlook Campground is open. The lake is open 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday-Sunday. Lake water levels are holding their own thanks to monsoon rains keeping flows in the Santa Cruz River above normal. With the cooler temperatures, the trout may be moving to shallow water. The boat ramp is open and fishing from a boat seems to be better than bank fishing. Santa Cruz Lake does not allow ice fishing. For updated conditions, check the Bureau of Land Management website or call 505.351.1438.
The Bureau also manages the Orilla Verde Recreation Area along the Rio Grande at Pilar. Camping is on a first-come basis. No reservations. The Rio Grande streamflow is 624 cubic-feet-per-second at Taos Junction Bridge. This is higher than last week and now above normal. The water is murky. The Rio Grande at Pilar was stocked Nov. 22 with 1,008 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 990 rainbow trout averaging 15.5 inches in size.
The Rio Grande at Pilar was stocked Sept. 14 with 58,484 fingerling Rio Grande cutthroat trout.
From the Colorado state line downstream to the Taos Junction Bridge, the limit is two-trout-per-day in the Rio Grande. The Rio Grande Gorge above Pilar was stocked Nov. 22 with 248 rainbow trout.
Fenton Lake State Park reopened June 24 for fishing and is now open for camping. Lake is open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Camping by reservation only. The fishing is good. It is heavily-stocked with rainbow trout. It also has some wild brown trout and some Rio Grande cutthroat trout from earlier stockings. It was stocked Nov. 15 with 1,039 rainbow trout. Only two cutthroat trout may be kept as part of the five fish daily limit at Fenton. It will ice-over soon. For more information call 575.829.3630.
The Rio Cebolla, which flows into and below Fenton Lake, was stocked Oct. 20 with 399 rainbow trout.
The fishing has been good in the Jemez River. The streamflow is 31.8 cubic-feet-per-second. This is a higher than last week and now at normal. It has wild brown trout. It was stocked Nov. 15 with 1,001 rainbow trout. The East Fork of the Jemez River was stocked Oct. 24 with 10,256 fingerling Rio Grande cutthroat trout.
The Rio San Antonio, a tributary to the Jemez River near La Cueva, was stocked Oct. 6 with 749 rainbow trout. It was stocked Oct. 12 with 10,012 Rio Grande cutthroat fingerlings. The Rio Guadalupe was stocked with 7,155 Rio Grande cutthroat fingerlings.
The Rio de las Vacas, another tributary, was stocked Oct. 20 with 500 rainbow trout.
These smaller tributaries are likely icing up.
The Seven Springs Brood Pond, also known as the Kid’s Pond, is open. The fishing is for anglers 11-years of age or younger. It was stocked Oct. 20 with 449 rainbow trout. The limit is three trout-per-day.
Eagle Nest Lake at Eagle Nest State Park is open for boating. It was stocked April 19 with 82,237 fingerling kokanee salmon. A new state-record kokanee was caught at Eagle Nest last year. Kokanee salmon snagging season began Oct. 1 at Eagle Nest. Snagging is spotty at best at Eagle Nest.
Fishing should be good for rainbow trout, yellow perch and northern pike. It is starting to ice over. For more information and current conditions, call 575.377.1594.
Cimarron Canyon State Park reopened for fishing June 24.The fishing is good for stocked rainbow trout and wild brown trout. The streamflow below Eagle Nest Dam was 21.0 cubic-feet-per-second. This is just slightly lower than last week. The Cimarron River near the town of Cimarron is iced over. The Cimarron River was stocked Oct. 12 with 2,422 catchable-size rainbow trout. Check the Carson National Forest website to see which campgrounds are open.
The Cimarron Gravel Pit Lakes at Maverick Campground were stocked Oct. 12 with 399 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 60 rainbow trout averaging 16.1 inches in size.
Lake Maloya at Sugarite Canyon State Park near Raton is now open to fishing. Lake Alice, also at Sugarite State Park, is open for fishing. Lake Alice was stocked Nov. 21 with 250 rainbow trout. Lake Maloya was stocked Nov. 8 with 1,501 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 145 rainbow trout averaging 16.2 inches in size. It was stocked again Nov. 21 with 1,501 catchable-size rainbow trout. Call (575).445.5607 for current conditions.
Clayton Lake closed Oct. 31 for the season.
Coyote Creek State Park is open and received its first stocking in months. Coyote Creek was last stocked Sept. 14 with 600 rainbow trout. Coyote Creek Pond was stocked with 500 rainbow trout.
Heron Lake State Park has open water for bank fishing. Be aware that the banks are very muddy. The boat ramps are closed. The lake level is still low. It was stocked April 20 with 147,290 fingerling kokanee salmon. It was stocked June 27 with 40,006 sub- catchable-size rainbow trout. Salmon snagging season began Nov. 11 at Heron Lake. It has been reported as very slow.
Call 575.588.7470 for conditions at both Heron Lake and El Vado Lake.
El Vado Lake State Park has rainbow trout, brown trout, perch and small smallmouth bass. Boating is closed. The Dam Day Use Area is closed for construction. Water level is low. The banks are very muddy. Kokanee salmon snagging season began Oct. 1 at El Vado. The snagging season has been poor for the past several years at El Vado.
Bluewater Lake State Park is open. Camping is allowed by reservation only. Lake water level is low. Tiger muskies are being caught and the fishing for them is fair using big crank baits, spinners and hot dogs. The limit on tiger muskies is one-per-day at least 40 inches in length. The boat ramp is closed. Anglers may launch boats at their own risk along undeveloped shoreline. Call (505).876.2391 for current conditions.
Morphy Lake State Park closed Oct. 31 for the season.
Storrie Lake State Park near Las Vegas is open for bank fishing. Boating is closed. It was last stocked June 7 with 3,034 rainbow trout. It also has some big catfish. It may be frozen over.
Pecos Canyon State Park has reopened. The Pecos River was stocked twice two weeks ago with a total of 3,000 rainbow trout. The Pecos River at Villanueva State Park was stocked Nov. 16 with 504 rainbow trout. Streamflow on the Pecos was not measured due to ice. There may be some open water, but mostly frozen over.
Monastery Lake near Pecos has reopened and was stocked Nov. 10 with 249 rainbow trout. Ice fishing is not allowed at Monastery Lake. The lake is frozen over.
Over in the Four Corners, Navajo Lake State Park is open. Camping is by reservation only. Trolling minnow-imitating lures like Rapalas could produce a trophy brown trout. Fishing for northern pike has been fair. It was stocked April 20 with 219,027 kokanee salmon fingerlings. It was stocked twice last week with a total of 54,280 sub-catchable rainbow trout. Boating conditions are good. Call 505.632.2278 for conditions. Navajo Lake does not freeze.
Kokanee salmon snagging season began Oct. 1 at Navajo Lake. The best and most consistent success during snagging season in New Mexico has been at Navajo Lake for the past several years, particularly in the early season. The action is centered around Navajo Dam. Snagging has picked up and limits of 12 salmon-per-day are being taken.
Aztec Pond #1 in Aztec was stocked Oct. 25 with 99 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 100 rainbow trout averaging 19.2 inches in size. It was stocked Nov. 15 with 110 rainbow trout. Tiger Park Pond in Aztec was stocked with 891 catchable size rainbow trout and with 149 rainbow trout averaging 19.2 inches in size. It was stocked again Nov. 15 with 1,373 rainbow trout.
Lake Farmington was stocked Nov. 9 with 2,376 rainbow trout.
Popular fishing locations on Carson National Forest now available again to anglers include the Canjilon Lakes, the Trout Lakes near Cebolla and Hopewell Lake between Tres Piedras and Tierra Amarilla. These are high-elevation lakes that are now frozen.
The campground at the Canjilon Lakes is now open. These lakes were stocked Sept. 9 with 1,428 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 115 rainbow trout averaging 18.8 inches in size.
The Trout Lakes near Cebolla were stocked Oct. 12 with 985 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 50 rainbow trout averaging 19.0 inches in size. The road to these lakes can be rough and muddy.
The campground at Hopewell Lake is now open. Hopewell was stocked Oct. 11 with 1,000 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 300 rainbow trout averaging 19.0 inches in size. It also has wild brook trout. The fishing was very good since reopening. It is likely icing up.
The Rio de Los Pinos near the border with Colorado is also reopened for camping and fishing. It was stocked Oct. 13 with 1,798 rainbow trout and also has wild brown trout. It is likely icing up.
The best river in the state and well-known throughout the angling world is the San Juan River below Navajo Dam. The streamflow here is 362 cubic-feet-per-second. This is higher than last week and below normal. The San Juan offers world-class fly fishing for big trout.
The fishing has been good with a variety of fly patterns in the four miles of Quality Water below the Dam. The fishing here is catch-and-release with flies and lures having a single, barbless hook. There are big, wild brown trout in the Quality Water. Some of these fish would likely shatter the state record if they could be kept and weighed. The Quality Water was stocked Oct. 5 with 40,000 sub-catchable rainbow trout.
The fishing in the Bait Water of the San Juan below the Quality Water has been fair-to-good with flies, bait and lures. A regular daily limit of five trout may be kept here. There are some big brown trout here too. It was stocked Nov. 15 with 2,280 rainbow trout.
The following locations also are open for fishing:
Abiquiu Lake is open, including the boat ramp and picnic areas. Camping is open. It is managed by the Corps of Engineers. Reservations may be made at www.recreation.gov. The water level is low, but higher than last year at Abiquiu. A four-wheel drive vehicle is recommended for launching boats. The fishing has been slow for walleye, catfish and smallmouth bass. There are some good-sized trout in Abiquiu. They may have moved into shallow water. Call (505).685.4371 for more information.
The Chama River below Abiquiu Dam is flowing at 552 cubic-feet-per-second. This is slightly higher than last week and well-above normal. The water here is murky. It was stocked Nov. 3 with 1,042 catchable-size rainbow trout. The fishing is likely fair for stocked and holdover rainbow trout. There are a few big, wild brown trout here. The limit here is two-fish-per-day.
The Chama River below El Vado Dam is flowing at 111 cubic-feet-per-second. The lower than last week. The fishing has been fair for stocked rainbow trout and wild brown trout. You may hook a cutthroat trout here. It was stocked Sept. 26 with 2,244 rainbow trout. The state-record brown trout was caught here.
Above El Vado Lake, the streamflow on the Chama River at La Puente was not measured due to ice. It was stocked Oct. 7 with 1,045 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 150 rainbow trout averaging 19.0 inches in size.
Streamflow in the Rio Brazos was not measured Monday. The Brazos was stocked Oct. 18 with 812 rainbow trout.
Laguna del Campo is closed for the season.
The Charette Lakes are closed for the season.
Cochiti Lake has reopened. The fishing has been fair-to-good for northern pike and bass. Night fishing for catfish could be worthwhile. Tetilla Peak Recreation Area is open, but the campground is closed.
Tingley Beach in Albuquerque is now being stocked with rainbow trout. It was stocked Nov. 21 with 1,672 catchable-size rainbow trout. The stockings will continue throughout the winter.
The winter stocking of trout has begun in the drainage canals of the Albuquerque area, The Albuquerque and Corrales drains were stocked last week.
The streamflow in the Rio Pueblo near Penasco was not measured due to ice.
The Red River below the Fish Hatchery is flowing at 51.6 cubic-feet-per-second. This is lower than last week and above normal. It was stocked Nov. 8 with 500 rainbow trout averaging 16.2 inches in size. It was stocked twice last week with a total of 998 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 55 rainbow trout averaging 16.2 inches in size. The Red River above Questa is iced over.
The Red River below the Fish Hatchery was stocked Nov. 15 with 10,000 fingerling Rio Grande cutthroat trout.
The Red River Hatchery Pond is now open. It was stocked Oct. 17 with 401 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 50 rainbow trout averaging 16.8 inches in size. Fishing is for anglers 11 years of age or younger and 65 years old or older. The limit is three-fish-per day. It may be frozen.
Eagle Rock Lake near Questa is open. It was stocked Oct. 31 with 501 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 60 rainbow trout averaging 16.5 inches in size. It is frozen over. Ice is likely not yet safe. Use caution.
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