Charette Lakes: The most recent report was received July 17. At that time, fishing for trout was good when using silver and gold spinners, gold-and-black Panther Martin spinners and Rainbow PowerBait.
Cimarron River: Water levels are extremely low. Streamflow near Cimarron Wednesday morning was 8.01 cubic feet per second (cfs).
Clayton Lake: The most recent report was received July 17. At that time, fishing for trout was slow when using PowerBait and lures.
Conchas Lake: The most recent report was received July 10. At that time, fishing for white bass was slow to fair when using jerkbaits. Fishing for walleye was fair to good when using purple crankbaits.
Cowles Ponds: Fishing for trout was very good when using gold spinners.
Eagle Nest Lake: The most recent report was received July 10. At that time, fishing for rainbow trout was fair to good when using Yellow PowerBait. For updated lake conditions and potential hazards, visit the park’s webpage or call the park office at 575-377-1594.
Gallinas River: The river was recently stocked the first time since the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon Fire.
Hopewell Lake: The most recent report was received July 17. At that time, fishing for trout was very good when using gold Panther Martin spinners and PowerBait Mouse Tails.
Lake Maloya: Fishing for trout was fair to good when using lures.
Monastery Lake: The most recent report was received July 17. At that time, fishing for trout was good when using Cheese PowerBait. The lake is part of the Department’s Open Gate Program. Please visit our website for more information about this property.
Pecos River: Streamflow near Pecos Wednesday morning was 70.7 cfs. Fishing for trout was slow when using worms.
Red River: Streamflow below the Red River Hatchery on Wednesday morning was 47.6 cfs.
Red River City Ponds: The most recent report was received July 17. At that time, fishing for trout was good when using Pink PowerBait.
Red River Hatchery: Fishing for rainbow trout was good when using Green PowerBait.
Rio Fernando: The most recent report was received July 10. At that time, fishing for trout was fair to good when using salmon eggs.
Rio Grande: Streamflow below the Taos Junction Bridge on Wednesday morning was 252 cfs.
Rio Hondo: Streamflow near Valdez Wednesday morning was 14.3 cfs. The most recent report was received July 17. At that time, fishing for trout was slow when using flies.
Rio Mora: Streamflow near Terrero Wednesday morning was 28 cfs.
Rio Pueblo: Streamflow near Peñasco Wednesday morning was 22 cfs.
Storrie Lake: Fishing for trout was good when using Panther Martin spinners.
Stubblefield Lake: Fishing for catfish was fair to good when using cut bait.
Ute Lake: Fishing for largemouth bass was fair to good when using Berkley Stunner jerkbaits.
We received no reports for the following waterbodies over the past three weeks: Cabresto Lake, Costilla Creek, Coyote Creek, Eagle Rock Lake, Lake Alice, Los Pinos River, Maxwell Lake 13, Morphy Lake, Santa Cruz Reservoir, Shuree Ponds and Springer Lake. |
Abiquiu Lake: Fishing for smallmouth bass was good when using jigs. Contact the Abiquiu Lake Main Office at 505-685-4371 for updated lake conditions and closure information.
Albuquerque Area Drains: The most recent report was received July 17. At that time, fishing for carp was slow to fair when using yellow foam hoppers and fishing for largemouth bass was fair to good when using topwater lures.
Animas River: Streamflow below Aztec Wednesday morning was 151 cfs.
Bluewater Lake: Fishing for trout was slow when using PowerBait. Visit Bluewater Lake State Park’s webpage or call 505-876-2391 for more information.
Canjilon Lakes: The most recent report was received July 3. At that time, fishing for trout was very good when using chubby Chernobyl dry flies.
Cochiti Lake: Fishing for northern pike was slow to fair when using Berkley flicker shad and rainbow swim shad lures.
El Vado Lake: The lake is open to boating and angling with a primitive boat ramp available at the Dam Day Use Area, as well as the main (concrete) boat ramp and courtesy dock at El Vado Lake State Park. For more information, visit El Vado Lake State Park’s webpage or call 575-588-7247.
Fenton Lake: The most recent report was received July 17. At that time, fishing for trout was slow to fair when using worms, mealworms and PowerBait. Visit the park’s webpage or call the park office at 575-829-3630 for updates.
Jemez Waters: Streamflow near Jemez Wednesday morning was 6.51 cfs. The most recent report was received July 3. At that time, fishing for trout was very good when using PowerBait on the Jemez River.
Navajo Lake: Fishing for largemouth bass was good when using jointed flicker shad lures. Fishing for northern pike was good when using jointed flicker shad lures, spinners, spoons, crankbaits and topwater rats.
Rio Chama: Streamflow below El Vado Lake Wednesday morning was 103 cfs; streamflow below Abiquiu Lake Wednesday morning was 117 cfs. Please remember, from the river-crossing bridge on U.S. Highway 84 at Abiquiu upstream 7 miles to the base of Abiquiu Dam is special trout waters with a bag limit of only two trout.
Rio Grande: The river is currently dry through Albuquerque.
San Juan River: Streamflow near Archuleta Wednesday morning was 803 cfs. The most recent report was received July 17. At that time, fishing for brown trout was fair to good when using No. 6 fluorescent green Panther Martin spinners in the bait section.
Seven Springs Kids’ Pond: The most recent report was received July 10. At that time, fishing for trout was very good when using worms. If you catch a native Rio Grande chub in the Kid's Pond, please do not leave it on the bank; return it to the water where it can survive as part of our native ecosystem.
Tingley Beach: The most recent report was received July 10. At that time, fishing for trout was slow when using Texas-rigged Senkos. Fishing for catfish was slow when using shrimp, chicken liver, hot dogs and bluegill.
Trout Lakes: The most recent report was received July 10. At that time, fishing for trout was fair to good when using Original and Garlic PowerBait.
We received no reports for the following waterbodies over the past three weeks: Brazos River, Grants Riverwalk Pond, Heron Lake, Jackson Lake, Laguna del Campo, Lake Farmington, Liam Knight Pond, McGaffey Lake, Riverside Park Pond (Aztec Pond #1), San Gregorio Lake and Tiger Park Reservoir. |
Editor’s Note: We are digging into our archives to bring you some tips and tricks from the past. Today, we’re going back more than 55 years to the March-April edition of New Mexico Wildlife, which included this excerpt from Col. Joseph D. Bates, Jr.’s book, “Elementary Fishing.” Keep in mind that some information in this article may be outdated and may not necessarily align with today’s rules – please see the 2025-2026 Fishing Rules and Information booklet for current rules and regulations.
During college a very special friend was Supervisor of Game Wardens of the State of Maine – a noted angler and naturalist who delighted in passing on his knowledge to young people. We canoed into the wild country every spring and every fall, year after year. It was mainly from him that I learned the secrets of where big fighting fish are found, why they are there, and how to catch them. From him I also learned how to travel in the wilderness and how to live in the woods, plus fascinating lore about plants, animals, minerals and other secrets of nature.
“Now this,” the warden once said when we were on a lake in southern Maine, “is a bass lake. Most or perhaps all are smallmouth bass, which like colder, deeper water than largemouth bass do. Largemouth bass like fairly shallow water from 60 to 80 degrees. Both kinds live where there’s protection and food and, since they generally eat about the same things and are caught in about the same ways, we won’t get confused right now by going into the differences between the two species.
“I remember fishing this lake as a kid,” he went on. “All I had was a cane pole and some line with a leader, a bobber and a hook – usually number 6, if I remember. I learned to fasten the bobber two or three feet above the hook so the hook would ride just over the weed beds or the bottom. I’d crimp on a small split shot a few inches above the hook to keep the bait down. There was a trick to using the bobber. It should be so light it just barely floats. Then, when a fish took the bait, he couldn’t feel the pull of the bobber. The bait felt more natural. Nowadays, we have plastic ball floats that can be filled partly with water to give them whatever buoyancy is needed. I used to make mine from corks, and I made several sizes to suit the weights of various baits. I’d get a big long needle or something similar, hold it with pliers and heat it very hot, and burn a hole through the middle of the cork. I would push the leader or line through it, hold it in place with a matchstick or part of a toothpick inserted in the hole, and there you’d be!
“Well, I know that bass came into the shallows to feed in the evening, so I’d row over to the lily pads or weed beds and fish such places. I used minnows, worms, crayfish, spring salamanders, hellgrammites – almost anything. I’d just toss the rig into an open spot amid the pads or grasses and wait for a bass to take the bait. Usually didn’t have to wait long. Now we’ve got good spinning outfits and really can do business!
“While we’re sitting here, let’s look this lake over,” the warden continued. “See those points of land with submerged grasses at their tips? We’ll fish with plastic worms all around the points, from ten to twenty feet deep. In the evening we could fish nearer the surface, but at midday the bass probably are lying down deep.” He pointed. “Around that stump is a good place. So is that rock ledge going into deep water. Actually, anywhere bass can find shade is worth trying – near a raft, around docks, under submerged logs and trees, off rocky bars, in shady coves – lots of places. You have to mosey around and find out where they are.
“There’s one thing to remember,” he went on. “Bass often come into shallow water in the early morning and in the evening for food. Sometimes you can hear and see them splashing, so you know where to cast. But when the sun is high it’s better to try for them in deep water. It’s late morning, so let’s fish deep around the points.”
We started the little Johnson motor on the skiff and went to the nearest point, anchoring the boat off and to one side of it.
“Some people like these plastic worms and some don’t,” the warden said. “I love ’em, but you have to fish ’em right. You can use the floating kind and fish ’em like a little eel, swimming, but here we’ll have to put a lead jig on and fish them deep. Cast out and let the worm sink. Imagine it with its head on the bottom and its tail waving up in the water. Now reel very, very slowly and keep a tight line. Make the worm crawl very slowly toward you, stopping it every once in a while. No! That’s too fast. Very slowly, I said.”
I cast again.
“It you feel anything – anything at all that doesn’t feel natural – drop your rod tip a second or two, and then strike. If it’s a bass, you’ll know it!”
Following his instructions, I made several casts in a semicircle nearby. Then I lengthened the casts and cast fanwise several times again, as drawing 57 shows. Finally I had cast in several arcs, the last one as far as I could reach. Then we moved to the other side of the point to finish fishing the area thoroughly. We caught three bass, but I became snagged once and had to break loose. We spent an hour at the spot and then tried others.
“I should think you’d lose a lot of lures this way,” I said. |
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