Weekly Fishing Report

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April 1, 2008
This fishing report has been generated from the best information available from officers and anglers. Conditions encountered after the report is compiled may differ, however, as stream, lake and weather conditions alter fish and angler activities.

Catches of the week

Pecos River: March 25, Jordan Waquie, 10, of Jemez Pueblo, caught a 20-inch rainbow trout. He was using a Panther Martin.
Elephant Butte: March 27, Russell Spahr of Albuquerque caught a 15-pound and a 16-pound striped bass. He was using live bait.
Ute Lake: March 27, David Babb of Logan caught a 7-pound 6-ounce largemouth bass. He was using a spinner bait. March 30, Danny Campbell of Hereford, Texas, caught a 6-pound, 8-ounce largemouth bass.

Santa Rosa Lake: March 30, April Golson of Albuquerque caught a 4-pound, 3-ounce largemouth bass. She was using a tube.

If you have a catch of the week story, send it to us at fishforfun2@hotmail.com. Include date, location, type of fish, length and bait used to catch the fish.

NORTHEAST AREA

CHARETTE LAKES: Trout fishing was fair early in the week but slow by the weekend. Anglers did best using home made dough baits.
CIMARRON RIVER: Water flow below Eagle Nest Lake as of Monday was .47cfs. Trout fishing was slow.
CLAYTON LAKE: Fishing picked up this past week as anglers caught several walleye and rainbow trout. They were using night crawlers for the walleye and extra scented power bait and night crawlers for the trout. Due to low water conditions the boat ramp is open for small boat launching only.
CONCHAS LAKE: Fishing for smallmouth and largemouth bass was fair for anglers using tubes, spinner baits and jigs. Most of the bass caught were in less than 10 feet of water. Fishing for walleye and white bass was fair for anglers trolling reef runners on the north side of the lake. A few were also taken on spoons, jig and minnow and spinner/worm combinations. We had no reports on other species.
COYOTE CREEK: Fishing was good this past week for anglers using worms and small spinners for a mixed bag of brown and rainbow trout.
EAGLE NEST LAKE: As of Monday there was some open water along the shore line for bank fishing but the lake was still closed to boating. Trout fishing was slow-to- fair for anglers using power bait and salmon eggs. For updated ice conditions, contact the state park office at 505-377-1534.
LAKE MALOYA/LAKE ALICE: As of Monday Lake Alice was free of ice and about 20 percent of Lake Maloya was open to bank fishing. Trout fishing was very good for anglers using Rooster Tails and power bait. Contact the state park office at 505-445-5607 for updated ice conditions.
MAXWELL LAKES: Fishing was slow again this past week but there were a few good size trout taken by anglers using roe sacs and dough bait.
MCALLISTER LAKE: Due to poor water quality, the lake will remain closed until further notice.
MONASTERY LAKE: Trout fishing was good for anglers using spinners, power bait and salmon eggs.
MORPHY LAKE: The lake will open for the season on April 1.
PECOS RIVER: Water flow near the town of Pecos as of Monday morning was 142cfs. Trout fishing was slow-to-fair using spinners, wooly buggers and salmon eggs.
RED RIVER: Water flow below the hatchery was 127cfs. Trout fishing was slow-to-fair for anglers using salmon eggs, cheese and wooly buggers.
RIO GRANDE: The water flow Monday morning at the Taos Junction Bridge was 1,570cfs. Fishing was slow for all species.
SPRINGER LAKE: Fishing was slow for all species.
STORRIE LAKE: Trout fishing was slow with just a few fish taken by anglers using salmon eggs and garlic cheese.
UTE LAKE: Bass fishing was good this past week as several anglers reported good catches of largemouth and smallmouth bass. Best baits were jigs, tubes, senkos, spinner baits and jerk baits. Most of the bass were taken in less than 10 feet of water. Fishing improved for walleye as several limits were taken by anglers trolling crank baits and jigging minnows. Most of the fish were males and were taken at depths of 12-to-25 feet. Fishing for white bass was slow but there were a few taken by anglers using swim slabs, jig and minnow combinations and crank baits. Fishing for crappie was fair for anglers using minnows in the Ute Creek area. We had no reports on other species.

NORTHWEST AREA

ABIQUIU LAKE: Fishing slowed a bit this past week as weather fronts moved through. Anglers trolling for walleye managed to catch several brown trout. They were working the upper end of the lake. One of the better baits was a bubblegum Rip Shad. We had no reports on other species.
ALBUQUERQUE AREA DRAINS: Trout fishing was fair this past week for anglers using wooly buggers, BWOs, parachute adams, copper john barrs and salmon eggs. Our best reports came from anglers fishing the Corrales and Bernalillo Drains.
BLUEWATER LAKE: Fishing was slow for all species.
CHAMA RIVER: Monday morning water flows below El Vado and Abiquiu were 1,420cfs and 1,630cfs respectively. Fishing was slow at both locations.
COCHITI LAKE: Fishing was generally slow for all species but there were a few largemouth bass taken by anglers using spinner baits.
EL VADO LAKE: As of Monday, the lake was open to bank fishing but we had no reports from anglers. For updated ice conditions, call the park office at 505-588-7247.
FENTON LAKE: Over the past weekend, the lake opened to bank fishing. It was about 75 percent free of ice. Trout fishing was very good for anglers using wax worms. A few fish were also taken on salmon eggs. Most of the trout caught ranged in size from 10-to-12 inches.
HERON LAKE: As of this past weekend there was open water around the edges of the lake for bank fishing but we had no reports from anglers. For updated ice conditions, call the state park office at 505-588-7470.
JACKSON LAKE: Trout fishing was fair for anglers using power bait, garlic cheese and salmon eggs.
JEMEZ WATERS: Water flow on the Jemez as of Monday morning was 473cfs near Jemez Springs and fishing was slow. Trout fishing on the Cebolla and East Fork was fair in the morning hours for anglers using small spinners, worms, copper john barrs and salmon eggs.
NAVAJO LAKE: Trout fishing was good on the main lake for anglers using spinners, crank baits and power bait and fishing close to the bank. Fishing for smallmouth bass and largemouth bass was slow-to-fair for anglers using tubes, worms and senkos. The best reports came from anglers fishing La Jara Canyon and Francis Canyon. Anglers fishing for bass also caught a few northern pike. We had no reports on other species.
RAMAH LAKE: Trout fishing was good for anglers using salmon eggs, Gulp eggs, Super Dupers and Panther Martins.
SAN JUAN: Water flow below Navajo Lake as of Monday morning was 3,970cfs and is expected to stay at or near this level until mid May when the flow will be increased to 5,000cfs for 30 days. Trout fishing through the Quality Waters
was rated as slow-to-fair for anglers using small jigs, leeches, San Juan worms, wooly buggers and red annelids. Fishing through the bait waters was fair using jerk baits, jigs, garlic cheese, spinners and night crawlers.
SANTA CRUZ LAKE: Trout fishing was good this past week for anglers using small tubes, jigs, crank baits, jerk baits, spinners, worms and salmon eggs. Anglers did well fishing from the bank and from boats.
TINGLEY BEACH: Trout fishing at the Youth Pond and the Central Pond was fair for anglers using wooly buggers, spinners, power bait and leeches. A few bass were caught by anglers using worms, tubes and jigs. At the Catch and Release Pond best baits were leeches, scuds, WD40s, red annelids and Griffith’s gnats.

SOUTHWEST AREA

BEAR CANYON: We had no reports from anglers this week.
BILL EVANS LAKE: Trout fishing was fair for anglers using salmon eggs, cheese, small spinners and power bait. We had no reports on other species.
BURN LAKE: We had no reports from anglers this week.
CABALLO LAKE: Fishing was slow but a few white bass were taken by anglers trolling crank baits. We had no reports on other species.
ELEPHANT BUTTE: Striped bass fishing was good this past week for anglers using live bait. The action was good mid week but slowed by the weekend. The stripers ranged in size from 6 to 16 pounds. White bass fishing was slow-to-fair for anglers using live bait, crank baits, jigs and spoons. Fishing for smallmouth bass and largemouth bass was slow but a few were taken by anglers using jigs, tubes and worms and fishing the backs of coves. A few walleye were taken by anglers using spoons and crank baits. Fishing was fair-to-good using liver and shrimp at the upper end of the lake for catfish.
GLENWOOD POND: We had no reports from anglers this week.
ESCONDIDA LAKE: We had no reports from anglers this week.
GILA RIVER: Water flow on the Gila as of this past Monday was 154cfs. Fishing on the Forks was slow-to-fair using small bead head nymphs and small spinners for trout. We had no reports on other species.
LAKE ROBERTS: Trout fishing was slow-to-fair for anglers using power bait, cheese, salmon eggs and worms.
PERCHA DAM: Fishing was slow-to-fair for anglers using white grubs for a mix of walleye, white bass and largemouth bass.
QUEMADO LAKE: Fishing was slow for all species.
RIO GRANDE: Water flow below Elephant Butte on Monday was 1,760cfs. On the river south of Williamsburg, fishing was fair using minnows and grubs for walleye and white bass. Fishing below Caballo was fair using minnows and crank baits for white bass. We had no reports on other species.

SOUTHEAST AREA