Ed'd Fly Fishing Report for Monday May 17, 2010
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No High Spring Peak Release this year on the San Juan River. The latest Water Supply Forecast for Water Year 2010 has been issued and the April through July inflow into Navajo Lake is forecasted to be at 89% of normal. Given this forecast, there will not be a spring peak release this year. It's a little unfortunate that the river won't see a scouring this year and flush out some of the accumulated sand and silt. The upside is that there shouldn't be a dip in business for the San Juan guides. The high spring release often keeps anglers away despite the fact that fishing is very good during the event.
Pecos River 375 cfs below Terrero; Slow to Fair: At Villanueva State Park; Poor:
The water is high making wading difficult, however the water does have some clarity to it and the fish are eating. Look for them near the edges of the deeper pools where the holding water isn't blown out and consider fishing from the bank. Use red and orange San Juan worms, green caddis larva or pupa, or weighted stonefly nymphs. Holy Ghost Creek was reported to be the trib with the better fishing and least amount of water. To get a future fishing day on Pecos National Historical Park, see their website at http://www.nps.gov/peco/planyourvisit/fishing.htm or call 505-757-7272. Don't be a poacher! Please respect all of the landowners along the Pecos and stay out of all posted private waters. Please report anyone over harvesting fish or poaching to New Mexico Game and Fish at 1-800-432-4263.
San Juan River 447 cfs below Navajo Dam; Good
Visibilty is still around 3-4 feet and the suspended moss in the current is still a problem, especially in the afternoons. Make sure to clean off your rig so the fish can see your flies. Fishing is good on #20-22 olive midge larva, #22-24 black zebra midges. I like them in tandem with a SJ Worm or red midge larva. Gray baetis emergers like a #22-24 foam wing or RS2 have been working in the afternoons.There is a two fly only rule for the quality waters of the San Juan. Also, the Special Trout Water section is all catch and release. If you see someone in violation, turn them into Game and Fish at 1-800-432-4263. Officers have been checking people for licenses, barbless flies, and the number of flies on your rig! File those barbs or go barbless, as the fines are steep!
Rio Grande 556 cfs at Cerro; Slow: 1040 cfs at Pilar; Slow for pike, Slow for trout, Slow for smallmouth bass
The Rio Grande has remained fairly steady lately, but the water is murked up with 12" of visibility or less. The river continues to drop making me think that there is alot of withdrawls on the Colorado side. There is still a ton of snow that hasn't melted off yet so hopefully we'll see higher flows. This means we won't be able to fish it for a while, but the rafters need the noney and the health of the river will be better. If you're going to go, try a crane fly larvae or stonelfy nymphs with a trailing caddis pupa or flashback pheasant tail. A streamer fished deep in the pockets could get you a nice trout or even a smallie or a pike!
Jemez Mountain Streams 240 cfs above Jemez Pueblo; Fair to Good
Runoff is waning on the streams of the Jemez Mountains. The upper streams like the East Fork just west of the Caldera, the upper San Antonio, or the upper Cebolla are the places to fish. The Guadalupe and lower Jemez are definitely still out of the question. It'll be later into May before the Guad comes down. Dry dropper rigs with small beadheaded nymphs worked along the banks where there is some slow water is the tactic. Forest Road 376 up from Gilman Tunnels has opened on April 15th. The upper end of 376 off of NM Highway 126 won't open till the end of May. The Valles Caldera opens up to fishing on May 22nd. They no longer have the lottery system in place. To reserve a space, you can call, visit the website, or take a chance and walk-on before 7:00 am: See the Caldera's website at http://vallescaldera.gov/ for more details.
Cimarron River 4. cfs below Eagle Nest Dam; Fair to Good: 48 cfs at Cimarron
Even though the dam release is near zero, Tolby Creek and a few others are keeping the Cimarron flowing. It's brushier on the upper end, but there is more water the further east you go especially below Clear Creek. Scuds, golden stone nymphs, caddis pupa, and black WD40's we reported to be the hot flies. Hit this stream now that the others are in runoff and before the summer crowds decend upon it.
Jicarilla Nation Lakes
The Jicarilla Fishing Lakes are shaping up, with good fishing reported at both Mundo and Enbom Lakes. Stone Lake has had a little pressure but very few reports have come in, and most of those have been hearsay. Mundo Lake is fishing fair to good this week. Visibility is improving at 3-4 feet and the water temps are in the mid 50’s. Enbom Lake is fishing well with flies. Anglers are catching the big trophy fish with quite a few Rainbows in the 14 to 18 inch range reported this week. The water clarity is improving but the visibility is still limited to 2-3 feet. The Chironomidae midges are beginning to hatch and dry fly action has been possible on calm evenings. The pupae (emerger) of this large midge are black with whitish stripes and a light colored head and wing casing. Stone Lake has yet to produce a single fish as far as I know. I have received a few second hand reports of boat activity over the weekend but I didn’t hear any news on success. I have found that I get more reports from anglers who didn’t get a bite than I do from anglers turning fish all day. Maybe the fish are biting after all. Everything is really starting to happen at the Jicarilla Lakes. We are one stocking (5/17) away from completing the spring stocking regime. The insects are beginning to hatch and the weather is getting better. It’s a late start, but a start nonetheless. I will see you out there. The preceeeding report was excerpted from the Jicarilla Nation weblog fishing report by Kevin Terry.
The Chama River above the village of Chama; Poor: 1760 cfs below the town of Tierrra Amarilla; Poor: 394 cfs below El Vado Dam; Slow: and 1020 cfs below Abiquiu Dam; Slow
Runoff is still upon the Chama. High releases below both dams have slowed fishing and really made wading dangerous. The river flowing into El Vado is high and muddy. Below El Vado, you can use big nymphs with flash and sparkle, but your better off with streamers. Cover the tailouts of pools and hit the obvious seams. Even though this stretch does have some decent natural reproduction, most of the fish that get caught, get kept. The release below Abiquiu Dam is high and not really fishable. It will probably remain this way for the summer. The Chama River above El Vado and below Abiquiu are Special Trout Waters with reduced bag limits. The density of fish is very low there and is not stocked. Please report anyone over harvesting here to New Mexico Game and Fish at 1-800-432-4263.
One of our guides is doing quite well at Santa Cruz Lake. Small tech buggers as we call them, seem to out fish the standard woolly bugger. Think small, in different colors than the standard. My favorites are a Hale Bopp Leech in wine or brown, and a Pop's bugger in grizzly. Eagle's Nest Lake can be quite good with a fly rod from the shore. Bluewater Lake opened on April 24th. Trout fishing is still slow here and, the tiger muskies are hard to target in the very muddy water. Quemado Lake could be a better spot for both species. As with any of these lakes, use caution if your in a boat with these spring winds. If any one goes, let me know what the conditions are and how you did.
In Southern Colorado:
Conejos River 230 cfs below Platoro Reservoir; Slow: 958 cfs at Mogote; Slow to Fair
May 13, 2010. "Just another spring of fishing with no one here looks like. Guided the past few days and it was really good. Had a couple of really great older gentleman from AZ and they really caugt some nice fish. Mostly nymphing or fishing shallows and side channels with dry dropper rigs. Two tone worms, Rainbow Warriors, Red Ass, and a biot peacock stonefly nymph were the best flies. Still not seeing the Skwala much and not sure what to think of that. Are they late like everything else this spring? Or not coming to town this year? Or did we miss them? Anyway the fish are eating hard and almost out of know where I am seeing alot of wild rainbow trout. We caught about 50% bows the first day and yesterday even up in the meadow we caught beautiful wild bows. For those of you wanting to really learn how to nymph this next several weeks will be really good. Flows on the upper river have been raised to about 180 (currently at 230 cfs) which is a perfect flow for the upper river. The lower river color is not bad but flow is biggish. I would fish it but I would not guide it! Anything within 5 miles of the dam should be good. Also the South Fork and Lake Fork looked great to me but did not have a chance to fish them." Jon Harp of Conejos River Anglers provided the preceeding report.
Rio Grande 1090 cfs below Thirty Mile Bridge; Slow: 1500 cfs below Windy Gap Slow to Fair
Releases out of Rio Grande Reservoir have really brought the flows up on the upper river above Creede. Below Creede, the river is floatable and fishable. I'd try big stonefly nymphs and a trailing caddis or prince. The South Fork is blown out completely. Beaver Reservoir is being drained and is murking up South Fork.
Pagosa Area Piedra River 1150 cfs at Arboles; Poor: San Juan at Pagosa 986 cfs; Slow
Lots of snow and runoff around here. The Piedra is big water. Williams Creek below the reservoir is the best bet in this neighborhood. The upper forks of the San Juan have decent clarity, but they are high and will go higher with warmer weather.
Arkansas River 306 cfs at Granite; Good: 430 cfs at Salida; Good
The river is a deep green with 2 feet of visibility good condition for the weekend. The caddis hatch is mainly above Howard now. There are still plenty of bugs further down but these are egg-layers and are most accessible to the fish from 5:00 or so until dark. Blue wing olive mayfly hatches are waning on the lower river and their numbers are dwindling. On the upper river, golden stonefly nymphs with a trailing caddis or baetis is good choice. Attractors like hot wire princes and tungstones. Upstream, caddis are and blue winged olives are active from Browns Canyon to Granite. I've had good reports from the Salida area all the way to Hayden Meadows. There is clearer water and less of it at Hayden meadows making smaller flies and a stealthier approach a neccessity.
Animas River 1800 cfs at Durango; Slow to Poor
The Animas has come up alot, but dropped and has been steady for a week or so. The water is murky and fishing has slowed. Weighted stonefly nymphs with a trailing pheasant tail or caddis pupa drifted along the banks or in the deeper holes may get you some fish. Baetis could be coming off during cloudy weather. Look for them in the riffles.
Please see our announcements page for more news and upcoming events!
Call us at the shop for conditions on waters not listed here. 888-988-7688 out of Santa Fe or 988-7688 in Santa Fe.
It's spring in New Mexico and water and fishing condtitions can change with the weather! Please CALL the fly shop for the latest in stream flows and water conditions.
For the most current stream flows, see our links page and click on New Mexico Stream Flows.
No High Spring Peak Release this year on the San Juan River. The latest Water Supply Forecast for Water Year 2010 has been issued and the April through July inflow into Navajo Lake is forecasted to be at 89% of normal. Given this forecast, there will not be a spring peak release this year. It's a little unfortunate that the river won't see a scouring this year and flush out some of the accumulated sand and silt. The upside is that there shouldn't be a dip in business for the San Juan guides. The high spring release often keeps anglers away despite the fact that fishing is very good during the event.
Pecos River 375 cfs below Terrero; Slow to Fair: At Villanueva State Park; Poor:
The water is high making wading difficult, however the water does have some clarity to it and the fish are eating. Look for them near the edges of the deeper pools where the holding water isn't blown out and consider fishing from the bank. Use red and orange San Juan worms, green caddis larva or pupa, or weighted stonefly nymphs. Holy Ghost Creek was reported to be the trib with the better fishing and least amount of water. To get a future fishing day on Pecos National Historical Park, see their website at http://www.nps.gov/peco/planyourvisit/fishing.htm or call 505-757-7272. Don't be a poacher! Please respect all of the landowners along the Pecos and stay out of all posted private waters. Please report anyone over harvesting fish or poaching to New Mexico Game and Fish at 1-800-432-4263.
San Juan River 447 cfs below Navajo Dam; Good
Visibilty is still around 3-4 feet and the suspended moss in the current is still a problem, especially in the afternoons. Make sure to clean off your rig so the fish can see your flies. Fishing is good on #20-22 olive midge larva, #22-24 black zebra midges. I like them in tandem with a SJ Worm or red midge larva. Gray baetis emergers like a #22-24 foam wing or RS2 have been working in the afternoons.There is a two fly only rule for the quality waters of the San Juan. Also, the Special Trout Water section is all catch and release. If you see someone in violation, turn them into Game and Fish at 1-800-432-4263. Officers have been checking people for licenses, barbless flies, and the number of flies on your rig! File those barbs or go barbless, as the fines are steep!
Rio Grande 556 cfs at Cerro; Slow: 1040 cfs at Pilar; Slow for pike, Slow for trout, Slow for smallmouth bass
The Rio Grande has remained fairly steady lately, but the water is murked up with 12" of visibility or less. The river continues to drop making me think that there is alot of withdrawls on the Colorado side. There is still a ton of snow that hasn't melted off yet so hopefully we'll see higher flows. This means we won't be able to fish it for a while, but the rafters need the noney and the health of the river will be better. If you're going to go, try a crane fly larvae or stonelfy nymphs with a trailing caddis pupa or flashback pheasant tail. A streamer fished deep in the pockets could get you a nice trout or even a smallie or a pike!
Jemez Mountain Streams 240 cfs above Jemez Pueblo; Fair to Good
Runoff is waning on the streams of the Jemez Mountains. The upper streams like the East Fork just west of the Caldera, the upper San Antonio, or the upper Cebolla are the places to fish. The Guadalupe and lower Jemez are definitely still out of the question. It'll be later into May before the Guad comes down. Dry dropper rigs with small beadheaded nymphs worked along the banks where there is some slow water is the tactic. Forest Road 376 up from Gilman Tunnels has opened on April 15th. The upper end of 376 off of NM Highway 126 won't open till the end of May. The Valles Caldera opens up to fishing on May 22nd. They no longer have the lottery system in place. To reserve a space, you can call, visit the website, or take a chance and walk-on before 7:00 am: See the Caldera's website at http://vallescaldera.gov/ for more details.
Cimarron River 4. cfs below Eagle Nest Dam; Fair to Good: 48 cfs at Cimarron
Even though the dam release is near zero, Tolby Creek and a few others are keeping the Cimarron flowing. It's brushier on the upper end, but there is more water the further east you go especially below Clear Creek. Scuds, golden stone nymphs, caddis pupa, and black WD40's we reported to be the hot flies. Hit this stream now that the others are in runoff and before the summer crowds decend upon it.
Jicarilla Nation Lakes
The Jicarilla Fishing Lakes are shaping up, with good fishing reported at both Mundo and Enbom Lakes. Stone Lake has had a little pressure but very few reports have come in, and most of those have been hearsay. Mundo Lake is fishing fair to good this week. Visibility is improving at 3-4 feet and the water temps are in the mid 50’s. Enbom Lake is fishing well with flies. Anglers are catching the big trophy fish with quite a few Rainbows in the 14 to 18 inch range reported this week. The water clarity is improving but the visibility is still limited to 2-3 feet. The Chironomidae midges are beginning to hatch and dry fly action has been possible on calm evenings. The pupae (emerger) of this large midge are black with whitish stripes and a light colored head and wing casing. Stone Lake has yet to produce a single fish as far as I know. I have received a few second hand reports of boat activity over the weekend but I didn’t hear any news on success. I have found that I get more reports from anglers who didn’t get a bite than I do from anglers turning fish all day. Maybe the fish are biting after all. Everything is really starting to happen at the Jicarilla Lakes. We are one stocking (5/17) away from completing the spring stocking regime. The insects are beginning to hatch and the weather is getting better. It’s a late start, but a start nonetheless. I will see you out there. The preceeeding report was excerpted from the Jicarilla Nation weblog fishing report by Kevin Terry.
The Chama River above the village of Chama; Poor: 1760 cfs below the town of Tierrra Amarilla; Poor: 394 cfs below El Vado Dam; Slow: and 1020 cfs below Abiquiu Dam; Slow
Runoff is still upon the Chama. High releases below both dams have slowed fishing and really made wading dangerous. The river flowing into El Vado is high and muddy. Below El Vado, you can use big nymphs with flash and sparkle, but your better off with streamers. Cover the tailouts of pools and hit the obvious seams. Even though this stretch does have some decent natural reproduction, most of the fish that get caught, get kept. The release below Abiquiu Dam is high and not really fishable. It will probably remain this way for the summer. The Chama River above El Vado and below Abiquiu are Special Trout Waters with reduced bag limits. The density of fish is very low there and is not stocked. Please report anyone over harvesting here to New Mexico Game and Fish at 1-800-432-4263.
One of our guides is doing quite well at Santa Cruz Lake. Small tech buggers as we call them, seem to out fish the standard woolly bugger. Think small, in different colors than the standard. My favorites are a Hale Bopp Leech in wine or brown, and a Pop's bugger in grizzly. Eagle's Nest Lake can be quite good with a fly rod from the shore. Bluewater Lake opened on April 24th. Trout fishing is still slow here and, the tiger muskies are hard to target in the very muddy water. Quemado Lake could be a better spot for both species. As with any of these lakes, use caution if your in a boat with these spring winds. If any one goes, let me know what the conditions are and how you did.
In Southern Colorado:
Conejos River 230 cfs below Platoro Reservoir; Slow: 958 cfs at Mogote; Slow to Fair
May 13, 2010. "Just another spring of fishing with no one here looks like. Guided the past few days and it was really good. Had a couple of really great older gentleman from AZ and they really caugt some nice fish. Mostly nymphing or fishing shallows and side channels with dry dropper rigs. Two tone worms, Rainbow Warriors, Red Ass, and a biot peacock stonefly nymph were the best flies. Still not seeing the Skwala much and not sure what to think of that. Are they late like everything else this spring? Or not coming to town this year? Or did we miss them? Anyway the fish are eating hard and almost out of know where I am seeing alot of wild rainbow trout. We caught about 50% bows the first day and yesterday even up in the meadow we caught beautiful wild bows. For those of you wanting to really learn how to nymph this next several weeks will be really good. Flows on the upper river have been raised to about 180 (currently at 230 cfs) which is a perfect flow for the upper river. The lower river color is not bad but flow is biggish. I would fish it but I would not guide it! Anything within 5 miles of the dam should be good. Also the South Fork and Lake Fork looked great to me but did not have a chance to fish them." Jon Harp of Conejos River Anglers provided the preceeding report.
Rio Grande 1090 cfs below Thirty Mile Bridge; Slow: 1500 cfs below Windy Gap Slow to Fair
Releases out of Rio Grande Reservoir have really brought the flows up on the upper river above Creede. Below Creede, the river is floatable and fishable. I'd try big stonefly nymphs and a trailing caddis or prince. The South Fork is blown out completely. Beaver Reservoir is being drained and is murking up South Fork.
Pagosa Area Piedra River 1150 cfs at Arboles; Poor: San Juan at Pagosa 986 cfs; Slow
Lots of snow and runoff around here. The Piedra is big water. Williams Creek below the reservoir is the best bet in this neighborhood. The upper forks of the San Juan have decent clarity, but they are high and will go higher with warmer weather.
Arkansas River 306 cfs at Granite; Good: 430 cfs at Salida; Good
The river is a deep green with 2 feet of visibility good condition for the weekend. The caddis hatch is mainly above Howard now. There are still plenty of bugs further down but these are egg-layers and are most accessible to the fish from 5:00 or so until dark. Blue wing olive mayfly hatches are waning on the lower river and their numbers are dwindling. On the upper river, golden stonefly nymphs with a trailing caddis or baetis is good choice. Attractors like hot wire princes and tungstones. Upstream, caddis are and blue winged olives are active from Browns Canyon to Granite. I've had good reports from the Salida area all the way to Hayden Meadows. There is clearer water and less of it at Hayden meadows making smaller flies and a stealthier approach a neccessity.
Animas River 1800 cfs at Durango; Slow to Poor
The Animas has come up alot, but dropped and has been steady for a week or so. The water is murky and fishing has slowed. Weighted stonefly nymphs with a trailing pheasant tail or caddis pupa drifted along the banks or in the deeper holes may get you some fish. Baetis could be coming off during cloudy weather. Look for them in the riffles.
Please see our announcements page for more news and upcoming events!
Call us at the shop for conditions on waters not listed here. 888-988-7688 out of Santa Fe or 988-7688 in Santa Fe.
It's spring in New Mexico and water and fishing condtitions can change with the weather! Please CALL the fly shop for the latest in stream flows and water conditions.
For the most current stream flows, see our links page and click on New Mexico Stream Flows.
posted by High Desert Angler at Monday, May 17, 2010
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