Ed's Fly Fishing Report for Friday May 21, 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 435 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 and the deeper pools where the holding water isn't blown out. 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. The summer fishing program at Pecos National Historical Park begins on June 24th. To get a fishing day on Pecos NHP, 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 453 cfs below Navajo Dam; Good
Visibilty is improving to 4 feet. 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. Chocolate 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 523 cfs at Cerro; Slow: 1160 cfs at Pilar; Slow for pike, Slow for trout, Slow for smallmouth bass
The Rio Grande has remained fairly steady lately, and the water clarity is improving. I did receive a decent report on catching trout at Pilar. 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 224 cfs above Jemez Pueblo; 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 have the best water clarity. We've had good reports from each over the past two weeks. The Guadalupe and lower Jemez are definitely still a little high but clearing and wadeable. On of our guides scouted the Guad yesterday and did well nymphing. He was using big stone fly nymphs. He did not see any adult stones. It 'll be about a week away historically, but could happen any day now. There is alot of truck traffic on Forest Road 376 from Jemez Springs to almost Porter's Landing, so be careful. The upper end of 376 off of NM Highway 126 won't open till June 1. 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 .5 cfs below Eagle Nest Dam; Good: 54 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
Fishing has been good to excellent this week at the Jicarilla Fishing Lakes. Most of the pressure and action has been split between Mundo Lake and Enbom Lake, but we did hear of a Lunker that was caught at Stone Lake on Saturday. The water is clearing up at both Enbom Lake and Mundo Lake and Stone remains crystal clear. The year’s first Bass reports have come in and folks are catching Bluegill as well. Enbom Lake was far and away the hot spot this week at the Jicarilla Fishing Lakes. Most of the success was on flies like wooly buggers and damsel nymphs. Approximately half of the Rainbows caught at 8-10 inches and half of them at 14 inches or better. Enbom was also stocked with 750 lbs. of 16-22 inch trophy Rainbow Trout. The Chironomidae hatch is substantially active at Enbom right now. There should be a possibility for dry fly fishing early mornings and in the evenings. Stone lake is still giving folks a hard time. Consequently, the fishing pressure is extremely low and therefore we have fewer and fewer reports. Finally, I have a fish caught at Stone Lake to report. The water is in excellent condition and the Midge hatch is going off big time. Don’t forget that camping is free with a valid Jicarilla Fishing Permit. Consider the Jicarilla Fishing Lakes for your next aquatic adventure!
The preceeeding report was excerpted from the Jicarilla Nation weblog fishing report by Kevin Terry.
The Chama River above the village of Chama; Poor: 1570 cfs below the town of Tierrra Amarilla; Poor: 394 cfs below El Vado Dam; Slow: and 1620 cfs below Abiquiu Dam; Slow
Runoff is still upon the Chama. 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. The stretch below Abiquiu typically doesn't fish well over the summer. Currently the release is very high and unwadeable. The clarity is decent however. 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 303 cfs below Platoro Reservoir; Slow: 1160 cfs at Mogote; Slow to Fair
May 20, 2010. "Interesting week behind us and before we know it we will be out at night watching Stoneflies crawl out and enter a different world. Floated the Rio Grande yesterday searching for the big pike and for whatever reason there were few out. Alot of fun though and if you asked me again today to go I might say yes. Really big flow change 1000 to 500 before we went in and maybe too much of a change to be really good. Anyway we did see a few beasts eat so they are there. The Conejos and La Jara are the game right now for trout as well as some really neat Cutthroat trout lakes that I will allow to remain anonymous but we fished them on Monday and had a great time. Still mostly nymph fishing on the Conejos and we will talk to Troy tonight who is fishing on the La Jara today what type of bugs are the best over there and how the fish look after winter. Great time to explore the high country as well with all of the lakes around and ice just off a few weeks ago the fish are much easier to catch now than they will be in August. Jon Harp of Conejos River Anglers provided the preceeding report.
Rio Grande 803 cfs below Thirty Mile Bridge; Slow: 1790 cfs below Windy Gap Slow
Releases out of Rio Grande Reservoir have really brought the flows up on the upper river above Creede. This has made the fishing below Creede really tough even though the river is floatable. The South Fork is blown out completely. Beaver Reservoir is being drained and is murking up the 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 282 cfs at Granite; Good: 415 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 this past week. 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.
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 435 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 and the deeper pools where the holding water isn't blown out. 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. The summer fishing program at Pecos National Historical Park begins on June 24th. To get a fishing day on Pecos NHP, 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 453 cfs below Navajo Dam; Good
Visibilty is improving to 4 feet. 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. Chocolate 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 523 cfs at Cerro; Slow: 1160 cfs at Pilar; Slow for pike, Slow for trout, Slow for smallmouth bass
The Rio Grande has remained fairly steady lately, and the water clarity is improving. I did receive a decent report on catching trout at Pilar. 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 224 cfs above Jemez Pueblo; 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 have the best water clarity. We've had good reports from each over the past two weeks. The Guadalupe and lower Jemez are definitely still a little high but clearing and wadeable. On of our guides scouted the Guad yesterday and did well nymphing. He was using big stone fly nymphs. He did not see any adult stones. It 'll be about a week away historically, but could happen any day now. There is alot of truck traffic on Forest Road 376 from Jemez Springs to almost Porter's Landing, so be careful. The upper end of 376 off of NM Highway 126 won't open till June 1. 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 .5 cfs below Eagle Nest Dam; Good: 54 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
Fishing has been good to excellent this week at the Jicarilla Fishing Lakes. Most of the pressure and action has been split between Mundo Lake and Enbom Lake, but we did hear of a Lunker that was caught at Stone Lake on Saturday. The water is clearing up at both Enbom Lake and Mundo Lake and Stone remains crystal clear. The year’s first Bass reports have come in and folks are catching Bluegill as well. Enbom Lake was far and away the hot spot this week at the Jicarilla Fishing Lakes. Most of the success was on flies like wooly buggers and damsel nymphs. Approximately half of the Rainbows caught at 8-10 inches and half of them at 14 inches or better. Enbom was also stocked with 750 lbs. of 16-22 inch trophy Rainbow Trout. The Chironomidae hatch is substantially active at Enbom right now. There should be a possibility for dry fly fishing early mornings and in the evenings. Stone lake is still giving folks a hard time. Consequently, the fishing pressure is extremely low and therefore we have fewer and fewer reports. Finally, I have a fish caught at Stone Lake to report. The water is in excellent condition and the Midge hatch is going off big time. Don’t forget that camping is free with a valid Jicarilla Fishing Permit. Consider the Jicarilla Fishing Lakes for your next aquatic adventure!
The preceeeding report was excerpted from the Jicarilla Nation weblog fishing report by Kevin Terry.
The Chama River above the village of Chama; Poor: 1570 cfs below the town of Tierrra Amarilla; Poor: 394 cfs below El Vado Dam; Slow: and 1620 cfs below Abiquiu Dam; Slow
Runoff is still upon the Chama. 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. The stretch below Abiquiu typically doesn't fish well over the summer. Currently the release is very high and unwadeable. The clarity is decent however. 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 303 cfs below Platoro Reservoir; Slow: 1160 cfs at Mogote; Slow to Fair
May 20, 2010. "Interesting week behind us and before we know it we will be out at night watching Stoneflies crawl out and enter a different world. Floated the Rio Grande yesterday searching for the big pike and for whatever reason there were few out. Alot of fun though and if you asked me again today to go I might say yes. Really big flow change 1000 to 500 before we went in and maybe too much of a change to be really good. Anyway we did see a few beasts eat so they are there. The Conejos and La Jara are the game right now for trout as well as some really neat Cutthroat trout lakes that I will allow to remain anonymous but we fished them on Monday and had a great time. Still mostly nymph fishing on the Conejos and we will talk to Troy tonight who is fishing on the La Jara today what type of bugs are the best over there and how the fish look after winter. Great time to explore the high country as well with all of the lakes around and ice just off a few weeks ago the fish are much easier to catch now than they will be in August. Jon Harp of Conejos River Anglers provided the preceeding report.
Rio Grande 803 cfs below Thirty Mile Bridge; Slow: 1790 cfs below Windy Gap Slow
Releases out of Rio Grande Reservoir have really brought the flows up on the upper river above Creede. This has made the fishing below Creede really tough even though the river is floatable. The South Fork is blown out completely. Beaver Reservoir is being drained and is murking up the 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 282 cfs at Granite; Good: 415 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 this past week. 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.
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 Friday, May 21, 2010
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