Fishing Report

Caballo Lake: Kendra Hensley of Deming caught a 22-inch, 6-pound walleye using a White Bomber on April 23.

Cochiti Lake: Jeff Fink of Albuquerque caught a 36-inch pike using a 6-inch topwater lure on April 29.

Eagle Nest Lake: Val Armijo of Albuquerque caught a 26-inch, 4-pound rainbow trout using Salmon Peach PowerBait on April 27. Ian Smucznski of Taos caught a 26-inch rainbow trout using a black Woolly Bugger fly on April 23.

Elephant Butte Lake: Rito Sr. of Albuquerque caught and released a 5.5-pound largemouth bass using a minnow on April 29.

Escondida Lake: Antonio Castillo, age 12, of Albuquerque caught a 19-inch largemouth bass using an artificial worm on April 23.

Glenwood Pond: Ava Soliz, age 7, of Silver City caught her limit of rainbow trout using Orange and Chartreuse PowerBait fished with a bobber on April 27.

Green Meadow Lake: Terri Keele of Hobbs caught a 16.5-inch, 2-pound bass using a nightcrawler worm with garlic attractant spray on May 1.

Morphy Lake: Adam Gonzales of Las Vegas caught a 20-inch rainbow trout using a CDC Flashback Pheasant Tail nymph fly on April 29.

Perch Lake: Cameron Salazar, age 11, of Las Vegas caught a 17-inch catfish using cut shad bait and garlic salmon eggs on April 29.

Rio Pueblo: Richard Romero of Albuquerque caught and released a 16-inch brown trout using a worm on April 19.

Santa Cruz Reservoir: Nevaeh Olivas, age 8, of Chamita caught a 15-inch rainbow trout using a black Pistol Pete spinner fly on April 30.

If you have a catch of the week story or just want to tell us about your latest New Mexico fishing experience, send it to us at funfishingnm@gmail.com. We may include your story in our next report. For catches of the week, include name, age, hometown, date, location, type of fish, length and weight if possible, and bait, lure or fly used. Fish weights and measurements are provided by the angler and printed here as received.

Cabresto Lake: Fishing for trout was good when using Zebra Midge flies, Euro Nymph flies and spider-imitation flies.

Charette Lakes: Fishing for trout was fair when using nightcrawler worms.

Cimarron River: Streamflow near Cimarron Monday morning was 22 cubic feet per second (cfs). Fishing for trout was fair to good when using bead-head nymph flies, worms, salmon eggs and Yellow Garlic PowerBait.

Clayton Lake: Fishing for trout was good when using PowerBait and worms. Fishing for walleye was fair when using nightcrawler worms. Fishing for catfish was fair when using chicken liver and nightcrawler worms.

Conchas Lake: Fishing for smallmouth bass was good when using jerkbaits and soft-plastic worms.

Costilla Creek: The Valle Vidal is closed to fishing until July.

Cowles Ponds: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Coyote Creek: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Eagle Nest Lake: Fishing for trout was fair to good when using black Woolly Bugger flies and Salmon Peach PowerBait. For updated lake conditions, visit the park’s webpage or call the park office at 575-377-1594.

Eagle Rock Lake: Fishing for trout was good when using White PowerBait Eggs, Panther Martin spinners and worms.

Gallinas River: National Forest closures have been in place restricting fishing access.Visit the Santa Fe National Forest webpage or call the Santa Fe National Forest office at 505-438-5300 for the latest closure information.

Hopewell Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Lake Alice: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Lake Maloya: Fishing for trout was good when using copper spoons and black-and-gold Panther Martin spinners.

Los Pinos River: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Maxwell Lake 13: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Monastery Lake: Fishing for trout was good when using Pistol Pete spinner flies and PowerBait. The Benedictine Monastery Lake is part of the Department’s Open Gate Program. Please visit our website for more information about this property.

Morphy Lake: Fishing for trout was good when using CDC Flashback Pheasant Tail nymph flies and Panther Martin spinners.

Pecos River: Streamflow near Pecos Monday morning was 433 cfs. Fishing for trout was fair when using worms and gold bead-head nymph flies.

Red River: Streamflow below the Red River Hatchery on Monday morning was 124 cfs. Fishing for trout was fair when using worms.

Rio Grande: Streamflow below the Taos Junction Bridge on Monday morning was 1,250 cfs.

Rio Hondo: Streamflow near Valdez Monday morning was 59 cfs.

Rio Mora: Streamflow near Terrero Monday morning was 151 cfs.

Rio Pueblo: Streamflow near Peñasco Monday morning was 235 cfs. Fishing for trout was fair to good when using worms.

Santa Cruz Reservoir: Fishing for trout was good when using black Pistol Pete spinner flies, worms, spinners, Orange PowerBait and Rainbow PowerBait.

Shuree Ponds: Closed to fishing until July.

Springer Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Storrie Lake: Fishing for trout was fair to good when using worms.

Stubblefield Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Ute Lake: Fishing for walleye was fair when using live minnows and 4-inch Berkley Gulp Minnows. Fishing for white bass was good when using crankbaits that dive 10-12 feet. Fishing for smallmouth and largemouth bass was fair to good when using wacky-rigged Senko worms, crawdad-pattern baits and jigs. Fishing for crappie was fair to good when using live minnows. Fishing for catfish was fair when using punch bait. The main lake water surface temperature was in the low 60 F range, and the water was clear.

Abiquiu Lake: Fishing for walleye was slow when using nightcrawler worms and crankbaits.

Animas River: Streamflow below Aztec Monday morning was 3,320 cfs.

Albuquerque Area Drains: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Bluewater Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Brazos River: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Canjilon Lakes: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Cochiti Lake: Fishing for pike was good when using 6-inch, topwater lures and jerkbaits. Fishing for white bass was slow when using crankbaits. Fishing for smallmouth and largemouth bass was fair to good when using jerkbaits and swimbaits. Fishing for catfish was good when using nightcrawler worms and cut carp bait.

El Vado Lake: Closed due to dam construction project. For more information, visit El Vado Lake State Park’s webpage or call 575-588-7247.

Fenton Lake: Fishing for trout was good when using mop flies, black Rooster Tail spinners and Sherbet PowerBait. For updated lake conditions, visit the park’s webpage or call the park office at 575-829-3630.

Grants Riverwalk Pond: Fishing for trout was fair to good when using Pistol Pete spinner flies.

Heron Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Jemez Waters: Fishing for trout was good when using nymph flies near Fenton Lake. Streamflow near Jemez Monday morning was 421 cfs. Due to the rising popularity of fishing in Valles Caldera National Preserve, the National Park Service will begin charging a fee for its fishing permits starting April 1, 2023 to support the management of its fishing program. The new fee schedule will be $20 for an annual pass ($10 for youth 12-17) and $5 for a 7-day pass ($3 for youth 12-17). A State of New Mexico fishing license is also required to fish within Valles Caldera. For more information visit www.nps.gov/vall.

Laguna del Campo: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Lagunitas Lakes: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Lake Farmington: Fishing for trout was good when using dough bait.

McGaffey Lake: Fishing for trout was good when using PowerBait. The lake is full and was recently stocked with rainbow trout.

Navajo Lake: Fishing for trout was fair when using crankbaits. Fishing for pike was fair when using large crankbaits.

Rio Chama: Streamflow below El Vado Lake Monday morning was 2,540 cfs; streamflow below Abiquiu Lake Monday morning was 1,530 cfs. Fishing below Abiquiu Lake was slow due to high water levels. 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 two trout only.

Rio Grande: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Riverside Park Pond (Aztec Pond #1): We had no reports from anglers this week.

San Gregorio Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

San Juan River: Streamflow near Archuleta Monday morning was 497 cfs. Fishing for trout in the quality waters was slow to fair when using midge-pattern flies, leech-pattern flies and red annelid flies. Fishing for trout in the bait waters was fair when using flies and PowerBait.

Seven Springs Brood Pond: Fishing for trout was good when using PowerBait Floating Mice Tails.

Tiger Park Reservoir: Fishing for trout was good when using Kastmaster lures and bead-head nymph flies.

Tingley Beach: Fishing for catfish was good when using nightcrawler worms, stink bait and homemade dough bait.

Trout Lakes: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Alumni Pond: Fishing for catfish was fair when using beef liver, chicken liver, cut frozen carp and hot dogs.

Bear Canyon Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Bill Evans Lake: The department is conducting a boater and angler improvement project at Bill Evans Lake extending into May. Improvements include the installation of a new concrete boat ramp and dock; improvements to the existing boat ramp; the installation of rock, fishing jetties; road improvements; and re-grading the north camping access area. Anglers should expect road and lake closures during construction. For current conditions, contact the department’s Fisheries Management Division at505-476-8055. Anglers are encouraged to visit surrounding lakes such as Bear Canyon Lake, Lake Roberts and Trees Lake for alternate fishing locations.

Caballo Lake: Fishing for white bass was fair when using curly-tail grubs and small crankbaits. Fishing for walleye was good when using white Bomber lures, Rat-L-Trap crankbaits and curly-tail grubs.

Elephant Butte Lake: Fishing for largemouth bass and smallmouth bass was fair to good when using shad-pattern jerkbaits, square-billed crankbaits, live minnows and swimbaits. Fishing for white bass was fair to good when using crankbaits. Fishing for walleye was fair when using liver shiners. Fishing for crappie was fair to good when using live minnows. Fishing for catfish was very good when using raw shrimp at the marina.

Escondida Lake: Fishing for bass was fair to good when using artificial worms.

Estancia Park Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Gila River: Streamflow near Gila Monday morning was 214 cfs.

Glenwood Pond: Fishing for trout was good when using orange and chartreuse PowerBait fished with a bobber.

Lake Roberts: Fishing for trout was slow to fair when using PowerBait.

Percha Dam: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Quemado Lake: Fishing for trout was slow to fair when using White Glitter and Pink Glitter PowerBait.

Rancho Grande Ponds: Fishing for trout was good when using PowerBait.

Rio Grande: Streamflow below Elephant Butte Dam on Monday morning was 395 cfs.

Snow Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Trees Lake: Fishing for bass was fair when using 3-inch, soft-plastic worms.

Young Pond: Fishing for catfish was slow when using hot dogs.

Alto Lake: Fishing for trout was fair to good when using PowerBait and various flies. Fishing for bass was fair to good when using plastic worms.

Bataan Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Berrendo Creek: Fishing for bass was fair to good when using Senko worms. Please visit the Open Gate webpage for more information on this property.

Black River: Streamflow at Malaga Monday morning was 4 cfs.

Blue Hole Park Pond: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Bonito Lake: Closed until further notice by the City of Alamogordo due to fire damage. The lake is full but needs time for aquatic habitat to develop in order to sustain a healthy fish population. The city hopes to reopen the lake for recreational purposes in June 2024.

Bosque Redondo Lake: Fishing for catfish was good when using hot dogs.

Bottomless Lakes: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Brantley Lake: Fishing for white bass was good when using live minnows. Fishing for walleye was slow to fair when using crankbaits.

Carlsbad Municipal Lake: Fishing for catfish was fair when using hot dogs.

Chaparral Park Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Corona Pond: Fishing for trout was fair when using Salmon Peach PowerBait. Fishing for catfish was fair to good when using raw chicken.

Eunice Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Green Meadow Lake: Fishing for largemouth bass was good when using nightcrawler worms with garlic scent.

Greene Acres Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Grindstone Reservoir: Fishing for trout was good when using garlic PowerBait and Salmon Peach PowerBait.

Harry McAdams Park Pond: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Lake Van: Fishing for catfish was fair when using worms.

Ned Houk Ponds: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Oasis Park Lake: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Pecos River: Streamflow below Sumner Lake Monday morningwas 102 cfs. Fishing for catfish was fair when using hot dogs south of Carlsbad.

Perch Lake: Fishing for catfish was fair when using cut-shad bait and garlic salmon eggs.

Rio Bonito: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Rio Ruidoso: Streamflow at Hollywood Monday morning was 21 cfs.

Rock Lake Hatchery Kids’ Pond: We had no reports from anglers this week.

Santa Rosa Lake: Fishing for all species was slow.

Sumner Lake: Fishing for walleye was fair when using live minnows and Berkley Flicker Shad lures.

Timberon Ponds: Fishing for trout was fair to good when using Woolly Worm flies.

Fishing for bass, walleye, crappie and bluegill using jig heads with plastic baits can be a very productive technique. Sometimes so productive that the baits cannot withstand the onslaught of activity and wear out before their time.

Once the plastic bait has been pulled on enough, it will tear and not stay secured tightly against the jig head. The plastic bait is usually noticeably less effective once it does not stay snug to the jig head.

To prolong the amount of time a plastic bait stays snug with the jig head, place a bead of super glue where the plastic bait and jig head meet.

Let us know how your fishing trip goes! Share your tips and tricks with your fellow anglers by emailing us at funfishingnm@gmail.com and let’s help the next generation of anglers find success.

Thanks for reading and supporting our angling community!