By GEORGE MORSE
Sports and Outdoors
Los Alamos Daily Post 

Small streams at higher elevations are starting to ice up. The Rio Pueblo, Santa Cruz River and Rio Costilla are already reporting icy conditions that prevent the measurement of streamflow. Lakes are starting to develop thin ice, but it will be awhile before the ice is thick enough for safe ice fishing. 

This time of year is good time to plan a strip to Southern New Mexico. The weather is warmer and a lot more comfortable than dealing with the hot temperatures of summer 

The weather forecast is for a warming trend with little precipitation. We need a lot more snow to establish a good snowpack which is much-needed. We are in a La Nina pattern which is typically dry here in the Southwest. They are having record floods in the Pacific Northwest.  

Several lakes will begin to freeze over and it will be awhile before the ice is thick enough to allow for ice fishing. Santa Cruz Lake and Monastery Lake do not allow any ice fishing. 

Eagle Nest Lake, Fenton Lake and Lake Maloya are popular ice fishing destinations that typically open by late December and early January. Be sure to call ahead to check on ice conditions. 

Streamflows on the Rio Grande increased over the past week and are above normal. Streamflow Sunday, Dec. 14 was 693 cubic-feet-per-second at Taos Junction Bridge. The streamflow at Cerro near the Colorado border was 487 cubic-feet-per-second. The streamflow at Embudo was normal at 665 cubic-feet-per-second.  

Fenton Lake State Park is open. Camping is by reservation only. Fenton Lake was stocked Nov. 18 with 2,412 rainbow trout. There are also wild brown trout and some Rio Grande cutthroat trout. Only two cutthroat trout may be kept as part of a five-trout daily bag limit. Call 575.829.3630 for current conditions. 

The Rio Cebolla flows into and out of Fenton Lake. It was stocked Oct. 15 with 206 rainbow trout. It was stocked Oct. 21 with 2,024 fingerling Rio Grande cutthroat trout. It also has wild brown trout. 

The Seven Springs Brood Pond, also known as the Kid’s Pond, is open to anglers 11 years of age and younger. There are also some wild brown trout. It is north of Fenton Lake. It was stocked on Aug. 20 with 200 rainbow trout that averaged 17.4 inches. It was stocked Oct. 23 with 692 catchable-size rainbow trout. 

The Jemez River streamflow was 15.9 cubic-feet-per-second. This is lower than last week and below normal. It was stocked Nov. 25 with 1,776 rainbow trout and has wild brown trout. 

The East Fork of the Jemez River was stocked Oct. 21 with 6,838 fingerling Rio Grande cutthroat trout. Peralta Creek in the Jemez drainage was as stocked Nov. 20 with 501 fingerling Rio Grande cutthroat trout.  All streams in the Jemez drainage have wild brown trout. The headwaters are icing up. 

San Gregorio Lake was stocked Oct. 20 with 10,000 fingerling Rio Grande cutthroat trout. Some good-sized holdover cutthroats have been caught here recently. This lake is likely starting to freeze over.  

Santa Cruz Lake near Chimayo is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. The state-record rainbow trout was caught here. It was stocked twice Dec. 3 with a total of 2,167 catchable-size rainbow trout. There are also wild brown trout. Hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Thursday through Monday. Call 505.351.1438 or visit blm.gov/visit/santa-cruz-lake-recreation area. 

The Santa Cruz River above the lake is icing up. 

The Bureau also manages the Orilla Verde Recreation Area on the Rio Grande at Pilar. The Rio Grande at Pilar was stocked Nov. 18 with 15,017 fingerling  rainbow trout . There are also wild brown trout, northern pike and smallmouth bass. Some Rio Grande cutthroat trout are now being caught thanks to earlier stockings. 

From the Colorado border to the Taos Junction Bridge, the limit is two trout per day on the Rio Grande.  Streamflow was 693 cubic-feet-per-second at Taos Junction Bridge. This is higher than last week. The Rio Grande Gorge above Pilar was stocked Aug. 21 with 20,000 Rio Grande cutthroat trout. It was stocked Nov. 18 with 15,017 fingerling rainbow trout. 

The Rio Pueblo near Penasco is icing up. Streamflow was not measured. It was last stocked Sept. 22 with 1,202 rainbow trout and has wild brown trout. 

The streamflow on the Red River below Questa Penas6.e cubic-feet-per-second below Questa. This is a a little higher than last week. It was stocked Dec. 4 with 701 rainbow trout and has wild brown trout. 

The Red River Hatchery Pond is open. It was stocked Oct. 15 with 650 catchable-size rainbow trout. Fishing is for anglers 11 years old or younger and 65 years old or older.  

Eagle Rock Lake near Questa was stocked Oct. 16 with 650 catchable-size rainbow trout. 

The Shuree Ponds on the Valle Vidal are open. They were stocked Aug. 7 with 500 rainbow trout averaging 15.8 inches. They close Dec. 31 for the season. They are likely frozen. 

Cabresto Lake is a high-elevation lake accessible by four-wheel drive. It has good fishing for wild brook trout and wild cutthroat trout. It may soon ice over. 

Abiquiu Lake is managed by the Corps of Engineers. The fishing has been fair-to-good for walleye and smallmouth bass. There are some good-sized trout in Abiquiu. Camping by reservation. Call 505.685.4371 for more information.  

The streamflow in the Chama River below Abiquiu Dam was 796 cubic-feet-per-second. This is much lower than last week. It was stocked Dec. 3 with 532 rainbow trout. There are some big, wild brown trout here. The limit here is two trout per day. 

The Canjilon Lakes were last stocked Oct. 9 with 2,001 small Rio Grande cutthroat trout. These lakes are starting to freeze over and may be hard to reach 

The Trout Lakes near Cebolla are open. Access to these lakes can be difficult when it rains. They were stocked Oct. 9 with 530 rainbow trout. These lakes will soon freeze over and be inaccessible. 

Heron Lake State Park is open. Fishing for rainbow trout has been fair. Kokanee salmon snagging season begins Nov. 11. El Vado Lake State Park is now open for fishing. El Vado Lake was stocked Nov. 17 with 40,027 fingerling rainbow trout. Kokanee salmon snagging season began Oct. 1.  Call 575.588.7470 for more information.  

The streamflow in the Chama River below El Vado Dam was 388 cubic-feet-per-second. It has wild brown trout. It was stocked Oct. 1 with 436 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 5,012 fingerling rainbow trout. The state record brown trout was caught here. 

The Chama River above El Vado Lake streamflow was 35 3 cubic-feet-per-second at La Puente. This is lower than last week. It was stocked Oct. 1 with 1,070 rainbow trout. It has wild brown trout. 

Over at the Four Corners, the fishing has been fair at Navajo Lake State Park. Trolling minnow imitating lures like Rapalas could produce a trophy brown trout.  The fishing for northern pike has been fair to good. Bass fishing has been fair. Navajo Lake has the best kokanee salmon fishing in the state. Kokanee salmon snagging season began Oct. 1 and has been slow to fair. The fishing is about over. Camping by reservation only. Boating conditions are good. Call 505.632.2278 for more information. 

The San Juan River below Navajo Dam is the best river in New Mexico and well-known in the angling world.  The streamflow was 284 cubic-feet-per-second. This is just a little lower than last week and below normal. It has world-class fly-fishing for big trout. Conditions for wading anglers have improved. 

The first four miles of river below the dam is known as the Quality Water. Angling is strictly Catch-and-Release using artificial flies and lures with a single barbless hook. The Quality Water is stocked with small rainbow trout that grow quickly. It was stocked Dec. 3 with 30,009 fingerling rainbow trout. 

There are also big, wild brown trout. Some of these brown trout would shatter the state record if they could be kept and weighed.  

The Bait Water below the Quality Water has good fishing, and a five-fish limit may be kept here. There are big brown trout here too. It was stocked Dec. 8 with 2,501 catchable-size rainbow trout. 

 Lakes in the Aztec area are now being stocked. Aztec Pond #1 was stocked Dec. 2 with 98 rainbow trout. Tiger Park Pond was stocked Dec. 2 with 1,019 catchable-size rainbow trout. 

Hopewell Lake is a small, high elevation lake between Tierra Amarilla and Tres Piedras. It has stocked rainbow trout and wild brook trout. It was stocked Oct. 10 with 1,205 small Rio Grande cutthroat trout. It was stocked twice two weeks ago with a total of 2,409 catchable-size rainbow trout. This lake will soon freeze over, and snow will hinder access to it. Be cautious if attempting to ice fish. 

The Lagunitas Lakes received their second stocking of the year Sept. 2 of 1,500 rainbow trout. They were stocked Oct. 29 with 2,497 fingerling Rio Grande cutthroat trout. They may soon be frozen and hard to reach due to snow. 

The Rio de los Pinos north of Tres Piedras near the Colorado border is heavily stocked with rainbow trout. It also has wild brown trout. There are brook trout in the headwaters. It is likely icing up. 

Eagle Nest Lake State Park is good for rainbow trout. This is a big fertile lake that can produce large trout. It was stocked Oct. 16 with 11,002 sub-catchable rainbow trout. There is also northern pike, yellow perch and an occasional kokanee salmon. The state-record kokanee was caught here.  Snagging for kokanee salmon has been fair. Snagging season for kokanee salmon began Oct. 1. If you catch a pike at Eagle Nest you must kill it. You cannot release it back into the lake. Call 575.377.1594 for more information.  

The Cimarron River at Cimarron Canyon State Park is stocked with rainbow trout. There are also wild brown trout. It was stocked Oct. 7 with 2,420 rainbow trout. The streamflow below Eagle Nest Dam was 1.74 cubic-feet-per-second. The Cimarron River near Cimarron is icing up. 

The Cimarron Gravel Pit Lakes at Maverick Campground were stocked Oct. 7 with 401 catchable-size rainbow trout. They may soon freeze over. 

Lake Maloya in Sugarite Canyon State Park near Raton. Lake Maloya was stocked Oct. 14 with 5,163 rainbow trout. Lake Alice, a smaller lake at the park, was stocked Oct. 14 with 499 rainbow trout. Call 575.445.1507 for more information. 

Coyote Creek State Park is open and was last stocked Sept. 9 with 800 rainbow trout. Coyote Creek Pond was stocked with 601 rainbow trout. 

Storrie Lake State Park near Las Vegas was stocked Nov. 18 with 20,022 fingerling rainbow trout. There are also catfish here.  

The Pecos River in Pecos Canyon State Park was stocked Oct. 7 with 3,001 catchable-size rainbow trout. Fishing has been fair for rainbows and wild brown trout. The Pecos River near Villanueva was stocked Dec. 1 with 500 rainbow trout. 

The streamflow in the Pecos River at Pecos was 45.9 cubic-feet-per-second. This is higher than last week and above normal. 

The Cowles Ponds are likely starting to freeze. 

Monastery Lake near Pecos is now open. It was stocked Dec. 10 with 252 rainbow trout. 

The drainage canals in the Albuquerque area are now being stocked with catchable-size rainbow trout. The Albuquerque, Albuquerque South, Belen Riverside, Bernalillo, Corrales Riverside and Peralta drains were stocked last week. 

Tingley Beach in Albuquerque is stocked with rainbow trout. It was stocked twice last week with a total of 2,401 rainbow trout. 

Bluewater Lake near Grants has fair fishing for tiger musky and there are some catfish here. They have been catching some nice holdover rainbow trout. It was stocked twice two weeks ago with a total of 5,751 rainbow trout. It was stocked Dec. 2 with 29,965 fingerling rainbow trout. Call 505.876.2391 for more information.