By GEORGE MORSE
Sports And Outdoors
Los Alamos Daily Post

Spring runoff continues to pick up in Northern New Mexico. Streamflows continue to rise across the state, with the exception being the Rio Grande. The streamflow at Cerro where the Rio Grande enter New Mexico from Colorado is just 166 cubic-feet-per-second, which is less than half of normal. Water is being diverted in Colorado to irrigate the extensive agricultural fields of the San Luis Valley.

Eagle Nest Lake at Eagle Nest State Park is now open to fishing and boating. Docks will be installed April 30. It was stocked April 11 with 17,750 sub-catchable rainbow trout. Fishing should be good for rainbow trout, yellow perch and northern pike. For more information and current conditions, call 575.377.1594.

Lake Maloya at Sugarite Canyon State Park near Raton is now open to bank fishing. Lake Alice, also at Sugarite State Park, is now free of ice and open for fishing. Call 575.445.5607 for current conditions.

Morphy Lake State Park opened March 1 for fishing. Open-water fishing should be good for holdover rainbow trout and there are a few cutthroats here. It was stocked April 7 with 4,518 catchable-size rainbow trout. Call (575).387.2328 for current conditions.

Clayton Lake State Park opened March 1 for fishing. It is stocked with rainbow trout and has big walleye. The state-record walleye was caught here. It was stocked April 5 with 3,600 catchable-size rainbow trout and with400 rainbow trout averaging 15.4 inches in size. Call 575.374.8808 for current conditions.

Fenton Lake State Park in the Jemez Mountains is now open for bank fishing. It was stocked April 12 with 2200 rainbow trout. Camping is allowed by reservation only. Call 575.829.3630 for current conditions at Fenton.

Heron Lake State Park has open water for bank fishing. Be aware that the banks are very muddy. The boat ramps are closed. The lake level is still low. Call 575.588.7470 for conditions at both Heron Lake and El Vado Lake.

El Vado Lake has rainbow trout, brown trout, perch and small smallmouth bass. Boating is closed. Water level is low.

There is open water for bank fishing. The banks are very muddy.

Santa Cruz Lake near Chimayo has open water and fishing has been good. It was stocked April 1 with 4,980 rainbow trout. The lake is open Thursday-Sunday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. For updated conditions, check the Bureau of Land Management website or call 505.351.1438.

The Rio Cebolla, which flows into and out of Fenton Lake, was stocked April 15 with 399 rainbow trout.

The Seven Springs Brood Pond, also known as the Kid’s Pond, is open. It was stocked April 15 with 449 rainbow trout.

There are a few big, wild brown trout here. Fishing is for anglers 11 years of age and younger. This pond is just north of Fenton Lake.

The trout fishing has been good in the Jemez River. The streamflow is now 87.7 cubic-feet-per-second. This is higher than last week. The fish are concentrated in deeper pools. It was stocked April 15 with 625 rainbow trout.

Headwater tributaries of the Jemez River are losing their ice. The Rio de las Vacas was stocked April 15 with 501 rainbow trout. The Rio San Antonio was stocked twice with a total of 751 rainbow trout. All Jemez Mountain streams also have wild brown trout with Rio Grande cutthroat trout in their upper stretches.

Abiquiu Lake is open, including the boat ramp and picnic areas. Camping is closed. It is managed by the Corps of Engineers. Reservations for later in the year may be made at www.reservation.gov. The water level is low at Abiquiu. A four-wheel drive vehicle is recommended for launching boats. The fishing has been slow for walleye and smallmouth bass. Trout fishing could pick up. There are some good-sized trout in Abiquiu. Call 505.685.4371 for more information. Streamflows have risen throughout the entire Chama River drainage due to spring runoff.

The Chama River below Abiquiu Dam is flowing at 579 cubic-feet-per-second. The water here is murky. It was stocked April 1 with 1,001 rainbow trout. The fishing is at least fair-to-good for stocked and holdover rainbow trout. There are a few big, wild brown trout here. Fly Fishermen should use flies with a little flash to them. The limit here is two-fish-per-day.

The Chama River below El Vado Dam is flowing at 629 cubic-feet-per-second. The fishing has been fair-to-good for stocked rainbow trout and wild brown trout. You may hook a cutthroat trout here. It was stocked April 4 with 568 rainbow trout. The state-record brown trout was caught here.

Above El Vado Lake, the Chama River is now ice-free and spring runoff has begun. The streamflow at La Puente was 781 cubic-feet-per-second. It was stocked April 4 with 1,022 rainbow trout.

Streamflow in the Rio Brazos was 255 cubic-feet-per-second.

Hopewell Lake between Tierra Amarilla and Tres Piedras was frozen over and the gate is locked. Anglers may park and hike to the lake. Ice fishing had been good for stocked rainbow trout and wild brook trout. The ice is deteriorating and ice fishing could be ill-advised. Use extreme caution. Hopewell is usually ice-free by mid-May.

The Cimarron River in Cimarron Canyon State Park is open. Streamflow below Eagle Nest Dam was 13.5 cubic-feet-per-second, which is higher than las week. Streamflow near the town of Cimarron was 24.9 cubic-feet-per-second, which is a little lower than last week.

The Charette Lakes between Wagon Mound and Springer have good fishing for good-sized, holdover rainbow trout.

Lower Charette Lake was stocked April 12 with 2,244 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 250 rainbow trout averaging 16.1 inches in size.

Coyote Creek State Park received its first stocking of the season. It was stocked April 11 with 799 rainbow trout. The Coyote Creek Pond was stocked with 600 rainbow trout.

Storrie Lake State Park near Las Vegas is open and some trout are being caught from the bank. It was stocked April 4 with 2,795 catchable-size rainbow trout and 285 rainbow trout averaging 16.3 inches in length. Call 505.425.7278 for current conditions.

Streamflow in the nearby Gallinas River was 15.3 cubic-feet-per-second. It has not yet been stocked but does have some good-sized holdover trout.

Cochiti Lake is open. The boat ramp is open. Reservations are no longer needed to enter the lake. Camping reservations can be made at www.recreation.gov. They are not sold at the lake. The best fishing is for catfish and northern pike. The Tetilla Peak Recreation Area is closed. This lake is managed by the Corps of Engineers.

Tingley Beach in Albuquerque is no longer being stocked with rainbow trout. It was last stocked March 29 with 2,176 catchable-size rainbow trout.

Over in the Four Corners, Navajo Lake State Park is open. Camping is by reservation only. Trolling minnow-imitating lures like Rapalas could produce a trophy brown trout. Fishing for northern pike has been fair. It was stocked April 13 with 14,238 sub-catchable rainbow trout. Boating conditions are good. Call 505.632.2278 for conditions.

The best river in the state and well-known throughout the angling world is the San Juan River below Navajo Dam. The streamflow here is 289 cubic-feet-per-second. This is lower than last week and less than 33-percent of normal. The San Juan offers world-class fly fishing for big trout.

The fishing has been good with a variety of fly patterns in the four miles of Quality Water below the Dam. The fishing here is catch-and-release with flies and lures having a single, barbless hook. There are big, wild brown trout in the Quality Water. Some of these fish would likely shatter the state record if they could be kept and weighed.

The fishing in the Bait Water of the San Juan below the Quality Water has been fair-to-good with flies, bait and lures. A regular daily limit of five trout may be kept here. There are some big brown trout here too. It was stocked April 14 with 2,347 rainbow trout.

Tiger Park Pond and Aztec Pond #1 in Aztec are now being stocked. Tiger Park Pond was stocked April 4 with 908 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 150 rainbow trout averaging 17.4 inches in size. Aztec Pond was stocked with 114 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 35 averaging 17.4 inches in size.

Lake Farmington has been stocked again. On April 11, it was stocked with 3,079 rainbow trout. This lake is managed by the City of Farmington.

Bluewater Lake State Park is open. Camping is allowed by reservation only. Lake water level is low. The Prewitt Side is open. The trout fishing should pick up. It was stocked March 30 with 5,225 rainbow trout. Tiger muskies are being caught and the fishing for them is slow using big crank baits and waterdogs. The limit on tiger muskies is one-per-day at least 40 inches in length. Boating is closed. Expect traffic delays on westbound Interstate 40 at Laguna. Call 505.876.2391 for current conditions.

The Rio Grande streamflow is 332 cubic-feet-per-second at Taos Junction Bridge. This is much lower than last week. The fishing had been fair for rainbow and brown trout. The Rio Grande at Pilar was stocked April 14 with 3,067 rainbow trout. The Rio Grande above Pilar in the Gorge was stocked with 251 rainbow trout.

From the Colorado state line downstream to the Taos Junction Bridge, the limit is two-trout-per-day in the Rio Grande.

The Rio Pueblo near Penasco is now ice free. The streamflow was 67.3 cubic-feet-per-second. This is high but below normal. Fishing could be good for wild brown trout.

The Red River near the Red River Fish Hatchery is flowing at 55.7 cubic-feet-per-second. This is higher than last week.

The fishing is normally fair-to-good here for stocked rainbow trout and some wild brown trout. It was stocked April 5 with 701 rainbow trout. The upper Red River is ice-free. Streamflow is 38.1 cubic-feet-per-second.

The Red River Hatchery Pond is now open. It was stocked March 17 with 399 rainbow trout. Fishing is for anglers 11 years of age or younger and 65 years old or older. The limit is three-fish-per day.

Eagle Rock Lake near Questa is open. This little lake is right off the highway between Questa and Red River. It was last stocked April 13 with 1698 catchable-size rainbow trout.

Cabresto Lake near Questa is a small, high-elevation lake open for ice fishing. It has wild brook trout and cutthroat trout.

The road into the lake is rough. You will need a good four-wheel drive vehicle. Use extreme caution as the ice is deteriorating. It should be ice free by mid-May if not sooner.

The Pecos River above the town of Pecos is opening up. Spring runoff has begun. The streamflow at Pecos was 156 cubic-feet-per second. This is higher than last week. The fishing had been fair for stocked rainbow trout and wild brown trout. The deeper pools will hold the most trout. It was stocked April 4 with 3,000 rainbow trout.

The stockings of trout in the winter on the Pecos move south to Villanueva State Park. It was stocked April 13 with 199 rainbow trout.

The Mora fork of the Pecos River was stocked April 4 with 406 rainbow trout.

Monastery Lake is now open. It was stocked April 4 with 249 catchable-size rainbow trout. Please pick up your trash here as this is private property and should be respected. Fishing here is possible through the State Game and Fish Department’s Open Gate Program.