By GEORGE MORSE
Sports and Outdoors
Los Alamos Daily Post 

Merry Christmas 

If you are still looking for a gift for that angler in your life here are some suggestions. Lures make excellent stocking stuffers. So do packages of hooks, sinkers and bobbers.

The weather has been pretty cold in the mornings with somewhat warmer afternoons. Since that big storm at the beginning of November it has been pretty dry. It would be great to start building a decent snowpack for this winter soon.

Anglers should consider a trip to Southern New Mexico.

Most of the small lakes and reservoirs in this part of the state are stocked with catchable-size rainbow trout during the winter months. Locations that offer a chance at not just stocked trout but larger holdover trout include Grindstone Reservoir near Ruidoso and Lake Robert’s near Silver City.

Bonito Lake near Ruidoso is open for fishing. It has been closed for several years after being ruined by a wildfire. It is being stocked with rainbow trout and has wild brook trout. A 15-inch brookie was caught recently.

The choice of locations to fish in Northern New Mexico is limited by the weather conditions. Some places to try are below El Vado Dam and Abiquiu Dam on the Chama River. The Rio Grande does not totally freeze over, but floating ice can make fishing difficult.

Navajo Lake does not freeze over and remains open all winter. The San Juan River below Navajo Dam has excellent winter fishing and a little bit more elbow room during this time of year.

The streamflow in the Rio Grande has risen slightly to just above normal at Taos Junction Bridge. Streamflow on the Pecos River remains above normal. The Pecos River is now stocked near Villanueva State Park.

Fenton Lake State Park is open. Camping is by reservation only. The fishing has been slow. It was stocked Aug. 28 with 270 Rio Grande cutthroat trout averaging 14.5 inches in length. Fenton Lake was stocked Dec. 17 with 870 rainbow trout. There are also wild brown trout. Only two cutthroat trout may be kept as part of a five trout daily bag limit. Fenton Lake was covered with thin ice that is totally unsafe. Do not attempt to walk on it. Some open water occurs during warmer weather. Shore ice can affect bank fishing. Don’t test the ice on your own. State Park workers will check it daily.

Call 575.829.3630 for current conditions.

The Rio Cebolla flows into and out of Fenton Lake. It was stocked Nov. 6 with 201 rainbow trout. It also has wild brown trout and Rio Grande cutthroat trout above Fenton Lake. It was stocked Oct. 24 with 5,668 small Rio Grande cutthroat trout. It is likely icing up.

The Seven Springs Brood Pond, also known as the Kid’s Pond, is open to anglers 11 Years of age and younger. It was stocked Nov. 6 with 449 rainbow trout. There are also some wild brown trout and a few Rio Grande cutthroats. It is north of Fenton Lake. It will likely freeze over soon.

The Jemez River streamflow was 16.8 cubic-feet-per second. This is a little lower than last week and below normal. It was stocked Dec. 17 with 1,000 rainbow trout and has wild brown trout.

Santa Cruz Lake near Chimayo is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. It was stocked Oct. 31 with 4,756 rainbow trout. It also has brown trout. Ice fishing is not allowed here. The state-record rainbow trout was caught here. It is open 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 Bureau also manages the Orilla Verde Recreation Area on the Rio Grande at Pilar. The Rio Grande at Pilar was stocked Dec. 11 with 1,500 rainbow trout. There are also wild brown trout, northern pike and smallmouth bass.

From the Colorado border to the Taos Junction Bridge the limit is two trout per day on the Rio Grande.  Streamflow was 516 cubic-feet-per-second at Taos Junction Bridge. This is higher than last week and a little above normal. The Rio Grande  Gorge above Pilar was stocked Dec. 11 with 188 rainbow trout. It was stocked  Oct. 18 with 780 Rio Grande cutthroat.

The Rio Pueblo near Penasco is iced over.

The streamflow on the Red River was  cubic-feet-per-second below Questa. This is lower than last week. It was stocked Dec. 19 with 526 rainbow trout and has wild brown trout.

The Red River above Questa is icing over.

The Red River Hatchery Pond is open again. It was stocked Nov. 18 with 400 rainbow trout. Fishing is for anglers 11 years old or younger and 65 years old or older. It may ice over.

Eagle Rock Lake near Questa was stocked Nov. 6 with 600 rainbow trout. It may soon freeze.

The Shuree Ponds on the Valle Vidal opened July 1 for fishing. 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 is likely frozen. Use caution if attempting to ice fish.

Abiquiu Lake is managed by the Corps of Engineers. The fishing has been  slow for smallmouth bass walleye, crappie and catfish. Anglers are starting to catch some small largemouth bass. Most are under legal size. There are some good-sized trout in Abiquiu. Camping by reservation. Call 505.685.4371 for more information. Portions of the lake will freeze but it seldom completely freezes.

The streamflow in the Chama River below Abiquiu Dam was 395 cubic-feet-per-second. This is above normal and much higher than last week. It was stocked Dec. 16 with 575 rainbow trout. There are some big, wild brown trout here. The limit here is two-trout-per day.

The Canjilon Lakes are near Canjilon. Access to these lakes will be difficult due to  snowfall and they should be freezing up.

The Trout Lakes near Cebolla were stocked Oct. 8 with 455 rainbow trout. The road to these lakes can be rough when it rains. Access to these lakes will be difficult due to snowfall and they are likely frozen.

Laguna del Campo, a small lake near Los Ojos is now closed.

Heron Lake State Park is open. Fishing for rainbow trout has been fair. It was stocked Nov. 19 with 3,188 sub-catchable rainbow trout. Kokanee salmon snagging season opened Nov. 11 at Heron. So far it has been slow. El Vado Lake State Park is closed for construction. Call 575.588.7470 for information.

The streamflow in the Chama River below El Vado Dam was 99.8 cubic-feet-per-second. This is lower than last week and below average. It was stocked Oct. 31 with 20,104 small Rio Grande cutthroat trout. It has wild brown trout. The state-record brown trout was caught here.

The Chama River above El Vado Lake is icing over. It was stocked Nov. 19 with 4,910 sub catchable rainbow trout. It has wild brown trout.

The streamflow in the Chama River above the town of Chama is no longer being reported and is icing over.

The streamflow in the Rio Brazos is not being measured. It is likely iced over.

Over in 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. Navajo Lake has the best fishing for kokanee salmon in New Mexico. Kokanee salmon snagging season began October 1. Snagging for salmon was slow The best snagging is normally in the area around Navajo Dam. The road to the dam is closed and the snagging area is best accessed by boat. Salmon snagging ends Dec. 31. The fishing for northern pike has been fair-to-good. Bass fishing has been fair. It was stocked three times last week with a total of 53,238 sub-catchable rainbow trout. 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 333 cubic-feet-per-second. This is a little higher than last week and below normal. It has world-class fly-fishing for big trout.

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. 11 with 21,425 sub-catchable 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. 16 with 1,725 catchable-size rainbow trout.

Several lakes in Aztec are being stocked. Aztec Pond #1 was stocked Dec. 17 with 76 rainbow trout. Tiger Park Pond was stocked with 822 rainbow trout.

The Animas River in Aztec was stocked Dec. 17 with 306 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. Expect snow on the ground. Ice fishing has started here.

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 iced over.

Eagle Nest Lake State Park has been good for rainbow trout. This is a big fertile lake that can produce large trout. It was stocked Oct. 24 with 7,640 rainbow trout. It is now closed to boating and foot traffic as it is freezing over. State Park workers will check the ice to determine  when it is safe for ice fishing.

There are also northern pike, yellow perch and an occasional kokanee salmon. The state-record kokanee  was caught here. If you catch a pike at Eagle Nest you have to 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 was stocked Oct. 9 with 2,907 rainbow trout. There are also wild brown trout. The streamflow below Eagle Nest Dam was 0.21 cubic-feet-per-second. This is lower than last week. The Cimarron River near Cimarron is iced over.

The Cimarron Gravel Pit Lakes at Maverick Campground were stocked Oct. 8 with 429 rainbow trout. They are likely frozen.

Lake Maloya in Sugarite Canyon State Park near Raton was stocked  Dec. 9 with 1,124 rainbow trout. Lake Alice, a smaller lake at the park, was stocked Dec. 9 with 189 rainbow trout. Call 575.445.1507 for more information. These lakes will soon freeze up. Ice fishing is allowed here when the ice is deemed safe.

Storrie Lake State Park near Las Vegas was stocked Sept. 30 with 3,035 rainbow trout. There are also catfish here.

The Pecos River in Pecos Canyon State Park was stocked  Oct. 9 with 1,502 rainbow trout. Fishing has been good for stocker rainbows and wild brown trout. Ice may soon be a problem here.

The streamflow in the Pecos was 50.9 cubic- feet-per-second. This is slightly lower than last week and  above normal. The Pecos River near Villanueva was stocked Dec. 16 with 376 rainbow trout.

Monastery Lake near Pecos was stocked Dec. 3 with 191 rainbow trout. Ice fishing is not allowed here. It is now frozen.

Tingley Beach in Albuquerque is now being stocked with rainbow trout. It was stocked twice Dec. 17 with a total of 1,954 rainbow trout.

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

Bluewater Lake near Grants has fair fishing for tiger muskies. Trout fishing is slow and there are some catfish here. It was stocked Dec. 10 with 4,501 rainbow trout, so trout fishing should pick up.

McGaffey Lake near Grants was stocked Oct. 16 with 4,780 rainbow trout. It may freeze.