By GEORGE MORSE 
Sports and Outdoors 
Los Alamos Daily Post 

Southern New Mexico is starting to feel the effects of our below-average snowpack this winter and meager spring runoff. 

The Rio Grande recently dried up in Albuquerque. 

Elephant Butte Lake near Truth or Consequences is now at just 4-percent of its capacity. Caballo Lake, the reservoir immediately  below Elephant Butte, is at just 8-percennt of its capacity. The gates at Caballo have been closed and no more water for irrigation will be released.  

Here in Northern New Mexico, beneficial monsoon rains have been helping to keep most of the smaller streams running at normal flows. The streamflows in the major rivers like the Rio Grande and Chama are below normal. The upper Pecos River, so far, is holding its own. 

It’s not even  August yet.  

Ironically, some areas like Ruidoso have been hit hard by flash floods. 

This time of year the best fishing will often be found at higher elevations. The smaller headwater  streams are where the water remains cooler. The best time to fish will be early morning and evening. These headwater streams are often the last stronghold for New Mexico’s state fish-the Rio Grande cutthroat trout. 

Be sure to pack some rain gear when you head out on a fishing trip this time of year. Fishing can often pick up during a rain shower. Of course, seek shelter if there is lightning. 

The State Game and Fish Department continues to stock bigger-than-average rainbow trout at different locations in Northern New Mexico. 

Check out the Fishing Report to see where these larger trout were stocked last week.  

Streamflow in the Rio Grande dropped noticeably and is well-below normal for this time of year. The streamflow at Cerro near the Colorado border is just 74.3 cubic-feet-per-second. 

The water-supply outlook for the upcoming growing season is looking grim. A good monsoon season will help. There’s a long ways to go to make up for such a dry winter. 

Fenton Lake State Park is open. Camping is reservation only. It has been stocked with Rio Grande cutthroat trout. Fenton Lake was stocked June 16, with 1,599 catchable-size rainbow trout. There are also wild brown 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 July 8, with 808 rainbow trout. It also has wild brown trout and Rio Grande cutthroat trout above Fenton Lake.  

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 and a few Rio Grande cutthroats. It is north of Fenton Lake. It was stocked June 11, with 200 rainbow trout averaging 17 inches. 

The Jemez River streamflow was 9.81 cubic-feet-per-second. This is lower than last week. It was stocked May 20, with 824 rainbow trout and has wild brown trout. 

The Rio Las Vacas, a tributary of the Jemez River, was stocked May 20, with 501 rainbow trout. The San Antonio River, another Jemez tributary, was stocked May 28, with 750 rainbow trout. Both streams have wild brown trout. 

Santa Cruz Lake near Chimayo is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. The state-record rainbow trout was caught here. Fishing may be slowing down as the water warms up. The lake may not be stocked again until the water temperatures cool down. It was stocked May 1, with 2,079 catchable-size rainbow trout. There are also wild brown trout. It is open 6 a.m. to 8 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 June 20, with 50,000 sub-catchable 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 266 cubic-feet-per-second at Taos Junction Bridge. This is a little lower than last week. The Rio Grande Gorge above Pilar was stocked June 20, with 50,000 sub-catchable rainbow trout.  

Watch for signs of the annual caddis fly hatch on the Rio Grande. It normally starts in May 

The Rio Pueblo near Penasco streamflow is  20.9 cubic-feet -per-second. 9.81 is a little higher than last week. It was stocked July 7, with 1,202 rainbow trout and has wild brown trout. 

The Sipapu Pond was stocked June 9, with 67 rainbow trout. 

The streamflow on the Red River was 48.9 cubic-feet-per-second below Questa. This is higher than last week. It was stocked July 14, with 701 rainbow trout and has wild brown trout. 

The Red River above Questa streamflow was 34.0 cubic-feet-per-second. It was stocked July 16, with 3,001 catchable-size rainbow trout. The East Fork and West Fork of the Red River were each stocked July 8, with 300 rainbow trout. 

Goose Lake, a high-elevation lake in the Red River drainage, was stocked June 30, with 451 rainbow trout. 

The Red River Hatchery Pond is open again. It was stocked July 14, with 726 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 101 rainbow trout averaging 15.4 inches. Fishing is for anglers 11 years old or younger and 65 years old or older.  

Eagle Rock Lake near Questa was stocked July 16, with 701 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 79 rainbow trout averaging 15.5 inches.  

The Shuree Ponds on the Valle Vidal are open. They were stocked July 8, with 500 rainbow trout averaging 15.8 inches. 

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

Abiquiu Lake is managed by the Corps of Engineers. The fishing has been fair-to-good for smallmouth bass, walleye, crappie and catfish. Anglers are starting to catch some small largemouth 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 143 cubic-feet-per-second. This is about the same as last week. It was stocked June 3, with 1,001 rainbow trout. There are some big, wild brown trout here. The limit here is two-trout-per day. 

The Canjilon Lakes are now accessible and open. They were stocked July 7, with 690 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 115 rainbow trout averaging 16.9 inches. Anglers were also catching some brook trout. 

The Trout Lakes near Cebolla are open. Access to these lakes can be difficult. They were stocked July 7, with 493 rainbow trout. 

Laguna del Campo, a small lake near Los Ojos, reopened May 1. It was stocked June 18, with 408 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 90 rainbow trout averaging 17.3 inches. Fishing is for anglers 11 years-old and younger or 65 years-old and older. 

Heron Lake State Park is open. Fishing for rainbow trout has been fair. It was stocked April 22, with 121,767 kokanee salmon fry. 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 167 cubic-feet-per-second. This is a little higher than last week.  It was stocked Oct. 31, with 20,104 small Rio Grande cutthroat trout. It has wild brown trout. It was stocked July 14, with 557 rainbow trout. The state-record brown trout was caught here. 

The Chama River above El Vado Lake was 26.7 cubic-feet-per-second at La Puente. This streamflow is a little higher than last week and still not good for trout. It was stocked July 14, with 1,193 rainbow trout. It has wild brown trout.  

The streamflow in the Rio Brazos was 13.5 cubic-feet-per-second. This is very low. It was stocked June 17, with a total of 564 rainbow trout, including 156 rainbow trout averaging 12.4 inches. It has wild brown trout and brook trout in the headwaters. 

The Brazos Lodge Pond was stocked May 19, with 200 rainbow trout. 

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. The road to Navajo Dam is closed. The fishing for northern pike has been fair-to-good. Bass fishing has been fair. It was stocked April 29, with 23,214 sub-catchable rainbow trout. Navajo Lake was stocked April 21, with 288,059 kokanee salmon fry. Navajo Lake has the best kokanee salmon fishing in the state. 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 803 cubic-feet-per-second. This is higher than last week. 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 July 2, with 68,560 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 July 14 with 2,227 catchable-size rainbow trout and stocked July 2, with 81,424 fingerling rainbow trout.  

Several lakes in Aztec are being stocked. Aztec Pond # 1 was stocked April 29, with 473 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 135 rainbow trout averaging 16.7 inches. Tiger Park Pond was stocked May 5 with 528 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 150 rainbow trout averaging 15.9 inches. It may be a while before these lakes are stocked again. 

The Animas River in Aztec was stocked April 29, with 189 rainbow trout.  

Lake Farmington was stocked April 22, with 3,150 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. The fishing is good. It was stocked July 1, with 1,701 catchable-size rainbow and with 185 rainbow trout averaging 16.9 inches.  

The Lagunitas Lakes received their first stocking of the year July 9 of 1,502 rainbow trout. 

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 was stocked July 14, with 1,801 rainbow trout. 

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 May 1, with 20,026 rainbow trout. Eagle Nest Lake was stocked April 22, with 80,127 kokanee salmon fry. 

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. 575.377.1594 for more information. Weed growth may soon get heavy here. 

The Cimarron River at Cimarron Canyon State Park is stocked with rainbow trout. There are also wild brown trout. It was stocked July 2, with 2,428 rainbow trout. The streamflow below Eagle Nest Dam was 7.63 cubic-feet-per-second. The Cimarron River near Cimarron  streamflow is 10.3 cubic-feet-per-second. These are very low. 

The Cimarron Gravel Pit Lakes at Maverick Campground were stocked July 2, with 355 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 45 rainbow trout averaging 15.4 inches. They are open. 

Lake Maloya in Sugarite Canyon State Park near Raton was stocked July 15, with 3,601 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 400 rainbow trout averaging 15.1 inches. Lake Alice, a smaller lake at the park, was stocked June 18, with 500 rainbow trout. Call 575.445.1507 for more information.  

Clayton Lake State Park was stocked June 2, with 4,001 catchable-size rainbow trout. There are also walleye, largemouth bass and catfish here. The state-record walleye was caught here. Be sure to check out the dinosaur tracks at Clayton. 

The Charette Lakes between Wagon Mound and Springer were stocked July 1, with 2,500 rainbow trout. There are also yellow perch and some good-sized holdover trout. 

Maxwell Lake 13 on the Maxwell Lakes National Wildlife Refuge was stocked April 22, with 2,000 rainbow trout. It had dried up in 2020 and is being stocked again. 

Morphy Lake State Park near Mora is open. It was stocked July 9, with 1,351 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 150 rainbow trout averaging 15.5 inches.  

Coyote Creek State Park near Guadalupita received its fourth stocking of the season. Coyote Creek was stocked July 7, with 800 rainbow trout. Coyote Creek Pond was stocked with 600 rainbow trout. 

Storrie Lake State Park near Las Vegas was stocked June 3, with  with 3,036 catchable-size rainbow trout. There are also catfish here.  

The Pecos River in Pecos Canyon State Park was stocked July 16, with a total of 3,002 rainbow trout. Fishing has been fair for rainbows and wild brown trout.  

The streamflow in the Pecos was 67.7 cubic-feet-per-second and higher than last week. The Pecos River near Villanueva was stocked May 30, with 200 rainbow trout. 

The Mora Fork of the Pecos River was stocked May 20, with 401 rainbow trout. Cow Creek was stocked July 7, with 501 rainbow trout. Holy Ghost Creek was stocked July 15, with 400 rainbow trout. 

The Cowles Ponds were stocked June 18, with 179 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 20 rainbow trout averaging 16.9 inches. 

Monastery Lake near Pecos is now open. It was stocked July 16, with 1,305 catchable-size rainbow trout and with 95 rainbow trout averaging 16.9 inches. 

Tingley Beach in Albuquerque is no longer being stocked with rainbow trout. It was stocked June 26, with 449 channel catfish. It was stocked June 12, with 99 largemouth bass averaging 17 inches. 

Bluewater Lake near Grants has fair fishing for tiger musky and there are some catfish here. It was stocked March 10, with 6,000 rainbow trout. They have been catching some nice holdover rainbow trout. Call 505.876.2391 for information. 

McGaffey Lake near Grants was stocked May 28, with 3,504 rainbow trout. It was stocked June 26, with 133 channel catfish.