Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
This fishing report, provided by Bill Dunn and the Department of Game and Fish, has been generated from the best information available from area officers and anglers. Conditions encountered after the report is compiled may differ, as stream, lake and weather conditions alter fish and angler activities.
Northeast
Charette Lakes — Closed for the season.
Cimarron River — Keep this water on your list for spring. Low water conditions this time of year make for some tough fishing.
Clayton Lake — Closed for the season.
Conchas Lake — The shallow and steep boat ramps on the north side of the lake are now open along with the Cove campground ramp. Fishing pressure was very light and fishing was slow for all species.
Coyote Creek — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Eagle Rock Lake — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Eagle Nest Lake — Fishing was fair to good using wax worms, meal worms and earth worms for perch. Fishing was fair using corn salmon egg combinations, worms and jigs for trout up to 19-inches. We had no reports on northern pike. For updated ice conditions contact the Department of Game and Fish at (888) 248-6866 or the State Park office at (575) 377-1594.
Lake Alice — We had no reports.
Lake Maloya — As of Monday the ice thickness was 9 inches. Trout fishing was fair to good using ice jigs, salmon peach Power Bait and corn. Anglers using corn also caught a few perch. For updated ice conditions contact the State Park office at (575) 445-5607.
Los Pinos — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Manzano Lake — Trout fishing was fair to good using garlic scented Power Bait, salmon eggs and homemade dough bait.
Maxwell Lakes — Closed for the season.
Monastery Lake — We had no reports from anglers this week. The lake is closed to ice fishing.
Morphy Lake — Closed for the season.
Nutrias Lakes — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Pecos River — Water flow near Anton Chico on Monday was 28 cfs. The Mora and Jamie Koch fishing and recreation areas have reopened. The Bert Clancy and Terrero campgrounds remain closed. Trout fishing downstream from the town of Pecos was fair to good using salmon eggs and small bead-head nymphs. We had no reports on the upper river.
Red River — Water flow near the hatchery on Monday was 22 cfs. Trout fishing was fair using olive wooly buggers, San Juan worms and salmon eggs for trout.
Rio Grande — Water flow near the Taos Junction Bridge on Monday was 470 cfs. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Rio Hondo — We had no reports from anglers.
Rio Mora — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Rio Pueblo — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Santa Barbara — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Shuree Ponds — Closed for the season.
Springer Lake — We had no reports from anglers.
Storrie Lake — Mid-day bank fishing was fair for anglers fishing for trout. They were using salmon eggs and Power Bait. The lake has a thin layer of ice from late evening through the early morning hours. For updated ice conditions contact the State Park office at (505) 425-7278.
Ute Lake — Fishing pressure was light this past week but there were a few anglers on the water who found the walleye. They were fishing in 20 to 25-feet of water and were using blade baits and grubs. Anglers using the blade baits also reported picking up a few smallmouth bass. Fishing for all other species was slow. The surface water temp ranged from the high 30s to the low 40s.
Northwest
Abiquiu Lake — Fishing was slow for all species and fishing pressure was very light.
Animas River — Water flow near Aztec on Monday morning was 215 cfs. Trout fishing was fair to good using olive wooly buggers, San Juan worms and salmon eggs.
Albuquerque Area Drains — Fishing was very good using worms, salmon eggs, wax worms, bead-head pheasant tails, parachute adams and San Juan worms for trout. We received good reports from anglers fishing the Albuquerque, Albuquerque South, Belen and Bernalillo drains. Anglers fishing the Albuquerque Drain reported catching several largemouth bass. They were using chigger craws and chigger chunks.
Bluewater Lake — Warmer temperatures have reduced the ice mass and there are now some areas open to shore fishing. We had no reports from anglers this week. For updated ice conditions contact the State Park office at (505) 876-2391. Anglers should be aware that it is illegal to use bait fish at this lake.
Brazos River — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Canjilon Lakes — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Chama River — Monday morning water flows below El Vado and Abiquiu were 59 cfs and 70 cfs respectively. Trout fishing below Abiquiu was fair to good using copper John Barrs, wooly buggers and salmon eggs. We had no reports from below El Vado.
Cochiti Lake — We had no reports from anglers this week. For ice condition updates contact the Corps office at (505) 465-0307.
El Vado Lake — We had no reports from anglers this week. The main area of the State Park has closed until March 31 but there is still fishing access and open water near the dam.
Fenton Lake — A layer of ice has formed on the lake and it is closed to fishing. For updated conditions, contact the State Park office at (575) 829-3630.
Heron Lake — The only boat ramp open is the primitive ramp in the Ridge Rock area. Boaters are able to launch but advised to use caution. Launching with four wheel drive vehicles is recommended. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Jackson Lake — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Jemez Waters — The Jemez River was flowing at 20 cfs on Monday. Trout fishing on the lower Jemez was very good using salmon eggs. Anglers reported catching numerous trout in the 10- to 14-inch range. We had no reports from the other streams in the area. The tunnel access to the Guadalupe is closed for the winter months. The Valles Caldera has been closed to fishing for the winter but should be back up and running next spring.
Laguna del Campo — Closed for the season.
Lake Farmington — Fishing was fair to good using Power Bait, small Daredevles, salmon eggs and homemade dough bait.
Navajo Lake — Fishing was slow for all species. There were a few anglers out trolling for brown trout but we had no reports.
San Gregorio — We had no reports from anglers this week.
San Juan — Water flow below Navajo on Monday was 270 cfs and stained. Fishing through the Quality Waters was good using black and white streamers, princess nymphs, red larva, orange egg patterns, orange sparkle worms and San Juan worms. Fishing through the bait waters was fair using worms and streamers.
Santa Cruz Lake — Closed to ice fishing.
Seven Springs Brood Pond — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Tingley Beach — Trout fishing at the Youth and Central Ponds was very good again this past week. Anglers did well using Pistol Petes, olive wooly buggers, salmon peach and garlic Power Bait, homemade dough bait, salmon eggs and Gulp eggs. Fishing at the Catch and Release Pond was fair using wooly buggers, egg patterns and bunny leeches.
Southwest
Bear Canyon — Fishing was fair to good using garlic cheese and Power Bait for trout. We had no reports on other species.
Bill Evans Lake — Trout fishing was very good using olive Pistol Petes, olive and black wooly buggers, Power Bait and homemade dough bait. We had no reports on other species.
Caballo Lake — Fishing pressure was very light and fishing was slow for all species.
Elephant Butte — Fishing was slow to fair using slab spoons for white bass. Fishing for black bass was slow but there were a few taken by anglers using jigs and worms on main lake points. We had no reports on other species. The Marina del Sur, Rock Canyon and Dam Site boat ramps are now open. The Monticello ramp remains closed due to low water conditions.
Escondida Lake — Trout fishing was fair to good using salmon eggs, garlic and salmon peach Power Bait, garlic cheese and homemade dough bait. We had no reports on other species.
Gila River — Water flow on the Gila as of this past Monday was 75 cfs. We had no reports again this past week from the main river or from the Forks.
Glenwood Pond — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Lake Roberts — A construction project to improve the dam has begun and extremely low lake levels make it increasingly difficult to fish. The project is expected to continue into next summer. The lake is still open to bank fishing but difficult to access.
Percha Dam — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Quemado Lake — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Rio Grande — Fishing pocket water was good using Power Bait and homemade dough bait for trout.
Snow Lake — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Young Pond — Trout fishing was good using garlic cheese, garlic scented Power Bait and salmon eggs. We had no reports on other species.
Southeast
Bataan Lake — Fishing was good using salmon eggs, Power Bait and homemade dough bait for trout. We had no reports on other species.
Black River — Stream flow at Malaga on Monday was 7.1 cfs. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Blue Hole Park Pond — Trout fishing was good using salmon eggs and Power Bait.
Bonito Lake — Closed.
Bosque Redondo — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Bottomless Lakes — Trout fishing at the Devil’s Inkwell was fair using Power Bait and olive wooly buggers. Fishing pressure was light.
Brantley Lake — The State Park office announced the reopening of the lake to boating and swimming. Anglers are to practice catch-and-release for all fish here as high levels of DDT were found in several fish.
Carlsbad Municipal Lake — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Chaparral Park Lake — Trout fishing was good using salmon eggs, garlic scented Power Bait and Panther Martin spinners.
El Rito Creek — Trout fishing was good using salmon eggs.
Eunice Lake — Trout fishing was fair to good using Power Bait and homemade dough bait.
Green Meadow Lake — We had no reports from anglers this week.
Greene Acres Lake — Trout fishing was fair using Power Bait, homemade dough bait and salmon egg/corn combinations.
Grindstone Reservoir — Trout fishing was good using Power Bait and homemade dough bait. We had no reports on other species. There was a thin layer of ice on the lake in the morning hours but open water for fishing by noon.
Jal Lake — Trout fishing was fair using salmon eggs and Power Bait.
Lake Van — Trout fishing was fair to good using Power Bait, homemade dough bait and salmon eggs. We had no reports on other species.
Oasis Park Lake — Windy conditions kept the fishing pressure down but those who braved the weather caught limits of trout. They were using homemade dough bait. We had no reports on other species.
Pecos River — Stream flow below Sumner Lake on Monday was 12 cfs. Fishing was slow for all species.
Perch Lake — Trout fishing was fair to good using garlic Power Bait, salmon eggs, homemade dough bait and Pistol Petes.
Ruidoso River — Stream flow at Hollywood on Monday was 5.7 cfs. We had no reports from anglers this week.
Santa Rosa Lake — Fishing pressure was very light and fishing was slow for all species. The water was reported as being quite murky.
Sumner Lake — Fishing was slow for all species. Fishing pressure was light. The Alamo boat ramp and the main boat ramp are the only ramps open.