Jicarilla Fishing Blog

Fishing Report 7/24/2012

            The Jicarilla Lakes are in good shape with crystal clear water at Stone, Dulce, and Mundo Lakes. The river is also low and clear right now, but that can change quickly during monsoon season. There are very few people at the lakes and we have virtually zero reports this week. The weekend’s celebration captured all of the attention with Horse Races, dances, and carnivals. I managed to talk to a group of three at Dulce Lake this afternoon, as well as three young kids captivated by bluegill at the primary dock at Mundo Lake.  It is rare to have such good clarity this time of year and the bug life continues to thrive at all of the lakes. Grasshopper season is in full bloom too! With nighttime temps in the mid fifties and a fair chance of sage scented afternoon showers, it’s the perfect time for a camping getaway.

            Mundo Lake is very clear for a change, and the surface temps are just over 70°F. Schools of Bluegill are cruising around all of the docks and the catfishing should be excellent. Trout fishing is slow with better action in the deeper water and during the evening and morning hours.

            Stone Lake is also very clear and the bugs continue to hatch as do the fat head minnows which can be seen in the thousands along the shore. It’s a bit of a stretch to say that trout are probably targeting these bait fish in low light conditions only because there is so much prey available throughout the lake. However, I would try a minnow fly or spoon near shore or along weed-lines if fishing very early or just before dark. Please use caution when launching a boat at Stone Lake as the water levels are extremely low and dropping. Large heavy vessels are not recommended at this time.

            Dulce Lake is weedy, and low, and hot, but fish are still active! I saw several risers while talking to a group of three fly anglers fishing from a drift boat this afternoon. They had been out on the lake for a little over an hour when I talked with them and they had one only fish on by then. I am not sure what they were using. Dulce Lake is a good choice for anglers pursuing dry fly action in the evenings, especially for those with a tube or small boat.

            The Navajo River is looking pretty fishy right now. I walked through a mile or so of water late last week to evaluate the most recent set of restoration designs. In that stretch, I noticed and abundance of small Northern Leopard frogs as well as thousands of grasshoppers. The latter is a legal bait (grasshoppers) but there are plenty of artificial frog patterns that one might try for big browns in deep holes (real frogs are not legal on the Jicarilla Reservation). I would really like to hear from anyone fishing the river this week. Have a great time out there!

Kevin Terry

Fisheries Biologist

Jicarilla Apache Game and Fish Dept.

Fishing Report 7-18-2012

            Reports have been minimal this week from the Jicarilla Lakes. Folks here in Dulce are gearing up for the annual Little Beaver Celebration which will take place this weekend. There is always a lot happening during Little Beaver and lots of people travel to take part in the festivities. I have just a few reports from Mundo Lake, Stone Lake, and Dulce Lake this week.

            Mundo has been fair to good for the warm water species. Bluegill and Bass are quite active near shore around weed lines and the docks. Almost any small beadhead fly will pull bluegill one after another from around the docks, as will a tiny piece of worm attached to a shiny gold #12 hook. Bass are hitting lures around the shorelines and fishing top water is probably the way to go to avoid weeds and take advantage of the active feeders. Catfish are biting Liver and Stinkbait. This time of year, you should use a bobber for catfish to increase hookups and have a better chance of keeping the big ones out of the weeds. The south end of the lake seems to hold more cats this time of year but they are certainly widespread. Trout fishing has been slow recently with a few fish showing up in the morning and evening. Fish deep to catch more trout, and a boat or float tube will help to get away from the weeds. I spoke with a gentleman yesterday who caught a 20 plus inch Tiger Musky on a red rooster tail spinner. He said the fish was in great shape and looked fat, so hopefully they are slamming the small Bass and Bluegill as intended. This is the first tiger musky catch that I have heard about since the week we stocked them.

            Stone Lake is still very clear and the limited weed growth is quite interesting in this very low water year. Counter to what I would have predicted to say the least. The water has dropped well over a foot this year and the surface temps are over 70°F. There are zillions of damsel flies along the shorelines and the migratory march continues daily. I witnessed hundreds of nymphs crawling out this morning on the east boat ramp as I was trying my best to launch a cast net at near shore fat head minnows. I needed to catch minnows for our pet Tiger Musky who has the creative name of Tiger. He has a 300 gallon tank all to himself and his feedings have become quite the show here at our new office. If you haven’t had a chance to stop by yet, then make sure you come and see Tiger on your next trip. Anyhow, while getting tiger’s food, I was once again amazed at the multitude of organisms that I encountered. These aquatic critters include snails, dragon fly nymphs, water boatmen, leeches, chironomidae larvae, tons of young of the year fathead minnows, etc. It is not hard to see how the Stone Lake Rainbows get sooooo big!! I talked to our local Stone Lake Guru, Audie, this morning and he said that fishing has really slowed down this week. Audie trolls lures and flies and is dialed in as much as anyone but maybe fly fishing with damsel patterns near weedlines is the ticket? That is just my guess after seeing so many bugs out there this morning.

            Dulce Lake has not been fished very much due to the crazy weed mats that seem to have overtaken the lake. The bottom line is that Dulce Lake currently has a max depth of 7 feet and that is not deep enough to limit sunlight enough to reduce weed growth. A tube or small hand carried boat will get you into a few spots that have open water, and the fish will be there. Jerome Lester, a game and fish employee caught a few nice fish over the weekend with lures. He said that the biggest was around 14 inches and chunky. Dulce Lake is similar to Stone in that it has a high diversity of aquatic insects and a tremendous monthly growth rate for Trout.

            The Navajo River has really cleared up after a couple weeks of daily thunderstorms. The river is flowing at 30 CFS today, which is low for this time of year. Big Browns and Rainbows should be stacked up in pools and there are tons of grasshoppers along the banks. If you are hot and the lakes are slow, I would definitely stop by the river and try a couple of pools. Take a dip too!!! Have a great weekend!!

Kevin Terry

Fisheries Biologist

Jicarilla Apache Game and Fish Department

Fishing Report 7/10/2012

            The rains have finally arrived after what seemed like an eternity of hot, dry, windy weather. The thirsty land did its best to drink every drop before anything in the way of runoff made it to the lakes. However, the buffered temps and reduced wind have helped slow evaporation and maybe even cooled off the surface temps a little. It appears (according to the weather guy) that we are locked in to our usual monsoonal pattern, at least for a week or two, which means that we should have a high chance of afternoon and evening rain showers. The rains managed to keep a lot of folks inside lately, so we have very few reports to share. Stone Lake is still producing a few fish but the action seems to have dropped a notch and the bite may have shifted from the evening to a morning and mid day bite. Dulce Lake has also slowed down, but the pressure there has dropped and access is a key issue. Mundo Lake is fishing fair to good for the warm water species and the trout fishing has been slow. Yes, Campfires are allowed at the campgrounds in designated fire rings only!

            Mundo Lake has been fishing good for Bass, Bluegill, and Channel Catfish. Bluegill have been especially aggressive and there are some fair sized spawners near shore that are certainly worth filleting. We need to reduce the population of Bluegill, so please keep any and all bluegill caught regardless of whether or not you want to eat them. Maybe friends or family would appreciate the gift or even your rose bushes! Channel catfish have been hitting, and the rains seem to get these guys moving a little in the evenings and just after dark. Liver and stinkbaits are working and the best way to get them right now is from the top down with a bobber rig. This allows for better sensitivity on the bite and helps keep the bigger fish from diving into the weeds and getting wrapped up.

            Dulce Lake has been slow for the few folks that have fished it recently. I expect that this is probably due to the ever increasing mat of weeds that surrounds the shoreline. A small hand launch-able boat or float tube will help get to open water and remedy the otherwise infuriating weed snags. This lake has a very high growth rate and the 8 inch Rainbows that were stocked in April should be around 12 to 13 inches and chunky.

            Stone Lake has slowed down this week but is still producing a few fish. Audie Reval has been trolling in the evenings, and the bite has really slowed from last week. Russell vigil has been on the opposite side of the clock and has had some decent fishing trolling in the mornings. Russell and crew have lost a few big ones this week and landed several fatties in the 13 to 18 inch range. There have been some issues with floating debris lately, and the recent lack of winds hasn’t helped. Did I just say that a lack of winds at Stone Lake was a bad thing? I must be losing it. Anyway, the nesting population of Western Grebes is probably to blame since the low water levels have eliminated their usual nesting habitat and forced them to excavate and construct their own floating nests. While they are proficient builders, they have a lot to learn about keeping a clean construction area. These birds and their nests are concentrated on the Southeast cove and we ask that you keep a good 100 yards away to avoid disturbing them.

            Well, that’s it for this week. Come out and enjoy some fishing and camping. The complete experience this week even includes a very refreshing afternoon shower followed by a good bite and spectacular sunsets. Have FUN!

Kevin Terry

Fisheries Biologist

Jicarilla Apache Game and Fish Department

Fishing Report 7/3/2012

            The Jicarilla Lakes are fishing quite well despite very hot dry weather, higher than normal water temps, and rapidly receding lake levels. I don’t have much from Mundo Lake this week but good things are happening at Stone Lake and Dulce Lake. The Navajo River is quite low at 32 cfs, so you can expect fish to stack up in the deeper pools and given the heat, you may choose to stack in on them too! Tomorrow’s Holiday is perfect for a day at the lake.

            Dulce Lake is quite warm but something of an anomaly this year, in that the water level hasn’t dropped much. The weeds are still as annoying as ever, but we are hoping to work with the tribal roads dept to install a low gradient ramp that will let us launch the weed harvester in Dulce Lake. Until then, a float tube or small boat (hand cartable) is virtually a necessity. Rosie talked to a pair of anglers who had success at Dulce recently. This is an interesting report because both gentlemen were fly fishing from float tubes using green beadhead buggers. However, one guy caught 2 fish in 4 hours and the other guy caught 16 fish in the same amount of time. The difference was the fly line. The sinking line had all of the action while the floating line struggled. Hmmmm. Another interesting note, I observed lots of fish hitting the surface and a few even going airborne yesterday afternoon when I was taking water quality samples.

            Stone Lake has been fishing good for a few local anglers. Audie Reval and friends have been out almost every night in the past week trolling large aquacreature ( my fictional name for the big eyed medieval mutant streamer bugs that I have seen in Audies fly box)  flies and lures. They caught a total of 15 fish over the last week and the size distribution is from 24 inches to 18 inches or less. There seems to be a nice group of 21 inch fish because 6 of the 15 fish were measured at that size. Check out photos below! Another Local success story at Stone this week comes from Hailey Vigil who as a nine year old, has caught more fish from Stone than half of the adult community in Dulce. Hailey and her dad Russell Vigil fished Saturday and Sunday and they caught 4 fish. Two @ 20 “, 1 @ 17”, and 1 @ 15 “. They also lost 3 fish and had one break off. Hailey is keeping her lure a secret, but don’t forget to check out her photo below.

            Mundo Lake has been a little slow lately for Rainbows. I honestly haven’t heard much but I suspect that the fish are holding in deeper water and that activity is highest in the dawn and dusk cycle. I was able to observe what was in my estimation 100 plus mature bluegill milling around the dock on the east side of the lake yesterday. They appeared to be mudding up the water near shore and cruising around in general. Given the numbers in that group, it may be a good time to hammer a bunch and have a fish fry. As you know, hopefully, we are engaged in a campaign to remove massive numbers of this overpopulated species in Mundo Lake. In fact, we have a mandatory keep policy in place this year. These fish taste very good and when you can get 20 or 30 of the bigger (palm sized) fish, the filleting is worth it. This is also a great species to get the kids on. Almost any small beadhead nymph (size16 or less) will pull one after another near the docks. As a kid, I almost exclusively used an un-baited # 14 gold hook to yank these guys. The catfishing should be great too, with warmer water and fabulous summer nights.

That’s it for this week. I wish all of you a safe and fishy Fourth of July Weekend. After all, what is freedom without fishing?

Hailey Vigil, 20" Rainbow!!!!

Audie Reval, 21" Rainbow

Kevin Terry

Fisheries Biologist

Jicarilla Apache Game and Fish Department