Jicarilla Fishing Blog
Quick Update
Folks,
Just a picture I snapped today at Embom. The weeds are coming in quick at Embom but the fishing is still going well for those with the touch. This guy is a fish hound for sure. There also is a picture of a real monster caught at Embom on our instagram page, you can find it on the homepage by clicking the camera icon.
June 18th 2019
Folks,
Fishing reports are coming in from my local on the ground troops, but I have not received any recent reports from out of town anglers. Fishing has been better in the late evening and early morning, which should be no surprise since temperatures have been high 70’s and low 80’s and sunny during the day. Powerbait, fly and water bobber, and fly anglers using sinking type lines have all reported excellent catches. Anglers willing to walk away from the popular spots have also been rewarded with larger fish.
It feels like summer is here to stay, and we are thankful for the amazing spring. It might be getting time to shift gears and start thinking about warm water action, especially during the heat of the day.
J.
June 10th 2019
Photo: Two anglers combined bag at Mundo June 10th 2019
Folks
Received three reports from this weekend and the previous week. Mixed emotions with some anglers doing very well and others not so good. Local anglers are still reporting excellent catches especially in the morning and evening, with day time fishing slowing significantly if it is high heat and direct sun.
Today we had the Mundo road regraded so it is smooth sailing until the next monsoon. As always if you are hand loading a float tube, and your vehicle doesn’t like the road due to mud or ruts you can easily load off the highway right near the dam, it is only a 20 yard walk.
This morning two of our regulars where hammering fish and even said the catfish bite was starting to turn on. Largest trout was 17” and the biggest catfish was 18”.
Go fish, before it gets to be full on summer,
J.
Spring Fishing
Folks,
No fishing reports have been submitted, but the Fish Crew has been hounding folks at the lake for your benefit. It turns out this year continues to provide great fishing. Anglers mentioned excellent catches and many fish an hour at both Mundo and Enbom. Some of the highlights have been multiple fish at 20 inches caught at Enbom lake this week and quite a few in the 16-18” range. Consistent catches on silver spinners, olive wooly buggers, hares ears and prince nymphs. Anglers mentioned overcast days producing more fish than bright sunny days. Anglers who are willing to get off the spillway and venture into less pressured areas are producing more, and larger fish. So it is business as usually as far as I can tell. The weather has been highly variable with the weatherman being wrong more than right (per usual).
Get out and go fishing, submit reports, be happy!
J.
Misplaced Equipment
ATTENTION ANGLERS:
On Wednesday May 29th 2019 it was discovered that the Jicarilla Game & Fish Departments thermograph system had been removed from Mundo Lake. This system was deployed on April 15th 2019, and was last seen by staff on Thursday May 23rd. This equipment monitors hourly lake temperature at three levels in the lake (top, middle, and bottom). The data collected has to be manually downloaded, but continuous hourly temperatures will be recorded for up to five years per device. They are meant to be deployed for long periods of time, and only downloaded when data is needed for analysis.
The system was comprised of three thermographs suspended by a foam buoy with orange “JGFD” painted on it in two locations. Black nylon rope (approximately 1/2” in diameter) was attached at the top to the buoy and at the bottom by metal cans filled with concrete (anchoring it to the bottom). The rope was approximately 36 feet in the length.
The three thermographs were Hobo Pro V2 models made by ONSET (see photos). The serial numbers of the missing units are as follows:
Top: 10872907
Middle: 10873306
Bottom: 10855082
These temperature data loggers are approximately $120.00 each, but the data they collect can never be replaced once the equipment is lost or stolen.
JGFD will be deploying a new system because this data is very important for continued trophy fisheries management. If you become entangled in the thermograph system, break or cut your line immediately, do no pull up the system or tamper with it in any way!
If you have any information relating to this missing equipment or why thermographs are being deployed please contact Jacob Mazzone at Jicarilla Game & Fish Department by calling (575) 759-3255 or through e-mail at jicarillafishqs@gmail.com
Misplaced Equipment
Folks,
Today I went out to Mundo Lake and noticed our Thermograph equipment was gone. Some of you may have noticed a white buoy with orange JGFD on it floating in the north east corner of the lake. This buoy was suspending multiple thermographs in the water column that all took hourly temperature readings. If you thought this was discarded refuse please contact me to set up a return of the equipment. Lake temperature monitoring is very import to fisheries management and the equipment is not inexpensive (but good luck pawning it). If you just thought you found a new anchor rope, please contact me. We just want to get our instruments back in the lake as soon as possible to keep collecting data. If you have any information or tips regarding this loss of equipment, please contact me.
The Office Number is (575) 759-3255 and my e-mail is jicarillafishqs@gmail.com
Updates
Folks,
I was told this holiday weekend was very busy, with lots of fish caught. But no one has submitted any reports, of course lots of people called for them. From the information I gathered lots of fish were caught multiple 20" fish from Embom and one 26" fish from Mundo were the real highlights. I learned this information second hand, but it was from a normally credible source. If a fisherman can even be considered a credible source… The weather is supposed to stabilize but we are experiencing everything from sun, to snow flurries. As the water warms up the fishing should only get better.
On a very sad note today our parks and recreation crew found a 20” fish discarded in the trash at Embom. Please do not keep fish you do not wish to eat, they are quite happy being put back in the lake to fight another day. If you witness someone wasting fish, or keeping more than their limit please call the Game and Fish immediately (575-759-3255) or on the weekend you can call the Police Department so they can contact and dispatch an on duty warden (575-759-3222).
Please remember to submit reports.
Go fishing!
The picture below is of one of the Foresters here in town last week at Embom Lake.
Spring Weather
Spring is acting like, well, spring. It is raining and snowing off and on at many elevations and as a fish guy, things are going awesome. Weather of this nature is supposed to continue throughout the week, according to the professionals. After the drought of 2018, this is exactly what we needed. Fishing has been fantastic from local reports, but visiting anglers have not submitted any new reports since the last blog update. Water bobbler and flies, bait, spinners, and all manor of tackle have been producing full stringers. Water temperatures last week were 54 degrees at seven feet and 47 degrees at 18 feet. Things are still cold so fishing should only improve when temperatures begin to rise. Please remember to be respectful of the boat ramp parking situation at Mundo, it is a very popular spot these days. Don’t forget to check out Embom lake, I heard a rumor about the north side flats holding some nice fish.
j.
May 9th 2019
Folks,
I have to say it is turning into one of the most perfect springs I can remember. Rain makes for less fishing, but more water is more better! Bad English aside, roads are going to be very sloppy especially if the weatherman was correct when he said it should be raining off and on for the foreseeable future (at least through the weekend). Please use good judgement before tearing down wet roads, and consider parking on asphalt and walking in to the lakes if possible. It is Canada goose nesting season please use extreme caution and remain a safe distance away from nests.
I have been getting lots of fishing reports, and they are always quite interesting. Flies and lures have been out fishing bait, especially when it comes to fish size. Folks are reporting catches of 20 plus fish a day with pistol petes and fish in the 11-16”. Multiple anglers reported larger fish in the 18” to 20” range all on lures and flies. Boat and tube anglers seem to be out fishing shore anglers. Covering water this time of year is really important. On a side note the first rounds of stockings are completed for the spring.
Game wardens have been reporting that many anglers have not done their due diligence by not reading and understanding the fishing proclamation. Some of the most common violations have been fishing with two poles, and not knowing the limits. Please take the time to read the Proclamation, it is not very long, and it will save you from making a mistake that could result in a citation. It is available on multiple locations of the website, including the main page and is a downloadable .pdf you can save it to your smart phone for quick reference.
Un-safe boating and the loss of gear in the lake has come up again this year. Multiple rods have been reported missing (lost overboard) and at least one trolling motor. Please use common sense and all proper safety equipment if you are launching a tube or craft in the lakes. If you find any equipment please report it to the JGFD and turn it in so we can return it to the rightful owner.
Have a great weekend!
J.
Derby Results
Photo: Quintin with his First Place Youth Catfish and 3rd Place Adult Catfish
We had beautiful weather for the 13th Annual Derby. The fishing was on fire most of the day, and we weighed in the most fish of any derby (at least during my tenure). The Top Place finishers are listed below. The competition was fierce, and folks had to play the tactics game all day to place in the top three. Most folks were so focused on trout that they forgot about the other categories which made one lucky Bluegill fisherman, who took home some loaded fly boxes and a new float tube. One youth also placed in the Adult Catfish Category so we hooked him up with 1st place youth and 3rd place adult prizes.
Rainbow Trout (Adult Division)
1st Herman Garcia with 5 Rainbow Trout weighing 5.965 pounds
2nd Moses Esquibel with 5 Rainbow Trout weighing 5.543 pounds
3rd Bob Martinez with 5 Rainbow Trout weighing 5.295 pounds
Bluegill (Adult Division)
Mike Pino with 1 Bluegill weighing 0.375 pounds
Channel Catfish (Adult Division)
1st Joseph Vigil with 10 Channel Catfish weighing 14.380 pounds
2nd Valentino Lucero with 3 Channel Catfish weighing 4.015 pounds
3rd Quintin Cheykaychi with 1 Channel Catfish weighing 2.460 pounds
Rainbow Trout (Youth Division)
1st Luis Cano with 5 Rainbow Trout weighing 4.915 pounds
2nd Stormy Bicenti with 5 Rainbow Trout weighing 3.675 pounds
3rd Jordon Victorino with 5 Rainbow Trout weighing 3.600 pounds
Channel Catfish (Youth Division)
1st Quintin Cheykaychi with 1 Channel Catfish weighing 2.460 pounds
2nd Arion Gonzales with 1 Channel Catfish weighing 1.008 pounds