Jicarilla Fish Weblog

Fishing Report 5/27/08

I hope this report finds you all well after the holiday weekend. The Jicarilla Lakes had a fair amount of pressure considering the late May snowstorm that kicked things off on Friday. The news from Stone is discouraging, but Enbom and Mundo took up the slack well. The peak of runoff appears to have passed on the river, so it may be worth a look if you like river fishing.
Stone Lake has had light pressure with very discouraging reports. I am aware of at least 60 angler hours with only a few bites and zero fish. This stat is a compilation of a couple different groups of anglers with different techniques so it should run the gamete so to speak. I guess the fish are just having too much fun gorging themselves on the Chironomidaes and Mayflies. I also noticed the damselflies beginning to crawl out for the first time this year. As many of you veterans know, the damselflies are the primary invertebrate food source in Stone Lake. The water conditions are great for this time of year at Stone, so the blame lies on the super productivity and fat lazy trout (at least this week). The temperature is in the low 60’s with good visibility, and only the beginning of weeds. The big fish are in there, but every other cast is just not the reality right now. I did have two Largemouth follow ups on a white rooster tail during a short water quality foray this morning but that is it.
Enbom Lake has been fishing well with spinners and flies, and to a lesser extent with powerbait. A few of the big boys have been caught but there are plenty getting fatter every day. The float tubes and small boats are also picking up on a few more fish by making the marshy north side accessible. The water is in great shape and the weeds haven’t been a problem thus far. Damselflies and wollybuggers work well at Enbom, as do a variety of beadhead nymphs. There is also the possibility of a little morning and evening surface action at Enbom.
Mundo continues to fish well for all three species. The Trout are hitting spinners and flies, as well as powerbait, salmon eggs, worms, and Corn. Wollybuggers and pistol petes are a good option for float tubers and boaters with a slow deep trolling method. Dropping a beadhead behind the big fly can be awesome at Mundo. There is a hint of a green algae bloom at Mundo right now, which typically cycles through quickly and doesn’t harm the fish. At the peak of the bloom the visibility will be very poor and will hinder trout fishing a little. The Bass fishing has been good along the shorelines with emergent vegetation. Grubs and plastics are doing the job for the Largemouth, and a few fish in 3-4 lb. range have been caught and released. Float tubers should have a couple of Bass streamers on board to mix things up. The cats are also showing up more frequently, and occasionally on trout bait. The bigger fish are after the really stinky stuff though.
Horse Lake is still not recommended, but does have fish and for once a good road. That can change in a second though.
The Navajo River is coming down and clearing up slightly. A few local guys have been bouncing worms and catching a few trout here and there. I don’t get a lot of feedback from river anglers, especially fly fishermen, but there is definitely some good habitat in the reservation stretch. I plan to find to get some info for you all myself when I get a minute. Enjoy the Lakes.

Kevin Terry
Fisheries Biologist

Fishing Report 5/20/08

The Jicarilla Fishing Lakes are the place to be for your Memorial Day weekend outing. The fish are biting, and the weather has been perfect for camping. Please check the proclamation for info on camping fees at the various lakes including several free camping spots with a valid fishing permit. Spring Stocking is all but complete and the recent Bass and Catfish action makes for some diverse opportunities. In fact, you can fish all day and all night if you want to.
Stone Lake continues to be very tough fishing. The pressure has also decreased substantially which has limited reports significantly. I managed to sneak away for a few hours on Friday morning with a 30+ year Jicarilla veteran and we were shut out with only two bites. The rest of the reports (2) were very similar, with just a couple of bites in a number of hours. If you are a bug enthusiast you may want to make a trip to Stone considering the incredible Chironomidae Hatch that is going on right now. I was at the lake this morning, and there were literally millions of molts, pupae, and adults covering the lakes surface. There is also a much smaller Calibaetis hatch, with large tan/gray adults. Despite the incredible numbers of bugs on the surface, I did not see a single rise in a rare glass surface condition. I still recommend the large (#12) gray emerger pattern out there simply based on the numbers of midges and the last gut sample report. The damsels should be moving around soon also. Please call or email us with any report from Stone Lake. We need more info so we can all catch the big fish that are in there.
Mundo Lake has really been picking up, with good trout fishing, and more recently Bass and Catfish action. The average trout is in the 11” range with good opportunities for Rainbows up to 20” that were stocked last Wednesday. Powerbait, worms, and corn have been reported, and given the good fishing (2-3 fish/hour) other baits are worth a try as well. Spinners and Bass rigs are picking up some of the larger Rainbows as well. Beadhead nymphs and wollybuggers are the fly patterns that have been reported. Anglers targeting Bass should probably try using plastics and grubs around the shorelines. One angler reported 9 Bass in the 13-15” range, and there should be a few 6-8 lbers waiting for you in there. The Southeast corner seems to be a good holding location for the Largemouth right now considering the high water and good habitat that is often dry. However, you might have to share with the osprey that sits on the snag in that corner. The Catfish are also getting pretty active, and I have received one especially good report from last night (5/19) under the full moon. Two anglers caught approximately 50 fish using garlic dough between 9pm and midnight. The average size was around 13”, but at least four were in the 18” range. There is also a big boy out there sporting a new lip ring and what is left of the 10lb. spider wire he snapped. We stocked approximately 3,500 8-10” Channel Cats this morning to boost an already outstanding population. The clean water in Mundo makes for great eating on these cats.
Enbom Lake has been fishing really well since the trophy stocking last week. The typical fish is going to come in at around 10” but 1 in 6 should be 16-20”. Pressure has really picked up though, so get out there before too long if you can. Yellow powerbait has been working as have flies and lures. The anglers in tubes have an advantage out there considering the small size of the Lake and the marshy conditions on the north side that really limit fishing from the shore. Several lures including castmasters, midget daredevils, and rooster tails have been pretty hot.
Dulce Lake has been stocked with approximately 3,000 Channel Catfish. These fish are in the 8-10” range. The Lake levels are still very low, and the weeds have a jumpstart out there but we hope to see some big guys in a few years when the water gets a little higher. You may fish at Dulce Lake, but Mundo is the recommended spot if you are catfishing. Have a great Holiday weekend out on the lakes.
Kevin Terry – Fisheries Biologist

Fishing Report 5-13-08

The Wind has done its best to discourage folks at the Jicarilla Fishing Lakes this past week. Stone Lake has had especially strong gusts and adverse conditions particularly for the fly fishermen among you. Fortunately, the lakes with decent wind protection (Enbom and Mundo) have been fishing well. 1,500 lbs. of large Rainbows will be stocked this week into Enbom and Mundo. These larger fish will make for interesting and diverse fishing out there. Typically, these large trout acclimate to the lakes and feeding patterns fairly quickly and should be fishing well in a week or two. The Bass and Catfish are waking up at Mundo also. Our annual Channel Catfish load will be here on Tuesday (5/20), and will be distributed into Mundo and Dulce Lakes.
Stone Lake has been very tough this past week, and the wind has definitely played a significant role in the quality of fishing, especially for flyfishermen. A few folks did pretty good considering, but the majority have been literally blown off the lake. The guys who had success were using hardware from the shoreline. One angler reported 4 Rainbows on Friday PM and 2 Bass and 2 Rainbows on Sat. AM. All 8 fish were taken on a heavy silver/orange castmaster. This report is literally the only “good” report this past week. That’s not say that other folks aren’t catching fish, just that I haven’t heard any other success stories. On the negative side of things, I have received several reports of fishless biteless days plagued with wind. There has been a tremendous Chironomidae hatch (Lake Midge) at Stone Lately and the Rainbows mentioned above were full of the pupae form (emergers). The adults get very little attention during this hatch, but the emergers seem to get heavy pressure as they rise to the surface to hatch. The size of these guys is relatively large (#10-#12) and they vary in color from deep red to reddish gray. The Larvae (bloodworm) pattern is also a good choice during this hatch.
Mundo Lake has been fishing well for Rainbows, Bass, and to a lesser extent Catfish. The Rainbows seem to have been taking lures and flies at higher rates than bait. Spinners, pistol petes and beadhead nymph patterns including prince nymphs, copper johns, hares ears, and pheasant tails have all been working. The bait that is working for Rainbows includes worms and salmon eggs, as well as powerbait. The average size Rainbow is around 10” currently, but several in the 15-16” range and a few in the 20” range have been caught recently. A 19” Brown Trout was also reported this week on a rubber worm. This is the first Brown I have heard of this season, but hopefully not the last. The Bass are beginning to get more active, and have been hitting well on rubber worms and grubs as well as Rapalas. The weeds are beginning to show up so bring some weedless lures if you are interested in catching Largemouth. The Catfish are beginning to bite as well, but I have received very little info on them. What I do know, is that at least one angler has caught nice cats in the 16-18” range using tainted liver.
Enbom Lake as some of you know is a seasonal fishery due to chronic winterkill events. It has been stocked with 7,500 8” rainbows and will be supplemented with 750 lbs. of larger Rainbows this week (5-14). Enbom is well protected from the wind (especially winds prevailing from the South) and is a great lake for float tubes and small boats. One angler who was blown off Stone Sat. morning took his tube to Enbom for a 50+ fish afternoon. He was using an Adams pattern and probably linked in to a feeding frenzy for the Chironomidaes that have a prolific hatch in Enbom as well. This is a great lake to camp at also, and the cost for camping is included in the fishing permit for Enbom Lake. If you haven’t tried Enbom it might be time.
Horse Lake is still not recommended for fishing due to the presumed winterkill that we feel wiped out the lake. There are 15,000 6” Rainbows in there, and they will be nice and fat come August/September. We have been wrong in the past when it comes to winterkills at Horse, so the adventurous among you may want to give it a shot, especially if you value peace, quiet, and beauty in a fishing experience. Bring a Kite just in case.

Kevin Terry
Fisheries Biologist

Fishing Report 5/6/08

Fishing season is officially on at all of the Jicarilla Fishing Lakes. We have completed the usual spring stocking operations and are awaiting two loads of trophy trout to cap things off. Enbom Lake is now fishable, with approximately 7,500 8” Rainbows that were stocked on 4/30/08. We are purchasing (thanks to raffle and tourney participants)1,500 lbs. of larger (16-22”) trophy sized Rainbows, that will be distributed into Mundo Lake and Enbom Lake on Tuesday May 13th, 2008. This is the first of two trophy loads and should mix things up out there. Stone Lake continues to tempt the headhunters among you with some decent payoffs here and there, and the Bass are hitting at Mundo.
Stone Lake has been providing just enough action to stay interesting over the past week. There have been some nice fish taken but a few frustrating days out there as well. The spawners are now almost entirely done with their shoreline displays and should recruit back into normal feeding patterns soon. Several notable fish were reported over the weekend. One pair of anglers caught two Rainbows that were both estimated around 20” and 4.5 lbs. as well as two Largemouth Bass around 1.5 lbs. The lure of the day for these folks was a silver and orange castmaster. Another notable was an 18” Rainbow that weighed 6lbs. Sorry folks, I wish I had a photo too. This behemoth fell victim too a rainbow crocodile. Several more Rainbows in the 20” 4 lb range were also reported from folks in float tubes. We did not receive info on the specific fly patterns that they were using. Lake midges are hatching in the mornings and to a lesser extent throughout the day. During this hatch the emerger pattern seems to get all of the attention with very few top water rises. The emerger can be red to grey and are a relatively large (#12) size for midges. Damsel patterns and the red chironomidae larve should be in your box as well.
Mundo has been hit or miss, which is rare for this consistent fishery. The best action has been with lures and spinners, as well as wollybuggers and pistol petes. A variety of beadhead nymphs are working as well. The recent stockers are showing up and hitting a lot more than they get hooked. Bait fishing has been slow for the most part with a few hits per hour. The largemouth are starting to get active, and folks are catching them consistently around the submerged vegetation. Grubs and rubber worms have been reported for Bass. There is no news on catfishing this week at Mundo. Mundo is still murky with visibility at 2-3 feet and seems to be really taking its time to settle down this spring.
Enbom was stocked with approximately 7,500 8” Rainbows last Wednesday (4/30) and should start to pick up soon. Several folks gave it a shot over the weekend but the fishing was very poor. The trophy load on Tuesday (5/13) will make things interesting out there also. Enbom is a great float tube lake for those of you who haven’t been there yet.
Horse Lake has been stocked with 15,000 6” Rainbows, but won t really be fishable until August. See you on the water.

Kevin Terry
Fisheries Biologist