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CATCHES OF THE WEEK Milo Chavez of Albuquerque caught and released a rainbow trout, about 30 inches in length, after work on Friday at Tingley Beach. He was using a size 16 barbless nymph. Leah Pelletier of Albuquerque, fishing with husband Mark last week, caught and released a 36 1/2-inch lake trout at Heron Lake with a little 20-inch ice fishing rod. It took her more than two hours to finally get the big fish landed. At Shady Lakes, Roland Gerencer, Jr., 6, of Albuquerque, caught two big trout — 24 1/2 inches and 20 1/2 inches with a fly on Sunday. AROUND THE STATE SHADY LAKES: The fish in our Big Trout Pond are running a 17-inch average. Our anticipated first stocking is planned around March 1. Trout remain abundant in the Easy Catch Trout Pond and are running an 11-12-inch average. Numbers caught out average about 4 or 5 however the record Stringer of the Week held 18 rainbows. Baits are worms, salmon eggs, and PowerBait predominantly. The record largemouth bass of the week was a 20-inch, 4 1/4-pounder caught and released with a jig fishing near an iris patch on Sunday. Reported activity was strong over the weekend with the warm weather using also crank baits and small soft plastics such as artificial worms and crawdads. In February, Shady Lakes is open on weekends only, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jan Phillips, director HERON LAKE: Ice fishing is fair for small rainbow trout. Best using PowerBait or salmon eggs. Fish hatchery and state park personnel had to cut a block of ice 16 inches thick to stock 70,000 kokanee salmon on Monday. These “stockers” were very small and noncatchable. This will be just a small fraction of what the total stocking will be this year. Water is still being released at 200 cfs so it looks like we may have to launch our boats at a primitive site in the Ridge Rock area. Think positive for more snow. Don Wolfley, Heron Lake Guide Service TINGLEY BEACH: Trout fishing in the Tingley Beach Children’s and Central Ponds has been good using PowerBait, worms, salmon eggs, spinners. Last week Game and Fish stocked some 12- to 14-inch rainbow trout. Trout Fishing in the South Catch and Release Ponds has been slow to good on midges, leeches, red annelid and egg patterns. Joe Martinelli, curator NOTES from GAME & FISH: Fishing at EAGLE NEST LAKE was good using ice jigs tipped with worms for perch. At LAKE MALOYA, trout fishing was good using sherbet PowerBait, homemade dough bait and salmon eggs for trout. Trout fishing on the ALBUQUERQUE-AREA drains was good for using egg patterns, salmon eggs, PowerBait, parachute adams, copper John Barrs and Griffith’s gnats. Trout fishing on the CHAMA RIVER below Abiquiu was very good using copper John Barrs, small spinners and PowerBait. Fishing in the quality water section of the SAN JUAN RIVER was very good using orange, yellow and chartreuse egg patterns, olive and black streamers, red larva and olive and brown leeches. At QUEMADO LAKE, trout fishing was slow to fair using PowerBait and salmon eggs. Anglers doing best were fishing the open water right along the edge of the ice. Water flow on the RIO GRANDE below Elephant Butte as of Monday was 8.1cfs. Trout fishing was good using spinners, small spoons, copper John Barrs and salmon eggs. Walleye fishing from the bank at SANTA ROSA LAKE was good again this past week. Anglers did well using green, chartreuse and white curly tail grubs on 1/4-ounce jig heads.
