Conservation
Ron Loehman, Conservation Chair Working Group Meeting: In November I attended a meeting of the Rio Grande Cutthroat Working Group. They meet quarterly to bring together representatives of public agencies and private organizations and who, by their mission statement, are "committed to improving the security of Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout (RGCT) in their historic range... to preserve the fish for present and future generations". As most of you know, the RGCT is the native trout in New Mexico in the Rio Grande, Pecos, and Canadian River watersheds and that it has been reduced to a tiny fraction of its original ... Read More
January 11, 2012
New Mexico Game and Fish Department (NMGFD) have been active in Winter stocking of rainbow and triploid rainbow trout. Over the past week alone, nearly 25,000 fish have been stocked in area lakes,ponds, ditches and streams. Over the past month, nearly 70,000 fish have been stocked. More on their website. As part of the planned restoration of the native Rio Grande cutthroat to the Costilla river basin, in August, NMGFD applied CFT Legumine (Rotenone) to Casias Creek, a tributary of Costilla Reservoir, to eliminate non-native fish species. Rotenone is a naturally occurring compound that is derived from the roots of a ... Read More
December 5, 2011
On Sunday, October 9, a NM Trout team finished installing a group of three interpretive panels along FR 376 above the Gilman Tunnels. The panels are very professional and describe the Jemez watershed and the need for users to act responsibly and to respect the river environment. New Mexico Trout donated several thousand dollars toward the design and fabrication of these and several other panels, and our logo is displayed prominently on them. Check them out the next time you are up on the Guadalupe, Cebolla, and las Vacas ... Read More
October 12, 2011
The East Fork is now back open to trout fishing, although on a very restricted basis. A maximum of 5 anglers can now fish instead of the previous 10. Obviously, fishing success is much more limited than pre-wildfire, but a 13" brown was caught last weekend. The trout remaining are feeding on terrestrials, hoppers and beetles with hoppers being the preferred fly. Water is extremely murky during and after rains. Best water quality can be found upstream from the shack. San Antonio fishing is closed for the rest of the season. <*))))>< M2 ... Read More
August 29, 2011
This is an update on what is happening at the Valles Caldera. The Preserve is open to the public for recreation with the exception of fishing and five hiking trails. The fish in the East Fork are still showing signs of stress from this summer’s drought, higher temperatures, and wildfire activity. To reduce the stressors on the fish, East Fork fishing will be closed through August 25th. We will reopen the East Fork to a reduced number of anglers (maximum of 5 instead of 10 anglers) on the weekends beginning August 26th. San Antonio fishing will be closed for the ... Read More
August 9, 2011
I have an update on the status of the VALLES CALDERA NATIONAL PRESERVE. As of this past Saturday (7/30), the Valles Caldera National Preserve is open to the public for recreation with the exception of fishing and five hiking trails. East Fork fishing is closed through August 16th, but will reopen after they have had a chance to assess the area for public safety and post-fire impacts to the fisheries. San Antonio fishing will be closed for the rest of this season, but will reopen next summer. Visitors with reservations can call 866-382-5537 for refunds. More fire information is available at www.nmfireinfo.com ... Read More
August 1, 2011
New Mexico Trout volunteers pose after completing our first conservation project of the 2011 season. The group picked up a significant amount of trash not only from the roadside, but deep in to the camping areas on both sides of Forest Road 376 on the Guadalupe (New Mexico Trout’s home water). The pick-up netted a record amount of beer cans, bottles, paper goods, diapers, rusted metal, plastic and discarded grill grates. The section between Porter (at the confluence of the Rio de las Vacas and the Rio Cebolla) and several miles below to the Forest Service gate is now ... Read More
May 2, 2011
Log and Boulder structures were placed on 1.5 miles of stream with funding from NM Trout, SIKES, and the Forest Service. NEPA and Corp of engineers work was completed with Forest funding and NM Trout Funding was used only for actual implementation of the project. Fish inventory work was done on the creek several weeks ago. Every structure that was put in was holding fish and there were a few gila trout left that was stocked last year ... Read More
March 25, 2011