Santa Fe New Mexico fishing

I have fished the area on my own some. I am assuming fly fishing. On your own or guide? Lots of guides in the area and most of the area does not get a lot of pressure (immediately around Sante Fe and ABQ this is not always so).

Most of the fishing I have done was wading and on the Red River and the Pecos and Pecos tributaries north and east of Sante Fe. All of them are wade-able and surprisingly easy to do....they are slightly slower and the water is shallower than most western rivers. These are small rivers,,,,,New Mexico rivers tend to be small, and they tend to disappear. Unless they are blown out they are smaller than what most people think of as western rivers. There is not the terrestrial action that you find in the rest of the western US in the summer. It happens but it is not as big. Most of the rivers are small fly rivers....they hold some big trout but smaller seems better in my experience, compared to other western rivers. There is not a bad way to go....if you can get to the water you will probably catch some fish anywhere in Northern New Mexico. Getting to the water and getting back out again can be challenging....the rivers and streams tend to be in canyons....serious gullies....and access can require a LONG walk and even some light climbing. Some access along the Rio Grande and the Lower Red can be life threatening LOL....it is rugged country. Outfitters in the area will know access points...they mostly wade, drift boats are far and few between in this area. One of the easiest and productive rivers is the Cimarron between Taos and Raton (actually Eagle's Nest and Cimarron but those are smallish places). US HWY 64(?) runs parallel to the Cimarron and there is a BUNCH of access points that are easy to get to. The pressure is greater because of this but it was always productive even with the pressure....pressure in most of New Mexico is seeing one or two pairs of fisherman in a couple of miles....it is not like much of the western US. Again, depending on hiring someone or not this is an easy place to catch fish. Parts of the upper Red River is similar and there are similar situations along the Pecos and its tributaries.

The BEAUTIFUL thing about New Mexico is if the land is not posted in a manner that is obvious it is open to the public regardless of ownership and the ONLY person who can ask you to leave is the actual owner...sheriffs can't, game wardens can't (doubtful if you will see either) and lease holders can't. You wouldn't necessarily know if it is the owner or not because you won't have ready access to that info BUT it means that owners who are interested in keeping you off their place know they must make an effort to post it in a manner that is obvious. Fishing is usually not a problem and even duck hunting is usually OK....anything beyond quail, dove or small game will be an ISSUE. Big game hunting is a major source of revenue for land owners....where it is prevalent, and the areas I am talking about it is, they do indeed post their land in a way that if you get on it your ought to have known better. Its not a problem though, there is more public access than you could use in several lifetimes. And again, guides know where to go.

Normally I do not like using an outfitter. Trout fishing in New Mexico, if you are limited on time, is one area where it is probably advisable. The area is vast and access is tough physically. They know where to go and how to get there "easier"...not easy like we are accustomed to on the east cost but easier than trying to climb down a canyon and back out for the first time on your own.

If you are not committed to Sante Fe or have time to make an overnight trip to the San Juan the tailrace below Navajo Dam is arguably one of the best stretches or trout water in North America. It is more typical of what most people think of when thinking of western fly fishing. There used to be some drift boat rentals but I do not think there is anymore....but there are a LOT of outfitters. It is possible to wade the San Juan but when I can fish out of a drift boat I do it.....cover more water and its a damned site easier to do! Its a 4-5 hour drive though from Sante Fe so its a day there and back if youre going to fish at best. It is a bucket list type trip though....it is LOADED with 17-25 inch trout.

Probably not an option or what you're talking about doing but about 2 hours east of Sante Fe and slightly south there are some seriously good warm water lakes to fish. While they fish aren't big they are full of bass and the white bass fishing is amazingly good. These lakes also are a rarity in New Mexico in that they hold crappie and bream most years....not always but most years. There are also some BIG catfish caught in them. The Pecos River is also a good warm water fishery....again, not large bass but lots of them and some BIG catfish....and the White Bass ought to be the state fish....they are thick in almost all the lakes and the average size is respectable. There are also walleye, small mouth and pike in some of the lakes and a couple have HUGE Tiger Musky....not any near Sante Fe that I am aware of though. There are also a lot of small lakes near Sante Fe that hold trout year round and are stocked by the state or Native Tribes. Not what most people think of when thinking of trout fishing out west but it does exist and is very good. It is unbelievably good through the ice in winter if you warped like that!

Thats all I got. It is a beautiful area and likely not as crowded as most would expect....not always the case but usually so. Flows can be hard....rain is scarce so after run off many of the rivers will have very little flow and some will actually disappear for stretches. It can make fishing tough as it can anywhere but generally speaking the fishing is relatively easy, productive and simple if getting to the water is, generally speaking, a whole 'nother story.

Really more of a Taos place but the red from the fish hatchery to where it empties into the rio grande has been good to me over the years on early spring ski trips. The farther you are willing to walk towards the rio grande generally the better it gets. Haven’t fished it in the summer though. Caught some gorgeous brownies within a hundred yards of the parking area and more fish usually including rainbows and cuttbows downstream. I suspect with the easy access it can get pounded in the summer.

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Really more of a Taos place but the red from the fish hatchery to where it empties into the rio grande has been good to me over the years on early spring ski trips. The farther you are willing to walk towards the rio grande generally the better it gets. Haven’t fished it in the summer though. Caught some gorgeous brownies within a hundred yards of the parking area and more fish usually including rainbows and cuttbows downstream. I suspect with the easy access it can get pounded in the summer.

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In my experience it does get some pressure but its New Mexico pressure....nothing like the same water with public access would get in any other state other than maybe Utah or Idaho. They'd be shoulder to shoulder and fist fighting in Colorado. The "trail" that leads from Little Arsenic or LaJunta is considered moderately challenging. Apparently Desert Bighorn rate trails in New Mexico. I think it is about 3 miles one way to the junction of the Red and the Rio Grand from Arsenic and not much less than that from LaJunta. Thats a guesstimate taking into consideration the curves and cut backs....it does not include the elevation changes....with elevation changes its probably 4 miles one way. Its closer from LaJunta but its much harder. It is also, in my opninion, pretty risky....lots of loose rock and steep inclines up and down coming and going. A man has to want to catch a trout bad to do it. I tried it once from Arsenic...just down to the Rio, not all the way to the Red. I thought I was going to die. Going. Coming back I was hoping I would die to end the misery. I am not what one would call an athlete however....there are folks who do it regularly and think nothing of it. The elevation at LaJunta is about 7000' and the river is about 6000. There ain't NO air for those of us born close to sea level....I have not experienced fishing the confluence but I would bet it doesn't get much pressure....the sounds of helicopters air lifting corpses of fly fishermen off the trail might put the fish down though....

If you want to fish some really small water and catch dumbass little (with opportunity for some larger) trout all day long, the Jemez is pretty great. It's absolutely gorgeous country up that way. The Pecos has some pretty easy/good access points. Cimmaron as well.

As others have said, though, a guide isn't a bad idea.

That hot springs is always interesting. Last time we tried to go there, we were about to hike down and a big group of hippies were coming out. They were like, "you all do NOT want to go down there right now. There is a lady who has taken a lot of hallucinogens and is having a really, really bad time down there... and it's not something you want to be around... trust us."

Seeing as these wooks looked like they had spent their fair share of time at Rainbow Gatherings and Dead Lots, I took them at their word (since I had a 10 and 12 year old with me at the time).