Doug from Colorado and Roy from New York with some nice Walleye taken 4/24/13.

 Lyle, Mike, Brandi and Donna from Colorado and Oklahoma with a good mess of Walleye taken 4/27/13

Donna Anderson with her lomit of Walleye taken 4/28/13

Water Temp = 56 degrees   water clarity 6-8 feet in main lake.  Lake level is currently 16 feet from going over dam.

We have been catching quite a few walleye the last week using crawlers or minnows fished in 10-16 feet of water near the primary points of the main lake between the dam and the confluence of the Ute creek.  Trolling has also been producing a few Walleye,  but White bass are hitting better than Walleye when trolling.

Walleye--EXCELLENT--Minnows/crawlers in 10-16 feet of water on the bottom using Carolina rigs or bottom bouncers.  Trolling near the shore line will also produce a few fish.

White bass--GOOD to EXCELLENT--Trolling crank baits up near Horseshoe will produce a few fish.  Mine Canyon area is also a good place to troll.

Small mouth--GOOD to EXCELLENT--CRank baits or plastics or live bait fished in 6-16 feet of water will produce many 10-13 inch fish. Bigger ones are hard to come by, but you will catch one here and there.

Large mouth--POOR to FAIR--I have not seen many caught and have not heard of any good reports. I expect them to start moving up if the water continues to warm.

Crappie--POOR--no reports except for a few being caught at night off of the marina using lights.

Catfish--POOR to FAIR--Everyday is different with these critters.  The bite should improve with warmer water temps.

REMEMBER TO PURCHASE YOUR FISHING LICENSES ON-LINE BEFORE YOU GET TO THE LAKE. (WE ARE NO LONGER SELLING THEM LIKE IN YEARS PAST)

FISH-ON,

Rob and Maria

4/23/13

 Jo and Milton Pool from Amarillo with 3 nice Walleye taken 4/22/13

 Russel Barryman from Hobbs N.M. with a bunch of White bass taken 4/21/13

 Ron Grady & Dale O'Rear from Carlsbad with a 6 1/2 pound Walleye taken 4/19/13

Russel Barryman with our limit of Walleye taken 4/20/13

Water temp = 55 degrees    Main lake clarity 7-8 feet.    Lake level 16 ft low.
I have had quite a few trips the last week and all I can say is that the Walleye and White bass are on a pretty good bite.  We have also caught at least 50 Smallies the last week while fishing for Walleye-----the biggest Smallie was maybe 14 inches, but they are feisty little buggers.

Walleye---EXCELLENT-- Minnows fished in 10-20 feet of water near the main channel, trolling crank baits near Romero along with jigs tipped with crawlers and tossed near shore will all produce fish.  99% of all walleye caught are males that are milking.  I did see one female caught that was caught trolling  up the Ute that went about 6 1/2 pounds(see picture)

White bass--EXCELLENT--Trolling crank baits near the Ranch house along with around Roger's park area will produce fish. Later in the day when the water warms up a bit more seems to be the best bite.

Catfish---POOR to FAIR--Chicken liver and stink baits are the best bet.  Some days produce some fish and then the next day won't.

Small and Large mouth bass --POOR to FAIR----Quite a few small fish are being caught, but I have not heard of many larger fish being caught.  As the water warms this bite should really improve.

Crappie--POOR to FAIR--A few are being caught up the Ute with minnows in 5-6 feet of water.

FISH-ON,
Rob and Maria

P.S. Remember to buy your license online from N.M. dept. of Fish and Game ---we no longer are a license vender.

                   Kent and Tim with Whites and Walleye caught on 4/12/13

                   Tim and Kent with Whites, Walleye and cats caught on 4/13/13


Water temp = 50 degrees in the morning/54 degrees in the afternoon.
Water clarity 7-8 feet in the main lake and 1-2 feet in the river arms.

We had a severe  cold front move in here on 4/8 and 4/9/13 which brought 20 degree temps and slowed our bite down a bit.  Our water temps are just about where they were b-4 the front moved in and the bite should start heating up once again.

I have had a couple of trips the last few days and we had to earn every fish that we caught.  They are not jumping into the boat, but persistence will pay off in the long run.

White bass ---FAIR--- Trolling crank baits from the dam to Horseshoe will produce some fish. 

Walleye ---SLOW to FAIR--- This bite will get much better in a day or two.  The cold front really affects the bite for this species.  Minnows in 10 to 16 feet will produce a few along with trolling crank baits near the edge of the channel will also whack a few.  Again, by mid week I expect this bite to be good to excellent---we just need the water temp to get up to mid and upper 50's.

Catfish --GOOD to EXCELLENT--The above pictures speak for them selves.  Stink baits or chicken liver in 3-4 feet of water.  You may need to move from cove to cove, but sooner or later you should score a few.

Crappie ---POOR to SLOW---I have heard of a few being caught with minnows in 6-8 feet of water up the Ute.  I have yet to see a limit of them --- mostly a few being caught here and there.

Small and Large mouth bass ---A few are being caught, but not really much to report on.

NOTE:  Buy your license online before you get to the lake.  Walmart in Clovis has the written ones like in the past along with Alco in Tucumcari. 

FISH-ON,

Rob and Maria