September 26, 2013
Recommended Waters to Fish
Fishing is good at Woods Canyon Lake and Willow Springs Lake, fair to good at Silver Creek, and fair at Show Low Lake.
Trout Stocking Schedule
Week of September 16-20
Bear Canyon Lake - 275 rainbow trout
Willow Springs Lake - 1,500 rainbow trout
Woods Canyon Lake - 1,200 rainbow trout
Silver Creek - 500 Apache trout
Week of September 23-27
Bear Canyon Lake - 300 rainbow trout
Show Low Lake - 2,300 rainbow trout
Woods Canyon Lake - 2,400 rainbow trout
MOGOLLON RIM LAKES
BEAR CANYON LAKE - Fishing is fair to good. The lake will be stocked this week with rainbow trout, which will be the last stocking for the year.
BLACK CANYON LAKE - Fishing is poor to fair for trout. Anglers have been catching a few rainbow trout and bass. Sunfish are numerous in the shallows. They can be easily caught with a small hook and nightcrawler. The water level is low, and launching trailered boats will be difficult.
CHEVELON LAKE - Fishing is fair.
WILLOW SPRINGS LAKE - Fishing is good. The lake was stocked last week with rainbow trout, which was the last stocking for the year.
WOODS CANYON LAKE - Fishing is good. The lake will be stocked this week with rainbow trout, which is the last stocking for the year. The store is open, and boat rentals are available.
WHITE MOUNTAINS LAKES
BECKER LAKE - Fishing is fair to good. Large trout are chasing schools of fathead minnows in the shallows.
They are becoming more active with slightly cooler water temperatures. Water is being diverted into Becker via the fill ditch, which should be a good sign for better water levels in the near future. Becker Lake is open to catch-and-release fishing, with artificial fly and lure only, and single barbless hooks only.
BIG LAKE - Fishing is fair. The algae bloom is still present. Continue to fish deep. The best action has been in early morning and late evening with nightcrawlers and Power Bait. Shore anglers should try fishing off outer rocky points adjacent to deep water. The store is open, and boat rentals are available. The lake level is somewhat low, but boat ramps near the store and at South Cove are accessible. The boat ramp at Railroad Cove is very low, and launching trailered boats here will be difficult.
CARNERO LAKE - Fishing is fair. It is difficult to get past the shoreline weeds to open water in the middle.
CLEAR CREEK RESERVOIR - Fishing is poor for trout, but fair to good for bullheads, bass and catfish. Boats can be launched at the official boat ramp, but will have difficulty reaching the canyon above the highway bridge due to shallow water and vegetation.
CONCHO LAKE - Fishing is poor. The lake is very low and weedy.
CRESCENT LAKE - Fishing is fair. Anglers have been catching some rainbow trout on Power Bait and nightcrawlers. The store is closed. Access to the boat ramps on the west and south sides is good.
FOOL HOLLOW LAKE - Fishing is fair. Anglers are catching catfish at night on worms and prepared catfish baits. Sunfish are numerous around the fishing piers. Use a very small hook and a tiny piece of worm to catch sunfish. Boat anglers are catching smallmouth bass on lures around the dam area.
GREER LAKES - The water level at River Reservoir has come up dramatically in the last several weeks and is now full. Boats can now be launched. However, the water is turbid due to high flows coming into the lake, and fishing may be slow. Illegally-stocked yellow perch are biting nightcrawlers in the evening. Bunch and Tunnel Reservoirs are still fairly low, and fishing is poor to fair. The fill season started last week, so lake levels at Bunch and Tunnel will be coming up slowly.
HULSEY LAKE - The lake was drained following the Wallow Fire to help reduce expected flooding on Escudilla Mountain and has not been stocked since the fire.
LEE VALLEY LAKE - Fishing is poor to fair. The lake level has come up a few feet, and the boat ramp is usable again. The algae bloom is now gone, and the pH level is normal. Watch for surface action in the evening to catch grayling. Apache trout in the lake were killed by high pH levels over the summer.
LUNA LAKE - Fishing is poor to fair. The lake is full and spilling heavily. The water is very turbid due to heavy runoff into the lake. Use bait (Power Bait or nightcrawlers) instead of lures since the water is turbid.
LYMAN LAKE - Lyman Lake State Park is open to overnight camping, which will be allowed through November 4. Fishing is poor for bass and fair to good for catfish.
NELSON RESERVOIR - Fishing is poor to fair. The lake is turbid and spilling heavily due to heavy monsoon flooding into the lake. Use bait (Power Bait or nightcrawlers) instead of lures since the water is turbid. From September 1 through March 31, the bag limits on trout at Nelson are unlimited; it will change back to six trout limit on April 1.
RAINBOW LAKE - Fishing is poor for trout and fair for catfish and bullheads. Weed conditions at Rainbow Lake are much improved over what they normally are this time of year. White Amur (grass carp) were stocked into the lake under a special permit to control the nuisance aquatic weeds. Please release these fish if incidentally caught so they can do their job at eating weeds. The water level is good, up from where it was in mid-summer, which helps when launching and operating boats in the lake.
SCOTT RESERVOIR - Fishing is poor to fair for trout. Try catfishing at night with worms, chicken livers and prepared baits. The water is turbid, but the lake level is good.
SHOW LOW LAKE - Fishing is fair for trout. The lake will be stocked with 12-inch rainbow trout this week. Anglers are catching some catfish on chicken livers and prepared baits and some bass on lures. Fishing for large walleye with large crankbaits at night should be picking up soon. The concession store is open, and boat rentals are available.
WOODLAND LAKE - Fishing is poor for trout, but fair for bass and catfish. The lake is weedy around the shoreline areas.
WHITE MOUNTAINS STREAMS
Note: Heavy monsoon rains are causing high flow conditions in many streams across the Forest. Use caution when camping near or crossing a stream.
EAST FORK of the BLACK RIVER - Fishing is poor to fair. The river is flowing high and slightly off-color from monsoon rains. The stocking season has ended for the year.
WEST FORK of the BLACK RIVER - Fishing poor to fair. The river is flowing high and slightly off-color from monsoon rains. The stocking season has ended for the year. Vehicle access to the West Fork Campground will remain closed through this year.
LITTLE COLORADO RIVER in GREER - Fishing is poor to fair. The stream is flowing high and off-color from monsoon rains. The stocking season has ended for the year.
SHEEPS CROSSING - Fishing is fair to good. The stream is running high due to monsoon rains, but is still fairly clear. The stocking season has ended for the year.
SHOW LOW CREEK - Fishing is poor in the large pool below the dam. The stream was last stocked in late August, which was the last stocking scheduled for the year.
SILVER CREEK - Fishing is fair to good. The flows are still moderately high and a little turbid, but have come down from the high flows that occurred in August. Silver Creek was stocked last week with Apache trout, which was the last stocking of the regular season. The stream is open to general fishing regulations (bait, lures and flies are legal, with a six-fish daily bag limit) through September 30, then it changes to the catch-and-release season on October 1, running through March 31. The upper section is closed to angling during the general regulation season.
OTHER
WAYS TO GET THE FISHING REPORT:
Internet Home Page www.azgfd.com
Recorded Public Call-In Line (602) 789-3701
