WHITE MOUNTAIN LAKES

Note: Some Forest roads still have snow drifts and are inaccessible to vehicles. State Highway 261 is closed to vehicles accessing Big Lake and Crescent Lake. State Highway 273 on the Apache Sitgreaves National Forest is undergoing reconstruction and realignment and the following closures are in effect. State Highway 273 from the Forest and Fort Apache Indian Reservation boundary is closed to Crescent Lake, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Most interior Forest Roads are open with a few patches of snow on the ground.
BECKER LAKE — Fishing is fair. The lake is ice-free. The lake is open to artificial lure and fly only, barbless hooks only, and a two-trout limit. Try small lures such as Super Dupers, spinners (Panther Martin, Rooster Tail, and Mepps), KastMasters (gold or silver), and Z-Rays.
Try small nymphs such as zebra midges, scuds, pheasant tails, hares ear, zug bugs, prince nymphs, wooly worms and wooly buggers, brown and gray semi-seal leeches. Also try dragon fly patterns, peacock ladies, and brown Montana stone nymphs.
Fish off the bottom along weed beds and retrieve your fly slowly. The lake is open to electric trolling motors and/or up to 10 hp. gas motors. There is a new fishing pier with a handicap walkway located at the northwestern part of the lake

BIG LAKE — Not accessible as of April 16. May still have some ice cover, but is starting to melt (between occasional snow storms). Not accessible by vehicle yet, although it is possible to reach it via snowmobile. Ice fishing is fair to good. The lake is ice-covered but is starting to melt around the edges. Ice is probably unstable. State Highway 261 from Eager/Springerville is closed to vehicles but open to snowmobiles.  State Highway 273 from the Forest and Fort Apache Indian Reservation boundary to Crescent Lake is closed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and will remain closed until the road construction project is completed. Snowmobile access is permitted. The store is closed for the winter.

CARNERO LAKE – Not Accessible as of April 16.

CLEAR CREEK RESERVOIR — Fishing is poor. The lake is ice-free. Try fishing with a bobber, split shot and worms near rocky shoreline areas for sunfish and bass.  The old boat ramp has been re-opened. The new boat ramp near the dam is blocked off because of very low water levels and thick weeds near this ramp. Try worms, Power Bait, Salmon eggs, and lures such as spinners (Panther Martin, Rooster tail, and Mepps), Z-Rays, crank baits, spinner baits, and Rapalas, and flies such as woolly worms or woolly buggers, Yeager buggers, and peacock ladies. There are no motor restrictions on Clear Creek Reservoir. The gate on the north side of the lake is usually closed during the winter months, while the road on the south side of the lake is open.
CONCHO LAKE – Has been stocked with catchable size rainbow trout, so fishing should be okay. The lake is ice-free. The boat ramp is usable for small boats or float tubes. Try worms, salmon eggs, Power Bait, lures such as spinners, and flies such as peacock ladies, woolly worms, and small nymphs. The lake is open to electric trolling motors or up to 10 hp. gas motors.
CRESCETN LAKE – The lake may still have some ice cover, but is beginning to melt along the edges, creating unsafe ice conditions. State Highway 261 from Eager/Springerville to Crescent-Big Lakes is closed to vehicles. State Highway 273 from the Forest and Fort Apache Indian Reservation to Crescent Lake is closed 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. The store is closed.

FOOL HOLLOW LAKE — Fishing is fair. The lake is ice-free, full and spilling. Boat ramps are usable. Anglers have been catching smallmouth bass and trout on lures and night crawlers. Try worms, Power Bait, lures such as spinners, spoons, rubber lead head jigs, and Rapalas, and flies such as wooly worms and wooly buggers. Try fishing off rocky areas and around fishing piers. Black crappies tend to congregate around the fishing piers in March, April, and May. Try small crappie jigs. The lake is open to electric trolling motors and/or up to 10 hp gas motors.
Where: Fools Hollow Lake
When: 03/14/09
Caught: Smallmouth Bass
Technique: casting rapalas
Comments: Caught a 5.5 lb 21 inch
Name: Steven Smiyhson
GREER LAKES — Fishing is fair to good. The Greer lakes are ice-free, full, and spilling.  Roads are open to the lakes. Bunch and Tunnel Reservoirs were stocked with catchable size rainbow trout last week. Try worms, Power Bait, lures such as spinners, Z-Rays, spoons, and Rapalas, and flies such as woolly worms, woolly buggers, Peacock ladies, and small nymphs. Bunch Reservoir is open to electric trolling motors only, Tunnel Reservoir is open to electric trolling motors only, and River Reservoir is open to electric trolling motors only, and and/or up to 10 hp. gas motors.

HULSEY LAKE — Fishing is poor but will improve when the lake is stocked. The access road past the parking lot needs to be dry before the hatchery truck can reach the lake.  The lake is ice-free. The lake is full and slightly spilling. Forest road 86 to the lake is open and accessible. Try worms, Power Bait, salmon eggs, small lures such as spinners (Mepps, Panther Martin, and Rooster tail), small spoons such as Super Dupers, KastMasters, and Z-rays, and flies such as peacock ladies, prince nymphs, zug bugs, and woolly worms. The water temperature last week was 48 degrees.

LEE VALLEY RESERVOIR — Not accessible. The roads to Lee Valley Lake are closed to vehicles but open to snowmobiles.  The lake is ice-covered. State Highway 261 from Eager/Springerville to Crescent-Big Lakes is closed to vehicles but open to snowmobiles. Highway 273 from the Forest and Fort Apache Indian Reservation to Crescent Lake is closed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, due to continuing road construction, but is open to snowmobiles
Our limnological surveys through the ice this winter show that Lee Valley Lake will likely NOT winterkill, but we still have at least a couple months of ice cover to go.  We will be checking Lee Valley, Crescent and Carnero lakes weekly as part of a winterkill study we are doing, hopefully to gather information that will help us reduce the occurrence of winterkill in the future.

There have not been many grayling in Lee Valley Lake because they are so difficult to come by, we have to drive a hatchery truck to Wyoming to pick them up. However, we did stock several thousand subcatchable size grayling in Lee Valley in May 2008. They should be doing okay and put on some size by the time the lake opens in the spring.
Normally I would recommend fishing near the creek inlet in late April and May because they will often congregate there in an attempt to spawn in the creek, but these fish will likely not be reproductively active yet, so they could be anywhere in the lake.
However, we have surveyed some very large Apache trout over the last few years during the road closure, up to 4.5 pounds. We caught them all in one net at the creek inlet one year, then right off the dam the next year. Go figure.

The road from Sunrise was officially open this last summer up to the junction with Forest Road 87 (back road to Greer), then closed from there to Crescent Lake. The Forest had set up a temporary trailhead at that junction that tied into the west baldy trail.  Some anglers would take this trail to the West Baldy Trail, then take the crossover trail towards the East Baldy Trail.
This crossover trail crosses Lee Valley Creek about 1/2 mile upstream of Lee Valley Lake.  Folks were not allowed to bike or hike along the closed road because of safety reasons, plus the Forest had an official closure on the road and the Sheep’s Crossing area (eliminating hiking access from Greer).  Technically folks could not set foot into this closure without permission from the National Highways folks.
Anglers/hikers could also reach the crossover trail from another temporary trailhead that accessed the East Baldy Trail from the Burro Mountain area, but I did not know the details of how to get there (I found it once on the Apache-Sitgreaves Forest web-site).

As of today, the road is still officially closed, mostly for winter conditions, as they are not doing construction on it right now.  It is open to snowmobiles though. The road will still be closed initially when things thaw out in the spring.
However, they tell us they are mostly complete, they just need to add a sealant. I don’t yet know when the Forest’s closure will be lifted. As long as that closure is in place, folks will not be able to step foot onto the closed road (the exception is for snowmobiles this winter).
As we get closer to spring, we will coordinate with the Forest and provide information to anglers as we get it.  Then the road should be open for good sometime in early summer.

Keep checking back with us and we’ll pass on that information when we get it.  Whatever happens though, you should be able to hike into the lake via the crossover trail from the West Baldy Trail.

Mike Lopez

LUNA LAKE — Fishing is poor to fair. The lake is ice-free, full and slightly spilling.  Anglers have been catching a few trout on worms and corn by the dam. Try worms, salmon eggs, Power Bait, lures such as Panther Martin, Rooster Tail, and Mepps spinners, small spoons like KastMasters and Super Dupers, and flies such as woolly worms and woolly buggers, peacock ladies, Zug bugs, Prince Nymphs, and brown Montana stones. The store is open. There are no motor restrictions on Lyman Lake. The store is closed for the winter.
LYMAN LAKE —  Fishing is poor. The lake is ice-free.  Anglers have been catching channel catfish on worms, hot dogs, and stink baits and bass on worms and lures during warm weather days. Try worms, Power Bait, catfish stink baits, and lures such as spinners (Panther Martin, Rooster Tail, and Mepps), crank baits, and Rapalas. Try fishing lures along rocky areas for bass and walleye. The Lyman Lake recreation area is managed by Lyman Lake State Park and camping is available. There are also cabins for rent. There is fish consumption advisory here, so check with the State Parks Office at the lake for details. Also contact the Arizona Game and Fish Department’s Region 1 Office at (928) 367-4281. There are no motor restrictions on Lyman Lake. The store is open.     .
There is fish consumption advisory here, so check with the State Parks Office at the lake for details. Also contact the Arizona Game and Fish Department’s Region 1 Office at (928) 367-4281. There are no motor restrictions on Lyman Lake. The store is closed for the winter.

NELSON RESERVOIR — Fishing is poor to fair. The lake is ice-free, full and spilling.  Nelson will not be stocked until the lake has stopped spilling.  Fishing bag limits have changed back to the statewide bag and possession limit of 6 trout from April 1 through August 31. The boat ramps at the eastern part of the lake and at the dam are usable. The mid boat ramp road is closed. Try worms, Power Bait, lures such as spinners (Panther Martin, Rooster Tail, Mepps), small spoons such as KastMasters and Super Dupers, jigs, and flies such as woolly worms, woolly buggers, peacock ladies, Prince nymphs, and Zug bugs. The lake is open to electric trolling motors and/or up to 10 hp gas motors.   The water temperature last week was 48 degrees.

RAINBOW LAKE — Fishing is to fair. Lake was stocked with rainbows last week. The lake is ice-free and nearly full. The boat ramp is usable. Try worms, Power Bait, lures such as spinners (Panther Martin, Rooster Tail, and Mepps) spoons (Super Dupers, Daredevils), and Rapalas, and flies such as wooly worms, wooly buggers, and peacock ladies. The lake is open to electric trolling motors and/or up to 10 hp gas motors.
Recent netting revealed northern pike ranging from 7 to 28 inches, largemouth bass ranging from 8 to 19 inches, bluegill ranging from 3 to 12 inches, channel catfish ranging from 4 to 19 inches, and black bullheads ranging from 4 to 11 inches. The water temperature has been 50 degrees

SCOTTS RESERVOIR — Fishing is fair to good. The lake was stocked last week with catchable size rainbow trout. The lake is ice-free, full and spilling. Try worms, Power Bait, lures such as spinners (Panther Martin, Rooster tail, and Mepps), spoons such as Super Dupers, and flies such as wooly worms, wooly buggers, peacock ladies, prince nymphs, and zug bugs.

The lake is open to electric trolling motors only. Recent netting revealed lots of carry-over rainbow trout ranging from 11 to 14 inches, largemouth bass ranging from 11 to 19 inches, channel catfish ranging from 12 to 26 inches, and a few small bluegills. The water temperature last week was 56 degrees.

SHOW LOW LAKE — Fishing is fair. The lake is full, ice-free and is scheduled to be stocked with rainbow trout this week. The north fishing pier is still inaccessible from the shoreline because the road to the dam is closed. The fishing pier to the west of the boat ramp has been moved into shore, but getting to it is difficult because of heavy brush and rocks. The boat ramp is usable.  Anglers have been catching 12-14 inch rainbow trout on flies. A few bass are being caught on lures. Try worms, Power Bait, lures such as spinners (Panther Martin, Rooster tail, and Mepps), spoons such as Super Dupers, lead head jigs, Rapalas, and flies such as wooly worms, wooly buggers, prince nymphs, peacock ladies and brown Montana Stones.

The lake is open to electric trolling motors and/or up to 10 hp gas motors. The store is closed. Recent netting revealed rainbow trout ranging from 10 to 15 inches, walleyes ranging from 12 to 29 inches, one 15 inch largemouth bass, one 15 inch smallmouth bass, and channel catfish ranging from 11 to 27 inches. The water temperature last week was 54 degrees.
WOODLAND LAKE — Fishing is good. New regulations went into effect at Woodland Lake on Jan. 1, 2009, reducing the daily bag and possession limit to 4 trout. The lake was stocked with catchable size rainbow trout last week. The boat ramp is usable.  The lake is ice-free and full.  Try worms. Power Bait, spinners (Panther Martin, Rooster tail, and Mepps), spoons such as Super Dupers, and flies such as woolly worms, woolly buggers, peacock ladies, Prince Nymphs, and Zug bugs. The lake is open to electric trolling motors only.

WHITE MOUNTAIN STREAMS: Streams are ice-free, slightly murky, and have high flows due to spring snowmelt. Most interior Forest Roads are open, but higher elevation roads have snow drifts and are still closed and/or inaccessible to vehicles.

West Fork Black River: The lower West Fork of the Black River can be accessed by Forest Road 249 from Alpine to Forest Road 276 to Forest Road 25.  Forest Road 26 is also open to Forest Road 24 to Buffalo Crossing.  The higher elevation portions of Forest Roads 24 and 68 have some snow drifts, so use caution when driving on interior forest roads.  Expect higher flows in the West Fork than in the East Fork because the headwaters drain off Mt. Baldy which still has a fair amount of snow. The stocking season is scheduled to begin in early May.

East Fork Black River: The East Fork of the Black River can be accessed by Forest Road 249 from Alpine to Forest Road 276. Forest Road 26 is also open to Forest Road 24 to Buffalo Crossing.    Fishing is poor. Stream flows are moderately high due to spring snowmelt. Try drifting worms through pools or casting small lures such as spinners (Mepps, Panther Martin, Rooster tail), small spoons (KastMaster, Z-Rays, and Super Dupers), Rapala’s and flies such as woolly worms or woolly buggers and small weighted nymphs. The stocking season will begin in early May.  The water temperature last week was 48 degrees.

Sheep’s Crossing: Highway 273 is still closed due to road construction. Expect high flows due to snowmelt.

Little Colorado River Greer: Fishing is poor to fair. Stream flows are moderately high due to spring snowmelt, with flows currently ranging from 20 cfs in the morning to almost 30 cfs in the afternoon.  Try drifting worms or casting the above mentioned small lures or flies through deep pools.  The stocking season will begin in early May. The water temperature last week was 39 degrees.

Silver Creek: Fishing is fair. The creek is clear.  Silver Creek on the Arizona Game and Fish Department property is open to bait, lures or flies, with a bag and possession limit of 6 trout from April 1 through September 30. The upper section is closed to fishing. Try small lures such as Mepps, Rooster tails, and Panther Martin spinners. Fly-fishers may want to try woolly worms, woolly buggers, peacock ladies, Prince nymphs, Zug bugs, shrimp patterns, midge patterns, and small bead head nymphs. Try small dry flies such as Adams, Parachute Adams, midge and caddis fly patterns. On April 1, bait such as worms, salmon eggs, and Power Bait may be used.