Tuesday, May 25, 2010

White Mountain Wilderness Trout Streams- Lincoln National Forest,New Mexico


I think of the creeks of the White Mountain Wilderness (near Ruidoso, New Mexico) as my home waters. I know they are 100-125 miles from my house in Las Cruces, but that's just a fact of life here in New Mexico: most of us live and work in the desert valleys, but we play (and fish) in the mountains.
A two hour drive brings me to Three Rivers, name notwithstanding, a very small, steep stream(singular) on the western flanks of the 12,000 foot Sierra Blanca, the "white mountain" of the name of the wilderness(though not actually in the wilderness, but on the Mescalero Apache Reservation).This massive peak towers 7,000 feet above the desert floor and makes it own weather, which provides enough moisture for the several small trout streams, including Three Rivers which flows into a closed desert basin, disappearing beneath the sand. To fish here, you'll be hiding behind boulders, stumbling down steep banks and frequently resorting to the bow and arrow cast. The quarry: six to eight inch brook trout, but with the chance lurking for a heavy 10-11 incher that will give you a thrill. Bring your shortest, lightest rod and maybe some kneepads and you'll have a lot of a fun.
Directly across the ridge are the Rio Bonito drainages, about 15 miles northeast of the resort town of Ruidoso, New Mexico. Passing by heavily stocked Bonito Lake( open April through November) brings you first to the South Fork Bonito Creek and then to the permanent stretch of the Bonito main stem seven miles further down Forest Road 107.The reliable water on the Main Bonito, and the best fishing is in the wilderness, but even there, the water can get frighteningly low in dry years. In wet years, there may be water and fish in the non- wilderness sections both above and below the lake. There is also a permanent stretch much lower down at Fort Stanton which may contain browns, though I've never fished there. In the main stem Bonito are small brookies and rainbows. There can be some large (12-15 inches) rainbows here in May and early June, from, I would assume, a spawning run from the lake. Fish a large caddis at the tail of a plunge pool, or a weighted prince nymph right in the froth for one of these prizes.
The South Fork has more fish, rainbows, brookies and even a few cuttbows up high, and catching a couple dozen seems no great feat, but I've never caught anything bigger than 10 inches. The South Fork also has reliable water in late spring and early summer (before the monsoon starts) even in dry years. It also clears much more quickly. The nearby Ruidoso River will run brown as chocolate milk for a week or more after a heavy summer rain, while the South Fork will clear in a day or two. The only problem with the South Fork is the developed and popular Forest Service campground of the same name that sits beside the creek. This means there'll be backpackers, picnickers and hikers all along the stream every weekend in the spring, and once school lets out, they'll be there every day all summer long. Walking in a couple of miles leaves most of them behind, but lots of luck with those really nice pools about 3/4 mile from the trailhead; if they don’t have kids jumping in them, they're frequently fished out by mid-July.




Small tributaries of both forks hold brook trout. Some, such as Argentina Canyon, because it's really difficult to fish, and also looks highly unlikely to contain fish, have grown some fairly large brookies in the past, bigger than in either main branch. Argentina was silted in and had little habitat last time I visited, but the brookies could return.
In July 2008, the remnants of Hurricane Dolly brought an excessive amount of moisture into the area. Sierra Blanca received 9 inches of rain in one night. The resulting floods washed out bridges and damaged homes along the Ruidoso River. The streams of the wilderness were heavily eroded, especially the high gradient Three Rivers creek. I visited in September(08) and saw no fish. Although I’ve so spoken to a couple of people who say they saw fish in there this past summer. The main fork of the Bonito above the South Fork is blown out as well: a wide gravel wash with a few inches of water trickling down the middle. It’s doubtful they’ll be any fishing there anytime soon.A few good water years in a row would really help the situation. The South Fork seems to be doing better, there are still a few catchable fish. It also may be able to repopulate from the lake. Three Rivers could be supplemented ,this time, since no hatcheries are raising brook trout, most likely with rainbows, although cutthroats would be a better choice.UPDATE (4/13/14)- The South Fork Rio Bonito drainage burned severely in 2012, it is most likely fishless, but if anyone  knows otherwise, please comment.  I have not been back. Parts of the Main Bonito drainage burned as well, it is unlikely that it has any fish either. Three Rivers population of brook trout continues to survive. Water quality in the Ruidoso River is very poor- the fishing has not been good. There are plans , however, to reintroduce Rio Grande Cutthroats to its three forks on  the Mescalero Reservation- which would be great.UPDATE: Three Rivers had a fire burn through its fishing waters in May of 2021. Currently it should not be visited.UPDATE:  I have been told that there are still fish in the South Fork Bonito. I suspect brookies, rainbows and hybrids like before the fire, but I don't know about the numbers, or if it really is "fishable"stream anymore.

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12 Comments:

Blogger Unknown said...

Do you have a google maps with all of these streams marked? Im new to the area and am looking for places to fish.

January 12, 2015 at 1:21 PM  
Blogger Devon Fletcher said...

None of these streams are hard to find. Unfortunately, at this point, only Three Rivers and the Rio Ruidoso( technically not in the wilderness) have fishable populations. Eagle creek( Northfork), Rio Bonito( main and South fork)and Argentina Canyon have all been seriously affected by flooding and ash run-offs from fires. The turn-off for Three Rivers Forest campground is off US 54 north of Tularosa. Rio Ruidoso runs right through the town and also has several forks on the Mescalero Reservation.The Rio Penasco is also nearby right along US 82- with very few free access points( see my blog and read Rex Johnson's comments).Fresnal Canyon right along US 82 on the west side of the mountains, has fish, but is a very, very rough place to work your way in and out of. Tularosa Creek coming off the west side of the Reservation right along US 70 always has good water, and could still have fish.

January 12, 2015 at 5:05 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Does the wilderness still look the same after the flooding and fires? Your pictures from 2010 are beautiful; I'm wondering what the area looks like now...

February 12, 2015 at 1:07 PM  
Blogger Devon Fletcher said...

These areas are not looking real good right now. South fork bonito and Bonito Lake camping area were burned pretty severely, as was North Fork Eagle Creek and parts of Main Bonito.Flooding has altered the areas as well.

February 12, 2015 at 4:22 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Hi I love you pictures! I love the second place where you n your dogs in the picture, can you tell me name of the place and how to get there ? We went to ruidoso not too long ago to find those streams but we couldn't find that place.. :(

July 5, 2015 at 8:11 AM  
Blogger Devon Fletcher said...

The picture with the dogs is the South Fork of Bonito Creek- which experienced severe fire damage 3 years ago. The campground is no longer open,and I believe the road to the trail head is closed too. Check with the Forest Service about access to this area. The main stem of Bonito Creek and Argentina Canyon( in two of the photos) and it's road and trail are open and not as severely damaged as the South Fork bonito watershed.

July 5, 2015 at 11:41 AM  
Blogger Matt H. said...

Hi Devon,

I love your blog. You have a great talent describing the natural world. You should write a book!

My inlaws bought a place in Ruidoso a few years back, and I found your blog when looking for fishing spots.

I read this post, as well as one you wrote about a trip in 2018 to the Three Rivers area. I had never been, so I went yesterday. The conditions were much as you described it in your 2018 post: very low flow, almost stagnant and silted water, very rugged terrain. However, many of the pools held fish. I tried about everything in my box and every technique I could think of without luck. I felt like even the most delicate cast had the reaction of a bowling ball hitting the water based on the frantic reaction of the trout.

Especially now with the closed campsites, I can't imagine there is much fishing pressure--particularly, a few miles up the trail. The only thing I could surmise (apart from my middling fishing skills) is the low flow requires less activity from the fish and therefore less feeding. Watching the fish, the didn't appear to feeding at at all--certainly not feeding from the surface.

I was curious whether you had any tips or recommendations (fly type, time of day, approach etc.). I'd love to go back, but my bruised fishing ego may not be able to bear another shutout. If you'd prefer to reach out off-blog my email is mhawkins81[AT]gmail[DOT COM].

Thanks again--and keep writing!

Best regards,

Matt H.

July 10, 2020 at 10:55 AM  
Blogger Devon Fletcher said...

Those brookies are indestructible! They are also great fun to catch. Try it again after the summer rains when the flow is better. This creek is probably at its lowest point of the year right now and that is the main factor in your lack of success. Wait until a few good storms plump it up a bit then get out there early one morning. You will catch a few. If it's murky use something that sinks, if it's clear, attractor dries. They are not fussy, if you can stay low, get the fly on the water without too much fuss. Thanks for the kind remarks. I have written a book called " Exploring Organ Mountains Desert Peaks National Monument" but it's about the desert, not fishing.

July 11, 2020 at 10:05 AM  
Blogger John said...

Hey there Devon, any advice on a backpacking route with some fishing opportunities along the way? How is late September up in those mountains? I was thinking a combo of turkey canyon, little bonito canyon, Argentina canyon. Any other suggestions would be appreciated!

September 19, 2020 at 6:12 AM  
Blogger Devon Fletcher said...

Those are nice canyons. I've hiked Argentina and Bonito many times, although it's been a few years. Hiked Turkey once. Argentina had fish years ago but no more. It's already getting pretty cool in the evenings, so prepare for overnight temperatures in 30's There may still be a few fish in Big Bonito or South Fork Bonito and there are definitely fish still in Three Rivers on the west side. South Fork Bonito burned really badly 8 years ago, so it's full of weeds and not exactly scenic anymore. North Fork Eagle creek may have a few fish too, but it was burned as well. Little Bonito has nice bigtooth maples that turn in early October. I've been wanting to look at Tortolita Canyon in the northernmost section of the wilderness. No fish that I know of, but it should have water and it's a nice long canyon without super steep gradient ( once you get to it, which appears to be a little tricky) and bound to have many nice, flat campsites. If fishing is your priority you might want to look at the Gila NF instead.If not, you've made some nice choices especially linking them together with the Crest Trail. The crest is still magnificent. I was up there in June when I did a hike down the very steep Water Canyon Trail.

September 20, 2020 at 9:30 AM  
Blogger rexjohnsonjr said...

Indian Creek drains the south side of Sierra Blanca and joins Three Rivers near the petroglyphs in the desert east of the highway to Carrizozo. In the 1870s, miners carried trout from Bonito Creek in pans on the backs of mules and placed them into the upper reaches of Indian Creek, and I believe they are still there. At least they were the last time I checked which admittedly was a while back. They are the original stock of the native trout of the Sacramento Mts., a very large-spotted sub-strain of the so-called "Pecos Pecos strain" of the Rio Grande cutt, the only such fish left in this world. In 2007, I believe it was, I fished the stream for three days, all the way up under the top of the mountain and caught many. I even managed to get one beauty that was very close to 15 inches. I don't believe anyone else, or at lest very few, have fished up there since the 1950s or 60s, at least there is no sign of litter after that time. No aluminum beer cans, for instance, but plenty of very early litter. An Apache man in his sixties lives right on the creek after it leaves the mountain, and he told my friend and I that he didn't think anyone had been up there since he was twelve years old, which was the last time he fished the creek.

April 14, 2022 at 11:23 AM  
Blogger Devon Fletcher said...

I was surprised when talking to the longtime campground host at Three Rivers Forest (first name John) back in the 2000teens sometime when he told me he had been up there a few times. Having talked to him practically every year for about 10 years, I understood he was a bit of an eccentric character, still, I had no reason not to believe him. I think he said he had fished but I'm not sure. I don't think he is the host there anymore.

April 14, 2022 at 2:57 PM  

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