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Fly Fishing around Santa Fe

Pokes15

All-American
Gold Member
Aug 28, 2006
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Anyone have any recommendations on trout fishing near Santa Fe? I'll be out there for a couple of days for a conference in early October. Have a guided trip one day, but have have a half day the day before to go exploring.
 
Which river are you going to fish with a guide? I don't know that area well, but on the other side of Taos, there are lots of nice options. I still want to fish the Valle Vidal! (Rio Costilla). PLEASE send a trip report when you get back.
 
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Lots of good places but I haven’t fished any of them. You can just start towards Taos and there are at least a few places you can pull over and get out and fish.
 
This is intriguing to me also.
The Valles Caldera National Preserve
21-San_Antonio_Creek_VCNP.jpg

One of the most unique trout fisheries is the Valles Caldera National Preserve (VCNP). This is the ultimate in mountain meadow fly fishing. Picture this, as you stalk along the banks of the stream, you are constantly seeing trout moving away from you. In some places you drop your fly over the grass and hope it's in the water. When you hear the gulp of a fish you set the hook. The average number of pounds of trout per surface acre of water in the western United States is about 49 pounds. The streams on the VCNP contain approximately 350 to 400 pounds of trout per surface acre. Because of this amazing trout population the trout are not large but they are wild and full of fight and the scenery is beyond belief. VCNP also has a very large elk herd that often comes down to the streams in the early evenings. This is quite a sight to behold after a day of fishing. Note: There is an additional per fisherman access fee to the fish on the VCNP.

https://loeflyfishing.com/Fishing_Spots/Rivers_Streams/index.html
 
What a fun couple of days in Santa Fe. Fished the Pecos for a good 6 hours on Sunday. Took a little bit to figure the fish out, but ended up catching a few. The river was extremely low. We fished north of Terrero for the most part. Took a guided trip on Monday to the Rio Grande. Caught a handful there, with a nice brown capping it off. We were nymphing the entire time. Tried some elk hair caddis to try and get a top water bite going, but all they would do was bump it.
 
Congrats and glad to hear you had a positive experience!!!

Had a friend who said two weeks ago on a float trip on the Gunnison River they slayed them … all on nymphs though. I'd far rather dry fly fish but moreover love to fish and catch fish so will nymph when needed.
 
Yeah, fished dry with a dropped for a while. Caught a few on the dropper, nothing on the dry.
 
I can never keep the dry a float very long and end up just changing to a strike indicator, but I know a lot of folks that swear by it.
 
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