Rio Grande Fishing Guides and Conditions, New Mexico

About the Rio Grande

The Rio Grande through the Taos gorge is one of the most dramatic trout fisheries in the country and one of the least crowded, because getting to it means either a steep hike down eight hundred feet of basalt or a raft trip through class III water. The Rio Grande del Norte National Monument protects the corridor, and the reaches from the Colorado line through the Ute Mountain run, the Taos Box and down to the Taos Junction Bridge and Pilar hold wild brown trout, rainbows and, in the upper reaches, cutthroat.

Brown trout are the fish, and big ones live in this canyon. The classic approach is a winter and early-spring trip when flows are low, the water is clear and the browns are concentrated, hiking down at La Junta or the Big Arsenic trail and fishing heavy nymphs and streamers through the pocket water. In summer the river is warmer and the rafting traffic is heavy through the Racecourse below Pilar, and anglers move up to the tributaries, the Red River and the Rio Pueblo de Taos.

The Taos Junction gauge is the reference for the lower gorge. Readings in the low hundreds of cfs mean clear, wadeable, excellent winter and spring fishing. Spring runoff through May and June can push it into the thousands, which is prime whitewater and poor fishing, and summer monsoon storms can turn the whole canyon the color of the cliffs within an hour. Water temperature climbs in late summer; fish early or fish higher.

Taos is the base for everything, with Pilar, Questa and the Wild Rivers Recreation Area strung along the canyon. The hike out at the end of a winter day is the part nobody mentions until you are doing it.

Access

Wild Rivers Recreation Area, Questa: rim campgrounds and the steep La Junta and Big Arsenic trails.
Red River confluence: the classic winter walk-in fishery.
John Dunn Bridge: road access to the river above the Taos Box.
Taos Junction Bridge: access near the gauge and the standard raft takeout.
Orilla Verde Recreation Area, Pilar: the easiest river-level access, camping and ramps.
The Racecourse below Pilar: heavy summer whitewater traffic.
Trails into the gorge are steep and exposed; carry water and plan the climb out.

Seasons

December through April: the best fishing of the year, low clear water and concentrated brown trout.
May and June: runoff and whitewater season; fishing is poor and rafting is excellent.
July and August: monsoon storms, warm water and turbid conditions; fish the tributaries.
September through November: clearing water, cooling temperatures and brown trout on the move.