The hard-blowing wind that rippled across the surface of Santa Cruz Lake June 12 couldn’t blow the smile off the face of Joseph Roybal. The 12-year-old beamed proudly as he held up a rainbow trout he had caught at the beginning of a Fish Fiesta sponsored by the federal Bureau of Land Management.
“This is the only place I catch fish,” he said. “He almost got away.”
Roybal caught the fish on a Pistol Pete, according to his father Eloy Roybal, of Arroyo Seco.
“He lost it right at the shore, but it came back for it again,” Eloy Roybal said.
The wind blew entry forms and papers, kept knocking out the fire in a grill that was used for cooking lunch and precluded the erecting of tents and tarps. But the wind didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the 27 children that signed up for the Fiesta. They received a card that they had to carry to each of the stations set up at the Fiesta to receive a T-shirt. Some of the most enthusiastic young anglers were those who hadn’t expected to be at the Fiesta. Brothers Nehemiah Lopez and Fabian Lopez smiled broadly at one station, where they were able to make fish prints on cloth.
“We didn’t know there was a Fiesta,” the boys’ father Fred Lopez said. “We just came for a ride and got lucky.”
Fabian Lopez won the casting competition for 5- to 6-year-olds. Devin Malcolm won the 6- to 7-year-old division, Devin’s brother Malcolm won the 8- to 9-year-old division.
Gladys Powers, of Española, proved that fishing isn’t just for boys by winning the 10- to 11-year-old competition.
At another station, Greg Gustina of the federal Bureau of Land Management’s fisheries department used maps to show youngsters where they were and let the children use a rangefinder that he uses in his work.
“Guess how far away that tree is?” Gustina said. “Press that button on top and it will tell you.”
Another station measured the acidity and alkalinity of the water in the lake.
“Mine’s green,” Fabian Lopez said.
The ph scale is based on a scale of 0 to 13. The lower numbers indicate a higher acidity, while the higher numbers indicate higher alkalinity. Water from Santa Cruz Lake gathered by the children tested at 7 on the scale.
“That’s really neutral,” Eileen Henry, of the Bureau’s fisheries department, said.
The wind had not stopped blowing as the Fiesta ended. Last year despite a heavy rain the Fiesta had attracted 42 youngsters and their families.
“The wind wasn’t our friend today,” Mark Lujan, of the Bureau’s recreation department, said. “I wish there were more kids.”
A second Fish Fiesta is scheduled for July 10 at the Canjilon Lakes near Canjilon.
Fishing Conditions
Despite the wind that rocked the floating fishing dock at Santa Cruz Lake, Eppie Martinez, of La Mesilla, and Jeff Valdo, of Santa Fe, were happy. They caught four nice rainbow trout on power bait June 12 despite the blustery conditions.
“We came here by accident,” Martinez said. “They were hitting good.”
Whether by accident or by design, Santa Cruz Lake is a popular destination for anglers. The 121-acre lake holds rainbow and brown trout. The naturally spawning browns dominate the lake in spite of heavy stocking of rainbows by the state Game and Fish Department.
“It’s a coldwater fishery,” Gustina said. “We sampled the population two years ago and it was mostly brown trout. The Department stocks a lot of rainbows. They get stressed when the water is low.”
Low water has been a reoccurring problem for the lake due to an excess of silt (see related story).
Santa Cruz can lay claim to the state record rainbow trout. A 31.78-pound monster was taken from the lake in 1999 by Santa Fe angler Peter Romero. It shattered the previous state record by an unbelievable 15 pounds.
“(The size of the fish) was shocking,” Gustina said. “There are definitely some big fish in the lake. We’ve come across them.”
Summertime fishing can be slow during the day as the water warms and drives the trout, which prefer colder water, to deeper water. Fishing at night under a lantern is a popular method in the summer, but time is limited as the lake closes at 10 p.m.
The fishing picks up again in the fall as the water cools. Early spring fishing is often excellent, too.
Santa Cruz is located between Chimayó and Cundiyó off State Road 503. There is a $5 day use fee and a $9 fee for overnight camping.