Rock Pit in Catron County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Rock Pit is set in Catron County, New Mexico. It stands 6,453 feet above sea level. Supplies mean a trip to Saint Johns, 27 miles off. Albuquerque sits 134 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. Others worth noting: Dutch Lakes the better part of 4.7 miles, Chical Lake about 5.2 miles, Lunas Lake the better part of 5.3 miles, Ruvi Pit about 5.5 miles and Zuni Salt Lake the better part of 6.5 miles. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Rock Pit

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. Built water gives depth close in, which suits a bank angler. Inflow corners move water, and moving water gathers fish. At Rock Pit light and wind decide more than tackle does. Where the wind piles up, so does the food.

• Seasonal Patterns

  In an average year July sits at 70°F and January at 32°F. A long season, with weather mattering more than the month. In milder years the edges alone go, and the middle never sets. April and May are the settled weeks, with October close behind. At Rock Pit the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Records show it does not hold water year-round. No launch point is recorded nearby, so this is a bank water unless you carry a boat in. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. The nearest alternative is Dutch Lakes, 4.7 miles out. Treat Rock Pit as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.