Williams Lake Fishing in Cibola County, New Mexico

• Overview

  Williams Lake is one of the Cibola County listings for New Mexico. The surface lies 7,369 feet up. It measures about 31 acres, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. Head to Milan, 23 miles away, for anything you forgot. Grants lies 25 miles off, Thoreau another 28 miles. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Williams Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Survey and observation records for Cibola County include bluehead sucker, green sunfish, muskellunge, Rio Grande sucker and rainbow trout. It is the county picture; the agency list is water-specific. The shape of Williams Lake rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about 26°F and July at about 67°F, the water has a wide range to work through. Mild ends to the year keep the season long. Hard water here is never dependable, so check for yourself before stepping out. April and May are the settled weeks, with October close behind. It holds true on Williams Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. This one is mapped as intermittent, so a wasted trip is a real risk in a dry year. Formal access is not mapped, so the last stretch is likely on foot. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Big Lake sits 1.9 miles off and takes the overflow. Where Williams Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.