John Martin Reservoir Fishery Management Report

John Martin Reservoir

FISH SURVEY AND MANAGEMENT INFORMATION Jim Ramsay - Aquatic Biologist, Lamar Service Center 2500 S. Main St. Lamar CO 81052 (719)336-6607 email: [email protected]

General Information: John Martin Reservoir provides quality fishing for saugeye, wiper, white bass, crappie and catfish. Good populations of largemouth and smallmouth bass are present as well. This large reservoir is subject to drastic fluctuations. John Martin is a popular destination for early spring crappie an- glers. Visit the state park website at: http://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/Parks/JohnMartinReservoir Location: Bent County. Exit US Hwy 50 at Hasty, CO and travel 2 miles south to reservoir. Size: 2,000 - 17,000 surface acres (highly variable), Average Depth 10 - 20 ft., (30 - 50 ft. near dam) Management: US Army Corps of Engineers (owner), Colorado State Parks, and CPW (recreation

Amenities and General Info. Previous Stocking Sportfishing Notes

 2 large boat ramps within the Wiper/White Bass state park, 1 small ramp on the 2020  Prefer coves, rocky points, SWA at Rd. 19 (high water). Black Crappie 1.4” and open water areas near  Picnic Sites schooling shad. Blue Catfish 3.0”  Restrooms available  Best months are May- June & Channel Catfish 0.6” September - October  2 Camp Grounds Channel Catfish 3.0”  Best lures are shad imitating  4.5 mile Red Shin Hiking Trail Flathead Catfish 0.8” crank baits, plastic jigs, and  Swim beach at Hasty Lake shiny spinners. Effective Largemouth Bass 0.2” (below John Martin Dam) baits include: worms, min- Largemouth Bass 1.5”  Handicapped accessible fishing nows, shrimp, and crawdads. pier available at Hasty Lake Wiper 1.4” Saugeye  Staffed visitor’s center  Prefer areas with submerged structure, aquatic vegetation, or near schooling bait fish 2019  Best months are May & June Regulations Black Crappie 1.5”  Effective lures are walleye  NO ATV’s or OHV’s allowed Blue Catfish 3.6” type crank baits, minnow imi- on the wildlife area Channel Catfish 3.5” tations, and jigs tipped with  Closures may exist around en- Flathead Catfish 0.4” bait dangered bird nesting areas. Largemouth Bass 0.3” Crappie  Seasonal closures for water- Saugeye 1.3”  Prefer dam and rocky areas fowl hunting season. Limited around railroad trestle. access: Nov. 1 - last day of wa- Saugeye 0.3” terfowl season.  Best months are pre-spawn Walleye 1.3” (April—May)  Walleye and Saugeye limits:10 Walleye 0.2” fish limit (aggregate) with no  Live minnows, small plastic size restrictions. Wiper 0.3” jigs (< 2”, 1/8 oz or less).  No shore fishing allowed around railroad trestle. John Martin Reservoir FISHERY SURVEY DATA - FALL 2020 Jim Ramsay - Aquatic Biologist Lamar Service Center

Acre Ft. John Martin Water Levels 18 - 20 G. Shad, Saugeye, 41.1% 30.8% 350000 300000 250000 200000 150000 G. Carp, 100000 0.3% Drum, 50000 0.3% Wiper, White 0 Carp, 1.8% Crappie, 4.1% Bass, 6.7% C. Catfish, 3.2% B. Catfish, 8.5% 3.2%

2018 2019 2020 PERCENT RELATIVE ABUNDANCE

LENGTH FREQUENCY TABLE

INCHES 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27+ T B. CATFISH 1 1 1 3 3 1 11

C. CATFISH 3 1 2 7 4 2 3 2 3 1 1 29

CRAPPIE 1 5 4 1 11 DRUM 1 1

G. SHAD 11 2 17 69 27 8 4 1 1 140

LM BASS 0

SAUGEYE 1 19 6 10 31 24 6 1 2 1 1 2 1 105 WHITE BASS 2 1 6 3 8 3 23 WIPER 1 3 1 1 1 3 2 2 14

CENTIMETERS 10 13 15 18 20 23 25 28 30 33 35 38 40 43 45 48 50 53 55 58 60 63 65 68

RELATIVE WEIGHT TABLE SPECIES 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 11 YR AVG C. CATFISH 107.4 98.2 86.1 92.1 89.5 108.5 99.7 97.0 88.8 84.5 85.3 94.3

CRAPPIE 98.7 93.4 99.2 —- 101.5 107.5 99.2 93.2 96.0 99.9 96.2 98.3

G. SHAD 95.8 94.2 84.7 83.0 80.7 88.5 99.4 90.1 79.0 78.0 80.9 86.8

SAUGEYE 98.0 97.5 99.2 99.2 101.8 96.1 102.4 95.6 88.0 88.8 92.7 96.3

WHITE BASS 102.7 102.0 96.7 93.1 106.8 100.9 78.0 93.2 90.4 96.5 90.6 95.5

WIPER 98.0 91.2 83.6 —-- —-- 100.5 76.4 102.3 86.4 90.1 85.9 90.5 John Martin Reservoir 2021 FISHING FORECAST Jim Ramsay - Aquatic Biologist Lamar Service Center

Walleye/Saugeye : 40 Although no walleye/saugeye were stocked in 2020 due to the pandemic 30 shutting down spawning operations, good numbers of these fish are still present in John Martin. One missing year class will have little effect on the population. The good news is that stocking resumed in earnest in 2021. 20 Also, when available, fingerlings are stocked, in addition to fry, to boost re- cruitment of year classes. Anglers targeting walleye/saugeye at John Mar- 10 tin tend to use walleye style crank baits, jerk baits, jigs tipped with a worm or minnow, worm rigs, or live minnows. The limit for saugeye/walleye has CAUGHTOF SAG PERCENT 0 returned to 10 fish, with no size restrictions. Look for these fish in shallow 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 water areas in close proximity to deeper water. LENGTH IN INCHES

Wiper/White Bass: 25 White bass and wiper fishing should be decent at John Martin in 2021. 20 John Martin will most likely have lower lake levels than in previous years, so some of the popular spots on the west end may be unavailable. Some of 15 these fish have exited the reservoir with the large water releases in 2020. However, good numbers and sizes of these fish remain and will be a bit 10 more concentrated with the smaller lake. Wiper sizes are impressive, and fish over 20” are common. If an angler is lucky enough to be able to find an 5 active “boil” (area where white bass or wipers are crashing through schools

of gizzard shad), fishing can very easy, as these fish will hit anything that 0 PERCENT OF WIPERS CAUGHT OF WIPERS PERCENT resembles a shad. Boaters targeting white bass and wipers tend to use 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 jigs, spinners, or shad-imitating crank baits. Shore anglers can be suc- LENGTH IN INCHES cessful by offering live bait, jigs, or shiny casting lures. 30 Catfish: 25 Good availability of stocked fish has benefitted these populations for the 20 past several years. Channel, Blue, and Flathead Catfish are stocked annu- ally. These fish grow quickly in John Martin’s warm, productive waters. 15 Channel catfish can be caught on a variety of baits including worms, livers, 10 dough baits, crayfish, and shrimp. Flatheads and blues will hit these baits as well, but more often prefer live offerings such as large minnows or water 5

dogs. Look for flatheads along the rocky points as well as the rip-rap dam CAUGHTOF CCF PERCENT 0 face. Catfishing is expected to be good at John Martin in 2021. 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 LENGTH IN INCHES

50 Crappie: 45 Crappie fishing is expected to be very good to excellent again in 2021. The 40 population is still benefitting from the high water levels of 2015 – 2019. Dur- 35 ing years of high water, crappies experience high spawning success, and the population benefits accordingly. Supplemental stocking of hatchery 30 reared fish has also helped to bolster crappie numbers. Crappie sizes have 25 improved, with 10” - 12” fish being common. Fishing success tends to real- 20 ly pick up during mid-spring, as water temps. reach the mid-50s (usually 15 late April). The rocky dam and north coves will be good areas to try for 10 these fish. Live minnow rigs or small jigs (twister or tube, 1/8 oz. or less) are CAUGHTOF CRAPPIE PERCENT good choices for crappie. Anglers can keep up to 20 crappies at John Mar- 5 tin, with no size restrictions. 0 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 LENGTH IN INCHES