Elephant Butte Reservoir
New Mexico's largest reservoir and most popular recreation destination, known for striped and white bass.
Depth & Structure
Large Rio Grande reservoir; stripers located at 20 to 50 feet, sometimes suspended over much deeper water over old creek beds, channels, sunken islands and ridges with adjacent drop-offs, moving to shallow flats in fall
Best Lures
Jigging spoons and jigs for deep stripers, trolling with downriggers, shad-imitating crankbaits, minnow plugs and topwater plugs when white bass and stripers feed on shad at the surface; small jigs, spinner-jig combinations and jigging spoons for white bass
Best Baits
Live shad and bluegill trolled or still-fished for stripers, with fresh bait replaced frequently; live bait is a documented primary pattern alongside artificials
Gear to Bring
Medium spinning/baitcasting for bass and walleye, heavier medium-heavy rod for stripers, 6 lb class line for white bass ultra-light work up to heavier line for deep jigging/trolling, depth finder essential
Local Tips
['Fall stripers move into shallow flats chasing shad near the surface while winter fish stay deep and roam less', 'Use a depth finder to locate schools over creek beds and ridges; in fall most stripers were reported in 30 to 40 feet']
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Related Water
Fish photos: striped bass — Wikimedia Commons · white bass — Wikimedia Commons · largemouth bass — Wikimedia Commons · walleye — Wikimedia Commons · catfish — Wikimedia Commons
Fishing regulations, seasons and limits change — always check the current rules for this water before you fish. Spot pins are approximate area markers, not launch or access coordinates.