# Input on San Juan



## Beerboater79 (Aug 4, 2013)

I drew a permit in early June on San juan. Is there any good fishing? If so what species? What are the best camp sites on a four night stay? Thanks for input.


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## wildh2onriver (Jul 21, 2009)

Beerboater79 said:


> I drew a permit in early June on San juan. Is there any good fishing? If so what species? What are the best camp sites on a four night stay? Thanks for input.


Personally, I don't fish these types of rivers--not my favorite fish species to eat even if I could catch them.

Are you putting in at Sand Wash or Mexican Hat? In the past I've taken 5 days from MH and 7 days from Sand Island, both taking out at Clay Hills.


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## Beerboater79 (Aug 4, 2013)

We're putting and at the Mexican Hat. Do you have any suggestions on the campsites?


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## oarframe (Jun 25, 2008)

Campsites are assigned from slickhorn down. Above that the more common ones are honaker and johns. I dont remember any of them being great, but all are adequate. Not sure what kind of fish are in there...its pretty murky water.
Have fun.


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## restrac2000 (Mar 6, 2008)

Fishing: Would not plan on it. Might be some catfish but not sure. Problem is the native fish are protected and can not be targeted. Not worth the hassle down there because of it.

Phillip


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## wildh2onriver (Jul 21, 2009)

Beerboater79 said:


> We're putting and at the Mexican Hat. Do you have any suggestions on the campsites?


I need to take a look at my trip log--it's been a few years. I've run this several times and the most memorable camps (besides Chinle) were at Grand Wash and Slickhorn. I'll take a look, and I'm sure buzzards with great suggestions will chime in as to the best ones out of these multiple choices, as well as the others.

Disclaimer: I've never had a permit to hike and camp on the rez, though I have on every trip...you probably should as it takes much less effort to get one it seems. I have an early season permit and I will get one this time--maybe I'm getting smarter? Or, less confrontational at least.


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## colorado_steve (May 1, 2011)

pulled cat fish out before. only one, and a small one.

piece of advice, alcohol is prohibited on the navajo nation. that means if you camp river left you "shouldn't" have any booze on your trip. we have always stayed river right because of this. i have seen navajo nation police floating with rangers on the juan. not something i wanna mess with.


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## Beerboater79 (Aug 4, 2013)

Thanks so much for the info!


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## lmyers (Jun 10, 2008)

There are Channel Cat and Carp, Razorback Suckers, Roundtail and Bonytail Chub, and the Colorado Pikeminnow. The Razorback and Pikeminnow are endangered and protected. However, there are significant petroleum and agricultural contaminants released into the SJ from the Farmington area, so I wouldn't suggest eating anything out of it.


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## Beeks (Aug 22, 2011)

Had some kids with us last year, they were catching catfish darn near every cast. I'm with lmeyers though, wouldn't eat them.....


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## Beerboater79 (Aug 4, 2013)

I didn't know the water quality was so bad. I bet my kids will have fun catching catfish though.


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## okieboater (Oct 19, 2004)

old saying around Oklahoma rivers which applies to San Juan:

"Too thick to drink, too thin to plow"


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## doughboy (Mar 23, 2009)

Great catfishing at every camp. We eat them every year. Cant be as bad for you as processed food or diet drinks.


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## restrac2000 (Mar 6, 2008)

doughboy said:


> Great catfishing at every camp. We eat them every year. Cant be as bad for you as processed food or diet drinks.


Kinda....

True if you eat the small ones and limit that to once a trip. You should also thoroughly discard all skin and fatty tissue from the fish.

Don't eat the big ones. Don't eat them often. The chemicals in the water in this region are horrible for your health if consumed in high enough quantities (bio-accumulation = worse in bigger fish) and eaten enough. Most of the pollutants of concern are much worse then processed food and soda to be honest, at small and large levels. Much worse. We don't see warnings about pregnant women eating potato chips but we do for eating fish with mercury, which is most of our rivers and lakes now.

And the E.coli content is notoriously high from agricultural run off. Total bacterial load is even worse (in the "too numerous to count" category from the accepted testing methods used) once it leaves the Farmington region. 

And this doesn't include the ongoing concern of industrial input, especially from coal, in the Farmington area. The issue of coal ash is a major and ongoing controversy along the pertinent sections of the San Juan.

Just a thought from the quantifiable science coming the region.

Phillip


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## dryfly (Jan 15, 2011)

Don't know 'bout water quality, but...
Pontiac Wash is the first drainage downstream of Mexican Hat on the left. The Mexican Hat Uranium Mill (1957-1965) was a superfund cleanup site (Whitis & Martin Guide). That's what makes those catfish easy to catch at night - they glow in the dark and you cast right to 'em....


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## tcat (Mar 4, 2011)

Johns Canyon is my fav. Silk horn is assigned the first one which I think is A is pretty rough, oil seeping out of the sand. The party that ended up there weren't all that happy. If your doing that part. June is a hot one' we'll be waiting for the July rains.


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## rti50 (Apr 7, 2010)

we were on saun juan last year in june. we started with decent flows but ended with 600cfs on last day. we rowed the last 17 miles over sand bars and had to traverse the river. it took 10 hrs. from 2nd to last campground on river to bluff. If it was windy we would not had made it to bluff in one day. Government Rapid was real boney in low water. If the powers to be decide to shut off river, you're at there mercy. I felt sorry for the people who were launching on the day we got off. I feel the BuRec should have a level on cfm's that they don't go below, i.e. the river doesn't get below 1000 when there are permits available.


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## rti50 (Apr 7, 2010)

we got a permit from the Navajos to explore on there side of the river across from the river house. it was really cool and worth the extra time we spent there. I would've liked to have spent more time there but that about an hour and half from put in


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## Phil U. (Feb 7, 2009)

So, 99% of the time the channel is on the outside of the bend in the rio. The rio is a series of bends. The trick is to eyeball where the channel moves from the outside of the bend where you are to the outside of the bend on the other side where you are headed. I've been on trips with heavily loaded 16' rafts at 500 cfs and not once gotten stuck. YMMV.


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## BoilermakerU (Mar 13, 2009)

rti50 said:


> we were on saun juan last year in june. we started with decent flows but ended with 600cfs on last day...


Lucky you! I've never had the opportunity to run it at such high flows! LOL

We run it in April pretty much every year, and last year it was about 350 as I recall. Government was definitely boney at 350! Winds blew 5 of 7 days, and it snowed one night.

But we're going again this year, as long as it's 350 cvs or above... LOL


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## zercon (Aug 30, 2006)

*Camp spots*

Went by Trimble camp last year, looks like there was a major blowout right through camp. Camp was bad before, looks gone now.


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## restrac2000 (Mar 6, 2008)

zercon said:


> Went by Trimble camp last year, looks like there was a major blowout right through camp. Camp was bad before, looks gone now.


We got off last friday and many of the camps in the upper stretch looked like they were affected by the september floods last years. It had been 2 years but Ledge camp looked like it lost half of the sand bar, its real steep on its upper end now. When we floated by 8 foot the camp there looked like it lost more than half of its sandbar since the last time we were there as well. Several others as well that I can't remember the names of.

Phillip


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## rpludwig (Feb 28, 2011)

*Sand to mud*



restrac2000 said:


> We got off last friday and many of the camps in the upper stretch looked like they were affected by the september floods last years. It had been 2 years but Ledge camp looked like it lost half of the sand bar, its real steep on its upper end now. When we floated by 8 foot the camp there looked like it lost more than half of its sandbar since the last time we were there as well. Several others as well that I can't remember the names of.
> 
> Phillip


Phillip is right, all beaches have changed and what is left is a shelf to the mud that will suck you right in. expect low flows as we are the lowest in the state and Navajo is very low. I believe light and fast will be the trip winner this year. Having lots of wind these days.:razz:


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