Prepping Your Tackle for Storage at Anglers Inn
The vast majority of clients at Anglers Inn’s properties at Lake El Salto and Lake Picachos are return guests. That speaks volumes about the quality of the experience, so unless you’re one of the small percentage of weirdos who don’t want to return, there are some measures you can take to make sure that your next trip is just as good, if not better.
One of them is leaving a base selection of tackle down there. If there are items that you know you’re likely to use on your next trip, and especially if they’re things that you’re unlikely to use at home, it pays to keep a bag or three of gear in the lodge’s storage. We’ve done so for about a decade, and we’ve never had a problem of any sort. I just send a message before we travel and it’s waiting outside our room. This means that not only do we have to pack less new gear in our luggage when we return, but if it’s lost or misplaced by the airlines we have a baseline to start with when we get to the lodge.
The Problems to Address
It’s important to take this process semi-seriously. You don’t need to create an Excel spreadsheet, but at least write down some notes that you’ll understand. You may not be back for a year or more – and I can attest that as we get older (and the trips pile up) memories can be a little bit faulty.
Also, by necessity this process will take place on your last night at the lodge (don’t save it for the final morning – you’ll run out of time and energy). On that last evening, you’ll likely want to spend time with your friends, some of whom you might not see until the next trip. You also might want to imbibe a few libations – that’s not conducive to a proper effort, either. Accordingly, take care of the “work” first and you can then relax and have fun.
General Rules to Live By
Use the following principles as your guidelines as you go through the process:
It’s always better to have too many than too few of an item.
If something is one of a kind, or particularly valuable, take it home. We’ve never lost a single lure, but it’s worth the peace of mind to tote it back and forth.
While the storage is safe, Mexico is HOT. If there are lures or products that may get warped, damaged or otherwise impaired by the weather conditions, bring them home.
Don’t hesitate to retire lures. If you’ve had them there a long time and you’re pretty certain you’ll never use them, bring them home. Alternatively, if they’re beaten up to the point that they won’t withstand the fury of your PB, trash them or bring them home. You’ve invested a lot in your trip – don’t let it get ruined because you were cheap or careless with your gear.
My Must-Have Lure Inventory
You don’t have to write down every category of lure you’re leaving behind, especially if you know you have a wide enough assortment of spinnerbaits or jigs or flukes. Nevertheless, there are certain hard baits that come into play nearly every trip, including the following, that are worth noting:
Deep Divers including 6XD, Berkley Dredger, Fat Free Shad
Jerkbaits
Lipless crankbaits, especially Berkley Warpigs
Color can matter. Just because your inventory says that you have an ample supply of 6XDs doesn’t mean that you have the right variations. If they’re all Powder Blue Chartreuse, for example, you might need to add in some more muted patterns. Be sure to note that on your list, too.
Accordingly, with certain lures, I also specify the sizes/colors that I have in storage. These include Keitech Fat Swing Impacts, Storm swimbaits and Senkos, where I find that those factors can make a huge difference from trip to trip.
If you don’t want to write down these lists, spread out your tackle on the bed or the floor of your room and take multiple cell phone pics. It might not be as precise, but it’s far better than nothing.
As you pack your tackle into the long-term storage, be sure to segregate it by type. I used gallon Ziploc bags for the soft plastics – for example, 5” Senkos in one, 6” Senkos in another, 7” Senkos in a third. With Power Worms, I have enough black with a blue tail to consume a single bag, and other colors go in a second.
As I’ve mentioned in prior articles, I do keep one box and one Ziploc bag with a variety of general lures, breaking my other organization rules. That means I can arrive in the afternoon with just an hour or two to fish, grab that box/bag, and likely have most of what I’ll need to get by on the short session.
Preventative Care
You’ve likely gone through a lot of soft plastics this week. There’s no need to leave a single watermelon lizard in a bag and five in another. Consolidate as much as possible, but don’t throw away the Ziploc bags they came in – you’ll likely find some use for them later and they effectively take up zero space in your storage while adding minimal weight.
Certain lures can be stored with less care than others. For example, most ribbontail worms can be placed in a bag easily and will be no worse for wear. On the other hand, I can tell you from personal experience that soft plastics including flukes, craws and chunk-style trailers need to be straight during storage or they may be ruined.
Combining the last two points, with baits like Keitechs, hollow belly swimbaits and Storm swimbaits, the tails need to be straight inside the clamshell storage. Take time to make sure they’re aligned properly – and while doing so you can consolidate orphan lures into non-original clamshells, thus saving space.
Don’t leave Elaztech lures behind. If you do, don’t store them with non-Elaztech plastic.
Strip down your lures as necessary. For example, take soft plastic trailers off of jigs, spinnerbaits and Chatterbaits. Check your skirted lures as you store them to make sure that the band is intact (heat and mean fish can do a number on them) and remove the skirt if it’s likely to fail.
Replace treble hooks as needed. When you come back, you don’t want to ogo to tie on a hard bait only to realize that the hooks are crap. This applies to every category of hard bait, but I’ve found it to be particularly true with jerkbaits, where it’s often necessary to use light-wire models and they tend to get mangled. Check split rings, too.
Double- or triple-wrap your dipping dye in Ziploc bags, just in case it decides to explode. I’ve never had that happen with the Spike It brand, but I’ve heard some horror stories about the otherwise-excellent JJ’s Magic.
Things to Bring Back
No matter what your inventory list demands that you bring back, there are certain items that should make the trip with you every time. Here are a few we recommend:
Spare treble hooks – In plain trebles bring every size from 2/0 to 6, including odd sizes like #3 and #5, which may come in handy with baits that need to be precisely weighted. I also bring feathered trebles in 2, 4 and 6.
Split ring pliers
Extra split rings in various sizes – generally round, but I have a few oval for line ties, too.
Replacement skirts and/or skirt bands – you can likely get by with some combination of white, chartreuse and shad colors.
Bobber stops for soft plastics – they weigh hardly anything at all and seem to get misplaced regularly.
Extra zip ties, gallon bags, super glue and rubber bands. There’s always a use for them.
We don’t leave reels behind. If you do, bring plenty of fresh premium line and respool them immediately upon arrival.
