Prior to just about every trip to Mexico, friends ask us about packing the right tackle and enough of it. I wish there was a proven formula for every given day of the year – as in “Bring exactly five X, 10 Y and 12 Z and you’ll be completely covered,” but there’s not. It’s fishing, and the only rule is that you have to expect the unlikely.

I always thought that painted blades on spinnerbaits were for two extreme situations – either super-clear water or super-dirty water — but through a happy accident I found out that they work extremely well at Lake El Salto and Lake Picachos. Here are some of our proven winners.

The Citrus Shad Fat Free Shad is a long term staple for Mexican largemouths, still producing long after it was introduced to the world by Bassmaster Classic winner in 1995. There’s just something about that color that makes ‘em mad. I’m not sure, then, why I’ve largely restricted its use to crankbaits that dive over 10 feet deep. Is there some science behind it, or is it just that I’m hidebound to tradition?

When I go on a fishing trip, it’s about more than catching fish. It’s about finding products that work for me and for my readers. To quote Bryan Adams: “Everything I do, I do it for you.” Prior to our recent trip to El Salto, I wrote about a few items I planned to torture test. Now I’m reporting back, on those and some others that also passed with flying colors.

The rod that excited me most before our recent trip to Mexico was a Dobyns Rods Champion XP DC 795 SB, 7’9” and rated for 1 to 5 ounce lures. While I certainly hadn’t dialed in the big bait game in Mexico, I reasoned that part of the problem was not having the right gear—with the proper equipment I’d be more apt to confidently and efficiently chuck the big stuff around.

We’ve already provided a list of the lures that did or did not work for us on our June 2021 trip to Anglers Inn Lake El Salto. It was an exceptional trip, with I believe more 3- to 6-pound class fish than on any prior visit. Of course, being a confirmed tackle junkie, I can’t just leave it as a simple list – each additional trip provides revelations, discoveries and slight differences that I find noteworthy. Here are 10 of them.

Sometimes at El Salto you can get more and bigger bites by having different lures than everyone else. You can also maximize your landing percentages in various ways. Here are three tweaks I may try on our next trip South of the Border to maximize my catch-and-land rate.

On this June 2021 trip to El Salto, Anglers Inn, I am going to make it my goal to fish with all types of different swimbaits while others are cranking. I’ll be back in touch to let you know how my research turned out. Now it’s back to the garage to load a Plano tackle box with an assortment of swimbaits.

In order to “listen” to your guide effectively, sometimes you need to know what questions to ask. They’ll often recommend specific lures in particular colors. Having the right lure is of course key, but if you don’t put it in the right places you’re just wasting your time. That’s why before making my first cast, I always ask, “Which way?”

Not everyone who travels to Lake El Salto or Lake Picachos has been fishing their entire lifetime. I know that it can be terrifying to think that everyone else will be an expert, and they’ll laugh at your lack of skills, but these lakes are actually the perfect vacation spot for any interested angler, whether they’re a pro or have not yet caught their first bass.

We’ve left tackle at Anglers Inn for several years and it has consistently been safe, well-kept and available upon arrival. Here are some strategies to ensure that’ll continue to be true – and also to be certain that it’s ready to fish when we get there. With a little bit of extra planning and effort, we save myself a lot of heartache and wasted time.

There are times at Lake El Salto when the fish are so thick and so hungry on a given spot that you can take your time casting to them and you can experience success with any casting angle. It’s not always that easy. Many times you have to hunt and peck to get things done.

When we first returned from our November trip to El Salto, I was incredibly jacked up about the flutter spoon bite we’d just experienced. I’d gone there on a mission and accomplished it. A couple of months later I keep reliving those bites over and over.

The spoon wasn’t the only lure that got some game-time action in November, but it was the one that showed the most promise. Nevertheless, there are at least three more that have me excited – all were either left in my stored tackle down there, or will get a coveted spot in my luggage on American Airlines.

This article isn’t a review of new products, per se, but rather a teaser – both for you and for us. We take a whole lot of new stuff to Mexico every time we go, and here are some products that piqued our interest on our most recent trip.

As an addicted angler I’m always looking for a “better mousetrap” and I tend to get high on retail therapy. That means I spend a lot on speculative acquisitions, most of which end up resigned to the dustbin of angling history. Enter the flutter spoon.

If your luggage space is limited on your next fishing trip South of the Border I suggest that you adhere closely to my past lure recommendations. However, keeping an open mind is critical because while the bass at El Salto and Picachos are typically not hyper-picky, there are times when specific options – even slight deviations – will increase your catch rate.

I am sure Pete is going to laugh when he reads this because there was a time when I hated the Senko. I’d fish anything else – a Chatterbait, squarebill, topwater or spinnerbait – but if you suggested that I should throw a Senko I’d give you the stink eye.