David and Ryan Leiffer – March 2024 El Salto Fishing Report
I have been speaking to David Leiffer about his stupendous idea of taking his son Ryan to Anglers Inn El Salto for his graduation present from high school close to a year. Their trip finally came, and based on how it went I think they both wish there was another graduation around the corner -- they had that much fun and can’t wait to return.
David wrote a fishing report that I am excited to share. Here it is, in his own words:
What an awesome time we had at Anglers Inn - El Salto last week! From the airport pickup to the drop-off, every single thing was perfect! The facility, the staff, the fishing, everything was phenomenal, but the real highlight was our guide for the week, Juan.
Juan was hilarious and fun all while putting us on the fish. He’s an excellent teacher and he didn’t just teach us about fishing. We learned the history of the area and the lake. He answered our questions about the area’s agricultural and ranching, as well. Juan taught us about the numerous bird species and joined us trying to call to them. We also got to witness a full-speed falcon attack (adios, duck!).
I’m sure it isn’t easy for a guide to do, but Juancho was able to strike the perfect balance between being assertive (Vamanos - next spot! Don’t cast there!) and being accommodating (Sure…you can throw the flutter spoon.)
A true fisherman, he was shaking along with Ryan after reeling in a 10-pounder! In addition to all of that, he’s a top-notch photographer. Here are some of our favorites.
Here’s a quick summary of our biggest catches:
7.1 David - Rico Popper
8.1 Ryan - Texas Rig
8.1 David - Trace Glidebait
8.1 David - Rico Popper
8.4 David - Chatterbait
8.8 Ryan - Glidebait
9.7 Ryan - Crankbait
10.1 Ryan - Bullet Popper
Honestly I don’t think the color mattered all that much. When we were getting bit they were ready to chow down.
The topwater poppers were bone Rico and the Berkley Bullet in chrome.
Texas rigged worms in watermelon and black/blue worked well and so did shakey heads in redbug. All the 10" or magnum or biggest sizes I could find.
Crankbaits were 6XDs in citrus shad and also silver shad colors. We also caught them on 6th Sense Cloud 9 crankbaits in a similar size to the 6XDs.
The 6th Sense Trace Glidebait slow sinking in shad color and the Chad Shad Glidebait in some sort of shad color worked also.
Chatterbaits were white and yellow with a white minnow trailer.
Old school 3-inch Rat-L-Traps that I threw in our bag at the last minute were chrome with blue back and got destroyed! Even after losing half their paint they still caught two at a time! Same with the War Pig in chrome.
I’ve always had a fun argument with my son that we shouldn’t throw out crankbaits just because they lose their eyes. So I brought some extra stick-on eyes along (two are now on Juan’s outboard watching him). In the end we proved that the crankbaits work great with NO eyes and also if you add EXTRA eyes to them in dumb places.
Our biggest day for numbers was Saturday when the two of us reeled in 92 bass with several over five pounds, two over six pounds, two doubles, and one quadruple!!
Thank you, Hanna, for all the info on lures and tackle, we had exactly the right stuff! I believe we only left behind two crankbaits and one bullet weight in the lake! Again, Juan is a wizard at retrieving hang-ups.
Ryan graduates from Bentonville High School soon and this trip was a spring break graduation present to him. Thank you for making it so memorable. We definitely hope to be back… but ONLY if we can hang out with Juan again!
Father and son trips are so fun and the memories are undeniable. This was the Leiffers’ first trip but definitely not their last.
I want to mention that each and every guide is knowledgeable, a veteran with years of experience. They are all professionals and each have their own special talents. We’ve fished with many of them and no matter who you get matched up with you will have a memorable experience
As I say time and time again: listen to your guide, they are there to make your time on the water an experience that you’ll cherish until the next time you book!!
See you on the water.
Below are links to some of the baits that worked for David and Ryan.
