Eleven Travel Notes from El Salto

Every time we go to Mexico I learn or relearn certain things, or get an opportunity to test out new products and theories. This may seem like a bunch of disconnected mumbo-jumbo, but I’m hoping that some of you can benefit from my experiences. Here are eleven notes from our June 2021 trip, in no particular order:

Overnighting in Dallas – We’ve made it a habit to fly into Dallas on Friday evenings for our Saturday 10:45am departures. It ensures not only that we’ll make our connection, but also that we’re well-rested – in order to catch a 6am flight to Dallas we’d have to be up at 3. There are numerous lodging options around the airport, so it pays to price shop, but be careful about what you pick because some “airport” hotels are surprisingly distant. The Grand Hyatt DFW is IN the airport, and therefore is by far the most convenient, but it’s also pricey. This time we stayed at the Hyatt Regency across the street, which required a 4 minute shuttle ride. For just $94 including tax, we also got a breakfast buffet, so it proved to be not just convenient, but also quite a bargain. For those of you within Texas, check out www.parksleepfly.com for lodging/parking options that may be both convenient and reasonable.

Delay on the Way – As happens all too often on the Dallas-to-Mazatlan and Mazatlan-to-Dallas flights, we were delayed on the way there for no apparent reason. It ended up being about an hour and a half, and while they made up a little bit of that in the air and we breezed through Customs it still meant that we didn’t get to Anglers Inn until about 4pm. In the wintertime, that would likely mean not fishing that first afternoon, but since it stays light until about 7:45 now we got in over 3 hours. Good thing, too, because our friend Mike Yee caught his personal-best 9-pounder (and a couple of 8-pounders) that session. [Stay tuned for an upcoming report on our hellish trip home]

Snowbee Success – This was the first trip we took with the Snowbee rolling duffel bag that was the result of my “perfect luggage” search after last year’s near travel rod calamity. We didn’t bring a travel rod tube this time, but we stuffed the Snowbee full to the gills. It holds a ton of stuff and Hanna masterfully got it to right below the 50 pound weight limit. It seems sturdy and well-constructed and so far I’m pleased with the purchase.

Rod Tube Ease – This was the first time I’ve traveled with a full-sized rod tube to Mexico in years, and the first time with a full-sized tube at all since I went to Alabama in December of 2019. While the gate agent at DCA wasn’t aware of the airline’s regs on tubes, she figured them out quickly, and in Dallas and Mazatlan there was no issue checking it. I closed the main latch with a zip tie on the way there and when I picked it up in Dallas it was clear that TSA had opened it, but then retied it to hold the compartment shut, a nice touch.

Reel Check – We’d heard stories of departing anglers being forced to check reels in Mazatlan before, but we’d never done it. Only once had we been required to even strip the line off. On this trip, as we stood in a lengthy line to check in for our flight, an American Airlines agent was insistent that the reels (with or without line) would be confiscated if we tried to get them through security, so we reluctantly put them in our checked luggage. When we reclaimed our bags to recheck them in Dallas, I took the reels out and put them back in my carry-on.

Low, Low Water – One or both of us have been to El Salto this time of year every year since 2013, and while that’s the low water season we’d never seen it quite this low. We can’t confirm, but we were told that this is a record. Check out my gallery of low water scenery. No doubt the water level contributed to making the fishing exceptional, but I hope they get some heavy rains this fall to fill it back up and start the cycle of life all over again. I’m convinced that El Salto’s extreme fluctuations are part of the key to the fact that it has remained the gold standard of Mexican bass fishing — while other lakes have flourished, then crashed.

Timing is Critical – Even though the lake was reduced substantially, essentially down to the river channel and a few flats, that doesn’t mean the bass were stacked up in every good place at every hour of the day. There were still key spots where if you didn’t hit them at the right time, you’d come up with nothing. If you came back an hour later you could catch 30 bass in the 3- to 6-pound class. It paid to keep the faith and follow your guide’s milk run.

Stain, No Pain – With the water so low, I expected it to be clear throughout the lake, bordering on very clear in some places. On the contrary, there was a healthy stain from the dam up as far as you could go. We caught fish on jerkbaits, a traditional clearer water presentation, but a rattlebait or spinnerbait was often the better choice.

Cloudy Conundrum – In keeping with the trend of atypical conditions, we had more cloud cover than in any prior May/June trip. In fact, on two afternoons we even had short rain showers, which was a first for us at this time of year. I would’ve thought that it would have helped the fishing overall, and while the presence of morning clouds did seem to extend the first light topwater bite a bit, overall it seemed to hurt the fishing in those sessions.

(Last?) COVID Test – We didn’t need a COVID test to get into Mexico, but we needed one to get back into the United States. True to their reputation for exceptional service, Anglers Inn brought in a lab technician and covered the cost of the test. I’ve had my nose probed repeatedly for trips to Alaska, Maine, Guatemala and Panama. Now that I’m vaccinated and the pandemic seems to be lessening, could that be the last one?

Deep-Fried Oreos --  During the second half of the trip, we asked the kitchen to make us one of their “off menu” treats: Deep Fried Oreos. They may want to kill me for recommending this, but if you go you need to ask for them. I ate three but it would not have hurt my feelings if Hanna had offered up her three for my consumption. The only thing that would have made them better is a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.