Six Reasons to Book a Fall Bass Fishing Trip to Mexico
Lots of people want to go to Lake El Salto and Lake Picachos in January and February to escape the cold at home. We’ve made no secret of the fact that we love going in May and June, when the water is at its lowest. In fact, we suspect that our many articles on the topic have contributed to a surging demand for those particular months.
What we haven’t written much about is the great fishing during the fall months. So if you’ve resisted booking a trip during that time period, we apologize. We’ve been to the lakes during October, November and December and there are some key differences that weigh strongly in going during that time frame. Here are six of them:
The water is at its highest level of the year. Yes, that can spread the fish out, but it also gives you lots of room to get away from other anglers and even to chase a pattern. Indeed, in June we often rotate through a relatively limited number of areas, but in the fall you can fish a full week without hitting any of the same spots twice.
All of the newly-flooded cover creates an exceptionally fertile lake where fish are looking to feed. The Mexican bass can grow a few pounds a year, so even solid fish may effectively be babies, unaccustomed to fishing pressure, but after a few months of almost zero pressure, it can be like fishing a virgin lake.
While we’ve experienced decent-to-great topwater fishing every month we’ve been there (with the May-June time period the least reliable), the fall has been not only the most consistent, but often the best. It’s the time when we first discovered the Whopper Plopper, and if you’re Ricos are not paint-free by the time you leave, you’ve made a tactical mistake somewhere along the way.
In addition to the great surface activity, this is a time of year when you can literally fish from ankle deep down to 30 feet, or maybe more. Whether you want to deep crank, throw a buzzbait, look for schoolers, or flip the gnarliest brush you’ve ever seen – or do all of the above – the option will likely exist. It’s a great time to work on specific techniques, or to introduce a new bass angler to a variety of options.
Because other potential guests are hunting, or watching football, or going to back-to-school nights, the fall will likely give you the greatest latitude in choosing precise dates of your trip. Remember, unlike some other lodges, Anglers Inn doesn’t require that you to arrive or depart on specific days of the week. Your trip is fully customizable. Additionally, while it’s not always the case, we’ve typically found the fall to have the lowest airfares and greatest availability.
Again, no guarantees, but the lodge sometimes runs “Fall Specials” in the form of discounted rates or extra days added onto the basic package at no additional cost. When you reach out to Hanna to set up a trip, be sure to ask about any such options.
In October of 2016, we went to El Salto with our friend Ray and we were the only three people at the lodge – we effectively had one of the best bass lakes in the world to ourselves. In November of 2020, Hanna and I spent a full two weeks at the lodge and it was glorious, so amazing that even my ultra-family-oriented wife occasionally suggests that we should once again skip Thanksgiving at home to get down there while the gringos are away. In fact, I’m headed to my calendar right now to see if I might be able to sneak away for a few days later this year.
If you’d like to explore a fall fishing trip to Mexico, or inquire about going at any other time, shoot us an email and we’ll fill you in on the options.
