Some of our most successful clients recently have been fishing this kind of cover with medium or deep diving crankbaits as well as plastic lizards and worms.
Anglers concentrating on larger fish have been having some of their best success fishing the flats in 15 to 25-feet of water. Most have been throwing Texas or Carolina Rigged watermelon colored lizards and fishing them right along the bottom.
We’ve also had a few customers who have taken some dandy fish off shallow water points. These bass have usually grabbed Senkos or Yum Dingers. Some of these larger bass have been females that haven’t yet spawned.
Most of the big females that have completed the spawning process now appear to be suspended in deeper water.
Water levels at El Salto Lake are dropping quite rapidly. This is due to irrigation demands. Keep in mind that dropping water levels often serve to bring a concentration of bigger bass. Find where they are holding and you could be in for the bass fishing experience of a lifetime.
Gary Jacob was one of our recent clients. Here’s what he had to say about his El Salto Lake adventure: “I just returned from my second trip to El Salto Lake. I was accompanied by my business partner, Ricky Green. I was at El Salto last October when the lake was extremely full. We caught a tremendous number of fish at that time, mostly on 3/4th-ounce blue and chrome Rat-L-Traps. Our largest fish then was 8-pounds, 5-ounces, but we caught hundreds each day, and literally had blisters on our hands from reeling them in.
“We concentrated on bigger fish this trip. Our guide, Pepe, put us on spots that rewarded us with 11, 10, 9.5 and 8.5-pound bass as well as numerous 5 and 6-pounders. The quantity of fish was down compared to last fall but the quality this trip was definitely there. The fact fish were still spawning was a bit of an obstacle, but it was still a fantastic trip. Having a 10-pound plus fish hammer a deep diving crankbait is something everyone should experience. This is right up there with catching so many in a day that you wear the chrome off of a Rat-L-Trap.
“Once again the service and hospitality was fabulous thanks to Jose and crew. It was so good that we are making our third trip down in May. That will make it three trips in less than a year. I may bring down a Bluebird bus and just park it. We are looking at the calendar right now to book a fall trip. Every fisherman needs to experience this amazing lake at least once in their lifetime. Once a quarter would be even better!”
Expert angler Joe Bullock has fished El Salto out of Anglers Inn many times. He was here again in March. He brought his son, Denny, along this trip. Joe says: “It was another fun and enjoyable trip to Anglers Inn. It had been eight months since I had last fished El Salto Lake. My son and I couldn’t wait to get our gear in order and go fishing.
“I try to get to Anglers Inn three or four times a year. Most of my trips have been from April to June. I have been fishing Lake El Salto for at least 15 years and I’ve caught many fish over 10-pounds. My best ever weighed14.12-pounds. My next best was 14.08-pounds. My best five fish weighed more than 68-pounds. My best 10 fish weighed more than 118-pounds. In my opinion El Salto is still the best lake in the world for monster bass. There is no other lake that will compete with it. If there was one, I would be there fishing it.
