Mike “The Griz” Ritz here. Let’s talk about fresh water for a change.
Mexico has the best bass fishing in the world. Well, that’s what I think. There are three lakes that Charles and I fish. It is not uncommon for us to catch ten to twelve pounders in all of them.
You fish them mostly the same way as you do anywhere with top water, crank baits, swim baits and the old standby, plastics. These are all, of course, part of THE GRIZ GEAR brand.
Located in the Mexican state of Sinaloa, Lake El Salto is a top producer of quality largemouth bass. Your worst day on this lake is likely better than the best day on your home waters. Located near the northwest Mexican resort city Mazatlan, it is probably the easiest lake to get to.
Maybe that’s one of the reasons it is my favorite. Okay, beside the fact that my biggest bass ever has come from there. I caught my biggest bass there about three years ago. It was nineteen and a half pounds.
What a day. I had decided to fish with a fly rod a nine weight sage using a deer hair mouse. We were doing really good catching a lot of three to eight pounders. I threw the mouse at the shore line and stripped it slowly back. The bass would jump to get it a lot of times just when it hit the water. The day was great, not too hot, just right.
My guide and I were changing places when I saw a cove with lily pads in it. I told Carlos, my guide, to stop because I liked the look of this place, so he did. I threw the fly right to the edge of the pads and a little dimple came in the water and ate my mouse. I thought what could that be? It could be a tilapia. That would be very rare. Well, whatever it was, I set the hook. That’s when I had one of those great moments you fish for in the first place. It shot out like a rocket, the largest bass I had ever seen! The only thing I could think was DON T JUMP! DON T JUMP!.
I stuck my rod in the water fighting the monster with the tip top in the water. My reel was going crazy. I was even praying, God please let me get this baby to the boat! Like God doesn’t have anything to do but help poor fishermen like us land fish. Anyway, I got her to the net and Carlos snatched her out of the water. We measured, weighed her and let her go. But not before we got a lot of pictures. She weighed nineteen and a half pounds. So that is a big reason why El Salto is one of my favorites. Another reason is that I love Mazatlan. They have great food, great people and great fishing. I have fished out of Mazatlan for years. It was one of John Wayne’s favorites places also. It has some the best sail fish fishing that there is and good marlin fishing. Not great marlin fishing but good. So think about it. You go to El Salto a few days for giant bass and then fish a few days in Mazatlan for bill fish.
UNTIL THE NEXT ADVENTURE WITH THE GRIZ!
When you’re thinking about El Salto check out Anglers Inn International. They have great prices, great guides, great food and great service! www.anglersinn.com
