Unlikely Sábalo Imitations We’re Anxious to Try for Argentina’s Golden Dorado

Gear

Nov 21

Rio Corrientes Golden Dorado Mystery Lure

Now that we’ve identified the primary forage fish of golden dorado on the waters surrounding Don Joaquin River Lodge, I’m fully immersed in the planning and tackle-buying stage of trip preparation. Before, during and after our many trips to Mexico’s Lake El Salto, I’ve built lists of lures specifically meant to imitate tilapia:

Unfortunately, it hasn’t been that easy when it comes to Argentina’s sábalo where we haven’t found all that many lures with that species in the title or the list of colors.

Nevertheless, there are a lot of bass-specific lures that replicate the sábalo I’ve seen online. Even if these lures weren’t designed for dorado, their size, profile, and action line up closely with what we know about sábalo. They may not be the first tools guides in Argentina recommend, but we’re confident they should put some fish in the boat. Here are some I’ll likely bring in my overstuffed tackle bag:

6th Sense Multi-Joint bass swimbait — **6th Sense 7.25" Trace Swimbait**
**Suggested Color:** Chrome Gizzard
**Pros:** Looks remarkably like the real thing at a size that can be thrown on heavy bass tackle, reasonable price point for a multi-jointed glider.
**Cons:** A bit worried that the hardware won’t hold up to oversized dorado.

Smash-Tech Foiled Gizzard Swimbait — **Smash-Tech Gen 2 Jointed Gizzard Slow Sink Swimbait**
**Suggested Color:** Foiled Gizzard
**Pros:** Two different sizes, the smaller of which can be fished easily on medium-heavy bass gear.
**Cons:** Limited color selection, none that closely resembles the Sábalo.

Bull Shad Swimbait Bone — **Triton Mike Bucca Bull Shad Fast Sinking Swimbait**
**Suggested Color:** Bone
**Pros:** Proven producer can be fished at a wide variety of speeds, including burning fast.
**Cons:** Limited color selections (unless you see the cases of custom-painted models at a tackle show)

Baitsanity Antidote Tug Glidebait John Liechty Gold Magic — **Baitsanity Antidote TUG Glide Bait**
**Suggested Color:** John Liechty Gold Magic
**Pros:** This may be more of a golden dorado imitator than Sábalo, but I think that’s a huge net plus.
**Cons:** All colors of this model are expensive, but this color is particularly costly.

River2Sea Tactical Wake 210 Wakebait Golden Siner — **River2Sea Tactical Wake 210 WakeBait**
**Suggested Color:** Golden Shiner
**Pros:** Perfect color max, and they’re on sale or even closeout.
**Cons:** Does the early reduction in cost signal that they’re not great producers?

Savage Gear Swimbait Golden Roach — **Savage Gear 3D Gizzard Line Thru Swimbait**
**Suggested Color:** Dirty Roach
**Pros:** Good high-vis color option that won’t scare of finicky fish, at a reasonable price point.
**Cons:** With lots of toothy critters around, I’m not sure how long soft plastic offerings will last.

Biwaa Kapsiz Kast Rigged Swimbait Wakasagi — **Biwaa Kapsiz Kast HD Rigged Swimbait**
**Suggested Color:** Wakasagi
**Pros:** Two different sizes, very reasonable cost.
**Cons:** Belly treble maximizes hookups, but may limit where you can throw this soft lure.

Sly Guy Walk-the-Dog topwater Gizzard Shad — **JB Customs Sly Dog 6" Walking Bait**
**Suggested Color:** Gizzard Shad
**Pros:** One of the most natural-looking walk-the-dog lures we’ve seen.
**Cons:** 2.5 ounce size probably needs a swimbait rod or saltwater rod.

We know we’re probably overlooking a few sleeper lures — so what would you add to our golden dorado tackle bag? Drop your recommendations in the comments or send us an email. And if you’d rather skip the guesswork, come test them firsthand with us at Don Joaquin River Lodge. We’ll compare notes on the water and see which ‘unlikely’ sábalo imitations fool these prized fighters.