boat ride at Lake El Salto Sinaloa Mexico

Many of the fishing packages offered by Anglers Inn include a half day on the water, either on the day you arrive or the day you depart. For a variety of reasons, it’s most likely to occur on the front end, if at all. If you’re already in Mazatlán, it may not be a problem to arrive in time for lunch and a full afternoon session, but if your plane arrives and you’re headed straight to the lake, you’ll need to be efficient if you want to make it count.

Remember, there’s no obligation to fish on the day of arrival. We have friends who’ve been to El Salto and Picachos over a dozen times who never fish that day. They prefer to relax and get their tackle in order so that they can be fully ready to go the next day. They also typically stay a full week so the loss of the half day does not matter as much. If you’re only there for a typical four-night stay then each incremental hour is a big deal. I can also tell you from experience that it’s hard to resist the beckoning lake.

The key is to be quick, without hurrying.

Arrival sign at Anglers Inn Lake El Salto

While historically there have been a handful of incoming flights arriving at MZT in the 10am – 11am slot, the most popular arrivals are between noon and 1:30. That includes flights from Dallas and Phoenix on American Air. Assuming you are set to arrive at 1, and it takes half an hour to deplane, go through customs, grab your luggage and board the van, that puts you at Picachos around 2:30pm and at El Salto around 3:30pm. In the summer hours, when it stays light late, that gives you plenty of time to fish. In December or January, it’s cutting it very close.

If you do get there promptly, the Anglers Inn staff will unload the van, provide you with a cocktail and nachos, and take your baggage to your room. I understand that you may want to get on the water, but make sure that all of your items arrived with you. If they did not, every hour you’re doing something else makes it harder to recover them.

Arrival nachos and beer at Anglers Inn PIcachos

Now, it’s time to figure out your tackle. If you have stored tackle at Anglers Inn between visits and called ahead, it will be waiting at your room. If not, you’ll need to get items out of your luggage. If you did not bring rods (Anglers Inn supplies St. Croix rods free of charge, unless you break one), head to the office to get what you need. Be sure to check that not only are they the actions you need, but that they’re in good working condition).

Your guide will meet you at your room to help with your tackle. Ask him what types of lures you’ll be using – in fact, have him point out within your gear which specific models he prefers. Then match up your tackle, as appropriate: crankbait rod, worm rod, etc. He will be glad to string up rods, tie on baits, etc. A lot of the time-saving begins at home. You should have spooled up with new line for the trip (you mean you’re depending on old line for a bucket list trip???) and every lure in your tackle box should have razor sharp hooks. Other than finding the right ones for this initial outing and tying them on, this part of the process should be simple.

Even if you’re a classic over-preparer, I recommend keeping it fairly light on this initial session. Bring four rods and reels and a basic supply of tackle. Right now it’s more important to get on the water than to have everything including the kitchen sink available to you. You can get better organized after dinner, when you’ll know more about the current bite.

Now you’re ready to head to the boat, right?

Not exactly.

Do you have sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat? Most of us gringos aren’t fully used to the Mexican sun, especially after a long absence from it. You do not want to get sunburned or dehydrated at the start of your trip, which may ruin the rest of it. Similarly, your guide will have a cooler packed in the boat with beer, soft drinks and water. On this first day of fishing, do your best to stay hydrated. After coming off the plane you are likely to be fairly dehydrated and you don’t want to make that worse.

Once your tackle is ready, your guide will carry it to the boat.

If you are ready to fish, hop on a trailered set of “bleachers” for a ride down to the lake.

transportation from your room to the lake at Anglers Inn El Salto

Not to put too fine a point on it, but you may have been traveling for a dozen hours or more at this point, and you probably didn’t want to let loose in a nasty airplane bathroom. If you need to “take the Browns to the Super Bowl,” take an extra minute or two and do it now. While urinating from the boat (or leaving the boat to do so) is not terribly inconvenient, dropping a deuce is better done at the lodge.

Of course, the converse of this is that you may be starving from the long trip. Depending on where you’re from, it’s probably long past lunchtime, possibly past dinnertime. The lodge will give you a couple of sandwiches to take in the boat. I usually eat mine in three gulps as we run to the first stop. Even if you don’t feel hungry, bring them in the cooler, just in case.

Now it’s time to truly start your Mexican fishing vacation.