[Editor: this article first appeared on www.ronsfishingblog and may only be used by permission of Ron Speed Jr.]

BIG BASS BONANZA …ON PICACHOS?

I have mentioned many times in previous updates over the past year that the best months to catch big bass to go along with all those numbers on Picachos, is March, April, May and June. It certainly appears as though this year will be no different. Just recently we had a group of anglers/customer experience some pretty good big bass numbers at Picachos while maintaining the normal 100 – 200 bass per day, per boat average.

March 22nd, the following catches were reported…

• Paul Molnar & Dennis Meschke: 186 bass total. Bigger bass included…9 lbs, 8.8 lbs, 8.6 lbs, 8 lbs, and 6 lbs. Also had 12 more bass in 5 lbs range. Best lures were watermelon and pearl flukes.
• Ted Wayland fished alone this day and reported: 82 bass total. Bigger bass included…8 lbs, 7 lbs, 6 lbs, 5.2 lbs and 5 lbs. Best lures: watermelon/red lizards.

March 23rd, the following catches were reported…

• Ted Wayland & Henry Sadler: 148 bass total. Bigger bass included…10 bass over 5 lbs. Biggest was 5 lbs, 14 oz Best lures: watermelon/red lizards.
• Dennis Meschke & Paul Molnar: 152 bass total. Biggest 6,8 lbs and 6.2 lbs Best Lures: Black/Blue jigs
• Jim Fullerton & Gary Jerman: 151 bass total. Biggest bass 7 lbs. Best Lures: watermelon Senkos
• Tab McGinley & Gary Butler: 162 bass total. Biggest bass 6.8 lbs. Best Lures: watermelon Senkos

March 24th, the following catches were reported…

• Ted Wayland & Henry Sadler: 172 bass total. Biggest bass 9 lbs, 7.8 lbs, 7.6 lbs, 6.2 lbs and 15 bass in the 5+ lbs range. Best Lures: Bubble Gum colored Trick Worms
• Dennis Meschke & Paul Molnar: 180 bass total. Biggest bass 6 lbs. Best Lures: Watermelon Lizards
• Jim Fullerton & Gary Jerman: 153 bass total. Biggest bass 5.6 lbs Best Lures: Watermelon Fluke

March 25th, the following catches were reported….

• Ted Wayland & Henry Sadler (only fished 1/2 day): 78 bass total Biggest bass 6.8 lbs
• Tab McGinley & Gary Butler: 155 bass total. Biggest bass 7.8 lbs

As you can see, the bigger fish over 5 lbs are moving in to catchable depths. Ted Wayland personally called me after the trip and said, “Ron, I have fished Picachos with you at least 3 times per year for the past two years…and not only was this the best bass fishing trip I’ve experienced to date at Picachos but the best ever in my life!” Ted also told me that he and his fishing partner (Henry Sadler) basically fished 4 total fishing holes the entire week…mainly because they rarely had to move the boat. Did not want to leave biting fish! Ted also claims that one day he just sat down in the boat and quit fishing an hour early….because he was ‘caught out”….arms worn out! That’s all that needs to be said, Mr. Ted.

Folks, I have not claimed Picachos to be a trophy bass lake…not yet anyway. I have reported when our customers catch bigger fish. The lake record is 12 lbs, 14 ounces and we’ve had 3 bass landed over 12 lbs in these first two years since the lake opened. So in other words, there are big bass in this lake. However, like with most new bass lakes in Mexico, there are so many smaller and faster swimmers/bass that makes it more difficult to catch a lot of big bass with consistency…at least right now. That said, I’ve reported that I’ve seen an overall increase in the average size of the smaller bass this season…and that’s definitely evident this year. Ted Wayland also told me that this made his 8th trip to Picachos in two years and that out of all the bass he and Henry Sadler caught in the 4 days they recently fished Picachos, that “very few were under 4 lbs”…WOW! Now that hasn’t been the case most of this year but I would tell you that most have been 2 3/4 lbs or larger…but again, we’re entering that 4 month time of year that I’ve always said were the best 4 months of the year to catch numbers AND BIG BASS! The big gizzard shad are starting to move in to spawn now and it should be a true BIG BASS BONANZA this month of April!!! May/June are summer patterns and those big bass will be settling in on those humps, ledges and ridges in 15′ – 25′ of water…ISOLATED! Remember two years ago in June when Jimmy Houston landed bass of 12 lbs and 11 lbs on a shelf in 18′ of water? Yeah, that’s what we’re talking about for May/June.

The commercial nets were removed at the end of March and therefore we will be able to fish the lake in the coming 6 months without nets! It’s about to get REAL, folks! I’m ready to get down there. Hope to see you!

Lake El Salto…BEST TWO BACK TO BACK YEARS SINCE LAKE OPENED IN 1990?

I didn’t think the fishing in El Salto could get any better than it was last season (14′ – 15′ season), but this season is giving last season a run for it’s money! The average numbers per day, per boat are way up this year from previous years. While there have been some bass in the 10 lbs range and bigger caught every week or every other week, it’s the numbers of 6 lbs – 9 lbs that’s been insane! Here is a stat that I have just finished coming up with based upon ALL of our customer reports since November. The average total bass per boat, per day catch has been 82 bass. The average size of bass caught over 5 lbs has been 6.2 lbs. The average number of bass per boat, per day between 6 lbs and 9 lbs has been 7 bass total. That’s just through March…with April/May/June still to come…and those are some very good BIG BASS months! Maybe the best big bass months all year! Every year we have a number of groups come in the second half of May and first half of June to catch just big bass. One group in particular from Arkansas, comes every year late May/early June and just hammer big bass after big bass with crankbaits in tops of trees in 15 ‘ – 25’ of water. That’s where those bigger bass head to when the water surface temp heats up. Again, this isolates those bass just like at Picachos…and makes it easier to locate…AND CATCH! Also, no nets in the lake after April…not until Sept/Oct do they put the nets back into the lake! There’s still time to get in on one of the best season’s we’ve ever had on this lake, before the monsoon season starts up in late June/early July! Don’t miss it out!!!

LAKE COMEDERO REOPENING SEASON IN REVIEW!

For the most part, the first season of fishing at Comedero in 7 years was a major success! It started out slow when we opened November 30th with the first customer group. We had just been hit by a hurricane a couple of days prior to the first group arriving and the lake was on the rise, muddy in some parts, heavily stained in others…and the bass were tough to locate. It was very difficult those first two or three groups to get a pattern established. Then we closed for Christmas like we do at all of our lakes/lodges. Then December 28th rolled around…my trip with some personal friends and longtime RSJA anglers. We experienced “El Nino” rains 4 of our 6 days…but not monsoon rain like the hurricanes and tropical storms bring. So the lake wasn’t rising and we were able to establish a spinnerbait pattern on the outer edge of all that thick thorny brush that grew up last summer during the rainy season. If you recall or read my newsletter from January after returning from that trip, you’ll remember the story of getting my heart broken from losing the biggest bass of my lifetime. I still refuse to say what I believe the bass to weigh because 1) I lost it….2) I’ve never seen a bass that long and thick in my life! Knowing how “the ones that got away” always look bigger than the ones that made it to the boat/net…I will say this….it could have been 14 lbs, as my largest is 13 lbs and it was definitely bigger than my best. It also could have been a new world record over 22 lbs. What my gut tells me is that it was probably somewhere in the middle…upper teens! Again, if you read my January Update, I truly believed this bass was over 30″ long…maybe even the length of a yard stick! However, it wasn’t just long, it was HUGE…VERY THICK GIRTH! I got two up close and personal looks at this monster just beside the boat and less than a foot away from the landing net before it jumped and broke my line. She’s still swimming around in there…but hopefully NOT with Oldham’s 1 oz spinnerbait in her jaw!

In mid January, the rains from El Nino finally subsided and even completely stopped by the third week of January. The water finally stabilized and the bass started settling in on their normal feed patterns….and spawn. If you go back and review my February Update, you’ll read where Pro Angler Denny Brauer and Shane Moore (and their group) just hammered tons of 5 – 7 lbs bass flipping bushes in 14′ of water…also had some 8’s and lost some giants too. After one of his memorable days on Comedero, Denny Brauer claimed “That was one of my best days of flipping EVER!” Well, that’s saying something since Denny is known to be one of the best flipping/pitching anglers ever! If not THE BEST!

Then came February…Terry Oldham and I returned to Comedero in mid-February. We were still about a week from the full moon…meaning a week from the February spawn. The first morning by 9 am, I had landed bass of 9.8 lbs and 8.8 lbs flipping Oldham jigs w/Missile Bait’s D-Stroyer as my trailer. I called Oldham on the radio and told him to pick up his flipping stick and get to the banks where the wall of thick and thorny brush was…because those big bass were already in there getting ready to do their thing! Oldham wasn’t stubborn and did exactly what I suggested (insisted). By noon he called me on the radio to inform me he had 5 GIANTS on while flipping that thick brush…and lost all 5!!! He got his eyes on all 5 and said “They were really big” after asked how big? Oldham isn’t one to cook it up or exaggerate when talking about the size of a bass he caught or lost. I could tell by his tone that these were pretty darn big. We spent the next 3 days with that pattern of flipping the thick/thorny bushes, landing a few bass in the 9 lbs size, some 8’s and a lot of 5’s – 7’s. One of my customers there at the time also landed a bass of 10 lbs, 4 oz. Derrick Bulkley and Jamie Pearson of Indiana caught personal TOPWATER big bassof 9 lbs and 8 lbs…again, ON TOPWATER! The day we left Comedero, we had a new customer group arrive. This group chose to stay away from the thick thorny bush pattern we had found and decided to fish a little deeper…ledges in 15′ – 20′ of water. Going after the big bass that had spawned in January and settled back in a normal depth and feeding pattern. They chose right as they hit the mother load! Check these numbers out…

• Mike Goodall & Matt Shem on February 26th: Total bass for the day, 65. Biggest bass: 12.8 lbs, 9.4 and 8.6…and a lot of 5’s and 6 pounders! Best Lures: Baby Bass Flukes
• Mac Tatum & Steve Frost: 75 bass total for the day. Biggest Bass: 10.2…lots of bass from 5 – 7 pounds! Best Lures: Pumpkin/Chartreuse Lizards

Back to my February trip…What I found with the lake’s current condition gives me great optimism for the future of Comedero! Each day, Oldham and I would not come back to camp for lunch. We took our own and found some shade along a steep bluff wall to have lunch. While sitting along these shady walls, I would look down into the water and see not millions but BILLIONS of baby bass that looked to be nearly “fingerling” size…meaning this was the hatch from the January spawn. This was great to see as it’s because of all that thick and thorny brush that grew up last summer, that gave the big sow bass protection from the local fisherman to have a productive spawn. There were also billions and billions of small 3′ – 4″ Tilapia in there feeding on the Algae growing on that thick brush. So while this thick and thorny brush cost us and our customers the opportunity to get a lot of those giant bass in the boat, it offered protection from locals and pressure to ensure the lake will remain great for many years to come. Since this isn’t hardwood type stuff, I suspect come May/June before the rainy season starts, this brush will dry out and decay…and by the time we open next December, the lake will be much easier to fish and land these GIANT BASS! I still believe Comedero to be one of the best trophy bass lakes in the world…if not THE BEST! It’s definitely the best trophy lake I’ve ever fished. It’s also amazing to me that after opening in 1987, the lake today can still produce over 100 bass per boat, per day! No, not every boat lands that many but we certainly had a lot of customers land that many AND MORE per day this season! The reason is really simple when I think about it…it’s because this lake is so big and so deep that the bass have plenty of areas to go and hide from local pressure. It’s truly an unbelievable fishery! I can’t wait to get it back open next December when those giant bass move back shallow and start hitting TOPWATER LURES!!! We filled up nearly every week, twice weekly, this past Dec – March. Don’t miss out next year as dates are already going fast with the great fishing we experienced this past season!

JIMMY HOUSTON LEGENDS TV SITE…GO CHECK IT OUT!!!

I strongly encourage each and every one of you to go visit Jimmy’s new website! The site address is JHL.TV …there you can see the legend himself and watch tons of films Jimmy has made over the years. I grew up watching Jimmy on television in the 70’s and he’s always been one of my childhood fishing heroes. Still is to this very day! I have been blessed to not only meet Jimmy but become very good friends with him and even made numerous tv shows with him in Brazil and Mexico. You will never meet a better man of integrity, faith and just overall a better human being. Jimmy is truly a class act and one of the best fisherman I’ve ever had the opportunity to share a boat with…anywhere. His website offers the angler a lot of great stuff and hours and hours of entertainment for all anglers! Give it a look TODAY! Again, that’s JHL.TV

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