Senor and Senorita Bass

(or, how my heart stopped twice in Mexico)

by Jim Porter

Mexico bass fishing

I was recently fortunate to fish for bass in Mexico. Many anglers read of the great bass fishing 'South of the Border', but usually wind up thinking that it must be a sales pitch. "No fishing could be that good!" they think. Well, they should think again. For me, it was extremely exciting and successful. I may have even gotten a fleeting glimpse of something close to that elusive World's Record.
   The photo (left) is Bryan Hague, my host and owner of Westside Fishing Adventures, with my largest bass from Mexico's Lake Espanola. The color is poor due to rainy skies and lack of sunlight (you know I would forget the flash!). We did not have a scale with us either. But she was a 'big mucha-cha', you betcha!!! We were lucky enough to see a number of big fish that particular day. But the way they got big is by getting away, and our success landing them that day fully supported that.
   The problem was that we were hunting elephants with a BB-gun. Our hooks just weren't large enough for their large mouths!!
   I don't sell fishing trips to Mexico and I am not employed by anyone that does. So, what I am going to present to you in the following paragraphs is just my 'Trip Report', if you will. I will also provide a point-of-contact should you desire to explore the Mexico thing further.
   The excuse to make this trip to Mexico was a request from an outfitter and a fishing lodge owner to evaluate the bass fishing potential in two locations and determine how best to catch the fish, both in large numbers and in strictly fishing for trophies. Our agreement was that I would help them with the fishing techniques and, if the fishing warranted it, I might write an article about the trip.
   It warranted it and I did, as you are reading!!
   Airfare from Orlando, Florida, to Tampico, Mexico was $365 round-trip, all jet service by Continental Airlines, via a plane change in Houston (1 hour and 27 minutes from Houston to Tampico). I arranged and paid my airfare. Outfitter Bryan Hague, Todd Collier of Luxury Largemouth Lodge, and Guillermo 'Bill' Pier of Real Viejo Lodge provided in-country transportation, room and board. They also provided the boats, motors and guides.
   To locate Tampico, look at the Texas map and note Brownsville at the tip of the State and on the Gulf coast. Now, go south along the coast for some 300 miles and you'll find Tampico. This city of some 280,000 residents, is usually more known for its superb saltwater fishery. For example, there is an annual fishing tournament week sponsored by their city fishing committee. It takes a 30-pound snook, a 190-pound tarpon, and similar obscene weights in the other species to win. Bass are second-rated by the locals, but they still have a category for them. The winner is usually around 8 pounds (very good for semi-tidal waters). Bryan has since started a snook guide service. I left him all the magnum Rat-L-Traps, jerkbaits, and topwaters I had. This is a marvelous snook fishery and, once Bryan gets it together properly, it will be an excellent fishing trip, in itself.
   Our first stop was the Laguna ('lagoon') Tortuga. This is a huge marsh created by a flat land area sandwiched between some small hill masses on three sides and a salt marsh leading to the Gulf of Mexico on the other. It was probably a salt marsh, itself, eons ago. Right now, it will remind you of Back Bay in Virginia, and maybe certain outer areas of Carrituck and Pamlico Sounds below Back Bay. It is very, very similar to the vegetated west wall of Lake Okeechobee in Florida -- lots of coontail grass, eel grass, pepper grass, and what appeared to be at least 1/2 of the reeds known to exist in the World. Boat runs in some of the reeds are like the old Pig Trail near North Cove in Florida's Lake Kissimmee. The water averages 6 feet deep, with some locations approaching 8-9 feet. The water is very clear, except in one small section that in continually stained for some unknown reason (that stained water area is a BIG bass location, too!). The bottom composition is hard sand, an abundance of gravel and an amount of muck (in some areas) from decaying vegetation.
   In keeping with what might be expected of a shallow, heavily-vegetated body of water, Laguna Tortuga is a phenomenal topwater fishery, especially if there is a breeze and slight ripple on the water. There was no particular topwater method that was better than another. Buzzbaits were great, even after dark (you just listened and felt for the strike). Most any style of topwater plug was fine, too. I used a Pop R, a Spittin' Image, a Zara Spook, and a Devil's Horse with great success. Bryan used a lure called a 'Yellow Magic', similar to the Pop R and which Texas anglers may recognize. THAT was a killer topwater lure!! I even had bass hitting a Pop-R that was covered in grass. You couldn't even SEE the lure. But, it was moving and that was all that counted. Once, as I was speed-reeling the lure in to clean the weeds off, a giant bass hit the mass of weeds and lure right at the boat. Big bass on 2 feet of line are NOT conducive to landing.
   While Bryan Hague was fishing a big plastic lizard and large slip sinker, I went with my standard 4 inch worm and a 1/16 ounce slip sinker. Bryan's heavy rig was ideal for flipping into the edges of the reed stands, but was not well suited to the submerged vegetation in the open water. The small worm and lighter weight turned out to be ideal and produced a strike on nearly every cast. In fact, I went 27 straight casts with a fish on during one period. This small worm rig, coupled with the topwater applications, gave us the quantities of fish we were striving for. Our catch during the 7 hours we fished was 129 bass. Add to that what we lost or shook off and the number is staggering.

Jim is a widely-published author, outdoor writer and trophy bass guide on Florida waters. Having chased largemouths and smallmouths in Spain, Italy, France, Mexico and nearly all 48 contiguous States, he is a recognized authority on bass fishing. He has been widely published in nearly all fishing-related publications, including BassMaster magazine. Jim is also active on numerous Internet Web sites. His �how-to' fishing articles , �Ask A Pro' query sessions, and advise/technique columns have assisted numerous anglers improve their skills and fishing success. His most recent publication, "The Hungry (but, lazy) Mans' Recipe Book (and other assorted stuff!)", has been acclaimed for its fishing wit and wisdom, as well as gastronomic value.

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