We will be at Picachos this afternoon for 4 days of fishing
I hope to be ready for a good rest when I get back

For those that are interested in the continuing saga of Mexico fishing and especially Lake Picachos.
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Just got back from a 6 day trip to Mazatl�n with 4 days of fishing at Lake Picachos @ Ron Speed Jr Adventures
The fishing was absolutely GREAT 450 fish in 4 days landed in the boat. Another 200 or so, not hooked up or lost at the boat. (take your own rods -- loaner rods sucked)
1 -- 7.2 pound
10 -- in the 6-7# class
25 -- 5#
200 -- 3 to 4# range
200+ less than 3#
My biggest was 5-14 / my son caught all the 6s and 7s
if you are going take 2 of your favorite plastics, it really doesn't matter what -- Senkos / Flukes / Lizards / Brush Hogs / Worms
figure on using 25 baits per person per day
4/0 hooks and 3/8oz weights take along some 1/2-1oz baits if your guide wants to fish real deep, which ours did.

we did not get on a lizard bite like previous posters did -- our week was Senkos -- Flukes & Brush Hogs
a couple of mornings we got into a pretty good swim bait bite in the river channel. Ou8r guide ask if we had some rattle traps but I had everything but RTs

RSJA:
1.) accommodations -- OK for fishermen, comfortable beds, cold a/c
2.) meals -- food was great / get your steak rare as they overcook
3.) boats -- good size boats and motors / nice set up with guide using foot control TM on front deck
4.) guides -- excellent job, knew the lake well. It seemed each had their favorite spots, only fished the same place 3 times in 4 days of fishing. 3 out of 4 worked their butts off
5.) beverage service -- was just OK at the camp On-the-boat; they stocked whatever you told them you wanted to drink during the day
6.) van ride to/from very comfortable

The Friday night stay at the El Cid in Mazatl�n was a really nice way to end the trip --- 5 Star Hotel with a great Restaurant @ the El Morrow for dinner and Saturday morning breakfast

It is a toss up between RSJA @ Picachos or Angler's Inn @ El Salto.
They ARE DIFFERENT --- depends on what you are looking for.
if you want my opinion and comparison -- let me know and I will post it.

EITHER trip is well worth the time and investment
OH -- by the way ----- never felt any issue about safety at all, period.

great info...thanks for sharing with us...
we went to picachos last week in march and had very similar experience...
regarding comment on rods they furnish....suggest you look through the selection and pick out Dobyns rods...problem we found was the temple fork rods were light and sensitive but didn't have the backbone to set the hook well when fishing plastics....no problems in that regard with Dobyns rods...

RODS @ RSJA --- this was probably the biggest disappointment of the whole trip.
the rods that were brought to us to choose from were---- old -- missing guides -- shortened, from being broken and repaired -- in poor condition in general & did not include any Dobbins to choose from as suggested.
we were 2 of only 4 fishermen there using bass rods (all others in the camp were fly fishermen with their own rods) and we got the first choice of rods. ---- very disappointed in what we had to choose from
the rods offered to us by Angler's Inn -- El Salto were in much better condition --- basically new St Croix rods.
For the $30 baggage fee I will be sure to take my own rods the next time I go to Mexico fishing.
If you are going to hassle with a carry-on bag full of tackle & lures you might as well pack your rods in a rod tube and pay a porter to move the 2 bags in & out of the airport. 2 bucks at the Mazatl�n airport will get your bags moved in & out with no issues.

Sorry to hear that. Ive been to Speeds Picachos,El Salto and Comedero and the rods were great.
Contact Bill Mullins and voice your concerns.

I find it interesting to hear there were rod issues. As I was doing research for a Mexico fishing trip I asked a lot of questions about rod availability because I was convinced that I didn't want to deal with hauling them through airports and the expense issue. I didn't realize it was only $30. I got tagged with a $125 surprise surcharge once on a domestic fight because they considered my rod tube "over-sized" luggage and didn't want that experience again. The two top Mexico outfitters both assured me there would be no issues regarding rod availability but when I asked specific questions about the rod selection neither of them seemed willing to give me any info other than the brand names they offered. I didn't want to get in a situation where I was attempting to throw DD crankbaits with a filliping stick or vice versa. We postponed the trip but at least now I know for $30 I'll just take my own sticks.

Again, not speaking about RSJ's operation, I got the impression from my time at Picachos and El Salto with Angler's Inn at both lakes is that being specific about rods other than their brands is difficult because the rods are chosen by the anglers on a first-come basis. The AI selection at Picachos was fewer than at El Salto, where there was a couple walls lined with rods. I was able to use 5 St. Croix Mojo Bass rods at both lakes, in MH and H in good condition. I did see a couple rods at Picachos that needed tip-top replacement, an easy-pie job.

I've used the rods at RSJ Picachos and they were mostly in good shape with a good selection. I suspect that those rods get used and abused mercilessly and need to be replaced a couple of times per year. If you arrive after a recent replacement you'll find good/great rods. If you arrive at the end of their life cycle, well...

RIGHT �- So don�t chance it,,, take your own !!!!
They will not tell you that the selection is in bad shape

in last 4 years,I've been to ron speeds lodge at el salto,comedero and twice to picachos...my only criticism and it wasn't a big deal, is that you typically had to set the hook twice using plastic with the temple fork rods....this year they had an ample supply of both rods and I chose the Dobyns medium heavy 7ft rods and had no problems...there was probably a 50-75 rods to choose from and I noticed a few of them needed guides or tips replaced....
one suggestion is that typically you get there in afternoon and there will be fishermen coming in and leaving late afternoon....wait to select your rods from the rods that were used by the fishermen leaving...
FWIW...at picachos they had a supply of rods in two locations...one under the pavilion/dining area and there was a room full of rods/equipment up on the hill...

That was the problem --- they had a camp worker just bring us an arm full of rods and put them on the back porch for us to choose from. We told them only bait casters and he brought 20-30 rods and half of them were spinner bait rods ---- not a one was Dobyns and there were no other fishermen at the camp when we got there.
So,,,,, the issue is they did not show us to where the rods were stored and only gave us a small selection of rods to choose from. Very poor for first timers with RSJA ----
That just givers Angler's Inn a check mark for when you are doing comparisons for the next trip.

You should have asked Chino for a better selection.

---NO---
for that kind of $$$$ the CAMP MANAGER should have made sure that we were offered a GOOD SELECTION.

---AFTER----
the first day I should have complained and made sure that I was given other choices

---BUT----
when I pay really good $$$$ for a first class operation ---- it should be a FIRST CLASS operation.
when you HAVE TO ASK for:
---rods---drinks---cocktails---nachos---etc etc it kinda takes the luster off of paying a premium price for an all-inclusive bass fishing trip
I even mentioned that I knew James Bendel from Falcon Tackle in Zapata, thought that would get me some extra points -- hahaha

I guarantee you that I did not HAVE TO ASK for one dang thing at Angler's Inn-- El Salto.

Again.sorry you had a bad experience. I've been to Ron's lodges 5 times and never experienced any of those issues. The managers at all 3 camps are great guys, who go out of their way to provide the anglers with a great experience.

^^^ ... this.

My experience at both AI Picachos and AI El Salto was that plates of nachos and margaritas just sort of magically appeared when I was lounging around before dinner or during siesta time mid-day.