Loaded for Pigs

I'm packed light for El Salto -- but in a heavy sort of way. With a tropical climate and daily laundry service, clothes needed for a visit to Angler's Inn are minimal. In truth, once I get to the lodge, there really isn't much that I will need. The bulk of my stuff is fishing gear, including reels, hard baits, soft plastics and terminal tackle. But even that isn't terribly extensive because time has shown what the fish like to eat there. They like giant Power Worms, and swimbaits, Fat Free Shad crankbaits, topwater lures, spinnerbaits and big jigs. That's the stuff that gets it done, so I didn't try to get fancy with other stuff.

I say light in a heavy duty sort of way because pretty much everything is on the big end. Big worms, big hooks, big crankbaits, big swimbaits. Fish in El Salto are used to eating tilapia, overgrown crawfish and other large forage, so they favor big baits. Plus, a big part of why I'm traveling so far from home to fish for bass is that I'm hoping to catch a giant, and while small baits produce occasional big fish, even at El Salto, usually it's the oversized offerings that get the job done.

Highlighting the heavy duty stuff is Abu Garcia's new Revo Beast, a brute of a reel with lots of power, a big cranking handle and oversized grips. It was designed for throwing jumbo swimbaits and the like and for handling the fish that attack those kinds of baits. The Beast is ready to be unleashed, and I'm eager to match it up against an El Salto Hawg.