Cajon de Pena?

[MacFish]

I'm going to Puerto Vallarta in April :dance: and I've found day trips to a lake called Cajon de Pena. There isn't as much info on line as there is for El Salto, Huites etc so I was wondering if anyone here has fished it and can give me any insight on guides, tackle etc.

[sbasser]

I haven't heard of it, but maybe somebody else has. If I was going to Mexico, I'd check at Gary Yamamoto's website for info :idea: and forum for opinions and more info. Just Google "Senko". :nerd: C&R, Steve

[MacFish]

Thanks sbasser, good idea. :applause:...Steve

[Brnzbk]

MacFish, I fished there in February about three years ago. The fishing was post-spawn and very slow, but I did manage about fifteen fish, the largest around 5 lbs. We fished main lake humps and points at the mouths of coves in about 20 to 25 feet of water. All my fish came on a TX rigged 7" plastic lizard in pumpkinseed color. With the exception of one guy in another boat who got a nice fish on a spinnerbait late in the afternoon, I was the only one to catch anything out of six people fishing.

It's a long 2 hour ride up into the mountains from PV, and the road is sometimes a little bumpy. The boats are older, but reasonably stable for semi-V's. Make sure you grab the front spot if you can ;-). The facilities are primitive, but the guides and people who serve you luch are very friendly. If you've never fished in Mexico before, it is normally customary to give the guides your lures afterwards. Tackle is very hard to come by for those guys, and the gifts are greatly appreciated. Good luck!

[MacFish]

Great information, thanks. :bowdown: Were you happy with your guide and if so, do you remember who it was? There don't seem to be many to choose from.

[B-RUN STEELIE]

We went to Puerto Villarta some years ago with a group of people. I went out and fished in the ocean with some guys and some went to the bass lake. They also said it was a long drive. They paid 150 dollars apiece. They did catch some bass and I think that the biggest one was 7 lbs. What stands out about that whole deal was an odd thing that happened to a couple of them. They were out in the boat with the guide and another boat came out with another guy and they started talking in spanish etc. Next thing they know, they headed over to what they called the far side of the lake and the two Mexican guys got out of the boat with a rifle. They walked up the hill a bit and shot a sheep that was standing there.. not the big game type.. the little lamb type. Then they hauled it down the hill and threw it in the boat they were in. The other guy left and they fished the rest of the day with a dead sheep in the boat. The way they made it sound, there was only one place on the lake so they figured all the guides etc were from the same place. They said it was worth it just to see the country side and stuff... plus get to fish with a dead sheep all afternoon. Oh.. they did say that the lake had a bunch of Tilapia fish in it also

[MacFish]

No doubt it was the same sheep that had been maurading local livestock. :smile: Did they think the trip was worth it?

[B-RUN STEELIE]

Yes, they had a good time. They said most of the fish were 2-3 lbs..and a few around 5 lbs and one 7 lbs. They set up the trip through the guys who we set up the deep sea fishing with. This was in late March in 96 so it was awhile ago. We caught a couple of sail fish and a dorado out in the ocean the same day they went to the lake. They also told me that there were some locals fishing with coffie cans with line wrapped around them. I guess they could throw a rig pretty far like that somehow for the tilapia.

[MacFish]

well, even though the sheep poulation sounds like it's dwindled, the bass may be bigger now, it sounds like a good way to spend a day. Thanks for all your info and the great story.

[bucketmouth]

I Spoke to some folks about two years ago who told me that when in those vacation cities in Mexico like PV or Mazatlan, one can make arrangements through your hotel to go to one of the several bass lakes. Rather than book a guided bass trip here in the USA, Just talk to the various hotels in the vacation cities. Apparently making such arrangements is quite a bit cheaper than a guided trip. You are at the mercy of the person they send you up to the lake with however, and that person may not know the lake as well as a guide. It's only a day trip. You leave to the lake early in the morning and come back to your hotel that evening.

Seems to me that these Mexican lakes have so many bass in them that maybe a guide isn't really needed.

Anyway, just a thought. You might save some major $$$ trying it this way. Plus you have the added bonus of doing whatever you want later. Water sports on the ocean, shopping, fine dining, etc.... On a guided trip, you go to the lake upon your arrival. You stay at your lake the entire time you are there. Then you are shuffled back to the airport on your last day.

[B-RUN STEELIE]

I talked to one of the guys last night about it as I told him some folks were asking. He said he would scan some pics and send them to me. Anyway, he said the "Guide" was just a guy sitting in the boat with a dead sheep. He did'nt tell them anything about how to fish and probably did not know. The tackel they used was provided by an American who worked at the lake in the "lodge".. if you could call it that. He gave them a couple of spinning rods with maybe 14 lb test on them, and a box that had spinner baits and some plastics and various sinkers in it. ( They could have brought their own stuff if they had it with them) Another intresting thing he reminded me about.. They were asking the guy who drove them there in an old beat up suberban if people can just drive up there themselves.. He told them that if you were a white guy in a car or something you would no doubt get robbed or worse. The lake was in a definate " don't go here area "..

Last thing he told me was, they got there to late for the early morning bite. Fished all through the afternoon.. and left way before the evening bite " They wished they could have fished from say 02:30 P.M till dark instead of the worst time of day. The best fish they caught was in the last hour they were there.

[MacFish]

It's starting to sound like quite an adventure. I've found a couple of places that will pick you up in PV and take you to the lake and provide a guide, boat and lic. We'll have our own tackle. Bucketmouth, thanks for the idea to check with the hotel, I've got an e-mail in now to see what they recommend and B-Run,thanks, I hadn't thought to check on the time on the water, I assumed it would be a dawn to dusk show like el Salto. What a bummer to come late and leave early. Especially for what they charge! Well if this all works out I'll regale you with stories and pictures although I hope none of them rival the sheep story.