Last month, myself and two other writers were invited by Billy Chapman of Anglers Inn to [fish Lake Picachos](https://Also don't forget to set the target for hyperlinks to new window)—a 5-year-old, 16,000-acre reservoir outside of Mazatlan, Mexico. Here's a look at some of the highlights. My guide Rafael and me, holding a typical Lake Picachos bass. Chapman hires all his guides from local villages, and a guiding job with Chapman is usually the best paying gig around. This is the view from Chapman's camp. Every afternoon storms would roll in over the Sierra Madres, but they usually hung over the mountains and never kept us from fishing. When officials dammed the river to build Picachos, they flooded seven villages. The villagers were relocated and became stakeholders in any business that runs on the lake, including Chapman's. The blown-out buildings have turned into structures for the bass. Wade Bourne admiring a fish on a rainy morning during our trip. We got into a late topwater bite with bass blowing up on little poppers. A rainbow settles in next to the Lake Picachos dam. This is the crew that's building Chapman's lodge. We were the first visitors to stay in the camp. Another storm building on the horizon. Rafael cruises back toward camp. The boats at Picachos were far from fancy, but they got the job done. One of the bigger fish of the trip fell for a deep-running crankbait.
