Mary and I just returned from our annual Cancun trip where we enjoyed a great mini vacation. We flew non-stop from LAX on Alaska Airlines and on arrival were transferred to the Dreams Cancun Resort which is an all-inclusive hotel that includes all your food, drinks and activities at no extra charge. On arrival we had a welcome glass of champagne during check in and escorted to our room which was in the new tower section our room had a balcony with great view of the Caribbean.
The hotel has three restaurants consisting of a steak house, Japanese food and seafood plus a buffet restaurant. We chose the steak house for our first night dinner and had a perfectly prepared rib eye steak dinner. We spent the second day relaxing and doing a little shopping at near by shops and opted for the Japanese restaurant for our second night dinner which by the way made some very good sushi and sashimi.
On the 3rd day I rented a car and Mary and I drove down to the Boca Pila area which is about a 3 hour drive from Cancun, about 45 km past the Maya ruins of Tulom is a flats fishing lodge called Pesca Maya that specializes in fishing for bonefish, permit and baby tarpon. We had been invited to come down to experience and visit the lodge, on our arrival we were met by Jorge the manager who welcomed us and showed us around. We checked into our room and had arrived in time for happy hour along with some very good chicken wings for appetizers. We met a great group of fly fishermen from the New England area who told us that they had been fishing for a few days and had good catches of bonefish and baby tarpon which usually average about 10lbs to 20lbs. We all enjoyed a nice chicken and mole (dark chocolate sauce) dinner, after dinner the New England boys invited me to play a game of Texas Holdem which left me $20.00 poorer.
The following morning after a great breakfast we met our guide and boarded our flats boat for a half day of fishing which I might mention is the first time the either Mary or I have ever fished on the flats. Having never caught a bonefish we wanted to target them, using light spinning outfits we tossed small lead head jigs with plastic tails which attracted small jacks and small barracuda. After a couple of hours with no bonefish our guide suggested we catch some crab for bait, he motored over to a beach and took off on foot looking for bait. He returned about 15 minutes later with a bunch of hermit crabs at which time we proceeded to a location called Punta Allen where Mary and I each caught two bonefish each. Our guide suggested we troll around the reef for a while before calling it a day so I put on a small rapala and after a few minutes caught a nice 8lb Atlantic barracuda, boy do they have a mouth full of jagged teeth. We said our good byes to Jorge and his staff early that afternoon and drove back to Cancun, while in route all Mary and I talked about for dinner was that rib steak we had the first night.
Needless to say after a shower and cocktails we headed down to the steak house and once again had a perfectly prepared rib eye steak with all the trimmings. I might add that entire staff at the hotel is service orientated and practice service with a smile, our waiter Francisco was great and you knew that he really enjoyed his job.
The following morning was our last day and I had pre-arranged to go fishing with the El Cid Marina sport fishingfleet, Mary looked out our window and saw that the wind was whipping up the sea so she opted out of fishing with me. I drove over to the marina where Armando Guiterrez the Harbor Master was waiting for me he had reserved the 28' Californian sport fisher "Pescadora" skippered by Capt. Elias. Elias recommended we try fishing for bottom fish, those of you that have fished with me in the past know that I really like to yo-yo iron so I agreed. We took a ½ hour ride to an area outside the barrier reef in about 60' of water, I had brought along a few Daiwa Sacrifice butterfly lures and commenced to yo-yo. It wasn't long before I got bit and immediately got bit off which the deckhand quickly remarked "barracuda". I retied and soon there after again got bit off at which time the deck hand put a short leader of wire on my lure. I managed to boat a couple of small pargo (red snapper) and while reeling in the third pargo I noticed a dark object following it, as it got closer I notice it was about a 30lb Atlantic barracuda which quickly attacked and stole my fish. I subsequently caught a 10lb barracuda and a small reef shark, not bad fishing for just a 4 hour charter? The crew was really happy that I would not be taking any of the fish with me as I was leaving that day and had not brought an ice chest with me, they were smiling from ear to ear as I headed up the gang way.
If you really want to take the family on a great affordable vacation then Cancun, Riviera Maya or the Mayan Riviera is the place to take them, the coast stretches for miles and miles with most of the hotels offering the all inclusive plan. Some cater to families and some are adult only with all offering beautiful swimming pools, white sand beaches and activities for everyone. As for the fishing the prime months are April, May and June where you can expect to catch marlin, sailfish, dorado, yellow fin and black fin tuna, wahoo and king mackerel. Fishing during the rest of the year will produce king mackerel, barracuda, sierra, pargo and jacks.
If you are interested in flats fishing a trip to Pesca Maya would be a great choice not only for the abundance of fish but also the lodge, the location, great food, pristine secluded beaches and great fishing platforms.
Call my daughters or myself at 800-593 6510 for further information or reservations, Cass.
