Anyone fish the mayan rivera in january?

[Bondar]

I'm heading to mayan rivera on wednesday I'll be staying at the barcelo colonial , curious if anyone has fished there this time of year and what is around in the winter ? I'm bringing a 6 , 8. And 10wt fly rod and a spinning rod cause I'd hate to go and not have what I need LOL one pair of shorts and 4 rods hahaha. This isn't really a fishing trip but if I can find fish ill likely hire a guide for a day or 2

Thanks for anything you can help with

Jeff

Edited January 8, 2012 by Wiser

[Ralph Field]

I've been down there twice and neither time did I see anyone fishing from shore. Most resorts have a " water sports" section and you can hire a boat to take you out to the reef to do some fishing. I believe that you are not permitted to fish between the reef and the shore.

[Sinker]

Ya, you can't fish the mayan without a guide. I was down there a few years ago, showed up with my gear, and the workers at the resort told me I couldn't fish on my own. Had to be in a boat, with a guide. I guess outside the reef is ok, but the reef itself is a protected area, no fishing.

 

I ended up going out on a big charter boat. We didn't get anything big, but had tons of fun catching smaller stuff off the reef. The boat had crap gear, so I was really glad I'd brought my own stuff. They were set up good for big fish, but they weren't biting, so we just bottom fished with my lighter gear. It was still fun, and I'd do it again.

 

I think it was captain ricks we fished with, out of port aventura....something like that. I forget now. Cuba is the place to go for freelance fishing IMO.

 

S.

[Bondar]

thanks guys , i've located a couple guides in the areas i want to fish so i'll have to do that a couple days Thanks for the info

Edited January 8, 2012 by Wiser

[blue pickeral]

Should get your fishing done quickly...aren't the Mayans predicting the end of the world in 2012?

[hirk]

I have fished the mangro sanctuary in cancun.Its catch & release but fishing was good, no trolling just casting.

Edited January 8, 2012 by hirk

[Dutch]

I've fished the Mayan in December. I am very lucky that the resort we go to has a lagoon directly to the south that has about 2 k.m. on essentially undeveloped shoreline fronting iron shore and small reefs. No need to worry about other guests swimming. Depending on your resort and the available beach where there aren't people hopefully you can find someplace to fish from shore.

 

I saw some people fishing from hobie cats as weel, to get out away from the crowds.

 

Be warned - it is usually VERY windy this time of year with almost constant winds from the sea. Honestly, I don't see much point in having the fly rods unless you are going to do a guided trip, even then, you'd have to go up closer to Cancun and fish the lagoon to get out of the wind. I'd suggest trying to arrange that ahead of time, if you can't just take a medium or MH spinning outfit with some hooks and different sizes of weights. Wash your gear in non-salt water at the end of every day.

 

As for Charters. I'm not surprised someone here has mentioned Rick's. It is probably one of the most well known charters. Even those that have never fished with Rick's reccomend them as they probably know or have heard of someone that has fished with them before. I don't reccomend them - too commercial, not enough rod time.

 

I reccommend going to Akumal Beach and asking at one of the co-operative fishing huts. Real mexican captains that will give you a realistic introduction and experience with deep sea fishing. You'll most likely have to do deep sea fishing due to the wind, but if you get a calm day, they may take you jigging off a part of the reef somewhere.

 

Another tip - use google earth to check out the shoreline near your resort. It may tell you if there is a sheltered bay or lagoon somehwere that you could exploit for some great fishing.

 

The time of year you will be there is not high season for fishing, that's in the spring. For deep sea you are probably most likely looking at 'cuda or maybe dorado. From shore probably looking at snapper and smaller reef-type fish, like our pan fish.

 

I used shrimp from the buffet, but it doesn't stay on the hook well. Calamari works better as it is more dense and stays on the hook better. When I caught a small panfish, I used a small swiss army knife I took in my checked baggage to cut it up for bait. This was by far the best bait. Get more than a couple of casts with it, especially with the skin on. Use the shrimp/calimari to chum with after you get a panfish or two it greatly helps the numbers of fish.

 

There is a mayan forum called loco gringo that you may be able to get help with tips about your actual resort, but a word of caution MANY, MANY will say there is no fishing from the beach, which couldn't be further from the truth (for most resorts). Most are vacationers that dissapprove of fishing from the beach, but there should be some truth tellers that may be able to help you.