CANCUN FLY FISHING GUIDE REPORT FOR RODMAN HUNTER

Aug. 8, 2006, Mark Tikkanen, Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico:

Fishing with Rodman was great. I fish with many guides, mostly flats, in the Florida Keys, Bahamas, and Belize. I rate guides based on the following categories:

1. Personality. Is the guide fun to fish with?

2. Eyes. How good is the guide at spotting fish?

3. Knowledge of area you are fishing. How good is the guide at locating fish? Does he know where species will be at certain tides and conditions?

4. Coaching before the cast. How good is the guide at getting you to spot the fish after he spots the fish, and how good are his or her instructions as to when and where to cast to maximize your chances at hooking up.

5. Coaching after the cast. How good is the guide at telling you what to do after you have made your cast. Especially with fly fishing, does he or she tell you how to work the fly to get the fish to eat? Does he or she tell you how the fish is reacting to how you are working your fly and suggest adjustments while you are working it?

6. Flexibility. How flexible is the guide? Can he change tactics based on conditions? If the conditions do not favor a species, can he switch tactics to target another species?

I give good ratings to Rodman in the first 3 categories and number 6. For numbers 4 and 5, not quite as good. Overall, my son and I enjoyed fishing with him and would do so again.

We fished a good part of the lagoon adjacent to the main resort strip in Cancun.

Rodman's boat was a nice flats boat that was very comfortable to fish from.

Fishing conditions were good the first day, with light breeze, some clouds. We got hammered by a rain storm the second day in the afternoon.

I tend to look at the quality of a day's fishing based on how many shots or chances you get to hook up versus how many fish you boat. The guide's job is to get you shots at fish; it is your job to take it from there.

Rodman did a good job getting us shots. In two days of Cancun flats fishing, we landed 2 nice snook, 4 small barracuda, 1 large mangrove snapper. We lost 5 tarpon and another snook. My son was not very experienced, first time flats fishing. He fished exclusively with lures, topwaters, jigs and crank baits. I fished fly only but let my son fish most of the time.

(See "Mexico Fishing News" online for current fishing reports, photos, weather, and water temperatures from Cancun and other major Mexican sportfishing areas. Vacation travel articles, fishing maps and seasonal calendars, and fishing related information for Cancun may be found at Mexfish.com's main Cancun page.