Welcome to Mayan Land
(As seen in January/February 2007 Issue of Florida Sport Fishing Magazine)
By Jan Stephen Maizler
It was deep in the middle of a star-studded night. The only sounds that could be heard were the collective whooshing rattles of coconut palm leaves pulsated by the Caribbean sea breeze. I made my way through dunes and valleys of sugar sand towards the grass-thatched ocean pier- its spotlight cast a yellow luminous orb over the greenish rolling wavelets.
As I walked along the pier’s concrete approach towards the well-lit pot-o’-gold at the tip, I was filled with the anticipation of a nighttime game fish encounter. The metallic clicks of the fly, spinning, and baitcasting outfits I was carrying played second fiddle to my heartbeats and sculpted stride in this orchestra of excitement.
As I neared the edge of the lit water, I made my movements slow and subtle-no different than the reverent sneak of a trout angler on the cusp of his stream. As I gently put down the three outfits, I gazed into my target area. And what I saw screamed, “Yes, yes, yes!”
I was witnessing a nighttime game fish grouping that was a “first” in my angling career: the expanse I was about to cast into was a fishbowl of tarpon and permit! The silver kings-seemingly everywhere- were on the move from top to bottom. They’d glide through the light, roll over the waves, and then suddenly strike at a pilchard with a lunging flash. In contrast, the permit finned patiently on the surface as they faced into the incoming tide. Suddenly, one of the larger fish out of perhaps twenty struck into a clump of seaweed. Two crabs were dislodged, but it seemed that their usual rapid sideways retreat was prevented by their disorientation. In barely three seconds, the permit engulfed them.
I breathed deeply to quell my excitement. Slowly, I leaned over and picked up my plug rod. It was loaded with 12-pound test mono and topped off with a 40-pound fluorocarbon leader and a one eighth ounce yellow-orange Spro baby bucktail. I felt that the lure would match the hatch, and the outfit itself had the beef to fight some gamesters I was seeing that weighed up to around forty pounds.
After testing the drag and free spool tension, I flicked off a cast in front of and slightly past the group of permit. I began my retrieve immediately and swam the lure slowly across the surface in front of the lead fish. Before the lure could reach its intended target, a tarpon rocketed into the lure with a vicious strike. I struck the fish hard and it went airborne, sending frothy water in all directions- I could see permit start scattering from this sudden melee. I dropped my rod tip to bow to the leaping silver king, but its vicious headshakes threw the lure.
As I reeled the lure close to the rod tip, I saw the group of permit hovering at the edge of the lit-up water. I flipped another well- placed cast at the school and began my retrieve. As my bucktail came even with the permit, a smaller fish of about ten pounds peeled off from the group and inhaled the Spro bucktail. I struck the fish and could see its head shake violently as the hook dug in. The fish began a long run of about fifty yards and slowed down. Under the pressure of the plug outfit, the permit made two shorter runs and then slowly surrendered. I eased the fish towards the pier until it was beneath me. I had to lie down on the wood to reach Sir Quicksilver for an effective release. After removing the lure, I breathed the fish for about a minute. After it seemed to regain its stamina, I let go of its tail. It swam slowly through the light into the safe obscurity of the darker water.
After this victorious battle, my magic fishbowl was a quieter place. I sat down under the thatched roof on the circular concrete bench to give the area a ten-minute rest. The fish did return and I succeeded in jumping two more tarpon in the next half-hour.
I slowly concluded it was time to quit fishing. I felt satisfied for many reasons. I stood in the midst of this starry sultry tropical solitude and relished the realization that I was on the beach of an exotic Mayan island offshore of Mexico at the five-star Casa Blanca Lodge. But the best part of this experience was knowing that the action I had took place on the night of my arrival day and that the actual guided fishing would not begin until tomorrow!
Great Beginnings-
As my trip to Casa Blanca and its sister lodge Playa Blanca began to take shape, the efficiency of their operation quickly manifested itself. The first part of this process was query contact with Lily Ann Prevost, the Office Manager of Outdoor Travel, Inc. in Harlingen, Texas. She sent me brochures, DVD’s, and their specially published Travel and Outfitting Guide. After reviewing these items, all questions were answered and it was simple to set up the travel times and itinerary.
Casa Blanca lies on an exquisite coastal island at the southern edge of Ascension Bay. On this same pristine land twenty miles to the south, Playa Blanca Lodge sits perched on the northern fringes of fish-filled Espiritu Santo Bay. All of this magnificence is on the Quintana Roo/Caribbean coast of the Yucatan peninsula approximately 100 miles south of Cancun. These wonderful facilities are blessedly in the midst of the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve, which guarantees the future preservation of this remote habitat as well as its prolific numbers of fish, birds, and animals. The Mayan name, Sian Ka’an, means “birthplace of the sky”- this gives an idea of the reverent tribute these people gave to this region.
A large part of the pre-travel excitement was the knowledge that I’d be heading to a destination that featured dense jungle, shallow bays, secluded lagoons, rocky beaches, and sugar sand beaches that fronted the exquisite sapphire and emerald-colored Caribbean Sea. I was also eager to encounter the hummingbirds, frigate birds, pelicans, caimans, foxes, dolphin, turtles and most importantly, the bonefish, tarpon, and permit that abounded there.
Fishing in Paradise-
The guide that was assigned to my photographer, Art Blank, and myself was Agustin. He was very experienced and very exacting. I found it reassuring that he had over 15 years experience guiding in this expansive bay. His fishing rig was a 16-foot Dolphin Super Skiff powered by a four-stroke 50 H.P. electro start Yamaha with tiller handle steering. His skiff easily handled the tackle and equipment we loaded into it and floated in only six inches of water.
Before we got underway, I was sure to let Agustin know the exact fishing goals for our stay- not surprisingly, it was to sample as much variety of light tackle fishing the area offered. Since it was November, we understood that the possibility of changing weather would also affect our choices. It did indeed transpire that over the next five days, the weather went from calm to windy and sunny to cloudy, but the diversity of the habitat always provided us with a productive fishing spot.
The first day started windy and we only had to snake through the mangroves for sixty seconds before giving fishing a try. On our way through the creek, we spotted a large caiman sunning itself and a huge tailing bonefish. We then entered into the spacious Laguna Pajaros and the skiff immediately slowed down. The guide pointed to a large mud one hundred yards downwind. As we eased over, we pulled out ultralight spinning gear armed with tiny white Spro bucktails tipped with shrimp. In another minute, we had our first double header Casa Blanca bones next to the boat.
We enjoyed this action for a while and then asked for shallower action further afield. Agustin ran his skiff through some creeks and into the open bay. We ran for about ten miles to a series of shallow yellow and green flats. Agustin cut the engine, lifted it, and began poling. Throughout the day, we spotted bones every few minutes. However, the high winds and a bit of gray ghost skittishness that I attributed to a shifting barometer limited our results from fantastic to excellent. It would turn out that day #2 would be a gratifying repeat of the prior day.
We woke up to day #3, which featured light north winds and china blue skies. Agustin felt this was a perfect day to run to the blue holes to the north of Casa Blanca. He told us that we’d have to hunt up some live crabs. We pulled up to a sandy beach and began a bait-catching adventure that was fun in its own right. After we’d put a dozen into the bucket, we climbed back into the skiff and only ran for 15 minutes before slowing down. Agustin eased the skiff upwind of the hole and cut the engine. We drifted for a few minutes until we were within 70 feet and Agustin quietly lowered his anchor. We did not need him to point out that there were fish everywhere. Balao were flipping all around the boat while every minute a large mackeral would skyrocket through the bait. Then we saw large tarpon rolling. Urging us to be quiet, Agustin baited us up with small live crabs. In about 60 seconds, he said, “2 0’clock and 50 feet out…permit!” Art and I saw the fish and cast. In a picture perfect repeat of the first mornings’ casts, we had a double-header hookup but now with large silvery permit.
After arduous battles, we landed both fish, each of which was about 20 pounds. While there seemed to be no more obvious permit, there were loads of game fish. I pulled out my plug rod and jigged the area with a white bucktail tipped with shrimp. I ‘ll have to admit I lost count of the mutton snappers, cero mackeral, lane snappers, blue runners, and barracuda that I caught. The sun set as two sated and satisfied anglers headed home.
Day #4 was taken up with Agustin running us to Playa Blanca via the ocean for our visit to the sister lodge. The bulk of the day was taken up with touring and trekking around this destination- a wonderful experience. We had a couple of hours left upon our return to Casa Blanca. Art opted to go with Agustin to pole the ocean flats for permit, while I chose some solitary wading for bonefish around the lodge. As their skiff disappeared to the north, I found a nice school of bones. Since I was using ultralight spinning, I was able to cast a weighted fly into their midst with the tiniest plop- the hookup was immediate. After landing a nice 4- pound bone, I repeated this conquest 30 minutes later. When Art returned, he said they saw permit, but a tree stump the fish were swimming around prevented a good presentation.
Our last day featured perfect weather. We ran to the blue hole immediately and Art caught a nice permit. While the prospects were enticing, we opted to finish the day on the flats. Agustin zipped us into a lagoon and within 30 minutes was poling us towards a large tailing permit. When the moment of truth arrived, I made a perfect cast. The line came tight and I struck. About an hour later, we were posing and releasing a 25-pound permit. Agustin then poled us towards the mangroves featuring water less than a foot deep. We topped off the day with three more bonefish. The fishing had been marvelous!
The Operations-
The managing owner/partner of these two lodges -Casa Blanca and Playa Blanca- is Mr. Bobby Settles. Ho told me that the mission of both operations is to “provide comfortable accommodations, superior food and services, and quality fishing in a sustainable habitat that produces great action year after year.” After sampling both of these wonderful destinations, it’s clear that he has created two destinations that operate with “Swiss watch” efficiency in the midst of a Mayan wonderland.
Casa Blanca-
Casa Blanca is the lodge that features the most structured dedicated fishing program. The facility is set along a stunning rocky beach point that contours into a protected sand beach where its 11 flats skiffs are moored. This venerable destination quickly stabilized any outlaw netting in the Biosphere by employing the locals and integrating them into their hotel and fishing operations.
Casa Blanca lies only five minutes by boat from their private landing strip. This lodge has a long sturdy pier that has multiple functions. It serves as the boat-based staging area for arriving and departing guests. This structure is also the landing point where both lodges receive their supplies and fuel brought in by large reliable pangas on a regular basis. The pier also doubles as a nighttime fishing hotspot for certain unnamed angling fanatics that can’t get enough fishing. Well-appointed and strong trucks transport guests and supplies to Playa Blanca which is about one-half hour to the south. Tom Hamilton is the manager in charge of the fishing, the boats, and all the logistics functions. He made it clear that his purpose was to make sure that all guests were pleased and happy.
I was impressed that the configuration of buildings at Casa Blanca mirrored their purposes so well. There are eleven rooms-all of them air conditioned- that are set conveniently close to the pier, boats, dining room, and the relaxing centralized palapa and patio. Maria is the manager in charge of hotel operations that govern all the services and amenities for traveling anglers. She emphasized that “no item or desire was too small...we want our anglers satisfied.”
The staff scores 100 per cent in how you’re treated. This begins with a delicious ice-cold margarita that is served to you as you board their pier from your transport panga. It continues with delicious breakfasts of local fresh fruit and dishes of your choice through dinners of fish, chicken, steak and lobster all the way to after dinner cigars and perhaps a massage to top off a day of great fishing under the shining tropical sun.
Playa Blanca-
This wonderful facility also features a dedicated fishing program with 6 flats boats situated at the nearby Laguna Santa Rosa dock. This lodge has achieved its own beauty, which is desirably and distinctively different than its sister to the north. This facility has a beautifully spacious layout that features 7 rooms and the elite stand-alone Casa Redonda, 400 meters to the north. The entire property is bounded by a sugar sand beach lapped by the Caribbean Sea to the east and the primordially stunning Choc Mool Mayan ruins to the west.
Playa Blanca has unique appeal to anglers traveling with non-angling friends or spouses. The bountiful offerings of kayaks, snorkeling, eco-trekking, exploring the ruins, or simply relaxing makes each day at this destination a pleasurable adventure. When you arrive, you’ll be pleased to meet the delightful team of Max and Clara. Like their counterparts to the north, he handles fishing, fleet, and logistics while she handles hotel operations.
WHEN YOU GO:
You fly from your American city to Cancun. Guests making their own flight reservations must plan to arrive in Cancun no later than 2:00 p.m. and schedule their return flight from Cancun no earlier than 11 a.m. The lodge provides the transfer flights, which offer spectacular views and take less than an hour.
CONTACT DATA:
Casa Blanca Lodge
Telephone: 1-800-533-7299, 1-956-428-5666
Website: www.casablancafishing.com/
Email: outdoortravelinc@rgv.rr.com
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