ISABLANCA SNOOK ADVENTURE

Bill Cooper

8/10

A favorite game fish of the Caribbean, the snook is a long, slender fish with stocky shoulders. Silver sides are decorated with a black lateral line and yellow fins during the spawning season. This handsome fish haunts the coastal waters and lagoons of the western Atlantic and the Caribbean from Florida and Texas all the way to Brazil.
Snook fishing has long been on my life list of things to do. For decades I have gloated over the pages of saltwater and coastal fishing magazines depicting anglers with huge smiles and a snook in hand as long as their arms. As attractive as the fish are, the exotic places in which they are found only adds to the adventure of pursuing them. Blue lagoons, white sand beaches and lush jungle growth surroundings create a mysterious aura in magazine photos.
A recent invitation from Cpt. Rodman Hunter, one of the most respected guides in the business, had me packing for the first leg of my adventure to Cancun, Mexico. The spectacular water and scenery surrounding Cancun promised to make the trip one of my most memorable ever.
A vast tourist industry has developed in Cancun over the last 20 years. Towering hotel resorts line the white, sand beaches, which attract hundreds of thousands of sun seekers and water enthusiasts from around the world.
I have an aversion to large crowds, but Cancun held an ambience of energy, excitement and saltwater breezes. Besides, I would be leaving the crowds behind for the sparsely visited waters off the coast of Islablanca,30 miles north of Cancun.
Cpt. Hunter and his two children, 16-year-old daughter Georgette (the only female guide in Cancun) and 10-year-old son Rodman Jr. picked me up at 5 a.m. at the Holiday Inn. The kids have spent many days on the water with their father and are expert fishermen.
Cpt. Hunter is one of the top saltwater flyfishing guides available. With almost 30 years of experience under his belt, there is little he has not seen on the water. A purist at heart, his attention to detail and pursuit of perfection is remarkable. He had described in detail, via e-mail, the importance of good equipment, the ability to use it and the absolute necessity of being able to respond quickly and accurately to approaching fish. “The window of opportunity to cast to a fish is most often very narrow,” Cpt. Hunter had explained.

Comprehending that statement proved impossible until I faced my first shot at a snook. A shot is the opportunity to cast a fly to a fish. The opportunity to cast fades quickly because of wind, waves and spooky fish.
The heady shock of the romantic experience at hand hit me like a hot blast of humid tropical air when I stepped onto the bow of Hunter’s boat for my first quest for snook. The cobalt blue skies, with billows of gray and cotton clouds, formed a dramatic backdrop for the lowland jungles that had tossed tangled, skeletal remains of mangroves into the sandy surf which the snook called home.
Hunter had rigged my 9-foot flyrod with a deceiver pattern fly. The large fly would be a challenge to cast accurately in the stiff wind. Additionally, the tangles of roots, limbs and logs that cloaked the shallow waters of the coastline looked foreboding. However, the habitat looked like there should be a snook behind every laydown.
Cpt. Hunter began poling his Maverick flats boat slowly and parallel to the shoreline. From his perch high on the poling platform at the rear of the boat, it didn’t take long for him to spot the first snook. “There. Right there, at three o’clock. See them. Two of them,” he instructed.
I struggled to see the fish in the thick cover. “No, I don’t see them,” I whispered.
Two long, dark shadows streaked from a nearby log to heavier cover. “You missed the shot,” Cpt. Hunter retorted. You must get on the fish quicker. They saw the boat and spooked.”
I knew from that first encounter with snook and the Cpt.’s intensity, that it was going to be one of the most interesting and educational fishing trips I had ever enjoyed.
Half a dozen opportunities presented themselves and disappeared in a heartbeat because I did not have the ability to pick the fish out among the tangles of logs and limbs. And my inexperience with casting heavy flies in a stiff wind didn’t help matters. Most times I took two or three attempts to get the fly where it needed to be placed. The Cpt. constantly reminded me that each additional cast greatly reduced my chances of making a hookup
“There, there, two snook at 11 o’clock. Cast now, now, now,” Hunter barked.
“Got ‘em,” I whispered, and I began a fast side arm cast. My first cast fell well short and the fish began to move.
“Get your fly put in front of them,” echoed my next orders.
My next shot landed eight feet in front of the cruising fish. I made my first strip of line to move the fly quickly. The two snook exploded from their hide, racing for my fly as I stripped in line faster to make the fly imitate a fleeing baitfish.
The smaller of the two fish, which appeared to be around 20-pounds, inhaled the fly with an explosion of water. The magnificent fish raced to heavy cover, burning line from the deck and burning my fingers as the line ripped off the reel. The drag proved too much for the line and a loud “ping” reverberated back to the boat. My first snook had disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. However, I felt elated. I had successfully hooked my first snook. My next goal was to land one.
Ten minutes later we spotted another pair of cruising snook. Big ones, well over 20 pounds. I placed my fly 10 feet in front of the first fish on my first shot and immediately began stripping line. One of the fish took the fly in the blink of an eye.
“He’s got it,” Cpt. Hunter shouted. ‘Set the hook!”
Line burned from my reel again as the powerful fish raced though the tangle of trees and brush. The raw power of the fish reverberated down the rod shaft as it ripped a 100 feet of line out. Just as my confidence of landing the fish peaked, it turned on a dime and raced towards the boat. I could not strip line fast enough to catch up. The slack line allowed the fly to fall from the corner of the snook’s mouth. It swam freely again.
Snook appeared in the tangles every few minutes giving me another two dozen shots over the next two hours. Most of the fish either spooked at the slightest noise or movement or simply disappeared into the jungle of tangles. Regardless, the challenge of fishing for these fish, which I had dreamed about for decades, in the wild environs where they lived, provided me an exciting and rewarding experience.
Two days later we returned to the same spot only to find the wind howling. The waves had churned the shore line to a dingy froth and the wind became too stiff for Hunter to pole the boat. He quickly adapted to the conditions and slid into the choppy water to wade and fish. I followed with camera in hand.
Cpt. Hunter knew the types of laydowns that the snook liked to inhabit. Blind fishing is much more difficult than sight fishing or being able to see the fish in clear water. In spite of the difficulty, hunter managed to hook a 10-pound fish within ten minutes. He used to power of his rod to coax the fish into open water. By instinct the fish struggled to regain the security of the jungles and soon managed to swim into a tangle of roots. Hunter hustled to the sight and managed wrangle the colorful fish from the mangrove roots.
The photos told the entire story. A superb fisherman tackled snook under the toughest of conditions with a flyrod and proved successful once again. As the fish slid back into the water, I could not help but think about all those big fish that had defeated me. However, I knew I with my new experience I would be far better prepared the next time I fished with Cpt. Rodman Hunter. And that will not be soon enough.
Cpt. Hunter may be contacted at www.cancunflyfishing @hotmail.com.
If you visit Cancun, try the following restaurants. MEXTREME offers traditional, authentic Mexican foods. The staff is lively and friendly and provides audience participant entertainment for an evening of good food and fun. LaParilla Mexican Grille is a bit more elaborate complete with era costumed musicians who entertain while you dine.