shore fishing cancun mexico questions/ barracuda Q's

[andrew chadwick]

So, I am going down to cancun in march, and want to get a little fishing in. I plan on bringing my cabelas salt striker medium wt. rod with 30# braid. I hear there are lots of barracuda and jacks so I will be bringing steel leaders and spoons. ( kastmasters, krocodiles)

I have a few questions though.

I read somewhere that there is a customs tax if you bring your own fishing gear into mexico. has anyone ever been charged this? I am bringing very minimal gear. ( one fanny pack with lures and flies)

my other question is in regards to fishing liscences. I have read that so long as you are not fishing out of a boat a liscence is not needed. Does any one have any for sure confirmation on this. The last thing that I want to do is to be put in a mexican jail for not having one.

My other question is in regards to barracudas. I just picked up some 12" steel leaders, but have read that they are too long and to go with 6 or eight inchers. does anyone have any first hand experience with this using artificials.( kastmasters to be exact)

Thanks.

-andrew

[traveler]

Hey Andrew; my experience is from the other coast in Cabo, but as far as i know, no license is need for shorefishing. I do bring my own tackle down, a rod tube with several rods, as well as reels and tackle. Never paid (or heard of anyone paying)any special tax or fee. Hope this helps, and good luck:)

[pikedreams]

Hey Andrew,

I've fished all over in Mexico and I've never been required to have any kind of license for shore fishing, or boat fishing with a local or a guide. Also you can freely rome the beach up and down without hassle because the waters edge belongs to the state. The hotels' property only extends out so far so you can walk up and down hotel row all day if you want.

What they don't tell you about Cancun is the surf. It's relentless. 6 to 8 foot rollers coming in all day,all night. So basically your gonna be surf fishing. I use an 8 foot Cabelas Whoopin stick with a large saltwater spinning reel with a baitfeeder feature. Big spoons work well, and when I say big spoons I mean 1 oz.,2 oz. or more. You have to be able to chuck them out there as far as you can. I've also had success with a makeshift saltwater carolina rig. Use a real heavy weight and bait it with shrimp or cutbait then toss it out. Click on the baitfeeder and stick the rod in the sand then kick back with a cold one.

As far as bringing your gear in there is no tax or duty at all. I've brought hundreds of dollars worth of stuff in with no problems. It may however be subject to an additional fee from the airline if it counts as an extra bag. I use one of those hard plastic large rifle cases with the egg crate foam. I break down my rods and they fit perfect

And just to be safe I also clearly mark on the outside in both english and spanish; "Fishing Rods". They're gonna check it for sure cuz a gun case is a huge red flag but I've never had a problem as long as your upfront with them.

[andrew chadwick]

pike dreams- what were you catching with the diferent rigs you described. I have done my share of saltwater fishing but most has been out of a boat, and in florida. I have never surf casted except three times for bluefish and stripers in MA when I was a kid.