Small Boat - Hudson Canyon

[AJFISH13]

Pm me if you need 2 guys anytime. Me and my dad have only tilefished before but have the balls to go to the canyon in a 24'. I will let you know if we can go. Always wanted to try tuna.

[dory24]

have run to the mud hole 2 dozen times, the glory 3 times and the chicken once, 24' 9'8" beam 3' draft very stable. new crusader classic 320 horse single, only one electronic part on the motor, the fuel pump and i carry a spare. not the fastest boat in the world but crusing at 24 mph without the four barrels open, 150 gallons on board. its doable but not something i would run even out of the mansquan where i am. have run plenty of canyon trips on my uncles 38 topaz and have seen plenty of good and bad weather, the only question is why, i wouldnt even try it, kudos for large balls but take a deep breath and if you have family do yourself a favor, save the money on the fuel and jump on a open boat.

[Dino]

Friday's forecast is mint, and you have twin screws. 24 is plenty of boat for a day troll. go fishing dude.

[mboy]

Originally Posted by Basspond

21 contenders come standard with 90 and now offer I believe 105.

Which would MAYBE get you safely one way to the Canyon from MI.

[Basspond]

Originally Posted by mboy

Which would MAYBE get you safely one way to the Canyon from MI.

You sure about that? 3.0+ mpg in nice weather (yes, you wouldn't ever take a 21 to the canyon regardless but...) 270 miles...

I fished the chicken in it, from the navesink (run all the way around the hook and back) trolled all day, etc. burned 55 gal.

[Farmer Andy]

Bryan, we used to run my buddy's Mako 20' from Ocean City, Md to the Baltimore and Wilmington canyons 5 or 6 trips/season. This was a single engine boat - he was fairly meticulous in ensuring the engine was perfect running order and we always took up to 20 gallons of extra fuel as well as 10 to 15 gallons of fresh water (preferably frozen). Lots of good advice on this thread including an EPIRB.

The trick was watching the weather and waiting for that day when we were sure there would be no winds greater than 5-10 kts. As long as all those criteria were satisfied, it was smooth sailing.

Good luck, the tuna are only around here for a few months!

[Gr8ful Fish]

Football Tuna:

As you can see there are 2 very different thoughts about your intended plan; you have received some excellent points from both camps. IMHO, just like a lot of other things in life, there are two sides to every story ... And, the truth is usually somewhere in the middle.

The reason for the dichotomy in opinions is that just like when hiking or hunting, some guys go into the woods in trucks or aboard fancy ATV's loaded with all kinds of gear, supplies and equipment while others head out with only their weapon, a backpack, a tent and their boots. Without any other details, one would expect that the person with the truck or ATV would be the better prepared, since they have more things. However, the truth of the matter is that the knowledge, experience, ability, and skills of the individual in either case is going to be far more important than any items, gadgets, electronic devices, or safety gear when it comes to getting back home safely.

I personally would rather be aboard a small, well-maintained boat with a smart, cautious and experienced Skipper than be aboard a multimillion dollar sportfisher that is being piloted by someone who is reckless, inexperienced or prone to bad judgement.

There is no doubt that fishing for big fish offshore with a small boat can be a lot of fun. Showing up back at the docks with tunas, mahi, wahoo, sharks, etc. aboard a small boat gives you a sense of pride and accomplishment that you simply can't get aboard a vessel two or more times the size of yours. You also feel much more "in touch" with your surroundings when you are fishing in small boat versus fishing aboard a floating house with motors. However, when/if something unexpectedly turns bad, the fun can quickly be replaced with terror and danger.

I say go if you are supremely confident about your boat, your redundant safety gear, your abilities, and MOST IMPORTANTLY the weather. If any or all of the above have even the slightest bit of uncertainty don't even think about it!

Remember, in the event of an unexpected serious emergency, you may not only be risking the lives of yourself and your crew, but also the lives of any others that may find themselves in the unfortunate position of needing to try to help or rescue you.

- Gr8ful


P.S. My brother runs twin Opti 135's on his boat, so I am very familiar with that particular motor's excellent fuel economy. However, you should definitely be more conservative regarding your anticipated fuel burn as on this type of trip, you will likely be carrying more fuel, ice, gear, equipment
(and hopefully fish) than you typically carry. All of this extra weight/drag will significantly increase your fuel burn.

[Capt. Debbie]

I read the book(NOT WITHOUT HOPE) by the survivor ( I USE IT IN MY BOATING CLASSES. IT'S A GOLD MINE OF LESSONS). It was a single O/B 20 footer 70 miles off Clearwater Florida in February 2009.

Contrary to popular opinion no one was drunk. There was no EPIRB. There was no time for a MAYDAY. And there was no float plan. Just knew where they fished the week before.

His anchor fouled in 6-7 footers. Capt. was pissed he lost an anchor the prior week. He snugs up the anchor line until it's nearly straight up and down. Ties it to the transom RINGS( the ones on the outside of the boat) and guns the engine hard to rip the anchor free. The anchor stays snagged and going forward hard under heavy power pulls the notched transom under water.

Capt. panics backs off throttle very quickly. The strain still in the fouled anchor line slides the boat's notched transom straight back into a 6 foot roller. Scooping up tons of water in a second or two.

The crew tried to counter balance the swamped boat in 6-7' rollers. Needless to say it flipped in less than 10 seconds. Their boat rode capsized, O/B up for 43 hours before the sole survivor was found. 2 of the 4 on board died in less than 24 hours from hypothermia and salt water ingestion(dementia). The 3rd of the 4 lasted another day. He took off his life jacket and just dove to the bottom killing himself.


A great book to learn A LOT FROM.

Originally Posted by MasterBaiter

Cap,

The only thing I have additional is an Epirb...and I'm in the Chicken with my 24' single engine pretty frequently... but that’s only 52 miles...and your adding 30 plus miles to that..The weather window is probably the most important thing as with such a small boat you'd take a beating. As for the comment about the guys in Florida...if they had an Epirb they'd all probably still be alive as it gives out your exact location for the coast guard rescue..In fact from my memory the only thing they had were survival suits and nothing else, not even portable VHF. When are you heading out…I’m leaving Belmar tomorrow for the Chicken…At least you’d have company for most of the ride.

Andrew