(198,1,'2011-12-05 19:00:42','2011-12-05 19:00:42','<h2>Knowing a few simple rules can literally save your life</h2>\n\n<em><strong>By Ron Brooks</strong></em>\n\nYou’re thirty-five miles offshore in a small fishing boat and there is only one path back to the dock. The problem is – a big, offshore thunderstorm has built between you and the dock. What do you do? The decisions you make at this point could literally save your life.\n\n<strong>Basic Facts</strong>\nLet’s look at some very basic knowledge regarding offshore fishing or boating – things that every boater should know.\n\n	<li>The visible horizon distance on the water is about eighteen miles at sea level. For every foot you can get above the water, you extend the visible horizon distance. While you may not be able to see the shore or buildings on land from where you are, lookouts on a passing ship’s bridge will be able to see those landmarks. The higher you get, the more you can see.</li>\n\nThe same line of sight rule applies for VHF radio waves. Short of an atmospheric anomaly called skipping, VHF radio waves are only as good as a straight line of sight. Skipping happens as radio waves bounce off the atmosphere and back to earth, some- times several times. Where the waves return to earth, a radio receiver can pick them up, and sometimes that is several hundred miles away. As with the visible horizon, the radio wave, straight-line distance can be increased by getting up off the water.<li\n\nA boat antenna needs to be located at the highest point on the boat. That will extend the effective distance. Couple that with a shore antenna that is on a tower, and the radio horizon is extended a number of miles. • Even with a good antenna, the power driving the radio wave has to be sufficient to reach a distant antenna. Anyone going offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF is taking a big chance. Some boats head offshore with a five-watt hand held radio, and then wonder why they can’t raise anyone on a radio check. Some boats take a hand held twenty-five watt radio with a small antenna, thinking they are covered. While those radios are better than no radio, they are insufficient safety devices with which to head offshore beyond the visible horizon.</li>\n\n\nThe Troubling Situation\nHere we are, twenty miles offshore, and the offshore thunderstorm clouds are building. As you judge the wind and watch the clouds, you can see that the whole system is heading right at you. In the distance, lightning bolts are lighting up the interior of the thunderhead, and thunder rumbles lowly. One thousand one... one thousand two... one thousand three... You count the seconds between the lightning flash and the thunder rumble. Every five seconds of sound delay is roughly one mile in distance. And still you fish.\nWhat Happens in an Offshore Thunderstorm\nThunderheads that build over land along the shore are miniature, self contained, low- pressure systems. As they move toward you the atmospheric pressure drops, and that drop in pressure does a couple of things.\n• First, it causes the wind to pick up. As the pressure drops, wind begins to circulate around the system, heading down to the low pressure. In the northern hemisphere, that means a counterclockwise rotation, and the closer the storm gets, the higher the winds become. • Second, it causes the fish to really turn on. If the air pressure drops, the relative water\npressure drops as well. Fish can sense the pressure drop with their lateral lines. Knowing that the seas will soon be churning and dirty, many species, particularly shallow water and bottom fish, will “feed up” before the storm. • It generally takes a combination of decisions surrounding the existing circumstances that lead to trouble. But fish going into a feeding frenzy, coupled with a decision to wait just “a little longer” are two that can really put a boat in jeopardy.\nFive Basic Rules to Follow\nLet’s assume we make all the right decisions regarding the pending storm. What actions do we take? Here are some basic rules to live by if you fish offshore. They can give you peace of mind, but more importantly they can save your life.\n1. Never head offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF radio wired to a good vertical antenna. As you leave the dock, call for a radio check. The Coast Guard is not the right group to call at this point. They monitor channel 16, the hailing channel, but they are far too busy to be checking everyone’s radio. Call the dock master at the marina, or one of the several emergency boat towing agencies. They will gladly respond to a request for a radio check.\n2. Never leave the dock to head offshore without a full tank of fuel. You should have enough fuel to fish all day and return to the dock with no less than a half tank of gas remaining. That may sound high, but the reason will be clear as you read below. 3. For a fishing vessel, the deepest water you can safely and conceivably anchor in is about 150 feet. Even at that depth, you need a lot of anchor line. Plan to have an anchor line that is at least seven times the depth at which you may have to anchor – more is better. This depth to line length is called “rode,” and it is an important factor in keeping your boat anchored in a heavy sea. Given the amount of line required in a heavy sea, anchoring offshore in a storm should absolutely be your last choice.\n4. Keep several sealed gallon jugs of fresh water safely stowed on board. The additional space and weight are negligible compared to the need for that water in a boat adrift at sea for several days. 5. The first four rules are not Coast Guard requirements; they are common sense. In addition to those first four, make sure your vessel meets all the Coast Guard safety requirements regarding PFD’s and signaling devices. You may need them.\nYour Choice of Action\nWith the rules in tow, we can now make intelligent choices regarding the storm now heading our way.\n• Make a call on the radio to verify what you see. Find out which way the storm is headed. Ask about the winds. Tune to the predesignated weather channel for your area. If you are beyond the line of sight distance, ask any boat you can hail to relay your request. Find out what the storm is doing. Sometimes they build over the coast and sit until they cool off the air around them. Sometimes they move offshore. • If the storm is heading offshore, our first choice is to run, not away from it, but perpen- dicular to it. Heading for the dock is not possible; that puts us right in the teeth of the storm. Head ninety degrees in either direction and run out of the storm’s path. You now see the reason to have sufficient fuel! If the storm is large, you may need to run ten miles or more. If you make this choice early, it will likely be the only choice you need to make.\nRiding Out the Storm\nIn the event you can’t outrun the storm and get out of its path, it’s time to batten down, don life jackets, and prepare for a ride. Seas can increase with amazing speed, and the danger factor multiplies equally fast.\n• Keep the boat in gear and headed into the seas at an angle of five to ten degrees to the wind. Heading directly into big, steep waves will tend to bury the bow into the face of the next wave. A slight angle allows the boat to roll slightly, keeping the bow out of the water on the next wave. Too much angle will cause the boat to “breech” and possibly roll over.\n• Use only enough engine power to safely mount and ride over the oncoming waves. At this point the engine is the only tool that can help you accomplish boat positioning, and positioning is the only pertinent issue. Once again, your earlier fuel decisions play a major role.\n• Rain and water over the bow can fill a boat faster than most people envision. A good bilge pump is a necessity; make sure it works and that you use it as you ride out the storm. • Anchoring becomes a choice only when your engine power is either dead or insufficient to keep your boat positioned. Without power, the boat will turn sideways to the wind in a breech. The very next thing that will happen is an overturned vessel with people in the water.\n• Be prepared to get an anchor over quickly, but only as a last choice. The need for a long anchor line should be obvious. The anchor will, as it goes down, act as a drag and possibly pull the bow of the boat back into the wind. As it reaches bottom, feed out as much rode as possible and tie the line off on a bow cleat. Now, sit tight, keep the bilge pumps run- ning and ride out the storm.\nPlan Ahead to Avoid Disaster\nRiding out a storm in a small vessel is a harrowing experience. The amazing thing is that with few exceptions, there is no need to go through that experience. Proper planning and preparation will take care of the circumstances before they become an issue.\n• Check the weather reports. We call the forecasters “weather guessers” at times, but overall, they are pretty accurate, particularly regarding afternoon thunderstorms. Plan your trip’s conclusion to avoid the storms. • If storms build while you are offshore, make a decision early to either head in or run out of the storm’s way. Staying to catch that last fish will needlessly get you in big trouble. The fish will be there another day – make sure you are there with them!\n• Most of all, use common sense. That common sense tells us to be prepared even before we head out – and that means following the five rules we have already listed.\nBottom Line\nShould we fear the water? No – but we need to have a whole lot of respect for the power that a storm can generate on that water. And, we need to be prepared to address that power.','Dealing with Offshore Thunderstorms','','inherit','open','open','','197-revision','','','2011-12-05 19:00:42','2011-12-05 19:00:42','',197,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=198',0,'revision','',0),(199,1,'2011-12-05 19:00:56','2011-12-05 19:00:56','<h2>Knowing a few simple rules can literally save your life</h2>\r\n\r\n<em><strong>By Ron Brooks</strong></em>\r\n\r\nYou’re thirty-five miles offshore in a small fishing boat and there is only one path back to the dock. The problem is – a big, offshore thunderstorm has built between you and the dock. What do you do? The decisions you make at this point could literally save your life.\r\n\r\n<strong>Basic Facts</strong>\r\nLet’s look at some very basic knowledge regarding offshore fishing or boating – things that every boater should know.\r\n\r\n<li>The visible horizon distance on the water is about eighteen miles at sea level. For every foot you can get above the water, you extend the visible horizon distance. While you may not be able to see the shore or buildings on land from where you are, lookouts on a passing ship’s bridge will be able to see those landmarks. The higher you get, the more you can see.</li>\r\n\r\n<li>The same line of sight rule applies for VHF radio waves. Short of an atmospheric anomaly called skipping, VHF radio waves are only as good as a straight line of sight. Skipping happens as radio waves bounce off the atmosphere and back to earth, some- times several times. Where the waves return to earth, a radio receiver can pick them up, and sometimes that is several hundred miles away. As with the visible horizon, the radio wave, straight-line distance can be increased by getting up off the water.</li>\r\n\r\n<li>A boat antenna needs to be located at the highest point on the boat. That will extend the effective distance. Couple that with a shore antenna that is on a tower, and the radio horizon is extended a number of miles. • Even with a good antenna, the power driving the radio wave has to be sufficient to reach a distant antenna. Anyone going offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF is taking a big chance. Some boats head offshore with a five-watt hand held radio, and then wonder why they can’t raise anyone on a radio check. Some boats take a hand held twenty-five watt radio with a small antenna, thinking they are covered. While those radios are better than no radio, they are insufficient safety devices with which to head offshore beyond the visible horizon.</li>\r\n\r\n\r\nThe Troubling Situation\r\nHere we are, twenty miles offshore, and the offshore thunderstorm clouds are building. As you judge the wind and watch the clouds, you can see that the whole system is heading right at you. In the distance, lightning bolts are lighting up the interior of the thunderhead, and thunder rumbles lowly. One thousand one... one thousand two... one thousand three... You count the seconds between the lightning flash and the thunder rumble. Every five seconds of sound delay is roughly one mile in distance. And still you fish.\r\nWhat Happens in an Offshore Thunderstorm\r\nThunderheads that build over land along the shore are miniature, self contained, low- pressure systems. As they move toward you the atmospheric pressure drops, and that drop in pressure does a couple of things.\r\n• First, it causes the wind to pick up. As the pressure drops, wind begins to circulate around the system, heading down to the low pressure. In the northern hemisphere, that means a counterclockwise rotation, and the closer the storm gets, the higher the winds become. • Second, it causes the fish to really turn on. If the air pressure drops, the relative water\r\npressure drops as well. Fish can sense the pressure drop with their lateral lines. Knowing that the seas will soon be churning and dirty, many species, particularly shallow water and bottom fish, will “feed up” before the storm. • It generally takes a combination of decisions surrounding the existing circumstances that lead to trouble. But fish going into a feeding frenzy, coupled with a decision to wait just “a little longer” are two that can really put a boat in jeopardy.\r\nFive Basic Rules to Follow\r\nLet’s assume we make all the right decisions regarding the pending storm. What actions do we take? Here are some basic rules to live by if you fish offshore. They can give you peace of mind, but more importantly they can save your life.\r\n1. Never head offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF radio wired to a good vertical antenna. As you leave the dock, call for a radio check. The Coast Guard is not the right group to call at this point. They monitor channel 16, the hailing channel, but they are far too busy to be checking everyone’s radio. Call the dock master at the marina, or one of the several emergency boat towing agencies. They will gladly respond to a request for a radio check.\r\n2. Never leave the dock to head offshore without a full tank of fuel. You should have enough fuel to fish all day and return to the dock with no less than a half tank of gas remaining. That may sound high, but the reason will be clear as you read below. 3. For a fishing vessel, the deepest water you can safely and conceivably anchor in is about 150 feet. Even at that depth, you need a lot of anchor line. Plan to have an anchor line that is at least seven times the depth at which you may have to anchor – more is better. This depth to line length is called “rode,” and it is an important factor in keeping your boat anchored in a heavy sea. Given the amount of line required in a heavy sea, anchoring offshore in a storm should absolutely be your last choice.\r\n4. Keep several sealed gallon jugs of fresh water safely stowed on board. The additional space and weight are negligible compared to the need for that water in a boat adrift at sea for several days. 5. The first four rules are not Coast Guard requirements; they are common sense. In addition to those first four, make sure your vessel meets all the Coast Guard safety requirements regarding PFD’s and signaling devices. You may need them.\r\nYour Choice of Action\r\nWith the rules in tow, we can now make intelligent choices regarding the storm now heading our way.\r\n• Make a call on the radio to verify what you see. Find out which way the storm is headed. Ask about the winds. Tune to the predesignated weather channel for your area. If you are beyond the line of sight distance, ask any boat you can hail to relay your request. Find out what the storm is doing. Sometimes they build over the coast and sit until they cool off the air around them. Sometimes they move offshore. • If the storm is heading offshore, our first choice is to run, not away from it, but perpen- dicular to it. Heading for the dock is not possible; that puts us right in the teeth of the storm. Head ninety degrees in either direction and run out of the storm’s path. You now see the reason to have sufficient fuel! If the storm is large, you may need to run ten miles or more. If you make this choice early, it will likely be the only choice you need to make.\r\nRiding Out the Storm\r\nIn the event you can’t outrun the storm and get out of its path, it’s time to batten down, don life jackets, and prepare for a ride. Seas can increase with amazing speed, and the danger factor multiplies equally fast.\r\n• Keep the boat in gear and headed into the seas at an angle of five to ten degrees to the wind. Heading directly into big, steep waves will tend to bury the bow into the face of the next wave. A slight angle allows the boat to roll slightly, keeping the bow out of the water on the next wave. Too much angle will cause the boat to “breech” and possibly roll over.\r\n• Use only enough engine power to safely mount and ride over the oncoming waves. At this point the engine is the only tool that can help you accomplish boat positioning, and positioning is the only pertinent issue. Once again, your earlier fuel decisions play a major role.\r\n• Rain and water over the bow can fill a boat faster than most people envision. A good bilge pump is a necessity; make sure it works and that you use it as you ride out the storm. • Anchoring becomes a choice only when your engine power is either dead or insufficient to keep your boat positioned. Without power, the boat will turn sideways to the wind in a breech. The very next thing that will happen is an overturned vessel with people in the water.\r\n• Be prepared to get an anchor over quickly, but only as a last choice. The need for a long anchor line should be obvious. The anchor will, as it goes down, act as a drag and possibly pull the bow of the boat back into the wind. As it reaches bottom, feed out as much rode as possible and tie the line off on a bow cleat. Now, sit tight, keep the bilge pumps run- ning and ride out the storm.\r\nPlan Ahead to Avoid Disaster\r\nRiding out a storm in a small vessel is a harrowing experience. The amazing thing is that with few exceptions, there is no need to go through that experience. Proper planning and preparation will take care of the circumstances before they become an issue.\r\n• Check the weather reports. We call the forecasters “weather guessers” at times, but overall, they are pretty accurate, particularly regarding afternoon thunderstorms. Plan your trip’s conclusion to avoid the storms. • If storms build while you are offshore, make a decision early to either head in or run out of the storm’s way. Staying to catch that last fish will needlessly get you in big trouble. The fish will be there another day – make sure you are there with them!\r\n• Most of all, use common sense. That common sense tells us to be prepared even before we head out – and that means following the five rules we have already listed.\r\nBottom Line\r\nShould we fear the water? No – but we need to have a whole lot of respect for the power that a storm can generate on that water. And, we need to be prepared to address that power.','Dealing with Offshore Thunderstorms','','inherit','open','open','','197-revision-2','','','2011-12-05 19:00:56','2011-12-05 19:00:56','',197,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=199',0,'revision','',0),(200,1,'2011-12-05 19:01:05','2011-12-05 19:01:05','<h2>Knowing a few simple rules can literally save your life</h2>\r\n\r\n<em><strong>By Ron Brooks</strong></em>\r\n\r\nYou’re thirty-five miles offshore in a small fishing boat and there is only one path back to the dock. The problem is – a big, offshore thunderstorm has built between you and the dock. What do you do? The decisions you make at this point could literally save your life.\r\n\r\n<strong>Basic Facts</strong>\r\nLet’s look at some very basic knowledge regarding offshore fishing or boating – things that every boater should know.\r\n\r\n<li>The visible horizon distance on the water is about eighteen miles at sea level. For every foot you can get above the water, you extend the visible horizon distance. While you may not be able to see the shore or buildings on land from where you are, lookouts on a passing ship’s bridge will be able to see those landmarks. The higher you get, the more you can see.</li>\r\n\r\n<li>The same line of sight rule applies for VHF radio waves. Short of an atmospheric anomaly called skipping, VHF radio waves are only as good as a straight line of sight. Skipping happens as radio waves bounce off the atmosphere and back to earth, some- times several times. Where the waves return to earth, a radio receiver can pick them up, and sometimes that is several hundred miles away. As with the visible horizon, the radio wave, straight-line distance can be increased by getting up off the water.</li>\r\n\r\n<li>A boat antenna needs to be located at the highest point on the boat. That will extend the effective distance. Couple that with a shore antenna that is on a tower, and the radio horizon is extended a number of miles. • Even with a good antenna, the power driving the radio wave has to be sufficient to reach a distant antenna. Anyone going offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF is taking a big chance. Some boats head offshore with a five-watt hand held radio, and then wonder why they can’t raise anyone on a radio check. Some boats take a hand held twenty-five watt radio with a small antenna, thinking they are covered. While those radios are better than no radio, they are insufficient safety devices with which to head offshore beyond the visible horizon.</li>\r\n\r\n\r\nThe Troubling Situation\r\nHere we are, twenty miles offshore, and the offshore thunderstorm clouds are building. As you judge the wind and watch the clouds, you can see that the whole system is heading right at you. In the distance, lightning bolts are lighting up the interior of the thunderhead, and thunder rumbles lowly. One thousand one... one thousand two... one thousand three... You count the seconds between the lightning flash and the thunder rumble. Every five seconds of sound delay is roughly one mile in distance. And still you fish.\r\nWhat Happens in an Offshore Thunderstorm\r\nThunderheads that build over land along the shore are miniature, self contained, low- pressure systems. As they move toward you the atmospheric pressure drops, and that drop in pressure does a couple of things.\r\n• First, it causes the wind to pick up. As the pressure drops, wind begins to circulate around the system, heading down to the low pressure. In the northern hemisphere, that means a counterclockwise rotation, and the closer the storm gets, the higher the winds become. • Second, it causes the fish to really turn on. If the air pressure drops, the relative water\r\npressure drops as well. Fish can sense the pressure drop with their lateral lines. Knowing that the seas will soon be churning and dirty, many species, particularly shallow water and bottom fish, will “feed up” before the storm. • It generally takes a combination of decisions surrounding the existing circumstances that lead to trouble. But fish going into a feeding frenzy, coupled with a decision to wait just “a little longer” are two that can really put a boat in jeopardy.\r\nFive Basic Rules to Follow\r\nLet’s assume we make all the right decisions regarding the pending storm. What actions do we take? Here are some basic rules to live by if you fish offshore. They can give you peace of mind, but more importantly they can save your life.\r\n1. Never head offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF radio wired to a good vertical antenna. As you leave the dock, call for a radio check. The Coast Guard is not the right group to call at this point. They monitor channel 16, the hailing channel, but they are far too busy to be checking everyone’s radio. Call the dock master at the marina, or one of the several emergency boat towing agencies. They will gladly respond to a request for a radio check.\r\n2. Never leave the dock to head offshore without a full tank of fuel. You should have enough fuel to fish all day and return to the dock with no less than a half tank of gas remaining. That may sound high, but the reason will be clear as you read below. 3. For a fishing vessel, the deepest water you can safely and conceivably anchor in is about 150 feet. Even at that depth, you need a lot of anchor line. Plan to have an anchor line that is at least seven times the depth at which you may have to anchor – more is better. This depth to line length is called “rode,” and it is an important factor in keeping your boat anchored in a heavy sea. Given the amount of line required in a heavy sea, anchoring offshore in a storm should absolutely be your last choice.\r\n4. Keep several sealed gallon jugs of fresh water safely stowed on board. The additional space and weight are negligible compared to the need for that water in a boat adrift at sea for several days. 5. The first four rules are not Coast Guard requirements; they are common sense. In addition to those first four, make sure your vessel meets all the Coast Guard safety requirements regarding PFD’s and signaling devices. You may need them.\r\nYour Choice of Action\r\nWith the rules in tow, we can now make intelligent choices regarding the storm now heading our way.\r\n• Make a call on the radio to verify what you see. Find out which way the storm is headed. Ask about the winds. Tune to the predesignated weather channel for your area. If you are beyond the line of sight distance, ask any boat you can hail to relay your request. Find out what the storm is doing. Sometimes they build over the coast and sit until they cool off the air around them. Sometimes they move offshore. • If the storm is heading offshore, our first choice is to run, not away from it, but perpen- dicular to it. Heading for the dock is not possible; that puts us right in the teeth of the storm. Head ninety degrees in either direction and run out of the storm’s path. You now see the reason to have sufficient fuel! If the storm is large, you may need to run ten miles or more. If you make this choice early, it will likely be the only choice you need to make.\r\nRiding Out the Storm\r\nIn the event you can’t outrun the storm and get out of its path, it’s time to batten down, don life jackets, and prepare for a ride. Seas can increase with amazing speed, and the danger factor multiplies equally fast.\r\n• Keep the boat in gear and headed into the seas at an angle of five to ten degrees to the wind. Heading directly into big, steep waves will tend to bury the bow into the face of the next wave. A slight angle allows the boat to roll slightly, keeping the bow out of the water on the next wave. Too much angle will cause the boat to “breech” and possibly roll over.\r\n• Use only enough engine power to safely mount and ride over the oncoming waves. At this point the engine is the only tool that can help you accomplish boat positioning, and positioning is the only pertinent issue. Once again, your earlier fuel decisions play a major role.\r\n• Rain and water over the bow can fill a boat faster than most people envision. A good bilge pump is a necessity; make sure it works and that you use it as you ride out the storm. • Anchoring becomes a choice only when your engine power is either dead or insufficient to keep your boat positioned. Without power, the boat will turn sideways to the wind in a breech. The very next thing that will happen is an overturned vessel with people in the water.\r\n• Be prepared to get an anchor over quickly, but only as a last choice. The need for a long anchor line should be obvious. The anchor will, as it goes down, act as a drag and possibly pull the bow of the boat back into the wind. As it reaches bottom, feed out as much rode as possible and tie the line off on a bow cleat. Now, sit tight, keep the bilge pumps run- ning and ride out the storm.\r\nPlan Ahead to Avoid Disaster\r\nRiding out a storm in a small vessel is a harrowing experience. The amazing thing is that with few exceptions, there is no need to go through that experience. Proper planning and preparation will take care of the circumstances before they become an issue.\r\n• Check the weather reports. We call the forecasters “weather guessers” at times, but overall, they are pretty accurate, particularly regarding afternoon thunderstorms. Plan your trip’s conclusion to avoid the storms. • If storms build while you are offshore, make a decision early to either head in or run out of the storm’s way. Staying to catch that last fish will needlessly get you in big trouble. The fish will be there another day – make sure you are there with them!\r\n• Most of all, use common sense. That common sense tells us to be prepared even before we head out – and that means following the five rules we have already listed.\r\nBottom Line\r\nShould we fear the water? No – but we need to have a whole lot of respect for the power that a storm can generate on that water. And, we need to be prepared to address that power.','Dealing with Offshore Thunderstorms','','inherit','open','open','','197-revision-3','','','2011-12-05 19:01:05','2011-12-05 19:01:05','',197,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=200',0,'revision','',0),(201,1,'2011-12-05 19:06:03','2011-12-05 19:06:03','<h2>Knowing a few simple rules can literally save your life</h2>\n<em><strong>By Ron Brooks</strong></em>\n\nYou’re thirty-five miles offshore in a small fishing boat and there is only one path back to the dock. The problem is – a big, offshore thunderstorm has built between you and the dock. What do you do? The decisions you make at this point could literally save your life.\n<h3>Basic Facts</h3>\nLet’s look at some very basic knowledge regarding offshore fishing or boating – things that every boater should know.\n<ul>\n	<li>The visible horizon distance on the water is about eighteen miles at sea level. For every foot you can get above the water, you extend the visible horizon distance. While you may not be able to see the shore or buildings on land from where you are, lookouts on a passing ship’s bridge will be able to see those landmarks. The higher you get, the more you can see.</li>\n	<li>The same line of sight rule applies for VHF radio waves. Short of an atmospheric anomaly called skipping, VHF radio waves are only as good as a straight line of sight. Skipping happens as radio waves bounce off the atmosphere and back to earth, some- times several times. Where the waves return to earth, a radio receiver can pick them up, and sometimes that is several hundred miles away. As with the visible horizon, the radio wave, straight-line distance can be increased by getting up off the water.</li>\n	<li>A boat antenna needs to be located at the highest point on the boat. That will extend the effective distance. Couple that with a shore antenna that is on a tower, and the radio horizon is extended a number of miles. • Even with a good antenna, the power driving the radio wave has to be sufficient to reach a distant antenna. Anyone going offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF is taking a big chance. Some boats head offshore with a five-watt hand held radio, and then wonder why they can’t raise anyone on a radio check. Some boats take a hand held twenty-five watt radio with a small antenna, thinking they are covered. While those radios are better than no radio, they are insufficient safety devices with which to head offshore beyond the visible horizon.</li>\n</ul>\n<h3>The Troubling Situation</h3>\nHere we are, twenty miles offshore, and the offshore thunderstorm clouds are building. As you judge the wind and watch the clouds, you can see that the whole system is heading right at you. In the distance, lightning bolts are lighting up the interior of the thunderhead, and thunder rumbles lowly. One thousand one... one thousand two... one thousand three... You count the seconds between the lightning flash and the thunder rumble. Every five seconds of sound delay is roughly one mile in distance. And still you fish.\n\nWhat Happens in an Offshore Thunderstorm Thunderheads that build over land along the shore are miniature, self contained, low- pressure systems. As they move toward you the atmospheric pressure drops, and that drop in pressure does a couple of things.\n<ul>\n	<li>First, it causes the wind to pick up. As the pressure drops, wind begins to circulate around the system, heading down to the low pressure. In the northern hemisphere, that means a counterclockwise rotation, and the closer the storm gets, the higher the winds become.</li>\n	<li>Second, it causes the fish to really turn on. If the air pressure drops, the relative water pressure drops as well. Fish can sense the pressure drop with their lateral lines. Knowing that the seas will soon be churning and dirty, many species, particularly shallow water and bottom fish, will “feed up” before the storm.</li>\n	<li>It generally takes a combination of decisions surrounding the existing circumstances that lead to trouble. But fish going into a feeding frenzy, coupled with a decision to wait just “a little longer” are two that can really put a boat in jeopardy.</li>\n</ul>\n<h3>Five Basic Rules to Follow</h3>\nLet’s assume we make all the right decisions regarding the pending storm. What actions do we take? Here are some basic rules to live by if you fish offshore. They can give you peace of mind, but more importantly they can save your life.\n<ol>\n	<li>Never head offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF radio wired to a good vertical antenna. As you leave the dock, call for a radio check. The Coast Guard is not the right group to call at this point. They monitor channel 16, the hailing channel, but they are far too busy to be checking everyone’s radio. Call the dock master at the marina, or one of the several emergency boat towing agencies. They will gladly respond to a request for a radio check.</li>\n	<li>Never leave the dock to head offshore without a full tank of fuel. You should have enough fuel to fish all day and return to the dock with no less than a half tank of gas remaining. That may sound high, but the reason will be clear as you read below.</li>\n	<li>For a fishing vessel, the deepest water you can safely and conceivably anchor in is about 150 feet. Even at that depth, you need a lot of anchor line. Plan to have an anchor line that is at least seven times the depth at which you may have to anchor – more is better. This depth to line length is called “rode,” and it is an important factor in keeping your boat anchored in a heavy sea. Given the amount of line required in a heavy sea, anchoring offshore in a storm should absolutely be your last choice.</li>\n	<li>Keep several sealed gallon jugs of fresh water safely stowed on board. The additional space and weight are negligible compared to the need for that water in a boat adrift at sea for several days. 5. The first four rules are not Coast Guard requirements; they are common sense. In addition to those first four, make sure your vessel meets all the Coast Guard safety requirements regarding PFD’s and signaling devices. You may need them.</li>\n</ol>\n<h3>Your Choice of Action</h3>\nWith the rules in tow, we can now make intelligent choices regarding the storm now heading our way.\n<ul>\n	<li>Make a call on the radio to verify what you see. Find out which way the storm is headed. Ask about the winds. Tune to the predesignated weather channel for your area. If you are beyond the line of sight distance, ask any boat you can hail to relay your request. Find out what the storm is doing. Sometimes they build over the coast and sit until they cool off the air around them. Sometimes they move offshore.</li>\n	<li>If the storm is heading offshore, our first choice is to run, not away from it, but perpen- dicular to it. Heading for the dock is not possible; that puts us right in the teeth of the storm. Head ninety degrees in either direction and run out of the storm’s path. You now see the reason to have sufficient fuel! If the storm is large, you may need to run ten miles or more. If you make this choice early, it will likely be the only choice you need to make.</li>\n</ul>\n<h3>Riding Out the Storm</h3>\nIn the event you can’t outrun the storm and get out of its path, it’s time to batten down, don life jackets, and prepare for a ride. Seas can increase with amazing speed, and the danger factor multiplies equally fast.\n<ul>\n	<li>Keep the boat in gear and headed into the seas at an angle of five to ten degrees to the wind. Heading directly into big, steep waves will tend to bury the bow into the face of the next wave. A slight angle allows the boat to roll slightly, keeping the bow out of the water on the next wave. Too much angle will cause the boat to “breech” and possibly roll over.</li>\n	<li>Use only enough engine power to safely mount and ride over the oncoming waves. At this point the engine is the only tool that can help you accomplish boat positioning, and positioning is the only pertinent issue. Once again, your earlier fuel decisions play a major role.</li>\n	<li>Rain and water over the bow can fill a boat faster than most people envision. A good bilge pump is a necessity; make sure it works and that you use it as you ride out the storm. • Anchoring becomes a choice only when your engine power is either dead or insufficient to keep your boat positioned. Without power, the boat will turn sideways to the wind in a breech. The very next thing that will happen is an overturned vessel with people in the water.</li>\n	<li>Be prepared to get an anchor over quickly, but only as a last choice. The need for a long anchor line should be obvious. The anchor will, as it goes down, act as a drag and possibly pull the bow of the boat back into the wind. As it reaches bottom, feed out as much rode as possible and tie the line off on a bow cleat. Now, sit tight, keep the bilge pumps running and ride out the storm.</li>\n</ul>\n<h3>Plan Ahead to Avoid Disaster</h3>\nRiding out a storm in a small vessel is a harrowing experience. The amazing thing is that with few exceptions, there is no need to go through that experience. Proper planning and preparation will take care of the circumstances before they become an issue.\n\n• Check the weather reports. We call the forecasters “weather guessers” at times, but overall, they are pretty accurate, particularly regarding afternoon thunderstorms. Plan your trip’s conclusion to avoid the storms.\n\n• If storms build while you are offshore, make a decision early to either head in or run out of the storm’s way. Staying to catch that last fish will needlessly get you in big trouble. The fish will be there another day – make sure you are there with them!\n\n• Most of all, use common sense. That common sense tells us to be prepared even before we head out – and that means following the five rules we have already listed.\n\nBottom Line\nShould we fear the water? No – but we need to have a whole lot of respect for the power that a storm can generate on that water. And, we need to be prepared to address that power.','Dealing with Offshore Thunderstorms','','inherit','open','open','','197-autosave','','','2011-12-05 19:06:03','2011-12-05 19:06:03','',197,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=201',0,'revision','',0),(202,1,'2011-12-05 19:01:41','2011-12-05 19:01:41','<h2>Knowing a few simple rules can literally save your life</h2>\r\n\r\n<em><strong>By Ron Brooks</strong></em>\r\n\r\nYou’re thirty-five miles offshore in a small fishing boat and there is only one path back to the dock. The problem is – a big, offshore thunderstorm has built between you and the dock. What do you do? The decisions you make at this point could literally save your life.\r\n\r\n<strong>Basic Facts</strong>\r\nLet’s look at some very basic knowledge regarding offshore fishing or boating – things that every boater should know.\r\n\r\n<ul>\r\n<li>The visible horizon distance on the water is about eighteen miles at sea level. For every foot you can get above the water, you extend the visible horizon distance. While you may not be able to see the shore or buildings on land from where you are, lookouts on a passing ship’s bridge will be able to see those landmarks. The higher you get, the more you can see.</li>\r\n\r\n<li>The same line of sight rule applies for VHF radio waves. Short of an atmospheric anomaly called skipping, VHF radio waves are only as good as a straight line of sight. Skipping happens as radio waves bounce off the atmosphere and back to earth, some- times several times. Where the waves return to earth, a radio receiver can pick them up, and sometimes that is several hundred miles away. As with the visible horizon, the radio wave, straight-line distance can be increased by getting up off the water.</li>\r\n\r\n<li>A boat antenna needs to be located at the highest point on the boat. That will extend the effective distance. Couple that with a shore antenna that is on a tower, and the radio horizon is extended a number of miles. • Even with a good antenna, the power driving the radio wave has to be sufficient to reach a distant antenna. Anyone going offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF is taking a big chance. Some boats head offshore with a five-watt hand held radio, and then wonder why they can’t raise anyone on a radio check. Some boats take a hand held twenty-five watt radio with a small antenna, thinking they are covered. While those radios are better than no radio, they are insufficient safety devices with which to head offshore beyond the visible horizon.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n\r\n\r\nThe Troubling Situation\r\nHere we are, twenty miles offshore, and the offshore thunderstorm clouds are building. As you judge the wind and watch the clouds, you can see that the whole system is heading right at you. In the distance, lightning bolts are lighting up the interior of the thunderhead, and thunder rumbles lowly. One thousand one... one thousand two... one thousand three... You count the seconds between the lightning flash and the thunder rumble. Every five seconds of sound delay is roughly one mile in distance. And still you fish.\r\nWhat Happens in an Offshore Thunderstorm\r\nThunderheads that build over land along the shore are miniature, self contained, low- pressure systems. As they move toward you the atmospheric pressure drops, and that drop in pressure does a couple of things.\r\n• First, it causes the wind to pick up. As the pressure drops, wind begins to circulate around the system, heading down to the low pressure. In the northern hemisphere, that means a counterclockwise rotation, and the closer the storm gets, the higher the winds become. • Second, it causes the fish to really turn on. If the air pressure drops, the relative water\r\npressure drops as well. Fish can sense the pressure drop with their lateral lines. Knowing that the seas will soon be churning and dirty, many species, particularly shallow water and bottom fish, will “feed up” before the storm. • It generally takes a combination of decisions surrounding the existing circumstances that lead to trouble. But fish going into a feeding frenzy, coupled with a decision to wait just “a little longer” are two that can really put a boat in jeopardy.\r\nFive Basic Rules to Follow\r\nLet’s assume we make all the right decisions regarding the pending storm. What actions do we take? Here are some basic rules to live by if you fish offshore. They can give you peace of mind, but more importantly they can save your life.\r\n1. Never head offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF radio wired to a good vertical antenna. As you leave the dock, call for a radio check. The Coast Guard is not the right group to call at this point. They monitor channel 16, the hailing channel, but they are far too busy to be checking everyone’s radio. Call the dock master at the marina, or one of the several emergency boat towing agencies. They will gladly respond to a request for a radio check.\r\n2. Never leave the dock to head offshore without a full tank of fuel. You should have enough fuel to fish all day and return to the dock with no less than a half tank of gas remaining. That may sound high, but the reason will be clear as you read below. 3. For a fishing vessel, the deepest water you can safely and conceivably anchor in is about 150 feet. Even at that depth, you need a lot of anchor line. Plan to have an anchor line that is at least seven times the depth at which you may have to anchor – more is better. This depth to line length is called “rode,” and it is an important factor in keeping your boat anchored in a heavy sea. Given the amount of line required in a heavy sea, anchoring offshore in a storm should absolutely be your last choice.\r\n4. Keep several sealed gallon jugs of fresh water safely stowed on board. The additional space and weight are negligible compared to the need for that water in a boat adrift at sea for several days. 5. The first four rules are not Coast Guard requirements; they are common sense. In addition to those first four, make sure your vessel meets all the Coast Guard safety requirements regarding PFD’s and signaling devices. You may need them.\r\nYour Choice of Action\r\nWith the rules in tow, we can now make intelligent choices regarding the storm now heading our way.\r\n• Make a call on the radio to verify what you see. Find out which way the storm is headed. Ask about the winds. Tune to the predesignated weather channel for your area. If you are beyond the line of sight distance, ask any boat you can hail to relay your request. Find out what the storm is doing. Sometimes they build over the coast and sit until they cool off the air around them. Sometimes they move offshore. • If the storm is heading offshore, our first choice is to run, not away from it, but perpen- dicular to it. Heading for the dock is not possible; that puts us right in the teeth of the storm. Head ninety degrees in either direction and run out of the storm’s path. You now see the reason to have sufficient fuel! If the storm is large, you may need to run ten miles or more. If you make this choice early, it will likely be the only choice you need to make.\r\nRiding Out the Storm\r\nIn the event you can’t outrun the storm and get out of its path, it’s time to batten down, don life jackets, and prepare for a ride. Seas can increase with amazing speed, and the danger factor multiplies equally fast.\r\n• Keep the boat in gear and headed into the seas at an angle of five to ten degrees to the wind. Heading directly into big, steep waves will tend to bury the bow into the face of the next wave. A slight angle allows the boat to roll slightly, keeping the bow out of the water on the next wave. Too much angle will cause the boat to “breech” and possibly roll over.\r\n• Use only enough engine power to safely mount and ride over the oncoming waves. At this point the engine is the only tool that can help you accomplish boat positioning, and positioning is the only pertinent issue. Once again, your earlier fuel decisions play a major role.\r\n• Rain and water over the bow can fill a boat faster than most people envision. A good bilge pump is a necessity; make sure it works and that you use it as you ride out the storm. • Anchoring becomes a choice only when your engine power is either dead or insufficient to keep your boat positioned. Without power, the boat will turn sideways to the wind in a breech. The very next thing that will happen is an overturned vessel with people in the water.\r\n• Be prepared to get an anchor over quickly, but only as a last choice. The need for a long anchor line should be obvious. The anchor will, as it goes down, act as a drag and possibly pull the bow of the boat back into the wind. As it reaches bottom, feed out as much rode as possible and tie the line off on a bow cleat. Now, sit tight, keep the bilge pumps run- ning and ride out the storm.\r\nPlan Ahead to Avoid Disaster\r\nRiding out a storm in a small vessel is a harrowing experience. The amazing thing is that with few exceptions, there is no need to go through that experience. Proper planning and preparation will take care of the circumstances before they become an issue.\r\n• Check the weather reports. We call the forecasters “weather guessers” at times, but overall, they are pretty accurate, particularly regarding afternoon thunderstorms. Plan your trip’s conclusion to avoid the storms. • If storms build while you are offshore, make a decision early to either head in or run out of the storm’s way. Staying to catch that last fish will needlessly get you in big trouble. The fish will be there another day – make sure you are there with them!\r\n• Most of all, use common sense. That common sense tells us to be prepared even before we head out – and that means following the five rules we have already listed.\r\nBottom Line\r\nShould we fear the water? No – but we need to have a whole lot of respect for the power that a storm can generate on that water. And, we need to be prepared to address that power.','Dealing with Offshore Thunderstorms','','inherit','open','open','','197-revision-4','','','2011-12-05 19:01:41','2011-12-05 19:01:41','',197,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=202',0,'revision','',0),(203,1,'2011-12-05 19:04:25','2011-12-05 19:04:25','<h2>Knowing a few simple rules can literally save your life</h2>\r\n\r\n<em><strong>By Ron Brooks</strong></em>\r\n\r\nYou’re thirty-five miles offshore in a small fishing boat and there is only one path back to the dock. The problem is – a big, offshore thunderstorm has built between you and the dock. What do you do? The decisions you make at this point could literally save your life.\r\n\r\n<h3>Basic Facts</h3>\r\nLet’s look at some very basic knowledge regarding offshore fishing or boating – things that every boater should know.\r\n\r\n<ul>\r\n<li>The visible horizon distance on the water is about eighteen miles at sea level. For every foot you can get above the water, you extend the visible horizon distance. While you may not be able to see the shore or buildings on land from where you are, lookouts on a passing ship’s bridge will be able to see those landmarks. The higher you get, the more you can see.</li>\r\n\r\n<li>The same line of sight rule applies for VHF radio waves. Short of an atmospheric anomaly called skipping, VHF radio waves are only as good as a straight line of sight. Skipping happens as radio waves bounce off the atmosphere and back to earth, some- times several times. Where the waves return to earth, a radio receiver can pick them up, and sometimes that is several hundred miles away. As with the visible horizon, the radio wave, straight-line distance can be increased by getting up off the water.</li>\r\n\r\n<li>A boat antenna needs to be located at the highest point on the boat. That will extend the effective distance. Couple that with a shore antenna that is on a tower, and the radio horizon is extended a number of miles. • Even with a good antenna, the power driving the radio wave has to be sufficient to reach a distant antenna. Anyone going offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF is taking a big chance. Some boats head offshore with a five-watt hand held radio, and then wonder why they can’t raise anyone on a radio check. Some boats take a hand held twenty-five watt radio with a small antenna, thinking they are covered. While those radios are better than no radio, they are insufficient safety devices with which to head offshore beyond the visible horizon.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h3>The Troubling Situation</h3>\r\nHere we are, twenty miles offshore, and the offshore thunderstorm clouds are building. As you judge the wind and watch the clouds, you can see that the whole system is heading right at you. In the distance, lightning bolts are lighting up the interior of the thunderhead, and thunder rumbles lowly. One thousand one... one thousand two... one thousand three... You count the seconds between the lightning flash and the thunder rumble. Every five seconds of sound delay is roughly one mile in distance. And still you fish.\r\n\r\nWhat Happens in an Offshore Thunderstorm Thunderheads that build over land along the shore are miniature, self contained, low- pressure systems. As they move toward you the atmospheric pressure drops, and that drop in pressure does a couple of things.\r\n\r\n• First, it causes the wind to pick up. As the pressure drops, wind begins to circulate around the system, heading down to the low pressure. In the northern hemisphere, that means a counterclockwise rotation, and the closer the storm gets, the higher the winds become. \r\n\r\n• Second, it causes the fish to really turn on. If the air pressure drops, the relative water pressure drops as well. Fish can sense the pressure drop with their lateral lines. Knowing that the seas will soon be churning and dirty, many species, particularly shallow water and bottom fish, will “feed up” before the storm. \r\n\r\n• It generally takes a combination of decisions surrounding the existing circumstances that lead to trouble. But fish going into a feeding frenzy, coupled with a decision to wait just “a little longer” are two that can really put a boat in jeopardy.\r\n\r\n<h3>Five Basic Rules to Follow</h3>\r\nLet’s assume we make all the right decisions regarding the pending storm. What actions do we take? Here are some basic rules to live by if you fish offshore. They can give you peace of mind, but more importantly they can save your life.\r\n\r\n1. Never head offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF radio wired to a good vertical antenna. As you leave the dock, call for a radio check. The Coast Guard is not the right group to call at this point. They monitor channel 16, the hailing channel, but they are far too busy to be checking everyone’s radio. Call the dock master at the marina, or one of the several emergency boat towing agencies. They will gladly respond to a request for a radio check.\r\n\r\n2. Never leave the dock to head offshore without a full tank of fuel. You should have enough fuel to fish all day and return to the dock with no less than a half tank of gas remaining. That may sound high, but the reason will be clear as you read below. \r\n\r\n3. For a fishing vessel, the deepest water you can safely and conceivably anchor in is about 150 feet. Even at that depth, you need a lot of anchor line. Plan to have an anchor line that is at least seven times the depth at which you may have to anchor – more is better. This depth to line length is called “rode,” and it is an important factor in keeping your boat anchored in a heavy sea. Given the amount of line required in a heavy sea, anchoring offshore in a storm should absolutely be your last choice.\r\n\r\n4. Keep several sealed gallon jugs of fresh water safely stowed on board. The additional space and weight are negligible compared to the need for that water in a boat adrift at sea for several days. 5. The first four rules are not Coast Guard requirements; they are common sense. In addition to those first four, make sure your vessel meets all the Coast Guard safety requirements regarding PFD’s and signaling devices. You may need them.\r\n\r\n<h3>Your Choice of Action<h3>\r\nWith the rules in tow, we can now make intelligent choices regarding the storm now heading our way.\r\n\r\n• Make a call on the radio to verify what you see. Find out which way the storm is headed. Ask about the winds. Tune to the predesignated weather channel for your area. If you are beyond the line of sight distance, ask any boat you can hail to relay your request. Find out what the storm is doing. Sometimes they build over the coast and sit until they cool off the air around them. Sometimes they move offshore. \r\n\r\n• If the storm is heading offshore, our first choice is to run, not away from it, but perpen- dicular to it. Heading for the dock is not possible; that puts us right in the teeth of the storm. Head ninety degrees in either direction and run out of the storm’s path. You now see the reason to have sufficient fuel! If the storm is large, you may need to run ten miles or more. If you make this choice early, it will likely be the only choice you need to make.\r\n\r\n<h3>Riding Out the Storm</h3>\r\nIn the event you can’t outrun the storm and get out of its path, it’s time to batten down, don life jackets, and prepare for a ride. Seas can increase with amazing speed, and the danger factor multiplies equally fast.\r\n\r\n• Keep the boat in gear and headed into the seas at an angle of five to ten degrees to the wind. Heading directly into big, steep waves will tend to bury the bow into the face of the next wave. A slight angle allows the boat to roll slightly, keeping the bow out of the water on the next wave. Too much angle will cause the boat to “breech” and possibly roll over.\r\n\r\n• Use only enough engine power to safely mount and ride over the oncoming waves. At this point the engine is the only tool that can help you accomplish boat positioning, and positioning is the only pertinent issue. Once again, your earlier fuel decisions play a major role.\r\n\r\n• Rain and water over the bow can fill a boat faster than most people envision. A good bilge pump is a necessity; make sure it works and that you use it as you ride out the storm. • Anchoring becomes a choice only when your engine power is either dead or insufficient to keep your boat positioned. Without power, the boat will turn sideways to the wind in a breech. The very next thing that will happen is an overturned vessel with people in the water.\r\n\r\n• Be prepared to get an anchor over quickly, but only as a last choice. The need for a long anchor line should be obvious. The anchor will, as it goes down, act as a drag and possibly pull the bow of the boat back into the wind. As it reaches bottom, feed out as much rode as possible and tie the line off on a bow cleat. Now, sit tight, keep the bilge pumps run- ning and ride out the storm.\r\n\r\n<h3>Plan Ahead to Avoid Disaster</h3>\r\nRiding out a storm in a small vessel is a harrowing experience. The amazing thing is that with few exceptions, there is no need to go through that experience. Proper planning and preparation will take care of the circumstances before they become an issue.\r\n\r\n• Check the weather reports. We call the forecasters “weather guessers” at times, but overall, they are pretty accurate, particularly regarding afternoon thunderstorms. Plan your trip’s conclusion to avoid the storms. \r\n\r\n• If storms build while you are offshore, make a decision early to either head in or run out of the storm’s way. Staying to catch that last fish will needlessly get you in big trouble. The fish will be there another day – make sure you are there with them!\r\n\r\n• Most of all, use common sense. That common sense tells us to be prepared even before we head out – and that means following the five rules we have already listed.\r\n\r\nBottom Line\r\nShould we fear the water? No – but we need to have a whole lot of respect for the power that a storm can generate on that water. And, we need to be prepared to address that power.','Dealing with Offshore Thunderstorms','','inherit','open','open','','197-revision-5','','','2011-12-05 19:04:25','2011-12-05 19:04:25','',197,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=203',0,'revision','',0),(204,1,'2011-12-05 19:04:59','2011-12-05 19:04:59','<h2>Knowing a few simple rules can literally save your life</h2>\r\n<em><strong>By Ron Brooks</strong></em>\r\n\r\nYou’re thirty-five miles offshore in a small fishing boat and there is only one path back to the dock. The problem is – a big, offshore thunderstorm has built between you and the dock. What do you do? The decisions you make at this point could literally save your life.\r\n<h3>Basic Facts</h3>\r\nLet’s look at some very basic knowledge regarding offshore fishing or boating – things that every boater should know.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>The visible horizon distance on the water is about eighteen miles at sea level. For every foot you can get above the water, you extend the visible horizon distance. While you may not be able to see the shore or buildings on land from where you are, lookouts on a passing ship’s bridge will be able to see those landmarks. The higher you get, the more you can see.</li>\r\n	<li>The same line of sight rule applies for VHF radio waves. Short of an atmospheric anomaly called skipping, VHF radio waves are only as good as a straight line of sight. Skipping happens as radio waves bounce off the atmosphere and back to earth, some- times several times. Where the waves return to earth, a radio receiver can pick them up, and sometimes that is several hundred miles away. As with the visible horizon, the radio wave, straight-line distance can be increased by getting up off the water.</li>\r\n	<li>A boat antenna needs to be located at the highest point on the boat. That will extend the effective distance. Couple that with a shore antenna that is on a tower, and the radio horizon is extended a number of miles. • Even with a good antenna, the power driving the radio wave has to be sufficient to reach a distant antenna. Anyone going offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF is taking a big chance. Some boats head offshore with a five-watt hand held radio, and then wonder why they can’t raise anyone on a radio check. Some boats take a hand held twenty-five watt radio with a small antenna, thinking they are covered. While those radios are better than no radio, they are insufficient safety devices with which to head offshore beyond the visible horizon.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<h3>The Troubling Situation</h3>\r\nHere we are, twenty miles offshore, and the offshore thunderstorm clouds are building. As you judge the wind and watch the clouds, you can see that the whole system is heading right at you. In the distance, lightning bolts are lighting up the interior of the thunderhead, and thunder rumbles lowly. One thousand one... one thousand two... one thousand three... You count the seconds between the lightning flash and the thunder rumble. Every five seconds of sound delay is roughly one mile in distance. And still you fish.\r\n\r\nWhat Happens in an Offshore Thunderstorm Thunderheads that build over land along the shore are miniature, self contained, low- pressure systems. As they move toward you the atmospheric pressure drops, and that drop in pressure does a couple of things.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>First, it causes the wind to pick up. As the pressure drops, wind begins to circulate around the system, heading down to the low pressure. In the northern hemisphere, that means a counterclockwise rotation, and the closer the storm gets, the higher the winds become.</li>\r\n	<li>Second, it causes the fish to really turn on. If the air pressure drops, the relative water pressure drops as well. Fish can sense the pressure drop with their lateral lines. Knowing that the seas will soon be churning and dirty, many species, particularly shallow water and bottom fish, will “feed up” before the storm.</li>\r\n	<li>It generally takes a combination of decisions surrounding the existing circumstances that lead to trouble. But fish going into a feeding frenzy, coupled with a decision to wait just “a little longer” are two that can really put a boat in jeopardy.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<h3>Five Basic Rules to Follow</h3>\r\nLet’s assume we make all the right decisions regarding the pending storm. What actions do we take? Here are some basic rules to live by if you fish offshore. They can give you peace of mind, but more importantly they can save your life.\r\n\r\n1. Never head offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF radio wired to a good vertical antenna. As you leave the dock, call for a radio check. The Coast Guard is not the right group to call at this point. They monitor channel 16, the hailing channel, but they are far too busy to be checking everyone’s radio. Call the dock master at the marina, or one of the several emergency boat towing agencies. They will gladly respond to a request for a radio check.\r\n\r\n2. Never leave the dock to head offshore without a full tank of fuel. You should have enough fuel to fish all day and return to the dock with no less than a half tank of gas remaining. That may sound high, but the reason will be clear as you read below.\r\n\r\n3. For a fishing vessel, the deepest water you can safely and conceivably anchor in is about 150 feet. Even at that depth, you need a lot of anchor line. Plan to have an anchor line that is at least seven times the depth at which you may have to anchor – more is better. This depth to line length is called “rode,” and it is an important factor in keeping your boat anchored in a heavy sea. Given the amount of line required in a heavy sea, anchoring offshore in a storm should absolutely be your last choice.\r\n\r\n4. Keep several sealed gallon jugs of fresh water safely stowed on board. The additional space and weight are negligible compared to the need for that water in a boat adrift at sea for several days. 5. The first four rules are not Coast Guard requirements; they are common sense. In addition to those first four, make sure your vessel meets all the Coast Guard safety requirements regarding PFD’s and signaling devices. You may need them.\r\n<h3>Your Choice of Action</h3>\r\n<h3>With the rules in tow, we can now make intelligent choices regarding the storm now heading our way.</h3>\r\n• Make a call on the radio to verify what you see. Find out which way the storm is headed. Ask about the winds. Tune to the predesignated weather channel for your area. If you are beyond the line of sight distance, ask any boat you can hail to relay your request. Find out what the storm is doing. Sometimes they build over the coast and sit until they cool off the air around them. Sometimes they move offshore.\r\n\r\n• If the storm is heading offshore, our first choice is to run, not away from it, but perpen- dicular to it. Heading for the dock is not possible; that puts us right in the teeth of the storm. Head ninety degrees in either direction and run out of the storm’s path. You now see the reason to have sufficient fuel! If the storm is large, you may need to run ten miles or more. If you make this choice early, it will likely be the only choice you need to make.\r\n<h3>Riding Out the Storm</h3>\r\nIn the event you can’t outrun the storm and get out of its path, it’s time to batten down, don life jackets, and prepare for a ride. Seas can increase with amazing speed, and the danger factor multiplies equally fast.\r\n\r\n• Keep the boat in gear and headed into the seas at an angle of five to ten degrees to the wind. Heading directly into big, steep waves will tend to bury the bow into the face of the next wave. A slight angle allows the boat to roll slightly, keeping the bow out of the water on the next wave. Too much angle will cause the boat to “breech” and possibly roll over.\r\n\r\n• Use only enough engine power to safely mount and ride over the oncoming waves. At this point the engine is the only tool that can help you accomplish boat positioning, and positioning is the only pertinent issue. Once again, your earlier fuel decisions play a major role.\r\n\r\n• Rain and water over the bow can fill a boat faster than most people envision. A good bilge pump is a necessity; make sure it works and that you use it as you ride out the storm. • Anchoring becomes a choice only when your engine power is either dead or insufficient to keep your boat positioned. Without power, the boat will turn sideways to the wind in a breech. The very next thing that will happen is an overturned vessel with people in the water.\r\n\r\n• Be prepared to get an anchor over quickly, but only as a last choice. The need for a long anchor line should be obvious. The anchor will, as it goes down, act as a drag and possibly pull the bow of the boat back into the wind. As it reaches bottom, feed out as much rode as possible and tie the line off on a bow cleat. Now, sit tight, keep the bilge pumps run- ning and ride out the storm.\r\n<h3>Plan Ahead to Avoid Disaster</h3>\r\nRiding out a storm in a small vessel is a harrowing experience. The amazing thing is that with few exceptions, there is no need to go through that experience. Proper planning and preparation will take care of the circumstances before they become an issue.\r\n\r\n• Check the weather reports. We call the forecasters “weather guessers” at times, but overall, they are pretty accurate, particularly regarding afternoon thunderstorms. Plan your trip’s conclusion to avoid the storms.\r\n\r\n• If storms build while you are offshore, make a decision early to either head in or run out of the storm’s way. Staying to catch that last fish will needlessly get you in big trouble. The fish will be there another day – make sure you are there with them!\r\n\r\n• Most of all, use common sense. That common sense tells us to be prepared even before we head out – and that means following the five rules we have already listed.\r\n\r\nBottom Line\r\nShould we fear the water? No – but we need to have a whole lot of respect for the power that a storm can generate on that water. And, we need to be prepared to address that power.','Dealing with Offshore Thunderstorms','','inherit','open','open','','197-revision-6','','','2011-12-05 19:04:59','2011-12-05 19:04:59','',197,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=204',0,'revision','',0),(205,1,'2011-12-05 19:11:05','2011-12-05 19:11:05','','offshore storm','','inherit','open','open','','march','','','2011-12-05 19:11:05','2011-12-05 19:11:05','',197,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/march.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(206,1,'2011-12-05 19:06:33','2011-12-05 19:06:33','<h2>Knowing a few simple rules can literally save your life</h2>\r\n<em><strong>By Ron Brooks</strong></em>\r\n\r\nYou’re thirty-five miles offshore in a small fishing boat and there is only one path back to the dock. The problem is – a big, offshore thunderstorm has built between you and the dock. What do you do? The decisions you make at this point could literally save your life.\r\n<h3>Basic Facts</h3>\r\nLet’s look at some very basic knowledge regarding offshore fishing or boating – things that every boater should know.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>The visible horizon distance on the water is about eighteen miles at sea level. For every foot you can get above the water, you extend the visible horizon distance. While you may not be able to see the shore or buildings on land from where you are, lookouts on a passing ship’s bridge will be able to see those landmarks. The higher you get, the more you can see.</li>\r\n	<li>The same line of sight rule applies for VHF radio waves. Short of an atmospheric anomaly called skipping, VHF radio waves are only as good as a straight line of sight. Skipping happens as radio waves bounce off the atmosphere and back to earth, some- times several times. Where the waves return to earth, a radio receiver can pick them up, and sometimes that is several hundred miles away. As with the visible horizon, the radio wave, straight-line distance can be increased by getting up off the water.</li>\r\n	<li>A boat antenna needs to be located at the highest point on the boat. That will extend the effective distance. Couple that with a shore antenna that is on a tower, and the radio horizon is extended a number of miles. • Even with a good antenna, the power driving the radio wave has to be sufficient to reach a distant antenna. Anyone going offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF is taking a big chance. Some boats head offshore with a five-watt hand held radio, and then wonder why they can’t raise anyone on a radio check. Some boats take a hand held twenty-five watt radio with a small antenna, thinking they are covered. While those radios are better than no radio, they are insufficient safety devices with which to head offshore beyond the visible horizon.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<h3>The Troubling Situation</h3>\r\nHere we are, twenty miles offshore, and the offshore thunderstorm clouds are building. As you judge the wind and watch the clouds, you can see that the whole system is heading right at you. In the distance, lightning bolts are lighting up the interior of the thunderhead, and thunder rumbles lowly. One thousand one... one thousand two... one thousand three... You count the seconds between the lightning flash and the thunder rumble. Every five seconds of sound delay is roughly one mile in distance. And still you fish.\r\n\r\nWhat Happens in an Offshore Thunderstorm Thunderheads that build over land along the shore are miniature, self contained, low- pressure systems. As they move toward you the atmospheric pressure drops, and that drop in pressure does a couple of things.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>First, it causes the wind to pick up. As the pressure drops, wind begins to circulate around the system, heading down to the low pressure. In the northern hemisphere, that means a counterclockwise rotation, and the closer the storm gets, the higher the winds become.</li>\r\n	<li>Second, it causes the fish to really turn on. If the air pressure drops, the relative water pressure drops as well. Fish can sense the pressure drop with their lateral lines. Knowing that the seas will soon be churning and dirty, many species, particularly shallow water and bottom fish, will “feed up” before the storm.</li>\r\n	<li>It generally takes a combination of decisions surrounding the existing circumstances that lead to trouble. But fish going into a feeding frenzy, coupled with a decision to wait just “a little longer” are two that can really put a boat in jeopardy.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<h3>Five Basic Rules to Follow</h3>\r\nLet’s assume we make all the right decisions regarding the pending storm. What actions do we take? Here are some basic rules to live by if you fish offshore. They can give you peace of mind, but more importantly they can save your life.\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Never head offshore without at least a twenty-five watt VHF radio wired to a good vertical antenna. As you leave the dock, call for a radio check. The Coast Guard is not the right group to call at this point. They monitor channel 16, the hailing channel, but they are far too busy to be checking everyone’s radio. Call the dock master at the marina, or one of the several emergency boat towing agencies. They will gladly respond to a request for a radio check.</li>\r\n	<li>Never leave the dock to head offshore without a full tank of fuel. You should have enough fuel to fish all day and return to the dock with no less than a half tank of gas remaining. That may sound high, but the reason will be clear as you read below.</li>\r\n	<li>For a fishing vessel, the deepest water you can safely and conceivably anchor in is about 150 feet. Even at that depth, you need a lot of anchor line. Plan to have an anchor line that is at least seven times the depth at which you may have to anchor – more is better. This depth to line length is called “rode,” and it is an important factor in keeping your boat anchored in a heavy sea. Given the amount of line required in a heavy sea, anchoring offshore in a storm should absolutely be your last choice.</li>\r\n	<li>Keep several sealed gallon jugs of fresh water safely stowed on board. The additional space and weight are negligible compared to the need for that water in a boat adrift at sea for several days. 5. The first four rules are not Coast Guard requirements; they are common sense. In addition to those first four, make sure your vessel meets all the Coast Guard safety requirements regarding PFD’s and signaling devices. You may need them.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h3>Your Choice of Action</h3>\r\nWith the rules in tow, we can now make intelligent choices regarding the storm now heading our way.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Make a call on the radio to verify what you see. Find out which way the storm is headed. Ask about the winds. Tune to the predesignated weather channel for your area. If you are beyond the line of sight distance, ask any boat you can hail to relay your request. Find out what the storm is doing. Sometimes they build over the coast and sit until they cool off the air around them. Sometimes they move offshore.</li>\r\n	<li>If the storm is heading offshore, our first choice is to run, not away from it, but perpen- dicular to it. Heading for the dock is not possible; that puts us right in the teeth of the storm. Head ninety degrees in either direction and run out of the storm’s path. You now see the reason to have sufficient fuel! If the storm is large, you may need to run ten miles or more. If you make this choice early, it will likely be the only choice you need to make.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<h3>Riding Out the Storm</h3>\r\nIn the event you can’t outrun the storm and get out of its path, it’s time to batten down, don life jackets, and prepare for a ride. Seas can increase with amazing speed, and the danger factor multiplies equally fast.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Keep the boat in gear and headed into the seas at an angle of five to ten degrees to the wind. Heading directly into big, steep waves will tend to bury the bow into the face of the next wave. A slight angle allows the boat to roll slightly, keeping the bow out of the water on the next wave. Too much angle will cause the boat to “breech” and possibly roll over.</li>\r\n	<li>Use only enough engine power to safely mount and ride over the oncoming waves. At this point the engine is the only tool that can help you accomplish boat positioning, and positioning is the only pertinent issue. Once again, your earlier fuel decisions play a major role.</li>\r\n	<li>Rain and water over the bow can fill a boat faster than most people envision. A good bilge pump is a necessity; make sure it works and that you use it as you ride out the storm. • Anchoring becomes a choice only when your engine power is either dead or insufficient to keep your boat positioned. Without power, the boat will turn sideways to the wind in a breech. The very next thing that will happen is an overturned vessel with people in the water.</li>\r\n	<li>Be prepared to get an anchor over quickly, but only as a last choice. The need for a long anchor line should be obvious. The anchor will, as it goes down, act as a drag and possibly pull the bow of the boat back into the wind. As it reaches bottom, feed out as much rode as possible and tie the line off on a bow cleat. Now, sit tight, keep the bilge pumps running and ride out the storm.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<h3>Plan Ahead to Avoid Disaster</h3>\r\nRiding out a storm in a small vessel is a harrowing experience. The amazing thing is that with few exceptions, there is no need to go through that experience. Proper planning and preparation will take care of the circumstances before they become an issue.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Check the weather reports. We call the forecasters “weather guessers” at times, but overall, they are pretty accurate, particularly regarding afternoon thunderstorms. Plan your trip’s conclusion to avoid the storms.</li>\r\n	<li>If storms build while you are offshore, make a decision early to either head in or run out of the storm’s way. Staying to catch that last fish will needlessly get you in big trouble. The fish will be there another day – make sure you are there with them!</li>\r\n	<li>Most of all, use common sense. That common sense tells us to be prepared even before we head out – and that means following the five rules we have already listed.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<h3>Bottom Line</h3>\r\nShould we fear the water? No – but we need to have a whole lot of respect for the power that a storm can generate on that water. And, we need to be prepared to address that power.','Dealing with Offshore Thunderstorms','','inherit','open','open','','197-revision-7','','','2011-12-05 19:06:33','2011-12-05 19:06:33','',197,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=206',0,'revision','',0),(207,1,'2011-01-01 19:21:45','2011-01-01 19:21:45','<strong><em>By Captain Robert</em></strong>\r\n<h3>The Six-Pack Saga</h3>\r\n<strong><em><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-213\" title=\"captain\'s license\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/1090_0-300x204.jpg\" alt=\"captain\'s license\" width=\"300\" height=\"204\" /></em></strong>There it was, calling out to me from the book rack every time I went into the marine store: “Get Your Captain’s License-the Complete Study Guide.” It’s something that I had wanted to do since I was a kid, and every time I saw that thing I would tell myself that someday I would do that, someday I’m going sit down and prepare for the captain’s license. Oh boy, the guilt was palpable—it got to where I would actually avoid that part of the store.\r\n\r\nNow I had no intention of running away on a cargo carrier or ICW barge here; I enjoy my career as a college administrator, so my reasons for doing this were not driven by a midlife crisis or an unhappy home life. So I can’t say why I had such a strong urge to go through with it. A desire to be a better and safer boater, more qualified and competent to sail beyond our shores with my family, the ability to run charters on my boat, pride, vanity—I’m not really sure. Whatever it was I began the quest by buying the aforementioned book ($17 at Amazon. com). The comprehensive study guide includes a test CD and covers the six major sections of the Coast Guard exam:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Rules of the Road</li>\r\n	<li>Deck General</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation General</li>\r\n	<li>Safety</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation Problems</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nAt this point many would-be skippers go to one of the captain’s license schools that offer the whole shooting match, instruction, materials, and test for a set fee (see sidebar). Often these courses are taught in as little as two-weeks. I chose, however, the self-study route, knowing that I would be slipping in the requisite studying in between everything else going on in my life.\r\n\r\nAt first glance the information overwhelmed and humbled me. Despite having cruised on the water for twenty-years almost everywhere east of the Mississippi, there was an enormous amount of material that I had never seen before. I quickly resurrected the study habits that served me well back in college and got into a daily regimen of reading and reviewing. I developed mnemonic and rhyming devices to help me memorize things, particularly the arcane rules of the road.\r\n\r\nMany people panic when they learn that there is a lot of math on the exam. Relax, there is nothing worse than the skills you use to balance your checkbook, and the very basic algebra and geometry that you should have learned in high school. Once I dove into the problems, it came back very quickly.\r\n\r\nAs with anything granted by our Federal government, there is an incredible amount of bureaucracy, paperwork, frustrating phone calls, and redundancy. It’s very important to read and follow the captain’s exam requirements very carefully—almost obsessively. And know that there are inflexible time limits on most of the requirements.\r\n\r\nIf you aren’t a patient person, I strongly recommend that you go to a school and let them help you to navigate through the quagmire of governmentese and administrivia.\r\n\r\nThe entire captain’s exam is multiple choice and it’s claimed there are no “trick” questions. Maybe, but there sure are a lot of trick answers. As you read, you learn that the wrong answer is always there, inserted by enterprising (read: conniving) USCG employees who attempt to lure the captain candidate down the path to failure. Do you recall your high school teachers telling you to read all the answers before you make your choice? That strategy will serve you well here: I taught myself to attack the questions backward, eliminating three wrong answers to find the correct one. It takes longer to do it this way, but you have all day if you need it to complete the exam.\r\n\r\nQuestion after question, back and forth over the six-sections until it became second nature; I took the study guide to work and to bed. Thousands of answers spun dizzyingly around my head. How would I remember all this stuff? Does anyone actually use all these knots? And who cares about the difference between a veering and a backing wind? But I digress, for before I knew it, it was...Test Day!\r\n\r\nI arrived at the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Charleston at 7:30am, trotted up to 2nd floor, signed in and waited under a picture of George W. I met my tester who read the rules of the day, handed me the test and it was show time.\r\n<h3>Panic City</h3>\r\nAll the studying, all the hours, all the practice, didn’t prep me for what happened next. The first three questions looked like they had been written in Japanese. I had no idea of the answers and had to guess. This was going to be the longest day of my life. Had I studied the wrong material?\r\n\r\nIt was surprising how rarely I saw questions I recognized. But I guess with 9000 to choose from, it would be easy to flummox even the most well-prepared candidate. Because I was not very sure of myself here I did something that I cannot overemphasize to anyone wanting the license: I carefully re-read and re-answered every question before I handed it in.\r\n\r\nOf the 140 questions that day, the 10 nav problems were by far the most arcane. The four choices for a “name the location” problem would be one-second apart: choice A would be N 41*26”15’ and choice B would be N 41*26”14’. Get the idea? It wasn’t good enough to just get close with my calculations, I had to be dead-on accurate.\r\n\r\nI finished the final test at 3:15, and anxiously waited in the lobby. He called my name and in very anti-climactic fashion told me, almost drearily, that I had passed. He sounded genuinely disappointed, I knew what came next: I raised my right hand, repeated the mariners oath, and it was over. A year of my life prepping for a ceremony that took 30-seconds to perform.\r\n\r\nMy test scores were well above the minimum to pass, with the exception of the ten naviga- tion problems, which I just squeaked by with a 70%. The entire 140-question exam had come down to one question, so I was extra glad that I studied hard and double-checked all my answers—despite being rushed by the tester.\r\n\r\nI sat in my car, numb from the day’s effort, emotionally drained and satisfied, and the warm feeling of success stayed with me the entire way home.\r\nOn December 12th, my US Merchant Marine Officer License arrives. It reads, “Having been duly examined and found competent by the undersigned is licensed to serve for the term of five years from the below issue date as master of steam...vessel of not more than 50 gross registered tons.”\r\nOh yeah, call me captain and give me that open water.\r\n\r\n<strong>Thinking of taking the plunge and going for your USCG captains license?</strong>\r\nTake a look at many of the exam questions <a title=\"test exams\" href=\"http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm</a>\r\nThese can be downloaded free, and stored on your computer. Block the answers in the left margin till you have attempted to solve the question\r\n\r\n<strong>Some Captain’s License Prep Schools:</strong>\r\nBoatwise, LLC 800.698.7373 - <a href=\"http://www.boatwise.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.boatwise.com</a>\r\nMaritime Institute 888.262.8020 - <a href=\"http://www.maritimeinstitute.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.maritimeinstitute.com</a>\r\nMarinersSchool.com 866.732.2278 - <a href=\"http://www.marinersschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.marinersschool.com</a>\r\nNational Captains Institute 800.345.6901 - <a href=\"http://www.captains.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.captains.com</a>\r\nSeaSchool 800.237.8663 - <a href=\"http://www.seaschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.seaschool.com</a>\r\n\r\n<strong>Initial Costs: </strong>\r\nDoctor appointmentt for physical - copay $15\r\nUSCG application &amp; test fee $240\r\nStudy Guide (Charlie Wing)\r\n$38 Red Cross courses $100\r\nFingerprinting $18\r\nDOT 5-panel drug screen $50\r\nSailing tools, charts $100\r\n\r\n<strong>Study Tip:</strong>\r\nMake copies of the navigation problem plotting sheet, and number problems as you solve them for later review.','Obtaining Your Captain’s License','','publish','open','open','','obtaining-your-captains-license','','','2013-04-02 12:57:28','2013-04-02 16:57:28','',0,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=207',58,'post','',0),(208,1,'2011-12-05 19:24:47','2011-12-05 19:24:47','<strong><em>By Captain Robert</em></strong>\n\nThe Six-Pack Saga\n\nThere it was, calling out to me from the book rack every time I went into the marine store: “Get Your Captain’s License-the Complete Study Guide.” It’s something that I had wanted to do since I was a kid, and every time I saw that thing I would tell myself that someday I would do that, someday I’m going sit down and prepare for the captain’s license. Oh boy, the guilt was palpable—it got to where I would actually avoid that part of the store.\n\nNow I had no intention of running away on a cargo carrier or ICW barge here; I enjoy my career as a college administrator, so my reasons for doing this were not driven by a midlife crisis or an unhappy home life. So I can’t say why I had such a strong urge to go through with it. A desire to be a better and safer boater, more qualified and competent to sail beyond our shores with my family, the ability to run charters on my boat, pride, vanity—I’m not really sure. Whatever it was I began the quest by buying the aforementioned book ($17 at Amazon. com). The comprehensive study guide includes a test CD and covers the six major sections of the Coast Guard exam:\n\nRules of the Road \n\nDeck General \n\nNavigation General \n\nSafety\n\nNavigation Problems\n\nAt this point many would-be skippers go to one of the captain’s license schools that offer the whole shooting match, instruction, materials, and test for a set fee (see sidebar). Often these courses are taught in as little as two-weeks. I chose, however, the self-study route, knowing that I would be slipping in the requisite studying in between everything else going on in my life.\n\nAt first glance the information overwhelmed and humbled me. Despite having cruised on the water for twenty-years almost everywhere east of the Mississippi, there was an enormous amount of material that I had never seen before. I quickly resurrected the study habits that served me well back in college and got into a daily regimen of reading and reviewing. I developed mnemonic and rhyming devices to help me memorize things, particularly the arcane rules of the road.\n\nMany people panic when they learn that there is a lot of math on the exam. Relax, there is nothing worse than the skills you use to balance your checkbook, and the very basic algebra and geometry that you should have learned in high school. Once I dove into the problems, it came back very quickly.\n\nAs with anything granted by our Federal government, there is an incredible amount of bureaucracy, paperwork, frustrating phone calls, and redundancy. It’s very important to read and follow the captain’s exam requirements very carefully—almost obsessively. And know that there are inflexible time limits on most of the requirements.\n\nIf you aren’t a patient person, I strongly recommend that you go to a school and let them help you to navigate through the quagmire of governmentese and administrivia.\n\nThe entire captain’s exam is multiple choice and it’s claimed there are no “trick” questions. Maybe, but there sure are a lot of trick answers. As you read, you learn that the wrong answer is always there, inserted by enterprising (read: conniving) USCG employees who attempt to lure the captain candidate down the path to failure. Do you recall your high school teachers telling you to read all the answers before you make your choice? That strategy will serve you well here: I taught myself to attack the questions backward, eliminating three wrong answers to find the correct one. It takes longer to do it this way, but you have all day if you need it to complete the exam.\n\nQuestion after question, back and forth over the six-sections until it became second nature; I took the study guide to work and to bed. Thousands of answers spun dizzyingly around my head. How would I remember all this stuff? Does anyone actually use all these knots? And who cares about the difference between a veering and a backing wind? But I digress, for before I knew it, it was...Test Day!\n\nI arrived at the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Charleston at 7:30am, trotted up to 2nd floor, signed in and waited under a picture of George W. I met my tester who read the rules of the day, handed me the test and it was show time.\n\nPanic City\nAll the studying, all the hours, all the practice, didn’t prep me for what happened next. The first three questions looked like they had been written in Japanese. I had no idea of the answers and had to guess. This was going to be the longest day of my life. Had I studied the wrong material?\n\nIt was surprising how rarely I saw questions I recognized. But I guess with 9000 to choose from, it would be easy to flummox even the most well-prepared candidate. Because I was not very sure of myself here I did something that I cannot overemphasize to anyone wanting the license: I carefully re-read and re-answered every question before I handed it in.\n\nOf the 140 questions that day, the 10 nav problems were by far the most arcane. The four choices for a “name the location” problem would be one-second apart: choice A would be N 41*26”15’ and choice B would be N 41*26”14’. Get the idea? It wasn’t good enough to just get close with my calculations, I had to be dead-on accurate.\n\nI finished the final test at 3:15, and anxiously waited in the lobby. He called my name and in very anti-climactic fashion told me, almost drearily, that I had passed. He sounded genuinely disappointed, I knew what came next: I raised my right hand, repeated the mariners oath, and it was over. A year of my life prepping for a ceremony that took 30-seconds to perform.\n\nMy test scores were well above the minimum to pass, with the exception of the ten naviga- tion problems, which I just squeaked by with a 70%. The entire 140-question exam had come down to one question, so I was extra glad that I studied hard and double-checked all my answers—despite being rushed by the tester.\n\nI sat in my car, numb from the day’s effort, emotionally drained and satisfied, and the warm feeling of success stayed with me the entire way home.\nOn December 12th, my US Merchant Marine Officer License arrives. It reads, “Having been duly examined and found competent by the undersigned is licensed to serve for the term of five years from the below issue date as master of steam...vessel of not more than 50 gross registered tons.”\nOh yeah, call me captain and give me that open water.\n\nThinking of taking the plunge and going for your USCG captains license?\nTake a look at many of the exam questions <a href=\"http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm\" title=\"test exams\" target=\"_blank\">http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm</a> \nThese can be downloaded free, and stored on your computer. Block the answers in the left margin till you have attempted to solve the question\n\n<strong>Some Captain’s License Prep Schools:</strong>\nBoatwise, LLC 800.698.7373 www.boatwise.com \nMaritime Institute 888.262.8020 www.maritimeinstitute.com \nMarinersSchool.com 866.732.2278 www.marinersschool.com \nNational Captains Institute 800.345.6901 www.captains.com \nSeaSchool 800.237.8663 www.seaschool.com\n\nInitial Costs: \nDoctor appointmentt for physical - copay $15 \nUSCG application & test fee $240 \nStudy Guide (Charlie Wing) \n$38 Red Cross courses $100\nFingerprinting $18\nDOT 5-panel drug screen $50\nSailing tools, charts $100\n\nStudy Tip; Make copies of the navigation problem plotting sheet, and number problems as you solve them for later review.','Obtaining Your Captain’s License','','inherit','open','open','','207-revision','','','2011-12-05 19:24:47','2011-12-05 19:24:47','',207,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=208',0,'revision','',0),(209,1,'2011-12-05 19:25:13','2011-12-05 19:25:13','<strong><em>By Captain Robert</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe Six-Pack Saga\r\n\r\nThere it was, calling out to me from the book rack every time I went into the marine store: “Get Your Captain’s License-the Complete Study Guide.” It’s something that I had wanted to do since I was a kid, and every time I saw that thing I would tell myself that someday I would do that, someday I’m going sit down and prepare for the captain’s license. Oh boy, the guilt was palpable—it got to where I would actually avoid that part of the store.\r\n\r\nNow I had no intention of running away on a cargo carrier or ICW barge here; I enjoy my career as a college administrator, so my reasons for doing this were not driven by a midlife crisis or an unhappy home life. So I can’t say why I had such a strong urge to go through with it. A desire to be a better and safer boater, more qualified and competent to sail beyond our shores with my family, the ability to run charters on my boat, pride, vanity—I’m not really sure. Whatever it was I began the quest by buying the aforementioned book ($17 at Amazon. com). The comprehensive study guide includes a test CD and covers the six major sections of the Coast Guard exam:\r\n\r\nRules of the Road \r\n\r\nDeck General \r\n\r\nNavigation General \r\n\r\nSafety\r\n\r\nNavigation Problems\r\n\r\nAt this point many would-be skippers go to one of the captain’s license schools that offer the whole shooting match, instruction, materials, and test for a set fee (see sidebar). Often these courses are taught in as little as two-weeks. I chose, however, the self-study route, knowing that I would be slipping in the requisite studying in between everything else going on in my life.\r\n\r\nAt first glance the information overwhelmed and humbled me. Despite having cruised on the water for twenty-years almost everywhere east of the Mississippi, there was an enormous amount of material that I had never seen before. I quickly resurrected the study habits that served me well back in college and got into a daily regimen of reading and reviewing. I developed mnemonic and rhyming devices to help me memorize things, particularly the arcane rules of the road.\r\n\r\nMany people panic when they learn that there is a lot of math on the exam. Relax, there is nothing worse than the skills you use to balance your checkbook, and the very basic algebra and geometry that you should have learned in high school. Once I dove into the problems, it came back very quickly.\r\n\r\nAs with anything granted by our Federal government, there is an incredible amount of bureaucracy, paperwork, frustrating phone calls, and redundancy. It’s very important to read and follow the captain’s exam requirements very carefully—almost obsessively. And know that there are inflexible time limits on most of the requirements.\r\n\r\nIf you aren’t a patient person, I strongly recommend that you go to a school and let them help you to navigate through the quagmire of governmentese and administrivia.\r\n\r\nThe entire captain’s exam is multiple choice and it’s claimed there are no “trick” questions. Maybe, but there sure are a lot of trick answers. As you read, you learn that the wrong answer is always there, inserted by enterprising (read: conniving) USCG employees who attempt to lure the captain candidate down the path to failure. Do you recall your high school teachers telling you to read all the answers before you make your choice? That strategy will serve you well here: I taught myself to attack the questions backward, eliminating three wrong answers to find the correct one. It takes longer to do it this way, but you have all day if you need it to complete the exam.\r\n\r\nQuestion after question, back and forth over the six-sections until it became second nature; I took the study guide to work and to bed. Thousands of answers spun dizzyingly around my head. How would I remember all this stuff? Does anyone actually use all these knots? And who cares about the difference between a veering and a backing wind? But I digress, for before I knew it, it was...Test Day!\r\n\r\nI arrived at the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Charleston at 7:30am, trotted up to 2nd floor, signed in and waited under a picture of George W. I met my tester who read the rules of the day, handed me the test and it was show time.\r\n\r\nPanic City\r\nAll the studying, all the hours, all the practice, didn’t prep me for what happened next. The first three questions looked like they had been written in Japanese. I had no idea of the answers and had to guess. This was going to be the longest day of my life. Had I studied the wrong material?\r\n\r\nIt was surprising how rarely I saw questions I recognized. But I guess with 9000 to choose from, it would be easy to flummox even the most well-prepared candidate. Because I was not very sure of myself here I did something that I cannot overemphasize to anyone wanting the license: I carefully re-read and re-answered every question before I handed it in.\r\n\r\nOf the 140 questions that day, the 10 nav problems were by far the most arcane. The four choices for a “name the location” problem would be one-second apart: choice A would be N 41*26”15’ and choice B would be N 41*26”14’. Get the idea? It wasn’t good enough to just get close with my calculations, I had to be dead-on accurate.\r\n\r\nI finished the final test at 3:15, and anxiously waited in the lobby. He called my name and in very anti-climactic fashion told me, almost drearily, that I had passed. He sounded genuinely disappointed, I knew what came next: I raised my right hand, repeated the mariners oath, and it was over. A year of my life prepping for a ceremony that took 30-seconds to perform.\r\n\r\nMy test scores were well above the minimum to pass, with the exception of the ten naviga- tion problems, which I just squeaked by with a 70%. The entire 140-question exam had come down to one question, so I was extra glad that I studied hard and double-checked all my answers—despite being rushed by the tester.\r\n\r\nI sat in my car, numb from the day’s effort, emotionally drained and satisfied, and the warm feeling of success stayed with me the entire way home.\r\nOn December 12th, my US Merchant Marine Officer License arrives. It reads, “Having been duly examined and found competent by the undersigned is licensed to serve for the term of five years from the below issue date as master of steam...vessel of not more than 50 gross registered tons.”\r\nOh yeah, call me captain and give me that open water.\r\n\r\nThinking of taking the plunge and going for your USCG captains license?\r\nTake a look at many of the exam questions <a href=\"http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm\" title=\"test exams\" target=\"_blank\">http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm</a> \r\nThese can be downloaded free, and stored on your computer. Block the answers in the left margin till you have attempted to solve the question\r\n\r\n<strong>Some Captain’s License Prep Schools:</strong>\r\nBoatwise, LLC 800.698.7373 www.boatwise.com \r\nMaritime Institute 888.262.8020 www.maritimeinstitute.com \r\nMarinersSchool.com 866.732.2278 www.marinersschool.com \r\nNational Captains Institute 800.345.6901 www.captains.com \r\nSeaSchool 800.237.8663 www.seaschool.com\r\n\r\n<strong>Initial Costs: </strong>\r\nDoctor appointmentt for physical - copay $15 \r\nUSCG application & test fee $240 \r\nStudy Guide (Charlie Wing) \r\n$38 Red Cross courses $100\r\nFingerprinting $18\r\nDOT 5-panel drug screen $50\r\nSailing tools, charts $100\r\n\r\nStudy Tip; Make copies of the navigation problem plotting sheet, and number problems as you solve them for later review.','Obtaining Your Captain’s License','','inherit','open','open','','207-revision-2','','','2011-12-05 19:25:13','2011-12-05 19:25:13','',207,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=209',0,'revision','',0),(210,1,'2011-12-05 19:29:53','2011-12-05 19:29:53','<strong><em>By Captain Robert</em></strong>\n<h3>The Six-Pack Saga</h3>\nThere it was, calling out to me from the book rack every time I went into the marine store: “Get Your Captain’s License-the Complete Study Guide.” It’s something that I had wanted to do since I was a kid, and every time I saw that thing I would tell myself that someday I would do that, someday I’m going sit down and prepare for the captain’s license. Oh boy, the guilt was palpable—it got to where I would actually avoid that part of the store.\n\nNow I had no intention of running away on a cargo carrier or ICW barge here; I enjoy my career as a college administrator, so my reasons for doing this were not driven by a midlife crisis or an unhappy home life. So I can’t say why I had such a strong urge to go through with it. A desire to be a better and safer boater, more qualified and competent to sail beyond our shores with my family, the ability to run charters on my boat, pride, vanity—I’m not really sure. Whatever it was I began the quest by buying the aforementioned book ($17 at Amazon. com). The comprehensive study guide includes a test CD and covers the six major sections of the Coast Guard exam:\n<ul>\n	<li>Rules of the Road</li>\n	<li>Deck General</li>\n	<li>Navigation General</li>\n	<li>Safety</li>\n	<li>Navigation Problems</li>\n</ul>\nAt this point many would-be skippers go to one of the captain’s license schools that offer the whole shooting match, instruction, materials, and test for a set fee (see sidebar). Often these courses are taught in as little as two-weeks. I chose, however, the self-study route, knowing that I would be slipping in the requisite studying in between everything else going on in my life.\n\nAt first glance the information overwhelmed and humbled me. Despite having cruised on the water for twenty-years almost everywhere east of the Mississippi, there was an enormous amount of material that I had never seen before. I quickly resurrected the study habits that served me well back in college and got into a daily regimen of reading and reviewing. I developed mnemonic and rhyming devices to help me memorize things, particularly the arcane rules of the road.\n\nMany people panic when they learn that there is a lot of math on the exam. Relax, there is nothing worse than the skills you use to balance your checkbook, and the very basic algebra and geometry that you should have learned in high school. Once I dove into the problems, it came back very quickly.\n\nAs with anything granted by our Federal government, there is an incredible amount of bureaucracy, paperwork, frustrating phone calls, and redundancy. It’s very important to read and follow the captain’s exam requirements very carefully—almost obsessively. And know that there are inflexible time limits on most of the requirements.\n\nIf you aren’t a patient person, I strongly recommend that you go to a school and let them help you to navigate through the quagmire of governmentese and administrivia.\n\nThe entire captain’s exam is multiple choice and it’s claimed there are no “trick” questions. Maybe, but there sure are a lot of trick answers. As you read, you learn that the wrong answer is always there, inserted by enterprising (read: conniving) USCG employees who attempt to lure the captain candidate down the path to failure. Do you recall your high school teachers telling you to read all the answers before you make your choice? That strategy will serve you well here: I taught myself to attack the questions backward, eliminating three wrong answers to find the correct one. It takes longer to do it this way, but you have all day if you need it to complete the exam.\n\nQuestion after question, back and forth over the six-sections until it became second nature; I took the study guide to work and to bed. Thousands of answers spun dizzyingly around my head. How would I remember all this stuff? Does anyone actually use all these knots? And who cares about the difference between a veering and a backing wind? But I digress, for before I knew it, it was...Test Day!\n\nI arrived at the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Charleston at 7:30am, trotted up to 2nd floor, signed in and waited under a picture of George W. I met my tester who read the rules of the day, handed me the test and it was show time.\n<h3>Panic City</h3>\nAll the studying, all the hours, all the practice, didn’t prep me for what happened next. The first three questions looked like they had been written in Japanese. I had no idea of the answers and had to guess. This was going to be the longest day of my life. Had I studied the wrong material?\n\nIt was surprising how rarely I saw questions I recognized. But I guess with 9000 to choose from, it would be easy to flummox even the most well-prepared candidate. Because I was not very sure of myself here I did something that I cannot overemphasize to anyone wanting the license: I carefully re-read and re-answered every question before I handed it in.\n\nOf the 140 questions that day, the 10 nav problems were by far the most arcane. The four choices for a “name the location” problem would be one-second apart: choice A would be N 41*26”15’ and choice B would be N 41*26”14’. Get the idea? It wasn’t good enough to just get close with my calculations, I had to be dead-on accurate.\n\nI finished the final test at 3:15, and anxiously waited in the lobby. He called my name and in very anti-climactic fashion told me, almost drearily, that I had passed. He sounded genuinely disappointed, I knew what came next: I raised my right hand, repeated the mariners oath, and it was over. A year of my life prepping for a ceremony that took 30-seconds to perform.\n\nMy test scores were well above the minimum to pass, with the exception of the ten naviga- tion problems, which I just squeaked by with a 70%. The entire 140-question exam had come down to one question, so I was extra glad that I studied hard and double-checked all my answers—despite being rushed by the tester.\n\nI sat in my car, numb from the day’s effort, emotionally drained and satisfied, and the warm feeling of success stayed with me the entire way home.\nOn December 12th, my US Merchant Marine Officer License arrives. It reads, “Having been duly examined and found competent by the undersigned is licensed to serve for the term of five years from the below issue date as master of steam...vessel of not more than 50 gross registered tons.”\nOh yeah, call me captain and give me that open water.\n\n<strong>Thinking of taking the plunge and going for your USCG captains license?</strong>\nTake a look at many of the exam questions <a title=\"test exams\" href=\"http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm</a>\nThese can be downloaded free, and stored on your computer. Block the answers in the left margin till you have attempted to solve the question\n\n<strong>Some Captain’s License Prep Schools:</strong>\nBoatwise, LLC 800.698.7373 - <a href=\"http://www.boatwise.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.boatwise.com</a>\nMaritime Institute 888.262.8020 - <a href=\"http://www.maritimeinstitute.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.maritimeinstitute.com</a>\nMarinersSchool.com 866.732.2278 - <a href=\"http://www.marinersschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.marinersschool.com</a>\nNational Captains Institute 800.345.6901 - <a href=\"http://www.captains.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.captains.com</a>\nSeaSchool 800.237.8663 - <a href=\"http://www.seaschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.seaschool.com</a>\n\n<strong>Initial Costs: </strong>\nDoctor appointmentt for physical - copay $15\nUSCG application &amp; test fee $240\nStudy Guide (Charlie Wing)\n$38 Red Cross courses $100\nFingerprinting $18\nDOT 5-panel drug screen $50\nSailing tools, charts $100\n\n<strong>Study Tip:</strong>\nMake copies of the navigation problem plotting sheet, and number problems as you solve them for later review.','Obtaining Your Captain’s License','','inherit','open','open','','207-autosave','','','2011-12-05 19:29:53','2011-12-05 19:29:53','',207,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=210',0,'revision','',0),(211,1,'2011-12-05 19:25:32','2011-12-05 19:25:32','<strong><em>By Captain Robert</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe Six-Pack Saga\r\n\r\nThere it was, calling out to me from the book rack every time I went into the marine store: “Get Your Captain’s License-the Complete Study Guide.” It’s something that I had wanted to do since I was a kid, and every time I saw that thing I would tell myself that someday I would do that, someday I’m going sit down and prepare for the captain’s license. Oh boy, the guilt was palpable—it got to where I would actually avoid that part of the store.\r\n\r\nNow I had no intention of running away on a cargo carrier or ICW barge here; I enjoy my career as a college administrator, so my reasons for doing this were not driven by a midlife crisis or an unhappy home life. So I can’t say why I had such a strong urge to go through with it. A desire to be a better and safer boater, more qualified and competent to sail beyond our shores with my family, the ability to run charters on my boat, pride, vanity—I’m not really sure. Whatever it was I began the quest by buying the aforementioned book ($17 at Amazon. com). The comprehensive study guide includes a test CD and covers the six major sections of the Coast Guard exam:\r\n\r\nRules of the Road \r\n\r\nDeck General \r\n\r\nNavigation General \r\n\r\nSafety\r\n\r\nNavigation Problems\r\n\r\nAt this point many would-be skippers go to one of the captain’s license schools that offer the whole shooting match, instruction, materials, and test for a set fee (see sidebar). Often these courses are taught in as little as two-weeks. I chose, however, the self-study route, knowing that I would be slipping in the requisite studying in between everything else going on in my life.\r\n\r\nAt first glance the information overwhelmed and humbled me. Despite having cruised on the water for twenty-years almost everywhere east of the Mississippi, there was an enormous amount of material that I had never seen before. I quickly resurrected the study habits that served me well back in college and got into a daily regimen of reading and reviewing. I developed mnemonic and rhyming devices to help me memorize things, particularly the arcane rules of the road.\r\n\r\nMany people panic when they learn that there is a lot of math on the exam. Relax, there is nothing worse than the skills you use to balance your checkbook, and the very basic algebra and geometry that you should have learned in high school. Once I dove into the problems, it came back very quickly.\r\n\r\nAs with anything granted by our Federal government, there is an incredible amount of bureaucracy, paperwork, frustrating phone calls, and redundancy. It’s very important to read and follow the captain’s exam requirements very carefully—almost obsessively. And know that there are inflexible time limits on most of the requirements.\r\n\r\nIf you aren’t a patient person, I strongly recommend that you go to a school and let them help you to navigate through the quagmire of governmentese and administrivia.\r\n\r\nThe entire captain’s exam is multiple choice and it’s claimed there are no “trick” questions. Maybe, but there sure are a lot of trick answers. As you read, you learn that the wrong answer is always there, inserted by enterprising (read: conniving) USCG employees who attempt to lure the captain candidate down the path to failure. Do you recall your high school teachers telling you to read all the answers before you make your choice? That strategy will serve you well here: I taught myself to attack the questions backward, eliminating three wrong answers to find the correct one. It takes longer to do it this way, but you have all day if you need it to complete the exam.\r\n\r\nQuestion after question, back and forth over the six-sections until it became second nature; I took the study guide to work and to bed. Thousands of answers spun dizzyingly around my head. How would I remember all this stuff? Does anyone actually use all these knots? And who cares about the difference between a veering and a backing wind? But I digress, for before I knew it, it was...Test Day!\r\n\r\nI arrived at the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Charleston at 7:30am, trotted up to 2nd floor, signed in and waited under a picture of George W. I met my tester who read the rules of the day, handed me the test and it was show time.\r\n\r\nPanic City\r\nAll the studying, all the hours, all the practice, didn’t prep me for what happened next. The first three questions looked like they had been written in Japanese. I had no idea of the answers and had to guess. This was going to be the longest day of my life. Had I studied the wrong material?\r\n\r\nIt was surprising how rarely I saw questions I recognized. But I guess with 9000 to choose from, it would be easy to flummox even the most well-prepared candidate. Because I was not very sure of myself here I did something that I cannot overemphasize to anyone wanting the license: I carefully re-read and re-answered every question before I handed it in.\r\n\r\nOf the 140 questions that day, the 10 nav problems were by far the most arcane. The four choices for a “name the location” problem would be one-second apart: choice A would be N 41*26”15’ and choice B would be N 41*26”14’. Get the idea? It wasn’t good enough to just get close with my calculations, I had to be dead-on accurate.\r\n\r\nI finished the final test at 3:15, and anxiously waited in the lobby. He called my name and in very anti-climactic fashion told me, almost drearily, that I had passed. He sounded genuinely disappointed, I knew what came next: I raised my right hand, repeated the mariners oath, and it was over. A year of my life prepping for a ceremony that took 30-seconds to perform.\r\n\r\nMy test scores were well above the minimum to pass, with the exception of the ten naviga- tion problems, which I just squeaked by with a 70%. The entire 140-question exam had come down to one question, so I was extra glad that I studied hard and double-checked all my answers—despite being rushed by the tester.\r\n\r\nI sat in my car, numb from the day’s effort, emotionally drained and satisfied, and the warm feeling of success stayed with me the entire way home.\r\nOn December 12th, my US Merchant Marine Officer License arrives. It reads, “Having been duly examined and found competent by the undersigned is licensed to serve for the term of five years from the below issue date as master of steam...vessel of not more than 50 gross registered tons.”\r\nOh yeah, call me captain and give me that open water.\r\n\r\nThinking of taking the plunge and going for your USCG captains license?\r\nTake a look at many of the exam questions <a href=\"http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm\" title=\"test exams\" target=\"_blank\">http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm</a> \r\nThese can be downloaded free, and stored on your computer. Block the answers in the left margin till you have attempted to solve the question\r\n\r\n<strong>Some Captain’s License Prep Schools:</strong>\r\nBoatwise, LLC 800.698.7373 www.boatwise.com \r\nMaritime Institute 888.262.8020 www.maritimeinstitute.com \r\nMarinersSchool.com 866.732.2278 www.marinersschool.com \r\nNational Captains Institute 800.345.6901 www.captains.com \r\nSeaSchool 800.237.8663 www.seaschool.com\r\n\r\n<strong>Initial Costs: </strong>\r\nDoctor appointmentt for physical - copay $15 \r\nUSCG application & test fee $240 \r\nStudy Guide (Charlie Wing) \r\n$38 Red Cross courses $100\r\nFingerprinting $18\r\nDOT 5-panel drug screen $50\r\nSailing tools, charts $100\r\n\r\nStudy Tip; Make copies of the navigation problem plotting sheet, and number problems as you solve them for later review.','Obtaining Your Captain’s License','','inherit','open','open','','207-revision-3','','','2011-12-05 19:25:32','2011-12-05 19:25:32','',207,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=211',0,'revision','',0),(212,1,'2011-12-05 19:27:42','2011-12-05 19:27:42','<strong><em>By Captain Robert</em></strong>\r\n<h3>The Six-Pack Saga</h3>\r\nThere it was, calling out to me from the book rack every time I went into the marine store: “Get Your Captain’s License-the Complete Study Guide.” It’s something that I had wanted to do since I was a kid, and every time I saw that thing I would tell myself that someday I would do that, someday I’m going sit down and prepare for the captain’s license. Oh boy, the guilt was palpable—it got to where I would actually avoid that part of the store.\r\n\r\nNow I had no intention of running away on a cargo carrier or ICW barge here; I enjoy my career as a college administrator, so my reasons for doing this were not driven by a midlife crisis or an unhappy home life. So I can’t say why I had such a strong urge to go through with it. A desire to be a better and safer boater, more qualified and competent to sail beyond our shores with my family, the ability to run charters on my boat, pride, vanity—I’m not really sure. Whatever it was I began the quest by buying the aforementioned book ($17 at Amazon. com). The comprehensive study guide includes a test CD and covers the six major sections of the Coast Guard exam:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Rules of the Road</li>\r\n	<li>Deck General</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation General</li>\r\n	<li>Safety</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation Problems</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nAt this point many would-be skippers go to one of the captain’s license schools that offer the whole shooting match, instruction, materials, and test for a set fee (see sidebar). Often these courses are taught in as little as two-weeks. I chose, however, the self-study route, knowing that I would be slipping in the requisite studying in between everything else going on in my life.\r\n\r\nAt first glance the information overwhelmed and humbled me. Despite having cruised on the water for twenty-years almost everywhere east of the Mississippi, there was an enormous amount of material that I had never seen before. I quickly resurrected the study habits that served me well back in college and got into a daily regimen of reading and reviewing. I developed mnemonic and rhyming devices to help me memorize things, particularly the arcane rules of the road.\r\n\r\nMany people panic when they learn that there is a lot of math on the exam. Relax, there is nothing worse than the skills you use to balance your checkbook, and the very basic algebra and geometry that you should have learned in high school. Once I dove into the problems, it came back very quickly.\r\n\r\nAs with anything granted by our Federal government, there is an incredible amount of bureaucracy, paperwork, frustrating phone calls, and redundancy. It’s very important to read and follow the captain’s exam requirements very carefully—almost obsessively. And know that there are inflexible time limits on most of the requirements.\r\n\r\nIf you aren’t a patient person, I strongly recommend that you go to a school and let them help you to navigate through the quagmire of governmentese and administrivia.\r\n\r\nThe entire captain’s exam is multiple choice and it’s claimed there are no “trick” questions. Maybe, but there sure are a lot of trick answers. As you read, you learn that the wrong answer is always there, inserted by enterprising (read: conniving) USCG employees who attempt to lure the captain candidate down the path to failure. Do you recall your high school teachers telling you to read all the answers before you make your choice? That strategy will serve you well here: I taught myself to attack the questions backward, eliminating three wrong answers to find the correct one. It takes longer to do it this way, but you have all day if you need it to complete the exam.\r\n\r\nQuestion after question, back and forth over the six-sections until it became second nature; I took the study guide to work and to bed. Thousands of answers spun dizzyingly around my head. How would I remember all this stuff? Does anyone actually use all these knots? And who cares about the difference between a veering and a backing wind? But I digress, for before I knew it, it was...Test Day!\r\n\r\nI arrived at the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Charleston at 7:30am, trotted up to 2nd floor, signed in and waited under a picture of George W. I met my tester who read the rules of the day, handed me the test and it was show time.\r\n<h3>Panic City</h3>\r\nAll the studying, all the hours, all the practice, didn’t prep me for what happened next. The first three questions looked like they had been written in Japanese. I had no idea of the answers and had to guess. This was going to be the longest day of my life. Had I studied the wrong material?\r\n\r\nIt was surprising how rarely I saw questions I recognized. But I guess with 9000 to choose from, it would be easy to flummox even the most well-prepared candidate. Because I was not very sure of myself here I did something that I cannot overemphasize to anyone wanting the license: I carefully re-read and re-answered every question before I handed it in.\r\n\r\nOf the 140 questions that day, the 10 nav problems were by far the most arcane. The four choices for a “name the location” problem would be one-second apart: choice A would be N 41*26”15’ and choice B would be N 41*26”14’. Get the idea? It wasn’t good enough to just get close with my calculations, I had to be dead-on accurate.\r\n\r\nI finished the final test at 3:15, and anxiously waited in the lobby. He called my name and in very anti-climactic fashion told me, almost drearily, that I had passed. He sounded genuinely disappointed, I knew what came next: I raised my right hand, repeated the mariners oath, and it was over. A year of my life prepping for a ceremony that took 30-seconds to perform.\r\n\r\nMy test scores were well above the minimum to pass, with the exception of the ten naviga- tion problems, which I just squeaked by with a 70%. The entire 140-question exam had come down to one question, so I was extra glad that I studied hard and double-checked all my answers—despite being rushed by the tester.\r\n\r\nI sat in my car, numb from the day’s effort, emotionally drained and satisfied, and the warm feeling of success stayed with me the entire way home.\r\nOn December 12th, my US Merchant Marine Officer License arrives. It reads, “Having been duly examined and found competent by the undersigned is licensed to serve for the term of five years from the below issue date as master of steam...vessel of not more than 50 gross registered tons.”\r\nOh yeah, call me captain and give me that open water.\r\n\r\n<strong>Thinking of taking the plunge and going for your USCG captains license?</strong>\r\nTake a look at many of the exam questions <a title=\"test exams\" href=\"http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm</a>\r\nThese can be downloaded free, and stored on your computer. Block the answers in the left margin till you have attempted to solve the question\r\n\r\n<strong>Some Captain’s License Prep Schools:</strong>\r\nBoatwise, LLC 800.698.7373 - <a href=\"http://www.boatwise.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.boatwise.com</a>\r\nMaritime Institute 888.262.8020 - <a href=\"http://www.maritimeinstitute.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.maritimeinstitute.com</a>\r\nMarinersSchool.com 866.732.2278 - <a href=\"http://www.marinersschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.marinersschool.com</a>\r\nNational Captains Institute 800.345.6901 - <a href=\"http://www.captains.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.captains.com</a>\r\nSeaSchool 800.237.8663 - <a href=\"http://www.seaschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.seaschool.com</a>\r\n\r\n<strong>Initial Costs: </strong>\r\nDoctor appointmentt for physical - copay $15\r\nUSCG application &amp; test fee $240\r\nStudy Guide (Charlie Wing)\r\n$38 Red Cross courses $100\r\nFingerprinting $18\r\nDOT 5-panel drug screen $50\r\nSailing tools, charts $100\r\n\r\n<strong>Study Tip:</strong>\r\nMake copies of the navigation problem plotting sheet, and number problems as you solve them for later review.','Obtaining Your Captain’s License','','inherit','open','open','','207-revision-4','','','2011-12-05 19:27:42','2011-12-05 19:27:42','',207,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=212',0,'revision','',0),(213,1,'2011-12-05 19:30:45','2011-12-05 19:30:45','','captain\'s license','','inherit','open','open','','1090_0','','','2011-12-05 19:30:45','2011-12-05 19:30:45','',207,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/1090_0.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(214,1,'2011-12-05 19:28:49','2011-12-05 19:28:49','<strong><em>By Captain Robert</em></strong>\r\n<h3>The Six-Pack Saga</h3>\r\nThere it was, calling out to me from the book rack every time I went into the marine store: “Get Your Captain’s License-the Complete Study Guide.” It’s something that I had wanted to do since I was a kid, and every time I saw that thing I would tell myself that someday I would do that, someday I’m going sit down and prepare for the captain’s license. Oh boy, the guilt was palpable—it got to where I would actually avoid that part of the store.\r\n\r\nNow I had no intention of running away on a cargo carrier or ICW barge here; I enjoy my career as a college administrator, so my reasons for doing this were not driven by a midlife crisis or an unhappy home life. So I can’t say why I had such a strong urge to go through with it. A desire to be a better and safer boater, more qualified and competent to sail beyond our shores with my family, the ability to run charters on my boat, pride, vanity—I’m not really sure. Whatever it was I began the quest by buying the aforementioned book ($17 at Amazon. com). The comprehensive study guide includes a test CD and covers the six major sections of the Coast Guard exam:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Rules of the Road</li>\r\n	<li>Deck General</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation General</li>\r\n	<li>Safety</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation Problems</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nAt this point many would-be skippers go to one of the captain’s license schools that offer the whole shooting match, instruction, materials, and test for a set fee (see sidebar). Often these courses are taught in as little as two-weeks. I chose, however, the self-study route, knowing that I would be slipping in the requisite studying in between everything else going on in my life.\r\n\r\nAt first glance the information overwhelmed and humbled me. Despite having cruised on the water for twenty-years almost everywhere east of the Mississippi, there was an enormous amount of material that I had never seen before. I quickly resurrected the study habits that served me well back in college and got into a daily regimen of reading and reviewing. I developed mnemonic and rhyming devices to help me memorize things, particularly the arcane rules of the road.\r\n\r\nMany people panic when they learn that there is a lot of math on the exam. Relax, there is nothing worse than the skills you use to balance your checkbook, and the very basic algebra and geometry that you should have learned in high school. Once I dove into the problems, it came back very quickly.\r\n\r\nAs with anything granted by our Federal government, there is an incredible amount of bureaucracy, paperwork, frustrating phone calls, and redundancy. It’s very important to read and follow the captain’s exam requirements very carefully—almost obsessively. And know that there are inflexible time limits on most of the requirements.\r\n\r\nIf you aren’t a patient person, I strongly recommend that you go to a school and let them help you to navigate through the quagmire of governmentese and administrivia.\r\n\r\nThe entire captain’s exam is multiple choice and it’s claimed there are no “trick” questions. Maybe, but there sure are a lot of trick answers. As you read, you learn that the wrong answer is always there, inserted by enterprising (read: conniving) USCG employees who attempt to lure the captain candidate down the path to failure. Do you recall your high school teachers telling you to read all the answers before you make your choice? That strategy will serve you well here: I taught myself to attack the questions backward, eliminating three wrong answers to find the correct one. It takes longer to do it this way, but you have all day if you need it to complete the exam.\r\n\r\nQuestion after question, back and forth over the six-sections until it became second nature; I took the study guide to work and to bed. Thousands of answers spun dizzyingly around my head. How would I remember all this stuff? Does anyone actually use all these knots? And who cares about the difference between a veering and a backing wind? But I digress, for before I knew it, it was...Test Day!\r\n\r\nI arrived at the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Charleston at 7:30am, trotted up to 2nd floor, signed in and waited under a picture of George W. I met my tester who read the rules of the day, handed me the test and it was show time.\r\n<h3>Panic City</h3>\r\nAll the studying, all the hours, all the practice, didn’t prep me for what happened next. The first three questions looked like they had been written in Japanese. I had no idea of the answers and had to guess. This was going to be the longest day of my life. Had I studied the wrong material?\r\n\r\nIt was surprising how rarely I saw questions I recognized. But I guess with 9000 to choose from, it would be easy to flummox even the most well-prepared candidate. Because I was not very sure of myself here I did something that I cannot overemphasize to anyone wanting the license: I carefully re-read and re-answered every question before I handed it in.\r\n\r\nOf the 140 questions that day, the 10 nav problems were by far the most arcane. The four choices for a “name the location” problem would be one-second apart: choice A would be N 41*26”15’ and choice B would be N 41*26”14’. Get the idea? It wasn’t good enough to just get close with my calculations, I had to be dead-on accurate.\r\n\r\nI finished the final test at 3:15, and anxiously waited in the lobby. He called my name and in very anti-climactic fashion told me, almost drearily, that I had passed. He sounded genuinely disappointed, I knew what came next: I raised my right hand, repeated the mariners oath, and it was over. A year of my life prepping for a ceremony that took 30-seconds to perform.\r\n\r\nMy test scores were well above the minimum to pass, with the exception of the ten naviga- tion problems, which I just squeaked by with a 70%. The entire 140-question exam had come down to one question, so I was extra glad that I studied hard and double-checked all my answers—despite being rushed by the tester.\r\n\r\nI sat in my car, numb from the day’s effort, emotionally drained and satisfied, and the warm feeling of success stayed with me the entire way home.\r\nOn December 12th, my US Merchant Marine Officer License arrives. It reads, “Having been duly examined and found competent by the undersigned is licensed to serve for the term of five years from the below issue date as master of steam...vessel of not more than 50 gross registered tons.”\r\nOh yeah, call me captain and give me that open water.\r\n\r\n<strong>Thinking of taking the plunge and going for your USCG captains license?</strong>\r\nTake a look at many of the exam questions <a title=\"test exams\" href=\"http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm</a>\r\nThese can be downloaded free, and stored on your computer. Block the answers in the left margin till you have attempted to solve the question\r\n\r\n<strong>Some Captain’s License Prep Schools:</strong>\r\nBoatwise, LLC 800.698.7373 - <a href=\"http://www.boatwise.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.boatwise.com</a>\r\nMaritime Institute 888.262.8020 - <a href=\"http://www.maritimeinstitute.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.maritimeinstitute.com</a>\r\nMarinersSchool.com 866.732.2278 - <a href=\"http://www.marinersschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.marinersschool.com</a>\r\nNational Captains Institute 800.345.6901 - <a href=\"http://www.captains.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.captains.com</a>\r\nSeaSchool 800.237.8663 - <a href=\"http://www.seaschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.seaschool.com</a>\r\n\r\n<strong>Initial Costs: </strong>\r\nDoctor appointmentt for physical - copay $15\r\nUSCG application &amp; test fee $240\r\nStudy Guide (Charlie Wing)\r\n$38 Red Cross courses $100\r\nFingerprinting $18\r\nDOT 5-panel drug screen $50\r\nSailing tools, charts $100\r\n\r\n<strong>Study Tip:</strong>\r\nMake copies of the navigation problem plotting sheet, and number problems as you solve them for later review.','Obtaining Your Captain’s License','','inherit','open','open','','207-revision-5','','','2011-12-05 19:28:49','2011-12-05 19:28:49','',207,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=214',0,'revision','',0),(215,1,'2011-12-05 19:31:04','2011-12-05 19:31:04','<strong><em>By Captain Robert</em></strong>\r\n<h3>The Six-Pack Saga</h3>\r\nThere it was, calling out to me from the book rack every time I went into the marine store: “Get Your Captain’s License-the Complete Study Guide.” It’s something that I had wanted to do since I was a kid, and every time I saw that thing I would tell myself that someday I would do that, someday I’m going sit down and prepare for the captain’s license. Oh boy, the guilt was palpable—it got to where I would actually avoid that part of the store.\r\n\r\nNow I had no intention of running away on a cargo carrier or ICW barge here; I enjoy my career as a college administrator, so my reasons for doing this were not driven by a midlife crisis or an unhappy home life. So I can’t say why I had such a strong urge to go through with it. A desire to be a better and safer boater, more qualified and competent to sail beyond our shores with my family, the ability to run charters on my boat, pride, vanity—I’m not really sure. Whatever it was I began the quest by buying the aforementioned book ($17 at Amazon. com). The comprehensive study guide includes a test CD and covers the six major sections of the Coast Guard exam:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Rules of the Road</li>\r\n	<li>Deck General</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation General</li>\r\n	<li>Safety</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation Problems</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nAt this point many would-be skippers go to one of the captain’s license schools that offer the whole shooting match, instruction, materials, and test for a set fee (see sidebar). Often these courses are taught in as little as two-weeks. I chose, however, the self-study route, knowing that I would be slipping in the requisite studying in between everything else going on in my life.\r\n\r\nAt first glance the information overwhelmed and humbled me. Despite having cruised on the water for twenty-years almost everywhere east of the Mississippi, there was an enormous amount of material that I had never seen before. I quickly resurrected the study habits that served me well back in college and got into a daily regimen of reading and reviewing. I developed mnemonic and rhyming devices to help me memorize things, particularly the arcane rules of the road.\r\n\r\nMany people panic when they learn that there is a lot of math on the exam. Relax, there is nothing worse than the skills you use to balance your checkbook, and the very basic algebra and geometry that you should have learned in high school. Once I dove into the problems, it came back very quickly.\r\n\r\nAs with anything granted by our Federal government, there is an incredible amount of bureaucracy, paperwork, frustrating phone calls, and redundancy. It’s very important to read and follow the captain’s exam requirements very carefully—almost obsessively. And know that there are inflexible time limits on most of the requirements.\r\n\r\nIf you aren’t a patient person, I strongly recommend that you go to a school and let them help you to navigate through the quagmire of governmentese and administrivia.\r\n\r\nThe entire captain’s exam is multiple choice and it’s claimed there are no “trick” questions. Maybe, but there sure are a lot of trick answers. As you read, you learn that the wrong answer is always there, inserted by enterprising (read: conniving) USCG employees who attempt to lure the captain candidate down the path to failure. Do you recall your high school teachers telling you to read all the answers before you make your choice? That strategy will serve you well here: I taught myself to attack the questions backward, eliminating three wrong answers to find the correct one. It takes longer to do it this way, but you have all day if you need it to complete the exam.\r\n\r\nQuestion after question, back and forth over the six-sections until it became second nature; I took the study guide to work and to bed. Thousands of answers spun dizzyingly around my head. How would I remember all this stuff? Does anyone actually use all these knots? And who cares about the difference between a veering and a backing wind? But I digress, for before I knew it, it was...Test Day!\r\n\r\nI arrived at the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Charleston at 7:30am, trotted up to 2nd floor, signed in and waited under a picture of George W. I met my tester who read the rules of the day, handed me the test and it was show time.\r\n<h3>Panic City</h3>\r\nAll the studying, all the hours, all the practice, didn’t prep me for what happened next. The first three questions looked like they had been written in Japanese. I had no idea of the answers and had to guess. This was going to be the longest day of my life. Had I studied the wrong material?\r\n\r\nIt was surprising how rarely I saw questions I recognized. But I guess with 9000 to choose from, it would be easy to flummox even the most well-prepared candidate. Because I was not very sure of myself here I did something that I cannot overemphasize to anyone wanting the license: I carefully re-read and re-answered every question before I handed it in.\r\n\r\nOf the 140 questions that day, the 10 nav problems were by far the most arcane. The four choices for a “name the location” problem would be one-second apart: choice A would be N 41*26”15’ and choice B would be N 41*26”14’. Get the idea? It wasn’t good enough to just get close with my calculations, I had to be dead-on accurate.\r\n\r\nI finished the final test at 3:15, and anxiously waited in the lobby. He called my name and in very anti-climactic fashion told me, almost drearily, that I had passed. He sounded genuinely disappointed, I knew what came next: I raised my right hand, repeated the mariners oath, and it was over. A year of my life prepping for a ceremony that took 30-seconds to perform.\r\n\r\nMy test scores were well above the minimum to pass, with the exception of the ten naviga- tion problems, which I just squeaked by with a 70%. The entire 140-question exam had come down to one question, so I was extra glad that I studied hard and double-checked all my answers—despite being rushed by the tester.\r\n\r\nI sat in my car, numb from the day’s effort, emotionally drained and satisfied, and the warm feeling of success stayed with me the entire way home.\r\nOn December 12th, my US Merchant Marine Officer License arrives. It reads, “Having been duly examined and found competent by the undersigned is licensed to serve for the term of five years from the below issue date as master of steam...vessel of not more than 50 gross registered tons.”\r\nOh yeah, call me captain and give me that open water.\r\n\r\n<strong>Thinking of taking the plunge and going for your USCG captains license?</strong>\r\nTake a look at many of the exam questions <a title=\"test exams\" href=\"http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm</a>\r\nThese can be downloaded free, and stored on your computer. Block the answers in the left margin till you have attempted to solve the question\r\n\r\n<strong>Some Captain’s License Prep Schools:</strong>\r\nBoatwise, LLC 800.698.7373 - <a href=\"http://www.boatwise.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.boatwise.com</a>\r\nMaritime Institute 888.262.8020 - <a href=\"http://www.maritimeinstitute.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.maritimeinstitute.com</a>\r\nMarinersSchool.com 866.732.2278 - <a href=\"http://www.marinersschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.marinersschool.com</a>\r\nNational Captains Institute 800.345.6901 - <a href=\"http://www.captains.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.captains.com</a>\r\nSeaSchool 800.237.8663 - <a href=\"http://www.seaschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.seaschool.com</a>\r\n\r\n<strong>Initial Costs: </strong>\r\nDoctor appointmentt for physical - copay $15\r\nUSCG application &amp; test fee $240\r\nStudy Guide (Charlie Wing)\r\n$38 Red Cross courses $100\r\nFingerprinting $18\r\nDOT 5-panel drug screen $50\r\nSailing tools, charts $100\r\n\r\n<strong>Study Tip:</strong>\r\nMake copies of the navigation problem plotting sheet, and number problems as you solve them for later review.','Obtaining Your Captain’s License','','inherit','open','open','','207-revision-6','','','2011-12-05 19:31:04','2011-12-05 19:31:04','',207,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=215',0,'revision','',0),(216,1,'2011-12-05 19:31:35','2011-12-05 19:31:35','<strong><em><img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-213\" title=\"captain\'s license\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/1090_0-300x204.jpg\" alt=\"captain\'s license\" width=\"300\" height=\"204\" />By Captain Robert</em></strong>\r\n<h3>The Six-Pack Saga</h3>\r\nThere it was, calling out to me from the book rack every time I went into the marine store: “Get Your Captain’s License-the Complete Study Guide.” It’s something that I had wanted to do since I was a kid, and every time I saw that thing I would tell myself that someday I would do that, someday I’m going sit down and prepare for the captain’s license. Oh boy, the guilt was palpable—it got to where I would actually avoid that part of the store.\r\n\r\nNow I had no intention of running away on a cargo carrier or ICW barge here; I enjoy my career as a college administrator, so my reasons for doing this were not driven by a midlife crisis or an unhappy home life. So I can’t say why I had such a strong urge to go through with it. A desire to be a better and safer boater, more qualified and competent to sail beyond our shores with my family, the ability to run charters on my boat, pride, vanity—I’m not really sure. Whatever it was I began the quest by buying the aforementioned book ($17 at Amazon. com). The comprehensive study guide includes a test CD and covers the six major sections of the Coast Guard exam:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Rules of the Road</li>\r\n	<li>Deck General</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation General</li>\r\n	<li>Safety</li>\r\n	<li>Navigation Problems</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nAt this point many would-be skippers go to one of the captain’s license schools that offer the whole shooting match, instruction, materials, and test for a set fee (see sidebar). Often these courses are taught in as little as two-weeks. I chose, however, the self-study route, knowing that I would be slipping in the requisite studying in between everything else going on in my life.\r\n\r\nAt first glance the information overwhelmed and humbled me. Despite having cruised on the water for twenty-years almost everywhere east of the Mississippi, there was an enormous amount of material that I had never seen before. I quickly resurrected the study habits that served me well back in college and got into a daily regimen of reading and reviewing. I developed mnemonic and rhyming devices to help me memorize things, particularly the arcane rules of the road.\r\n\r\nMany people panic when they learn that there is a lot of math on the exam. Relax, there is nothing worse than the skills you use to balance your checkbook, and the very basic algebra and geometry that you should have learned in high school. Once I dove into the problems, it came back very quickly.\r\n\r\nAs with anything granted by our Federal government, there is an incredible amount of bureaucracy, paperwork, frustrating phone calls, and redundancy. It’s very important to read and follow the captain’s exam requirements very carefully—almost obsessively. And know that there are inflexible time limits on most of the requirements.\r\n\r\nIf you aren’t a patient person, I strongly recommend that you go to a school and let them help you to navigate through the quagmire of governmentese and administrivia.\r\n\r\nThe entire captain’s exam is multiple choice and it’s claimed there are no “trick” questions. Maybe, but there sure are a lot of trick answers. As you read, you learn that the wrong answer is always there, inserted by enterprising (read: conniving) USCG employees who attempt to lure the captain candidate down the path to failure. Do you recall your high school teachers telling you to read all the answers before you make your choice? That strategy will serve you well here: I taught myself to attack the questions backward, eliminating three wrong answers to find the correct one. It takes longer to do it this way, but you have all day if you need it to complete the exam.\r\n\r\nQuestion after question, back and forth over the six-sections until it became second nature; I took the study guide to work and to bed. Thousands of answers spun dizzyingly around my head. How would I remember all this stuff? Does anyone actually use all these knots? And who cares about the difference between a veering and a backing wind? But I digress, for before I knew it, it was...Test Day!\r\n\r\nI arrived at the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Charleston at 7:30am, trotted up to 2nd floor, signed in and waited under a picture of George W. I met my tester who read the rules of the day, handed me the test and it was show time.\r\n<h3>Panic City</h3>\r\nAll the studying, all the hours, all the practice, didn’t prep me for what happened next. The first three questions looked like they had been written in Japanese. I had no idea of the answers and had to guess. This was going to be the longest day of my life. Had I studied the wrong material?\r\n\r\nIt was surprising how rarely I saw questions I recognized. But I guess with 9000 to choose from, it would be easy to flummox even the most well-prepared candidate. Because I was not very sure of myself here I did something that I cannot overemphasize to anyone wanting the license: I carefully re-read and re-answered every question before I handed it in.\r\n\r\nOf the 140 questions that day, the 10 nav problems were by far the most arcane. The four choices for a “name the location” problem would be one-second apart: choice A would be N 41*26”15’ and choice B would be N 41*26”14’. Get the idea? It wasn’t good enough to just get close with my calculations, I had to be dead-on accurate.\r\n\r\nI finished the final test at 3:15, and anxiously waited in the lobby. He called my name and in very anti-climactic fashion told me, almost drearily, that I had passed. He sounded genuinely disappointed, I knew what came next: I raised my right hand, repeated the mariners oath, and it was over. A year of my life prepping for a ceremony that took 30-seconds to perform.\r\n\r\nMy test scores were well above the minimum to pass, with the exception of the ten naviga- tion problems, which I just squeaked by with a 70%. The entire 140-question exam had come down to one question, so I was extra glad that I studied hard and double-checked all my answers—despite being rushed by the tester.\r\n\r\nI sat in my car, numb from the day’s effort, emotionally drained and satisfied, and the warm feeling of success stayed with me the entire way home.\r\nOn December 12th, my US Merchant Marine Officer License arrives. It reads, “Having been duly examined and found competent by the undersigned is licensed to serve for the term of five years from the below issue date as master of steam...vessel of not more than 50 gross registered tons.”\r\nOh yeah, call me captain and give me that open water.\r\n\r\n<strong>Thinking of taking the plunge and going for your USCG captains license?</strong>\r\nTake a look at many of the exam questions <a title=\"test exams\" href=\"http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\">http://www.uscg.mil/STCW/index.htm</a>\r\nThese can be downloaded free, and stored on your computer. Block the answers in the left margin till you have attempted to solve the question\r\n\r\n<strong>Some Captain’s License Prep Schools:</strong>\r\nBoatwise, LLC 800.698.7373 - <a href=\"http://www.boatwise.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.boatwise.com</a>\r\nMaritime Institute 888.262.8020 - <a href=\"http://www.maritimeinstitute.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.maritimeinstitute.com</a>\r\nMarinersSchool.com 866.732.2278 - <a href=\"http://www.marinersschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.marinersschool.com</a>\r\nNational Captains Institute 800.345.6901 - <a href=\"http://www.captains.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.captains.com</a>\r\nSeaSchool 800.237.8663 - <a href=\"http://www.seaschool.com\" target=\"_blank\">www.seaschool.com</a>\r\n\r\n<strong>Initial Costs: </strong>\r\nDoctor appointmentt for physical - copay $15\r\nUSCG application &amp; test fee $240\r\nStudy Guide (Charlie Wing)\r\n$38 Red Cross courses $100\r\nFingerprinting $18\r\nDOT 5-panel drug screen $50\r\nSailing tools, charts $100\r\n\r\n<strong>Study Tip:</strong>\r\nMake copies of the navigation problem plotting sheet, and number problems as you solve them for later review.','Obtaining Your Captain’s License','','inherit','open','open','','207-revision-7','','','2011-12-05 19:31:35','2011-12-05 19:31:35','',207,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=216',0,'revision','',0),(218,1,'2011-02-01 19:33:20','2011-02-01 19:33:20','Many phrases that have been adopted into everyday use originate from seafaring - in particular from the days of sail. Virtually all of these are metaphorical and the original nautical meanings are now forgotten. That association of travel and metaphor is significant in that the word metaphor derives from ancient Greek for ‘to carry’ or ‘to travel’. The influence of other languages and other cultures is evident in many of the long list of English phrases that have nautical origins.\r\n\r\nIt is an undoubted fact that seafaring is also the source of more false etymology than any other sphere. This can be attributed to the attractiveness of the romantic image of horny-handed sailors singing shanties and living a hearty and rough life at sea. After all, it sounds plausible that ‘cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey’ comes from brass ship’s fittings and that POSH means ‘Port out, starboard home’, but neither of these is correct. CANOE, theCommittee to Ascribe a Naval Origin to Everything, doesn’t really exist, but the number of these folk myths makes it seem as though they do.\r\n\r\nIt is lucky for us, in our endeavors’ to distinguish truth from false- hood, that activities at sea have been scrupulously recorded over the centuries, in insurance records, newspaper accounts and, not least, in ships’ log books. The term log-book has an interesting derivation in itself. An early form of measuring a ship’s progress was by casting overboard a wooden board (the log) with a string attached. The rate at which the string was payed out as the ship moved away from the stationary log was measured by counting how long it took between knots in the string. These measurements were later transcribed into a book. Hence we get the term ‘log-book’ and also the name ‘knot’as the unit of speed at sea.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Over the Barrel</em></strong>\r\nThe most common method of punishment aboard ship was flogging. The unfor- tunate sailor was tied to a grating, mast or over a barrel. Kissing the gunner’s daughter was being tied over the barrel of a deck cannon whilst it was fired.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>To Know the Ropes</em></strong>\r\nThere are miles rope in the rigging of a square rigged ship. The only way of keeping track of the function of all of these lines was to memorize (know) where they were located. It took an experienced seaman to know the ropes.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Dressing Down</em></strong>\r\nThin and worn sails were often treated with oil or wax to renew their effective- ness. This was called dressing down. An officer or sailor who was reprimanded or scolded received a dressing down.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Footloose</em></strong>\r\nThe bottom portion of a sail is called the foot. If it is not secured, it is footloose and it dances randomly in the wind. Also known for a sail with no boom.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>First Rate</em></strong>\r\nImplies excellence. From the sixteenth century until steam powered ships took over, British naval ships were rated as to the number of heavy cannon they carried. A ship of 100 or more guns was a First Rate line-of-battle ship. Second rates carried 90 to 98 guns; Third Rates, 64 to 89 guns; Fourth Rates, 50 to 60 guns. Frigates carrying 20 to 48 guns were fifth and sixth rated.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Pipe Down</em></strong>\r\nMeans stop talking and be quiet. The Pipe Down was the last signal from the Boson’s pipe each day which meant lights out and silence.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Feeling Blue</em></strong>\r\nWhen a ship’s captain died during a voyage, his ship would return to port flying a blue flag and bearing a blue stripe on its hull. The term “feeling blue” signifies depression or sadness today.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Three Sheets to the Wind</em></strong>\r\nA sheet is a rope line which controls the tension on corners of a square sail. If, on a three masted ship, the sheets of the three lower course sails are loose, the sails will flap and flutter and are said to be in the wind. A ship in this condition would stagger and wander aimlessly downwind acting much like a drunken sailor.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Pooped</em></strong>\r\nThe poop is the stern section of a ship. To be pooped is to be struck by a high, following sea or wave on the stern.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>As the Crow Flies</em></strong>\r\nWhen lost or unsure of their position in coastal waters, ships would re- lease a caged crow. The crow would fly straight towards the nearest land thus giving the vessel some sort of a navigational fix. The tallest lookout platform on a ship came to be known as the crow’s nest.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Cut and Run</em></strong>\r\nIf a smaller ship at anchor was discovered by a larger enemy vessel, the smaller ship might decide that discretion is the better part of valor, and so would order the crew to cut the anchor cable and sail off in a hurry.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>The Bitter End</em></strong>\r\nThe end of an anchor cable is fastened to the bits at the ship’s bow. If all of the anchor cable has been paid out you have come to the bitter end.\r\n\r\nToe the Line\r\nWhen called to line up at attention, the ship’s crew would form up with their toes touching a seam in the deck planking.\r\n\r\nBear Down\r\nTo sail downwind rapidly towards another ship or landmark.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Under the Weather</strong></em>\r\nIf a crewman is standing watch on the weather side of the bow, he will be subject to the constant beating of the sea and the ocean spray. He will be under the weather.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea</strong></em>\r\nThe devil seam was the curved seam in the deck planking closest to the side of the ship and next to the scupper gutters. If a sailor were hanging off the side in a boatswains chair you would be between the devil and the deep blue sea.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>The Devil to Pay</strong></em>\r\nTo pay the deck seams meant to seal them with tar. The devil seam was the most difficult to pay because it was curved and intersected with the straight deck planking. Paying the Devil was considered to be a most difficult and unpleasant task, sometimes used as mild punishment.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>A Square Meal</strong></em>\r\nThe crews’ mess was a warm meal served on square wooden platters. They were not nutritionally balanced.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Son of a Gun</strong></em>\r\nWhen in port, and with the crew restricted to the ship for any extended period of time, wives and ladies of easy virtue often were allowed to visit or even live aboard along with the crew. Infrequently, but not uncom- monly, children were born aboard, and a convenient place for this was between guns on the gun deck. If the child’s father was unknown, they were entered in the ship’s log as son of a gun.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Taking the wind out of his sails</strong></em>\r\nSailing in a manner so as to steal or divert wind from another ship’s sails.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Let the Cat Out of the Bag</strong></em>\r\nAboard ship the punishment prescribed for most serious crimes was flogging. This was administered by the Boson’s Mate using a whip called a cat o’ nine tails. The cat was kept in a red dyed bag. It was considered bad news indeed when the cat was let out of the bag.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Fly-by-Night</strong></em>\r\nThe word fly means “to sail” in nautical jargon. Sailing at night was a difficult and dangerous task. Therefore, when the night watch began, the elaborate sails used during the day were replaced by one large sail requir- ing rather little attention. This was the easiest sail to set and take down thus it could be put up and taken down quickly.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Give (someone) a Wide Berth</strong></em>\r\nTo anchor a ship far enough away from another ship so that they did not hit each other when they swung with the wind or tide.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>High and dry</strong></em>\r\nStranded, without help or hope of recovery. This term originally referred to ships that were beached. The ‘dry’ implies that, not only were they out of the water, but had been for some time and could be expected to remain so.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Garbled</strong></em>\r\nGarbling was the prohibited practice of mixing rubbish with the cargo. A distorted or mixed up signal or message was said to be garbled.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Press Into Service</strong></em>\r\nThe British navy filled their ships’ crew quotas by kidnapping men off the streets and forcing them into service. This was called Pressment and was done by Press Gangs.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Touch and Go</strong></em>\r\nThis referred to a ship’s keel touching the bottom and getting right off again.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Scuttlebutt</strong></em>\r\nA butt was a large barrel. Scuttle meant to chop a hole in something. The scuttlebutt was a water barrel with a hole cut into it so that sailors could reach in and dip out drinking water. The scuttlebutt was the place where the ship’s gossip was exchanged.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Batten down the hatches</strong></em>\r\nPrepare for trouble. The securing of property, especially the covering with protective sheeting (tarpaulin), is called ‘battening down’. A batten is a strip of wood used to secure the sheeting. It has a nautical origin and ‘battening down’ was done on ships when bad weather was expected.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>True colors</strong></em>\r\nEarly warships often carried flags from many nations on board in order to elude or deceive the enemy. The rules of civilized warfare called for all ships to hoist their true national ensigns before firing a shot.','Nautical Sayings','','publish','open','open','','nautical-sayings','','','2013-04-02 12:57:28','2013-04-02 16:57:28','',0,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=218',57,'post','',0),(219,1,'2011-12-05 19:36:22','2011-12-05 19:36:22','Many phrases that have been adopted into everyday use originate from seafaring - in particular from the days of sail. Virtually all of these are metaphorical and the original nautical meanings are now forgotten. That association of travel and metaphor is significant in that the word metaphor derives from ancient Greek for ‘to carry’ or ‘to travel’. The influence of other languages and other cultures is evident in many of the long list of English phrases that have nautical origins.\n\nIt is an undoubted fact that seafaring is also the source of more false etymology than any other sphere. This can be attributed to the attractiveness of the romantic image of horny-handed sailors singing shanties and living a hearty and rough life at sea. After all, it sounds plausible that ‘cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey’ comes from brass ship’s fittings and that POSH means ‘Port out, starboard home’, but neither of these is correct. CANOE, theCommittee to Ascribe a Naval Origin to Everything, doesn’t really exist, but the number of these folk myths makes it seem as though they do.\n\nIt is lucky for us, in our endeavors’ to distinguish truth from false- hood, that activities at sea have been scrupulously recorded over the centuries, in insurance records, newspaper accounts and, not least, in ships’ log books. The term log-book has an interesting derivation in itself. An early form of measuring a ship’s progress was by casting overboard a wooden board (the log) with a string attached. The rate at which the string was payed out as the ship moved away from the stationary log was measured by counting how long it took between knots in the string. These measurements were later transcribed into a book. Hence we get the term ‘log-book’ and also the name ‘knot’as the unit of speed at sea.\n\n<strong><em>Over the Barrel</em></strong>\nThe most common method of punishment aboard ship was flogging. The unfor- tunate sailor was tied to a grating, mast or over a barrel. Kissing the gunner’s daughter was being tied over the barrel of a deck cannon whilst it was fired.\n\n<strong><em>To Know the Ropes</em></strong>\nThere are miles rope in the rigging of a square rigged ship. The only way of keeping track of the function of all of these lines was to memorize (know) where they were located. It took an experienced seaman to know the ropes.\n\n<strong><em>Dressing Down</em></strong>\nThin and worn sails were often treated with oil or wax to renew their effective- ness. This was called dressing down. An officer or sailor who was reprimanded or scolded received a dressing down.\n\n<strong><em>Footloose</em></strong>\nThe bottom portion of a sail is called the foot. If it is not secured, it is footloose and it dances randomly in the wind. Also known for a sail with no boom.\n\n<strong><em>First Rate</em></strong>\nImplies excellence. From the sixteenth century until steam powered ships took over, British naval ships were rated as to the number of heavy cannon they carried. A ship of 100 or more guns was a First Rate line-of-battle ship. Second rates carried 90 to 98 guns; Third Rates, 64 to 89 guns; Fourth Rates, 50 to 60 guns. Frigates carrying 20 to 48 guns were fifth and sixth rated.\n\n<strong><em>Pipe Down</em></strong>\nMeans stop talking and be quiet. The Pipe Down was the last signal from the Boson’s pipe each day which meant lights out and silence.\n\n<strong><em>Feeling Blue</em></strong>\nWhen a ship’s captain died during a voyage, his ship would return to port flying a blue flag and bearing a blue stripe on its hull. The term “feeling blue” signifies depression or sadness today.\n\n<strong><em>Three Sheets to the Wind</em></strong>\nA sheet is a rope line which controls the tension on corners of a square sail. If, on a three masted ship, the sheets of the three lower course sails are loose, the sails will flap and flutter and are said to be in the wind. A ship in this condition would stagger and wander aimlessly downwind acting much like a drunken sailor.\n\n<strong><em>Pooped</em></strong>\nThe poop is the stern section of a ship. To be pooped is to be struck by a high, following sea or wave on the stern.\n\n<strong><em>As the Crow Flies</em></strong>\nWhen lost or unsure of their position in coastal waters, ships would re- lease a caged crow. The crow would fly straight towards the nearest land thus giving the vessel some sort of a navigational fix. The tallest lookout platform on a ship came to be known as the crow’s nest.\n\n<strong><em>Cut and Run</em></strong>\nIf a smaller ship at anchor was discovered by a larger enemy vessel, the smaller ship might decide that discretion is the better part of valor, and so would order the crew to cut the anchor cable and sail off in a hurry.','Nautical Sayings','','inherit','open','open','','218-revision','','','2011-12-05 19:36:22','2011-12-05 19:36:22','',218,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=219',0,'revision','',0),(220,1,'2011-12-05 19:36:26','2011-12-05 19:36:26','Many phrases that have been adopted into everyday use originate from seafaring - in particular from the days of sail. Virtually all of these are metaphorical and the original nautical meanings are now forgotten. That association of travel and metaphor is significant in that the word metaphor derives from ancient Greek for ‘to carry’ or ‘to travel’. The influence of other languages and other cultures is evident in many of the long list of English phrases that have nautical origins.\r\n\r\nIt is an undoubted fact that seafaring is also the source of more false etymology than any other sphere. This can be attributed to the attractiveness of the romantic image of horny-handed sailors singing shanties and living a hearty and rough life at sea. After all, it sounds plausible that ‘cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey’ comes from brass ship’s fittings and that POSH means ‘Port out, starboard home’, but neither of these is correct. CANOE, theCommittee to Ascribe a Naval Origin to Everything, doesn’t really exist, but the number of these folk myths makes it seem as though they do.\r\n\r\nIt is lucky for us, in our endeavors’ to distinguish truth from false- hood, that activities at sea have been scrupulously recorded over the centuries, in insurance records, newspaper accounts and, not least, in ships’ log books. The term log-book has an interesting derivation in itself. An early form of measuring a ship’s progress was by casting overboard a wooden board (the log) with a string attached. The rate at which the string was payed out as the ship moved away from the stationary log was measured by counting how long it took between knots in the string. These measurements were later transcribed into a book. Hence we get the term ‘log-book’ and also the name ‘knot’as the unit of speed at sea.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Over the Barrel</em></strong>\r\nThe most common method of punishment aboard ship was flogging. The unfor- tunate sailor was tied to a grating, mast or over a barrel. Kissing the gunner’s daughter was being tied over the barrel of a deck cannon whilst it was fired.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>To Know the Ropes</em></strong>\r\nThere are miles rope in the rigging of a square rigged ship. The only way of keeping track of the function of all of these lines was to memorize (know) where they were located. It took an experienced seaman to know the ropes.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Dressing Down</em></strong>\r\nThin and worn sails were often treated with oil or wax to renew their effective- ness. This was called dressing down. An officer or sailor who was reprimanded or scolded received a dressing down.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Footloose</em></strong>\r\nThe bottom portion of a sail is called the foot. If it is not secured, it is footloose and it dances randomly in the wind. Also known for a sail with no boom.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>First Rate</em></strong>\r\nImplies excellence. From the sixteenth century until steam powered ships took over, British naval ships were rated as to the number of heavy cannon they carried. A ship of 100 or more guns was a First Rate line-of-battle ship. Second rates carried 90 to 98 guns; Third Rates, 64 to 89 guns; Fourth Rates, 50 to 60 guns. Frigates carrying 20 to 48 guns were fifth and sixth rated.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Pipe Down</em></strong>\r\nMeans stop talking and be quiet. The Pipe Down was the last signal from the Boson’s pipe each day which meant lights out and silence.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Feeling Blue</em></strong>\r\nWhen a ship’s captain died during a voyage, his ship would return to port flying a blue flag and bearing a blue stripe on its hull. The term “feeling blue” signifies depression or sadness today.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Three Sheets to the Wind</em></strong>\r\nA sheet is a rope line which controls the tension on corners of a square sail. If, on a three masted ship, the sheets of the three lower course sails are loose, the sails will flap and flutter and are said to be in the wind. A ship in this condition would stagger and wander aimlessly downwind acting much like a drunken sailor.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Pooped</em></strong>\r\nThe poop is the stern section of a ship. To be pooped is to be struck by a high, following sea or wave on the stern.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>As the Crow Flies</em></strong>\r\nWhen lost or unsure of their position in coastal waters, ships would re- lease a caged crow. The crow would fly straight towards the nearest land thus giving the vessel some sort of a navigational fix. The tallest lookout platform on a ship came to be known as the crow’s nest.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Cut and Run</em></strong>\r\nIf a smaller ship at anchor was discovered by a larger enemy vessel, the smaller ship might decide that discretion is the better part of valor, and so would order the crew to cut the anchor cable and sail off in a hurry.','Nautical Sayings','','inherit','open','open','','218-revision-2','','','2011-12-05 19:36:26','2011-12-05 19:36:26','',218,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=220',0,'revision','',0),(221,1,'2011-12-05 20:00:37','2011-12-05 20:00:37','Many phrases that have been adopted into everyday use originate from seafaring - in particular from the days of sail. Virtually all of these are metaphorical and the original nautical meanings are now forgotten. That association of travel and metaphor is significant in that the word metaphor derives from ancient Greek for ‘to carry’ or ‘to travel’. The influence of other languages and other cultures is evident in many of the long list of English phrases that have nautical origins.\n\nIt is an undoubted fact that seafaring is also the source of more false etymology than any other sphere. This can be attributed to the attractiveness of the romantic image of horny-handed sailors singing shanties and living a hearty and rough life at sea. After all, it sounds plausible that ‘cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey’ comes from brass ship’s fittings and that POSH means ‘Port out, starboard home’, but neither of these is correct. CANOE, theCommittee to Ascribe a Naval Origin to Everything, doesn’t really exist, but the number of these folk myths makes it seem as though they do.\n\nIt is lucky for us, in our endeavors’ to distinguish truth from false- hood, that activities at sea have been scrupulously recorded over the centuries, in insurance records, newspaper accounts and, not least, in ships’ log books. The term log-book has an interesting derivation in itself. An early form of measuring a ship’s progress was by casting overboard a wooden board (the log) with a string attached. The rate at which the string was payed out as the ship moved away from the stationary log was measured by counting how long it took between knots in the string. These measurements were later transcribed into a book. Hence we get the term ‘log-book’ and also the name ‘knot’as the unit of speed at sea.\n\n<strong><em>Over the Barrel</em></strong>\nThe most common method of punishment aboard ship was flogging. The unfor- tunate sailor was tied to a grating, mast or over a barrel. Kissing the gunner’s daughter was being tied over the barrel of a deck cannon whilst it was fired.\n\n<strong><em>To Know the Ropes</em></strong>\nThere are miles rope in the rigging of a square rigged ship. The only way of keeping track of the function of all of these lines was to memorize (know) where they were located. It took an experienced seaman to know the ropes.\n\n<strong><em>Dressing Down</em></strong>\nThin and worn sails were often treated with oil or wax to renew their effective- ness. This was called dressing down. An officer or sailor who was reprimanded or scolded received a dressing down.\n\n<strong><em>Footloose</em></strong>\nThe bottom portion of a sail is called the foot. If it is not secured, it is footloose and it dances randomly in the wind. Also known for a sail with no boom.\n\n<strong><em>First Rate</em></strong>\nImplies excellence. From the sixteenth century until steam powered ships took over, British naval ships were rated as to the number of heavy cannon they carried. A ship of 100 or more guns was a First Rate line-of-battle ship. Second rates carried 90 to 98 guns; Third Rates, 64 to 89 guns; Fourth Rates, 50 to 60 guns. Frigates carrying 20 to 48 guns were fifth and sixth rated.\n\n<strong><em>Pipe Down</em></strong>\nMeans stop talking and be quiet. The Pipe Down was the last signal from the Boson’s pipe each day which meant lights out and silence.\n\n<strong><em>Feeling Blue</em></strong>\nWhen a ship’s captain died during a voyage, his ship would return to port flying a blue flag and bearing a blue stripe on its hull. The term “feeling blue” signifies depression or sadness today.\n\n<strong><em>Three Sheets to the Wind</em></strong>\nA sheet is a rope line which controls the tension on corners of a square sail. If, on a three masted ship, the sheets of the three lower course sails are loose, the sails will flap and flutter and are said to be in the wind. A ship in this condition would stagger and wander aimlessly downwind acting much like a drunken sailor.\n\n<strong><em>Pooped</em></strong>\nThe poop is the stern section of a ship. To be pooped is to be struck by a high, following sea or wave on the stern.\n\n<strong><em>As the Crow Flies</em></strong>\nWhen lost or unsure of their position in coastal waters, ships would re- lease a caged crow. The crow would fly straight towards the nearest land thus giving the vessel some sort of a navigational fix. The tallest lookout platform on a ship came to be known as the crow’s nest.\n\n<strong><em>Cut and Run</em></strong>\nIf a smaller ship at anchor was discovered by a larger enemy vessel, the smaller ship might decide that discretion is the better part of valor, and so would order the crew to cut the anchor cable and sail off in a hurry.\n\n<strong><em>The Bitter End</em></strong>\nThe end of an anchor cable is fastened to the bits at the ship’s bow. If all of the anchor cable has been paid out you have come to the bitter end.\n\nToe the Line\nWhen called to line up at attention, the ship’s crew would form up with their toes touching a seam in the deck planking.\n\nBear Down\nTo sail downwind rapidly towards another ship or landmark.\n\n<em><strong>Under the Weather</strong></em>\nIf a crewman is standing watch on the weather side of the bow, he will be subject to the constant beating of the sea and the ocean spray. He will be under the weather.\n\n<em><strong>Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea</strong></em>\nThe devil seam was the curved seam in the deck planking closest to the side of the ship and next to the scupper gutters. If a sailor were hanging off the side in a boatswains chair you would be between the devil and the deep blue sea.\n\n<em><strong>The Devil to Pay</strong></em>\nTo pay the deck seams meant to seal them with tar. The devil seam was the most difficult to pay because it was curved and intersected with the straight deck planking. Paying the Devil was considered to be a most difficult and unpleasant task, sometimes used as mild punishment.\n\n<em><strong>A Square Meal</strong></em>\nThe crews’ mess was a warm meal served on square wooden platters. They were not nutritionally balanced.\n\n<em><strong>Son of a Gun</strong></em>\nWhen in port, and with the crew restricted to the ship for any extended period of time, wives and ladies of easy virtue often were allowed to visit or even live aboard along with the crew. Infrequently, but not uncom- monly, children were born aboard, and a convenient place for this was between guns on the gun deck. If the child’s father was unknown, they were entered in the ship’s log as son of a gun.\n\n<em><strong>Taking the wind out of his sails</strong></em>\nSailing in a manner so as to steal or divert wind from another ship’s sails.\n\n<em><strong>Let the Cat Out of the Bag</strong></em>\nAboard ship the punishment prescribed for most serious crimes was flogging. This was administered by the Boson’s Mate using a whip called a cat o’ nine tails. The cat was kept in a red dyed bag. It was considered bad news indeed when the cat was let out of the bag.\n\n<em><strong>Fly-by-Night</strong></em>\nThe word fly means “to sail” in nautical jargon. Sailing at night was a difficult and dangerous task. Therefore, when the night watch began, the elaborate sails used during the day were replaced by one large sail requir- ing rather little attention. This was the easiest sail to set and take down thus it could be put up and taken down quickly.\n\n<em><strong>Give (someone) a Wide Berth</strong></em>\nTo anchor a ship far enough away from another ship so that they did not hit each other when they swung with the wind or tide.\n\n<em><strong>High and dry</strong></em>\nStranded, without help or hope of recovery. This term originally referred to ships that were beached. The ‘dry’ implies that, not only were they out of the water, but had been for some time and could be expected to remain so.\n\n<em><strong>Garbled</strong></em>\nGarbling was the prohibited practice of mixing rubbish with the cargo. A distorted or mixed up signal or message was said to be garbled.\n\n<em><strong>Press Into Service</strong></em>\nThe British navy filled their ships’ crew quotas by kidnapping men off the streets and forcing them into service. This was called Pressment and was done by Press Gangs.\n\n<em><strong>Touch and Go</strong></em>\nThis referred to a ship’s keel touching the bottom and getting right off again.\n\n<em><strong>Scuttlebutt</strong></em>\nA butt was a large barrel. Scuttle meant to chop a hole in something. The scuttlebutt was a water barrel with a hole cut into it so that sailors could reach in and dip out drinking water. The scuttlebutt was the place where the ship’s gossip was exchanged.\n\n<em><strong>Batten down the hatches</strong></em>\nPrepare for trouble. The securing of property, especially the covering with protective sheeting (tarpaulin), is called ‘battening down’. A batten is a strip of wood used to secure the sheeting. It has a nautical origin and ‘battening down’ was done on ships when bad weather was expected.\n\n<em><strong>True colors</strong></em>\nEarly warships often carried flags from many nations on board in order to elude or deceive the enemy. The rules of civilized warfare called for all ships to hoist their true national ensigns before firing a shot.','Nautical Sayings','','inherit','open','open','','218-autosave','','','2011-12-05 20:00:37','2011-12-05 20:00:37','',218,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=221',0,'revision','',0),(222,1,'2011-12-05 19:36:36','2011-12-05 19:36:36','Many phrases that have been adopted into everyday use originate from seafaring - in particular from the days of sail. Virtually all of these are metaphorical and the original nautical meanings are now forgotten. That association of travel and metaphor is significant in that the word metaphor derives from ancient Greek for ‘to carry’ or ‘to travel’. The influence of other languages and other cultures is evident in many of the long list of English phrases that have nautical origins.\r\n\r\nIt is an undoubted fact that seafaring is also the source of more false etymology than any other sphere. This can be attributed to the attractiveness of the romantic image of horny-handed sailors singing shanties and living a hearty and rough life at sea. After all, it sounds plausible that ‘cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey’ comes from brass ship’s fittings and that POSH means ‘Port out, starboard home’, but neither of these is correct. CANOE, theCommittee to Ascribe a Naval Origin to Everything, doesn’t really exist, but the number of these folk myths makes it seem as though they do.\r\n\r\nIt is lucky for us, in our endeavors’ to distinguish truth from false- hood, that activities at sea have been scrupulously recorded over the centuries, in insurance records, newspaper accounts and, not least, in ships’ log books. The term log-book has an interesting derivation in itself. An early form of measuring a ship’s progress was by casting overboard a wooden board (the log) with a string attached. The rate at which the string was payed out as the ship moved away from the stationary log was measured by counting how long it took between knots in the string. These measurements were later transcribed into a book. Hence we get the term ‘log-book’ and also the name ‘knot’as the unit of speed at sea.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Over the Barrel</em></strong>\r\nThe most common method of punishment aboard ship was flogging. The unfor- tunate sailor was tied to a grating, mast or over a barrel. Kissing the gunner’s daughter was being tied over the barrel of a deck cannon whilst it was fired.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>To Know the Ropes</em></strong>\r\nThere are miles rope in the rigging of a square rigged ship. The only way of keeping track of the function of all of these lines was to memorize (know) where they were located. It took an experienced seaman to know the ropes.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Dressing Down</em></strong>\r\nThin and worn sails were often treated with oil or wax to renew their effective- ness. This was called dressing down. An officer or sailor who was reprimanded or scolded received a dressing down.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Footloose</em></strong>\r\nThe bottom portion of a sail is called the foot. If it is not secured, it is footloose and it dances randomly in the wind. Also known for a sail with no boom.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>First Rate</em></strong>\r\nImplies excellence. From the sixteenth century until steam powered ships took over, British naval ships were rated as to the number of heavy cannon they carried. A ship of 100 or more guns was a First Rate line-of-battle ship. Second rates carried 90 to 98 guns; Third Rates, 64 to 89 guns; Fourth Rates, 50 to 60 guns. Frigates carrying 20 to 48 guns were fifth and sixth rated.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Pipe Down</em></strong>\r\nMeans stop talking and be quiet. The Pipe Down was the last signal from the Boson’s pipe each day which meant lights out and silence.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Feeling Blue</em></strong>\r\nWhen a ship’s captain died during a voyage, his ship would return to port flying a blue flag and bearing a blue stripe on its hull. The term “feeling blue” signifies depression or sadness today.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Three Sheets to the Wind</em></strong>\r\nA sheet is a rope line which controls the tension on corners of a square sail. If, on a three masted ship, the sheets of the three lower course sails are loose, the sails will flap and flutter and are said to be in the wind. A ship in this condition would stagger and wander aimlessly downwind acting much like a drunken sailor.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Pooped</em></strong>\r\nThe poop is the stern section of a ship. To be pooped is to be struck by a high, following sea or wave on the stern.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>As the Crow Flies</em></strong>\r\nWhen lost or unsure of their position in coastal waters, ships would re- lease a caged crow. The crow would fly straight towards the nearest land thus giving the vessel some sort of a navigational fix. The tallest lookout platform on a ship came to be known as the crow’s nest.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Cut and Run</em></strong>\r\nIf a smaller ship at anchor was discovered by a larger enemy vessel, the smaller ship might decide that discretion is the better part of valor, and so would order the crew to cut the anchor cable and sail off in a hurry.','Nautical Sayings','','inherit','open','open','','218-revision-3','','','2011-12-05 19:36:36','2011-12-05 19:36:36','',218,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=222',0,'revision','',0),(223,1,'2011-02-01 19:40:53','2011-02-01 19:40:53','<strong><em>By Jerry Labella</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe line peeled from the wide--spool reel at an incredible pace. The angler struggled to lift the pole from the rod holder and to place it in his previously strapped on stand-up harness. His companion instantly took over control of the cockpit, wedging himself between the driver and the controls, and swiftly turned the boat 180 degrees in pursuit of the line heading off into the distance.\r\n\r\n“Don’t stop reeling,” he instructed, “until you can get some line back on that spool.”\r\n\r\nThe line was replenishing fast, but for the time being, he could only recover less than half of the 550 yards the reel was originally spooled with. “Charlie,” the tuna that is, was not yet finished.\r\n\r\nTwo hours later, after wearing out 3 men and locking up a new and very repu- table reel, “Charlie” had to be hand lined in the rest of the way for the gaff.\r\nOl’“Charlie,” a 117 pound yellowfin tuna, had the odds of being lost in his favor, if it weren’t for quick thinking on the part of an experienced fisherman aboard that day. Obviously, catching yellowfin tuna can in no way be equated with catching any inshore species— no matter what size you have encountered.\r\n\r\nWhen going after tuna, newcomers try their luck with much disappointment, but catch on quickly after finding out the basic how-to and following through.\r\n\r\nIt’s definitely not a battle with a redfish! Novices discover firsthand that hardly is there a fish, pound for pound that can peel off 500 yards of 50 pound test line from a reel in less than 60 seconds— something like snagging onto the back of a Mack truck speeding down the highway.\r\n\r\nThese football-shaped, guided missiles are designed by nature to move through the water with lightning speed. They are literally meat building factories, with a relatively small head and tail section. Everything in between is finely tuned, explosive muscle.\r\n\r\nThe yellowfin tuna is the most brilliantly colored of tunas, with a poorly defined stripe of golden-yellow on its upper sides and much bright yellow in most of its fins, hence the name “yellowfin.” It exhibits white spots and vertical stripes on its lower sides and has a dark bluish-black upper section.\r\n\r\nConnecting with one of these proficient, elusive predators is perhaps more easily accomplished than successfully boating one. That’s because they have the ability to wear down and humiliate both the best of tackle and tacklers, seemingly effortlessly.\r\n\r\nYellowfin tuna can be caught basically like many other species: (1) trolling and (2) casting bait or lures. Trolling, however, seems to be the most popular and successful method for many anglers.\r\n\r\nCompared to the offshore yacht owner, the small-boat owner will need to dress up a bit more for the encounter— much like a prize fighter preparing for a match.\r\nThe first thing one needs in order to catch Ol’“Charlie” is a stand-up harness. Of course if one has a fighting chair, this won’t be needed. The purpose of the stand- up harness is to attach the reel and rod to the body. It is basically a leveraging mechanism to take the long fight off of the arms and to disperse it onto the back and leg areas.\r\n\r\nThe section that attaches around the back has two hook latches for attaching to the reel housing ears. These straps should be adjusted so that the rod is in about the two-o-clock position when standing upright. The gimbal belt section should be adjusted to rest on the upper thighs of the legs.\r\nOnce this is all adjusted, the proper fighting stance will require you to face the fish with legs apart, bending only at the knees while pivoting forward and mov- ing your body to the upright position while reeling and pumping the rod. It will take some practice, but it is not hard to do and is generally caught on to after one long fight.\r\n\r\nIt is important to place the gimbal part of the rod butt into the cross bolt or piece in the gimbal belt pole holster so that the rod butt doesn’t twist, holding it firmly against the legs when fighting a fish.\r\n\r\nThe next thing you will need is a good rod, between 5 - 6 ft. in length and rated at least in the 50 lb. class. The shorter ones will be best and, if you are using it for stand-up fishing, make sure the rod eyelets are not roller type. Roller eyelets are for use in fighting chairs. It’s okay if there is one roller at the end and/or one ahead of the reel with the rest being circular type eyelets. Rods with all rollers may bend or twist when used for stand-up fishing.\r\nA good one-piece reel frame with ball bearings throughout and a heavy-duty drag system is mandatory. Line capacity should be no less than 450 yards when using 30 1b. test and 350 yards when using 50 lb. test. Big game type line should only be used. Always match the reel with the rod rating. Most reputable sporting goods stores will be happy to assist you if you let them know what you are going after and how much you want to spend.\r\n\r\nIt is very important to use a lever type drag reel and to set the speci- fied fighting drag tension only after the drag clutches have been properly warmed up by pulling line abruptly from the reel several times at about the drag setting of 4-10 lbs. (warm-up setting).\r\n\r\nThis can be accomplished by attaching a snap swivel directly to the line by means of an improved clinch knot. Then attach a hand-held fish weighing scale to a fixed object, perhaps a tree or fence post, and affix the snap swivel loop to the scale hook and set the drag tension to the “warm-up setting” aforementioned. Warm up the drag clutches by lifting the rod tip up so line is pulled from the reel while someone reads the scale. Do this several times, reeling it in and pulling it out by lifting the rod tip, while staying within the warm-up setting.\r\n\r\nNow you are ready to preset the drag according to the pound test being used. On 50 lb. test, preset the drag around 10-11 lbs.; on 30 lb. test, preset the drag around 8-9 lbs.\r\n\r\nWhen contending with a yellowfin tuna, you will fair much better by exercising patients rather than brut strength. When the equipment is all set and adjusted properly, a person with minimal strength will be able to contend with the fish for a reasonable time before wearing out.\r\n\r\nMost fish are lost before they are ever seen, due to impatient drag tighteners. Leave the drag alone after you have properly set it— unless you are very adept at catching heavyweight contenders in the open sea. Expect to fight a fish of about 60-80 lbs. on 301b. test for at least 40-60 minutes— with no lunch break.\r\n\r\nWhile many different trolling lures catch yellowfin tuna, one of the more preferred lures is the Rapala Magnum CD 18 or its larger cousin the CD 26. These are deep diving lures with a wide fin blade in the head section. This is a tapered, cylindrical, fishlike lure, very effective in enticing yellowfin to strike, as well as various other species that abound in the same waters. Ironically, these lures come in various colors but it seems to matter little to the yellowfin.\r\nWhat does matter, however, is the inadequacy of the hooks furnished with the CD 18’s. They will not suffice and need to be changed to the identical size hooks (4/0) but in heavier gauge. Changing to a different size is not recommended since it will throw the lure out of balance. The larger version of the Rapala needs no hook alteration.\r\n\r\nThese lures need to be trolled between 5 and 6 miles per hour. A good indicator that the lure is moving through the water properly is by observing the rod tip action. The tip should have a steady vibration up and down in very short strokes.\r\n\r\nPlace the lure in the water at the designated speed and count 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, etc. with spool in free setting, thumbing it lightly so not to backlash. Count to 25,000 and set the lever drag to the strike position. Then place it in the rod holder. If more than one rod is trolled, stagger each by at least a ten count differential to prevent entanglement. Down riggers may be used but are not normally needed unless you are trolling in mid to late summer. Always keep at least one flat line— a line with nothing more than the lure attached.\r\n\r\nOnce the lines are set out, troll around structures like oil production platforms in the blue water zone. It’s a good idea to staying 100 yards clear of production platforms, especially if you are deep trolling. Deep diving lures trolled with down riggers can hang up on cross pipes from these rigs which extend out under the water. Circle the rigs, broadening the circle each time you complete the route.\r\n\r\nFor rigs less than a mile or so apart, make figure eight patterns around them broadening the course each time you complete the route until you find fish. If a good rip line is found, troll the green water side near its edge but stay clear of floating debris.\r\n\r\nYou’re not going to flip tuna into the boat like speckled trout. Thus, other essential items are a long-handled gaff, kept easily accessible, along with a “subduer” (club) and a 1/2” nylon rope of about 12-15 ft. in length for lifting the fish from the water. The latter is not needed, of course, if your boat is equipped with a boom winch. A 6 inch eye splice should be fashioned at one end of the hoisting rope so that the opposite end of the rope can pass through the loop for tightening.\r\n\r\nOnce the fish is brought to gaff, it will be better to place the rope around the narrow section ahead of the forked tail and pass the length through the loop, pulling it tight rather than making a lasso and trying to place it over its long forked tail while it’s thrashing.\r\n\r\nThe fish should be gaffed in an area away from the fishing line and lure. A miss-gaff can readily set the fish free if it strikes the lure, hooks, or the taut line. If you are confident, go for the head near the gill area.\r\n\r\nIf the fish can be lifted and boated with the gaff by one person, then the lifting rope doesn’t have to be used. In any case, the fish after being gaffed will need to be subdued before it can be brought aboard, unless you are one to welcome wildly whipping hooks which can snag someone if not careful.\r\n\r\nWith the fish securely gaffed, strike it on top of its head even with its eyes several times until it is relaxed. Be careful not to strike a hole in the boat.\r\nBe prepared for a big fish! Don’t find yourself out in the open sea miles from shore with a fish 4 times the size of the ice chest you brought along. Hence, an 8 x 10 tarpaulin can be used to wrap the fish in if it is unable to fit into an ice chest. Even better is an insulated fish bag, normally found through an internet provider rather than at your local Wal-Mart. Canyon makes some very nice ones and you can do a search for a source: “Canyon insulated fish bags.” Ice may be placed around the fish if the trip in will take more than several hours in hot weather.\r\n\r\nNow, with any good fortune, catching Ol’\"Charlie\" will be a cinch!','Yellowfin Tuna Fishing How-To For Small-Boat Owners','','publish','open','open','','yellowfin-tuna-fishing-how-to-for-small-boat-owners','','','2013-04-02 12:57:28','2013-04-02 16:57:28','',0,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=223',56,'post','',0),(224,1,'2011-12-05 19:41:54','2011-12-05 19:41:54','<strong><em>By Jerry Labella</em></strong>\n\nThe line peeled from the wide--spool reel at an incredible pace. The angler struggled to lift the pole from the rod holder and to place it in his previously strapped on stand-up harness. His companion instantly took over control of the cockpit, wedging himself between the driver and the controls, and swiftly turned the boat 180 degrees in pursuit of the line heading off into the distance.\n\n“Don’t stop reeling,” he instructed, “until you can get some line back on that spool.”\n\nThe line was replenishing fast, but for the time being, he could only recover less than half of the 550 yards the reel was originally spooled with. “Charlie,” the tuna that is, was not yet finished.\n\nTwo hours later, after wearing out 3 men and locking up a new and very repu- table reel, “Charlie” had to be hand lined in the rest of the way for the gaff.\nOl’“Charlie,” a 117 pound yellowfin tuna, had the odds of being lost in his favor, if it weren’t for quick thinking on the part of an experienced fisherman aboard that day. Obviously, catching yellowfin tuna can in no way be equated with catching any inshore species— no matter what size you have encountered.\n\nWhen going after tuna, newcomers try their luck with much disappointment, but catch on quickly after finding out the basic how-to and following through.\n\nIt’s definitely not a battle with a redfish! Novices discover firsthand that hardly is there a fish, pound for pound that can peel off 500 yards of 50 pound test line from a reel in less than 60 seconds— something like snagging onto the back of a Mack truck speeding down the highway.\n\nThese football-shaped, guided missiles are designed by nature to move through the water with lightning speed. They are literally meat building factories, with a relatively small head and tail section. Everything in between is finely tuned, explosive muscle.\n\nThe yellowfin tuna is the most brilliantly colored of tunas, with a poorly defined stripe of golden-yellow on its upper sides and much bright yellow in most of its fins, hence the name “yellowfin.” It exhibits white spots and vertical stripes on its lower sides and has a dark bluish-black upper section.\n\nConnecting with one of these proficient, elusive predators is perhaps more easily accomplished than successfully boating one. That’s because they have the ability to wear down and humiliate both the best of tackle and tacklers, seemingly effortlessly.\n\nYellowfin tuna can be caught basically like many other species: (1) trolling and (2) casting bait or lures. Trolling, however, seems to be the most popular and successful method for many anglers.\n\nCompared to the offshore yacht owner, the small-boat owner will need to dress up a bit more for the encounter— much like a prize fighter preparing for a match.\nThe first thing one needs in order to catch Ol’“Charlie” is a stand-up harness. Of course if one has a fighting chair, this won’t be needed. The purpose of the stand- up harness is to attach the reel and rod to the body. It is basically a leveraging mechanism to take the long fight off of the arms and to disperse it onto the back and leg areas.\n\nThe section that attaches around the back has two hook latches for attaching to the reel housing ears. These straps should be adjusted so that the rod is in about the two-o-clock position when standing upright. The gimbal belt section should be adjusted to rest on the upper thighs of the legs.\nOnce this is all adjusted, the proper fighting stance will require you to face the fish with legs apart, bending only at the knees while pivoting forward and mov- ing your body to the upright position while reeling and pumping the rod. It will take some practice, but it is not hard to do and is generally caught on to after one long fight.\n\nIt is important to place the gimbal part of the rod butt into the cross bolt or piece in the gimbal belt pole holster so that the rod butt doesn’t twist, holding it firmly against the legs when fighting a fish.\n\nThe next thing you will need is a good rod, between 5 - 6 ft. in length and rated at least in the 50 lb. class. The shorter ones will be best and, if you are using it for stand-up fishing, make sure the rod eyelets are not roller type. Roller eyelets are for use in fighting chairs. It’s okay if there is one roller at the end and/or one ahead of the reel with the rest being circular type eyelets. Rods with all rollers may bend or twist when used for stand-up fishing.\nA good one-piece reel frame with ball bearings throughout and a heavy-duty drag system is mandatory. Line capacity should be no less than 450 yards when using 30 1b. test and 350 yards when using 50 lb. test. Big game type line should','Yellowfin Tuna Fishing How-To For Small-Boat Owners','','inherit','open','open','','223-revision','','','2011-12-05 19:41:54','2011-12-05 19:41:54','',223,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=224',0,'revision','',0),(225,1,'2011-12-05 19:42:30','2011-12-05 19:42:30','<strong><em>By Jerry Labella</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe line peeled from the wide--spool reel at an incredible pace. The angler struggled to lift the pole from the rod holder and to place it in his previously strapped on stand-up harness. His companion instantly took over control of the cockpit, wedging himself between the driver and the controls, and swiftly turned the boat 180 degrees in pursuit of the line heading off into the distance.\r\n\r\n“Don’t stop reeling,” he instructed, “until you can get some line back on that spool.”\r\n\r\nThe line was replenishing fast, but for the time being, he could only recover less than half of the 550 yards the reel was originally spooled with. “Charlie,” the tuna that is, was not yet finished.\r\n\r\nTwo hours later, after wearing out 3 men and locking up a new and very repu- table reel, “Charlie” had to be hand lined in the rest of the way for the gaff.\r\nOl’“Charlie,” a 117 pound yellowfin tuna, had the odds of being lost in his favor, if it weren’t for quick thinking on the part of an experienced fisherman aboard that day. Obviously, catching yellowfin tuna can in no way be equated with catching any inshore species— no matter what size you have encountered.\r\n\r\nWhen going after tuna, newcomers try their luck with much disappointment, but catch on quickly after finding out the basic how-to and following through.\r\n\r\nIt’s definitely not a battle with a redfish! Novices discover firsthand that hardly is there a fish, pound for pound that can peel off 500 yards of 50 pound test line from a reel in less than 60 seconds— something like snagging onto the back of a Mack truck speeding down the highway.\r\n\r\nThese football-shaped, guided missiles are designed by nature to move through the water with lightning speed. They are literally meat building factories, with a relatively small head and tail section. Everything in between is finely tuned, explosive muscle.\r\n\r\nThe yellowfin tuna is the most brilliantly colored of tunas, with a poorly defined stripe of golden-yellow on its upper sides and much bright yellow in most of its fins, hence the name “yellowfin.” It exhibits white spots and vertical stripes on its lower sides and has a dark bluish-black upper section.\r\n\r\nConnecting with one of these proficient, elusive predators is perhaps more easily accomplished than successfully boating one. That’s because they have the ability to wear down and humiliate both the best of tackle and tacklers, seemingly effortlessly.\r\n\r\nYellowfin tuna can be caught basically like many other species: (1) trolling and (2) casting bait or lures. Trolling, however, seems to be the most popular and successful method for many anglers.\r\n\r\nCompared to the offshore yacht owner, the small-boat owner will need to dress up a bit more for the encounter— much like a prize fighter preparing for a match.\r\nThe first thing one needs in order to catch Ol’“Charlie” is a stand-up harness. Of course if one has a fighting chair, this won’t be needed. The purpose of the stand- up harness is to attach the reel and rod to the body. It is basically a leveraging mechanism to take the long fight off of the arms and to disperse it onto the back and leg areas.\r\n\r\nThe section that attaches around the back has two hook latches for attaching to the reel housing ears. These straps should be adjusted so that the rod is in about the two-o-clock position when standing upright. The gimbal belt section should be adjusted to rest on the upper thighs of the legs.\r\nOnce this is all adjusted, the proper fighting stance will require you to face the fish with legs apart, bending only at the knees while pivoting forward and mov- ing your body to the upright position while reeling and pumping the rod. It will take some practice, but it is not hard to do and is generally caught on to after one long fight.\r\n\r\nIt is important to place the gimbal part of the rod butt into the cross bolt or piece in the gimbal belt pole holster so that the rod butt doesn’t twist, holding it firmly against the legs when fighting a fish.\r\n\r\nThe next thing you will need is a good rod, between 5 - 6 ft. in length and rated at least in the 50 lb. class. The shorter ones will be best and, if you are using it for stand-up fishing, make sure the rod eyelets are not roller type. Roller eyelets are for use in fighting chairs. It’s okay if there is one roller at the end and/or one ahead of the reel with the rest being circular type eyelets. Rods with all rollers may bend or twist when used for stand-up fishing.\r\nA good one-piece reel frame with ball bearings throughout and a heavy-duty drag system is mandatory. Line capacity should be no less than 450 yards when using 30 1b. test and 350 yards when using 50 lb. test. Big game type line should','Yellowfin Tuna Fishing How-To For Small-Boat Owners','','inherit','open','open','','223-revision-2','','','2011-12-05 19:42:30','2011-12-05 19:42:30','',223,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=225',0,'revision','',0),(226,1,'2011-12-05 19:43:52','2011-12-05 19:43:52','<strong><em>By Jerry Labella</em></strong>\n\nThe line peeled from the wide--spool reel at an incredible pace. The angler struggled to lift the pole from the rod holder and to place it in his previously strapped on stand-up harness. His companion instantly took over control of the cockpit, wedging himself between the driver and the controls, and swiftly turned the boat 180 degrees in pursuit of the line heading off into the distance.\n\n“Don’t stop reeling,” he instructed, “until you can get some line back on that spool.”\n\nThe line was replenishing fast, but for the time being, he could only recover less than half of the 550 yards the reel was originally spooled with. “Charlie,” the tuna that is, was not yet finished.\n\nTwo hours later, after wearing out 3 men and locking up a new and very repu- table reel, “Charlie” had to be hand lined in the rest of the way for the gaff.\nOl’“Charlie,” a 117 pound yellowfin tuna, had the odds of being lost in his favor, if it weren’t for quick thinking on the part of an experienced fisherman aboard that day. Obviously, catching yellowfin tuna can in no way be equated with catching any inshore species— no matter what size you have encountered.\n\nWhen going after tuna, newcomers try their luck with much disappointment, but catch on quickly after finding out the basic how-to and following through.\n\nIt’s definitely not a battle with a redfish! Novices discover firsthand that hardly is there a fish, pound for pound that can peel off 500 yards of 50 pound test line from a reel in less than 60 seconds— something like snagging onto the back of a Mack truck speeding down the highway.\n\nThese football-shaped, guided missiles are designed by nature to move through the water with lightning speed. They are literally meat building factories, with a relatively small head and tail section. Everything in between is finely tuned, explosive muscle.\n\nThe yellowfin tuna is the most brilliantly colored of tunas, with a poorly defined stripe of golden-yellow on its upper sides and much bright yellow in most of its fins, hence the name “yellowfin.” It exhibits white spots and vertical stripes on its lower sides and has a dark bluish-black upper section.\n\nConnecting with one of these proficient, elusive predators is perhaps more easily accomplished than successfully boating one. That’s because they have the ability to wear down and humiliate both the best of tackle and tacklers, seemingly effortlessly.\n\nYellowfin tuna can be caught basically like many other species: (1) trolling and (2) casting bait or lures. Trolling, however, seems to be the most popular and successful method for many anglers.\n\nCompared to the offshore yacht owner, the small-boat owner will need to dress up a bit more for the encounter— much like a prize fighter preparing for a match.\nThe first thing one needs in order to catch Ol’“Charlie” is a stand-up harness. Of course if one has a fighting chair, this won’t be needed. The purpose of the stand- up harness is to attach the reel and rod to the body. It is basically a leveraging mechanism to take the long fight off of the arms and to disperse it onto the back and leg areas.\n\nThe section that attaches around the back has two hook latches for attaching to the reel housing ears. These straps should be adjusted so that the rod is in about the two-o-clock position when standing upright. The gimbal belt section should be adjusted to rest on the upper thighs of the legs.\nOnce this is all adjusted, the proper fighting stance will require you to face the fish with legs apart, bending only at the knees while pivoting forward and mov- ing your body to the upright position while reeling and pumping the rod. It will take some practice, but it is not hard to do and is generally caught on to after one long fight.\n\nIt is important to place the gimbal part of the rod butt into the cross bolt or piece in the gimbal belt pole holster so that the rod butt doesn’t twist, holding it firmly against the legs when fighting a fish.\n\nThe next thing you will need is a good rod, between 5 - 6 ft. in length and rated at least in the 50 lb. class. The shorter ones will be best and, if you are using it for stand-up fishing, make sure the rod eyelets are not roller type. Roller eyelets are for use in fighting chairs. It’s okay if there is one roller at the end and/or one ahead of the reel with the rest being circular type eyelets. Rods with all rollers may bend or twist when used for stand-up fishing.\nA good one-piece reel frame with ball bearings throughout and a heavy-duty drag system is mandatory. Line capacity should be no less than 450 yards when using 30 1b. test and 350 yards when using 50 lb. test. Big game type line should only be used. Always match the reel with the rod rating. Most reputable sporting goods stores will be happy to assist you if you let them know what you are going after and how much you want to spend.\n\nIt is very important to use a lever type drag reel and to set the speci- fied fighting drag tension only after the drag clutches have been properly warmed up by pulling line abruptly from the reel several times at about the drag setting of 4-10 lbs. (warm-up setting).\n\nThis can be accomplished by attaching a snap swivel directly to the line by means of an improved clinch knot. Then attach a hand-held fish weighing scale to a fixed object, perhaps a tree or fence post, and affix the snap swivel loop to the scale hook and set the drag tension to the “warm-up setting” aforementioned. Warm up the drag clutches by lifting the rod tip up so line is pulled from the reel while someone reads the scale. Do this several times, reeling it in and pulling it out by lifting the rod tip, while staying within the warm-up setting.\n\nNow you are ready to preset the drag according to the pound test being used. On 50 lb. test, preset the drag around 10-11 lbs.; on 30 lb. test, preset the drag around 8-9 lbs.\n\nWhen contending with a yellowfin tuna, you will fair much better by exercising patients rather than brut strength. When the equipment is all set and adjusted properly, a person with minimal strength will be able to contend with the fish for a reasonable time before wearing out.\n\nMost fish are lost before they are ever seen, due to impatient drag tighteners. Leave the drag alone after you have properly set it— unless you are very adept at catching heavyweight contenders in the open sea. Expect to fight a fish of about 60-80 lbs. on 301b. test for at least 40-60 minutes— with no lunch break.\nWhile many different trolling lures catch yellowfin tuna, one of the more preferred lures is the Rapala Magnum CD 18 or its larger cousin the CD 26. These are deep diving lures with a wide fin blade in the head section. This is a tapered, cylindrical, fishlike lure, very effective in enticing yellowfin to strike, as well as various other species that abound in the same waters. Ironically, these lures come in various colors but it seems to matter little to the yellowfin.\nWhat does matter, however, is the inadequacy of the hooks furnished with the CD 18’s. They will not suffice and need to be changed to the identical size hooks (4/0) but in heavier gauge. Changing to a different size is not recommended since it will throw the lure out of balance. The larger version of the Rapala needs no hook alteration.\n\nThese lures need to be trolled between 5 and 6 miles per hour. A good indicator that the lure is moving through the water properly is by observing the rod tip action. The tip should have a steady vibration up and down in very short strokes.\n\nPlace the lure in the water at the designated speed and count 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, etc. with spool in free setting, thumbing it lightly so not to backlash. Count to 25,000 and set the lever drag to the strike position. Then place it in the rod holder. If more than one rod is trolled, stagger each by at least a ten count differential to prevent entanglement. Down riggers may be used but are not normally needed unless you are trolling in mid to late summer. Always keep at least one flat line— a line with nothing more than the lure attached.\n\nOnce the lines are set out, troll around structures like oil production platforms in the blue water zone. It’s a good idea to staying 100 yards clear of production platforms, especially if you are deep trolling. Deep diving lures trolled with down riggers can hang up on cross pipes from these rigs which extend out under the water. Circle the rigs, broadening the circle each time you complete the route.\n\nFor rigs less than a mile or so apart, make figure eight patterns around them broadening the course each time you complete the route until you find fish. If a good rip line is found, troll the green water side near its edge but stay clear of floating debris.\n\nYou’re not going to flip tuna into the boat like speckled trout. Thus, other essential items are a long-handled gaff, kept easily accessible, along with a “subduer” (club) and a 1/2” nylon rope of about 12-15 ft. in length for lifting the fish from the water. The latter is not needed, of course, if your boat is equipped with a boom winch. A 6 inch eye splice should be fashioned at one end of the hoisting rope so that the opposite end of the rope can pass through the loop for tightening.\n\nOnce the fish is brought to gaff, it will be better to place the rope around the narrow section ahead of the forked tail and pass the length through the loop, pulling it tight rather than making a lasso and trying to place it over its long forked tail while it’s thrashing.\n\nThe fish should be gaffed in an area away from the fishing line and lure. A miss-gaff can readily set the fish free if it strikes the lure, hooks, or the taut line. If you are confident, go for the head near the gill area.\n\nIf the fish can be lifted and boated with the gaff by one person, then the lifting rope doesn’t have to be used. In any case, the fish after being gaffed will need to be subdued before it can be brought aboard, unless you are one to welcome wildly whipping hooks which can snag someone if not careful.\n\nWith the fish securely gaffed, strike it on top of its head even with its eyes several times until it is relaxed. Be careful not to strike a hole in the boat.\nBe prepared for a big fish! Don’t find yourself out in the open sea miles from shore with a fish 4 times the size of the ice chest you brought along. Hence, an 8 x 10 tarpaulin can be used to wrap the fish in if it is unable to fit into an ice chest. Even better is an insulated fish bag, normally found through an internet provider rather than at your local Wal-Mart. Canyon makes some very nice ones and you can do a search for a source: “Canyon insulated fish bags.” Ice may be placed around the fish if the trip in will take more than several hours in hot weather.\n\nNow, with any good fortune, catching Ol’\"Charlie” will be a cinch!','Yellowfin Tuna Fishing How-To For Small-Boat Owners','','inherit','open','open','','223-autosave','','','2011-12-05 19:43:52','2011-12-05 19:43:52','',223,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=226',0,'revision','',0),(227,1,'2011-12-05 19:42:49','2011-12-05 19:42:49','<strong><em>By Jerry Labella</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe line peeled from the wide--spool reel at an incredible pace. The angler struggled to lift the pole from the rod holder and to place it in his previously strapped on stand-up harness. His companion instantly took over control of the cockpit, wedging himself between the driver and the controls, and swiftly turned the boat 180 degrees in pursuit of the line heading off into the distance.\r\n\r\n“Don’t stop reeling,” he instructed, “until you can get some line back on that spool.”\r\n\r\nThe line was replenishing fast, but for the time being, he could only recover less than half of the 550 yards the reel was originally spooled with. “Charlie,” the tuna that is, was not yet finished.\r\n\r\nTwo hours later, after wearing out 3 men and locking up a new and very repu- table reel, “Charlie” had to be hand lined in the rest of the way for the gaff.\r\nOl’“Charlie,” a 117 pound yellowfin tuna, had the odds of being lost in his favor, if it weren’t for quick thinking on the part of an experienced fisherman aboard that day. Obviously, catching yellowfin tuna can in no way be equated with catching any inshore species— no matter what size you have encountered.\r\n\r\nWhen going after tuna, newcomers try their luck with much disappointment, but catch on quickly after finding out the basic how-to and following through.\r\n\r\nIt’s definitely not a battle with a redfish! Novices discover firsthand that hardly is there a fish, pound for pound that can peel off 500 yards of 50 pound test line from a reel in less than 60 seconds— something like snagging onto the back of a Mack truck speeding down the highway.\r\n\r\nThese football-shaped, guided missiles are designed by nature to move through the water with lightning speed. They are literally meat building factories, with a relatively small head and tail section. Everything in between is finely tuned, explosive muscle.\r\n\r\nThe yellowfin tuna is the most brilliantly colored of tunas, with a poorly defined stripe of golden-yellow on its upper sides and much bright yellow in most of its fins, hence the name “yellowfin.” It exhibits white spots and vertical stripes on its lower sides and has a dark bluish-black upper section.\r\n\r\nConnecting with one of these proficient, elusive predators is perhaps more easily accomplished than successfully boating one. That’s because they have the ability to wear down and humiliate both the best of tackle and tacklers, seemingly effortlessly.\r\n\r\nYellowfin tuna can be caught basically like many other species: (1) trolling and (2) casting bait or lures. Trolling, however, seems to be the most popular and successful method for many anglers.\r\n\r\nCompared to the offshore yacht owner, the small-boat owner will need to dress up a bit more for the encounter— much like a prize fighter preparing for a match.\r\nThe first thing one needs in order to catch Ol’“Charlie” is a stand-up harness. Of course if one has a fighting chair, this won’t be needed. The purpose of the stand- up harness is to attach the reel and rod to the body. It is basically a leveraging mechanism to take the long fight off of the arms and to disperse it onto the back and leg areas.\r\n\r\nThe section that attaches around the back has two hook latches for attaching to the reel housing ears. These straps should be adjusted so that the rod is in about the two-o-clock position when standing upright. The gimbal belt section should be adjusted to rest on the upper thighs of the legs.\r\nOnce this is all adjusted, the proper fighting stance will require you to face the fish with legs apart, bending only at the knees while pivoting forward and mov- ing your body to the upright position while reeling and pumping the rod. It will take some practice, but it is not hard to do and is generally caught on to after one long fight.\r\n\r\nIt is important to place the gimbal part of the rod butt into the cross bolt or piece in the gimbal belt pole holster so that the rod butt doesn’t twist, holding it firmly against the legs when fighting a fish.\r\n\r\nThe next thing you will need is a good rod, between 5 - 6 ft. in length and rated at least in the 50 lb. class. The shorter ones will be best and, if you are using it for stand-up fishing, make sure the rod eyelets are not roller type. Roller eyelets are for use in fighting chairs. It’s okay if there is one roller at the end and/or one ahead of the reel with the rest being circular type eyelets. Rods with all rollers may bend or twist when used for stand-up fishing.\r\nA good one-piece reel frame with ball bearings throughout and a heavy-duty drag system is mandatory. Line capacity should be no less than 450 yards when using 30 1b. test and 350 yards when using 50 lb. test. Big game type line should','Yellowfin Tuna Fishing How-To For Small-Boat Owners','','inherit','open','open','','223-revision-3','','','2011-12-05 19:42:49','2011-12-05 19:42:49','',223,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=227',0,'revision','',0),(228,1,'2011-12-05 19:43:59','2011-12-05 19:43:59','<strong><em>By Jerry Labella</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe line peeled from the wide--spool reel at an incredible pace. The angler struggled to lift the pole from the rod holder and to place it in his previously strapped on stand-up harness. His companion instantly took over control of the cockpit, wedging himself between the driver and the controls, and swiftly turned the boat 180 degrees in pursuit of the line heading off into the distance.\r\n\r\n“Don’t stop reeling,” he instructed, “until you can get some line back on that spool.”\r\n\r\nThe line was replenishing fast, but for the time being, he could only recover less than half of the 550 yards the reel was originally spooled with. “Charlie,” the tuna that is, was not yet finished.\r\n\r\nTwo hours later, after wearing out 3 men and locking up a new and very repu- table reel, “Charlie” had to be hand lined in the rest of the way for the gaff.\r\nOl’“Charlie,” a 117 pound yellowfin tuna, had the odds of being lost in his favor, if it weren’t for quick thinking on the part of an experienced fisherman aboard that day. Obviously, catching yellowfin tuna can in no way be equated with catching any inshore species— no matter what size you have encountered.\r\n\r\nWhen going after tuna, newcomers try their luck with much disappointment, but catch on quickly after finding out the basic how-to and following through.\r\n\r\nIt’s definitely not a battle with a redfish! Novices discover firsthand that hardly is there a fish, pound for pound that can peel off 500 yards of 50 pound test line from a reel in less than 60 seconds— something like snagging onto the back of a Mack truck speeding down the highway.\r\n\r\nThese football-shaped, guided missiles are designed by nature to move through the water with lightning speed. They are literally meat building factories, with a relatively small head and tail section. Everything in between is finely tuned, explosive muscle.\r\n\r\nThe yellowfin tuna is the most brilliantly colored of tunas, with a poorly defined stripe of golden-yellow on its upper sides and much bright yellow in most of its fins, hence the name “yellowfin.” It exhibits white spots and vertical stripes on its lower sides and has a dark bluish-black upper section.\r\n\r\nConnecting with one of these proficient, elusive predators is perhaps more easily accomplished than successfully boating one. That’s because they have the ability to wear down and humiliate both the best of tackle and tacklers, seemingly effortlessly.\r\n\r\nYellowfin tuna can be caught basically like many other species: (1) trolling and (2) casting bait or lures. Trolling, however, seems to be the most popular and successful method for many anglers.\r\n\r\nCompared to the offshore yacht owner, the small-boat owner will need to dress up a bit more for the encounter— much like a prize fighter preparing for a match.\r\nThe first thing one needs in order to catch Ol’“Charlie” is a stand-up harness. Of course if one has a fighting chair, this won’t be needed. The purpose of the stand- up harness is to attach the reel and rod to the body. It is basically a leveraging mechanism to take the long fight off of the arms and to disperse it onto the back and leg areas.\r\n\r\nThe section that attaches around the back has two hook latches for attaching to the reel housing ears. These straps should be adjusted so that the rod is in about the two-o-clock position when standing upright. The gimbal belt section should be adjusted to rest on the upper thighs of the legs.\r\nOnce this is all adjusted, the proper fighting stance will require you to face the fish with legs apart, bending only at the knees while pivoting forward and mov- ing your body to the upright position while reeling and pumping the rod. It will take some practice, but it is not hard to do and is generally caught on to after one long fight.\r\n\r\nIt is important to place the gimbal part of the rod butt into the cross bolt or piece in the gimbal belt pole holster so that the rod butt doesn’t twist, holding it firmly against the legs when fighting a fish.\r\n\r\nThe next thing you will need is a good rod, between 5 - 6 ft. in length and rated at least in the 50 lb. class. The shorter ones will be best and, if you are using it for stand-up fishing, make sure the rod eyelets are not roller type. Roller eyelets are for use in fighting chairs. It’s okay if there is one roller at the end and/or one ahead of the reel with the rest being circular type eyelets. Rods with all rollers may bend or twist when used for stand-up fishing.\r\nA good one-piece reel frame with ball bearings throughout and a heavy-duty drag system is mandatory. Line capacity should be no less than 450 yards when using 30 1b. test and 350 yards when using 50 lb. test. Big game type line should only be used. Always match the reel with the rod rating. Most reputable sporting goods stores will be happy to assist you if you let them know what you are going after and how much you want to spend.\r\n\r\nIt is very important to use a lever type drag reel and to set the speci- fied fighting drag tension only after the drag clutches have been properly warmed up by pulling line abruptly from the reel several times at about the drag setting of 4-10 lbs. (warm-up setting).\r\n\r\nThis can be accomplished by attaching a snap swivel directly to the line by means of an improved clinch knot. Then attach a hand-held fish weighing scale to a fixed object, perhaps a tree or fence post, and affix the snap swivel loop to the scale hook and set the drag tension to the “warm-up setting” aforementioned. Warm up the drag clutches by lifting the rod tip up so line is pulled from the reel while someone reads the scale. Do this several times, reeling it in and pulling it out by lifting the rod tip, while staying within the warm-up setting.\r\n\r\nNow you are ready to preset the drag according to the pound test being used. On 50 lb. test, preset the drag around 10-11 lbs.; on 30 lb. test, preset the drag around 8-9 lbs.\r\n\r\nWhen contending with a yellowfin tuna, you will fair much better by exercising patients rather than brut strength. When the equipment is all set and adjusted properly, a person with minimal strength will be able to contend with the fish for a reasonable time before wearing out.\r\n\r\nMost fish are lost before they are ever seen, due to impatient drag tighteners. Leave the drag alone after you have properly set it— unless you are very adept at catching heavyweight contenders in the open sea. Expect to fight a fish of about 60-80 lbs. on 301b. test for at least 40-60 minutes— with no lunch break.\r\nWhile many different trolling lures catch yellowfin tuna, one of the more preferred lures is the Rapala Magnum CD 18 or its larger cousin the CD 26. These are deep diving lures with a wide fin blade in the head section. This is a tapered, cylindrical, fishlike lure, very effective in enticing yellowfin to strike, as well as various other species that abound in the same waters. Ironically, these lures come in various colors but it seems to matter little to the yellowfin.\r\nWhat does matter, however, is the inadequacy of the hooks furnished with the CD 18’s. They will not suffice and need to be changed to the identical size hooks (4/0) but in heavier gauge. Changing to a different size is not recommended since it will throw the lure out of balance. The larger version of the Rapala needs no hook alteration.\r\n\r\nThese lures need to be trolled between 5 and 6 miles per hour. A good indicator that the lure is moving through the water properly is by observing the rod tip action. The tip should have a steady vibration up and down in very short strokes.\r\n\r\nPlace the lure in the water at the designated speed and count 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, etc. with spool in free setting, thumbing it lightly so not to backlash. Count to 25,000 and set the lever drag to the strike position. Then place it in the rod holder. If more than one rod is trolled, stagger each by at least a ten count differential to prevent entanglement. Down riggers may be used but are not normally needed unless you are trolling in mid to late summer. Always keep at least one flat line— a line with nothing more than the lure attached.\r\n\r\nOnce the lines are set out, troll around structures like oil production platforms in the blue water zone. It’s a good idea to staying 100 yards clear of production platforms, especially if you are deep trolling. Deep diving lures trolled with down riggers can hang up on cross pipes from these rigs which extend out under the water. Circle the rigs, broadening the circle each time you complete the route.\r\n\r\nFor rigs less than a mile or so apart, make figure eight patterns around them broadening the course each time you complete the route until you find fish. If a good rip line is found, troll the green water side near its edge but stay clear of floating debris.\r\n\r\nYou’re not going to flip tuna into the boat like speckled trout. Thus, other essential items are a long-handled gaff, kept easily accessible, along with a “subduer” (club) and a 1/2” nylon rope of about 12-15 ft. in length for lifting the fish from the water. The latter is not needed, of course, if your boat is equipped with a boom winch. A 6 inch eye splice should be fashioned at one end of the hoisting rope so that the opposite end of the rope can pass through the loop for tightening.\r\n\r\nOnce the fish is brought to gaff, it will be better to place the rope around the narrow section ahead of the forked tail and pass the length through the loop, pulling it tight rather than making a lasso and trying to place it over its long forked tail while it’s thrashing.\r\n\r\nThe fish should be gaffed in an area away from the fishing line and lure. A miss-gaff can readily set the fish free if it strikes the lure, hooks, or the taut line. If you are confident, go for the head near the gill area.\r\n\r\nIf the fish can be lifted and boated with the gaff by one person, then the lifting rope doesn’t have to be used. In any case, the fish after being gaffed will need to be subdued before it can be brought aboard, unless you are one to welcome wildly whipping hooks which can snag someone if not careful.\r\n\r\nWith the fish securely gaffed, strike it on top of its head even with its eyes several times until it is relaxed. Be careful not to strike a hole in the boat.\r\nBe prepared for a big fish! Don’t find yourself out in the open sea miles from shore with a fish 4 times the size of the ice chest you brought along. Hence, an 8 x 10 tarpaulin can be used to wrap the fish in if it is unable to fit into an ice chest. Even better is an insulated fish bag, normally found through an internet provider rather than at your local Wal-Mart. Canyon makes some very nice ones and you can do a search for a source: “Canyon insulated fish bags.” Ice may be placed around the fish if the trip in will take more than several hours in hot weather.\r\n\r\nNow, with any good fortune, catching Ol’\"Charlie\" will be a cinch!','Yellowfin Tuna Fishing How-To For Small-Boat Owners','','inherit','open','open','','223-revision-4','','','2011-12-05 19:43:59','2011-12-05 19:43:59','',223,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=228',0,'revision','',0),(229,1,'2011-12-05 19:49:34','2011-12-05 19:49:34','','tuna','','inherit','open','open','','tuna','','','2011-12-05 19:49:34','2011-12-05 19:49:34','',223,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/tuna.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(230,1,'2011-12-05 19:44:34','2011-12-05 19:44:34','<strong><em>By Jerry Labella</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe line peeled from the wide--spool reel at an incredible pace. The angler struggled to lift the pole from the rod holder and to place it in his previously strapped on stand-up harness. His companion instantly took over control of the cockpit, wedging himself between the driver and the controls, and swiftly turned the boat 180 degrees in pursuit of the line heading off into the distance.\r\n\r\n“Don’t stop reeling,” he instructed, “until you can get some line back on that spool.”\r\n\r\nThe line was replenishing fast, but for the time being, he could only recover less than half of the 550 yards the reel was originally spooled with. “Charlie,” the tuna that is, was not yet finished.\r\n\r\nTwo hours later, after wearing out 3 men and locking up a new and very repu- table reel, “Charlie” had to be hand lined in the rest of the way for the gaff.\r\nOl’“Charlie,” a 117 pound yellowfin tuna, had the odds of being lost in his favor, if it weren’t for quick thinking on the part of an experienced fisherman aboard that day. Obviously, catching yellowfin tuna can in no way be equated with catching any inshore species— no matter what size you have encountered.\r\n\r\nWhen going after tuna, newcomers try their luck with much disappointment, but catch on quickly after finding out the basic how-to and following through.\r\n\r\nIt’s definitely not a battle with a redfish! Novices discover firsthand that hardly is there a fish, pound for pound that can peel off 500 yards of 50 pound test line from a reel in less than 60 seconds— something like snagging onto the back of a Mack truck speeding down the highway.\r\n\r\nThese football-shaped, guided missiles are designed by nature to move through the water with lightning speed. They are literally meat building factories, with a relatively small head and tail section. Everything in between is finely tuned, explosive muscle.\r\n\r\nThe yellowfin tuna is the most brilliantly colored of tunas, with a poorly defined stripe of golden-yellow on its upper sides and much bright yellow in most of its fins, hence the name “yellowfin.” It exhibits white spots and vertical stripes on its lower sides and has a dark bluish-black upper section.\r\n\r\nConnecting with one of these proficient, elusive predators is perhaps more easily accomplished than successfully boating one. That’s because they have the ability to wear down and humiliate both the best of tackle and tacklers, seemingly effortlessly.\r\n\r\nYellowfin tuna can be caught basically like many other species: (1) trolling and (2) casting bait or lures. Trolling, however, seems to be the most popular and successful method for many anglers.\r\n\r\nCompared to the offshore yacht owner, the small-boat owner will need to dress up a bit more for the encounter— much like a prize fighter preparing for a match.\r\nThe first thing one needs in order to catch Ol’“Charlie” is a stand-up harness. Of course if one has a fighting chair, this won’t be needed. The purpose of the stand- up harness is to attach the reel and rod to the body. It is basically a leveraging mechanism to take the long fight off of the arms and to disperse it onto the back and leg areas.\r\n\r\nThe section that attaches around the back has two hook latches for attaching to the reel housing ears. These straps should be adjusted so that the rod is in about the two-o-clock position when standing upright. The gimbal belt section should be adjusted to rest on the upper thighs of the legs.\r\nOnce this is all adjusted, the proper fighting stance will require you to face the fish with legs apart, bending only at the knees while pivoting forward and mov- ing your body to the upright position while reeling and pumping the rod. It will take some practice, but it is not hard to do and is generally caught on to after one long fight.\r\n\r\nIt is important to place the gimbal part of the rod butt into the cross bolt or piece in the gimbal belt pole holster so that the rod butt doesn’t twist, holding it firmly against the legs when fighting a fish.\r\n\r\nThe next thing you will need is a good rod, between 5 - 6 ft. in length and rated at least in the 50 lb. class. The shorter ones will be best and, if you are using it for stand-up fishing, make sure the rod eyelets are not roller type. Roller eyelets are for use in fighting chairs. It’s okay if there is one roller at the end and/or one ahead of the reel with the rest being circular type eyelets. Rods with all rollers may bend or twist when used for stand-up fishing.\r\nA good one-piece reel frame with ball bearings throughout and a heavy-duty drag system is mandatory. Line capacity should be no less than 450 yards when using 30 1b. test and 350 yards when using 50 lb. test. Big game type line should only be used. Always match the reel with the rod rating. Most reputable sporting goods stores will be happy to assist you if you let them know what you are going after and how much you want to spend.\r\n\r\nIt is very important to use a lever type drag reel and to set the speci- fied fighting drag tension only after the drag clutches have been properly warmed up by pulling line abruptly from the reel several times at about the drag setting of 4-10 lbs. (warm-up setting).\r\n\r\nThis can be accomplished by attaching a snap swivel directly to the line by means of an improved clinch knot. Then attach a hand-held fish weighing scale to a fixed object, perhaps a tree or fence post, and affix the snap swivel loop to the scale hook and set the drag tension to the “warm-up setting” aforementioned. Warm up the drag clutches by lifting the rod tip up so line is pulled from the reel while someone reads the scale. Do this several times, reeling it in and pulling it out by lifting the rod tip, while staying within the warm-up setting.\r\n\r\nNow you are ready to preset the drag according to the pound test being used. On 50 lb. test, preset the drag around 10-11 lbs.; on 30 lb. test, preset the drag around 8-9 lbs.\r\n\r\nWhen contending with a yellowfin tuna, you will fair much better by exercising patients rather than brut strength. When the equipment is all set and adjusted properly, a person with minimal strength will be able to contend with the fish for a reasonable time before wearing out.\r\n\r\nMost fish are lost before they are ever seen, due to impatient drag tighteners. Leave the drag alone after you have properly set it— unless you are very adept at catching heavyweight contenders in the open sea. Expect to fight a fish of about 60-80 lbs. on 301b. test for at least 40-60 minutes— with no lunch break.\r\n\r\nWhile many different trolling lures catch yellowfin tuna, one of the more preferred lures is the Rapala Magnum CD 18 or its larger cousin the CD 26. These are deep diving lures with a wide fin blade in the head section. This is a tapered, cylindrical, fishlike lure, very effective in enticing yellowfin to strike, as well as various other species that abound in the same waters. Ironically, these lures come in various colors but it seems to matter little to the yellowfin.\r\nWhat does matter, however, is the inadequacy of the hooks furnished with the CD 18’s. They will not suffice and need to be changed to the identical size hooks (4/0) but in heavier gauge. Changing to a different size is not recommended since it will throw the lure out of balance. The larger version of the Rapala needs no hook alteration.\r\n\r\nThese lures need to be trolled between 5 and 6 miles per hour. A good indicator that the lure is moving through the water properly is by observing the rod tip action. The tip should have a steady vibration up and down in very short strokes.\r\n\r\nPlace the lure in the water at the designated speed and count 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, etc. with spool in free setting, thumbing it lightly so not to backlash. Count to 25,000 and set the lever drag to the strike position. Then place it in the rod holder. If more than one rod is trolled, stagger each by at least a ten count differential to prevent entanglement. Down riggers may be used but are not normally needed unless you are trolling in mid to late summer. Always keep at least one flat line— a line with nothing more than the lure attached.\r\n\r\nOnce the lines are set out, troll around structures like oil production platforms in the blue water zone. It’s a good idea to staying 100 yards clear of production platforms, especially if you are deep trolling. Deep diving lures trolled with down riggers can hang up on cross pipes from these rigs which extend out under the water. Circle the rigs, broadening the circle each time you complete the route.\r\n\r\nFor rigs less than a mile or so apart, make figure eight patterns around them broadening the course each time you complete the route until you find fish. If a good rip line is found, troll the green water side near its edge but stay clear of floating debris.\r\n\r\nYou’re not going to flip tuna into the boat like speckled trout. Thus, other essential items are a long-handled gaff, kept easily accessible, along with a “subduer” (club) and a 1/2” nylon rope of about 12-15 ft. in length for lifting the fish from the water. The latter is not needed, of course, if your boat is equipped with a boom winch. A 6 inch eye splice should be fashioned at one end of the hoisting rope so that the opposite end of the rope can pass through the loop for tightening.\r\n\r\nOnce the fish is brought to gaff, it will be better to place the rope around the narrow section ahead of the forked tail and pass the length through the loop, pulling it tight rather than making a lasso and trying to place it over its long forked tail while it’s thrashing.\r\n\r\nThe fish should be gaffed in an area away from the fishing line and lure. A miss-gaff can readily set the fish free if it strikes the lure, hooks, or the taut line. If you are confident, go for the head near the gill area.\r\n\r\nIf the fish can be lifted and boated with the gaff by one person, then the lifting rope doesn’t have to be used. In any case, the fish after being gaffed will need to be subdued before it can be brought aboard, unless you are one to welcome wildly whipping hooks which can snag someone if not careful.\r\n\r\nWith the fish securely gaffed, strike it on top of its head even with its eyes several times until it is relaxed. Be careful not to strike a hole in the boat.\r\nBe prepared for a big fish! Don’t find yourself out in the open sea miles from shore with a fish 4 times the size of the ice chest you brought along. Hence, an 8 x 10 tarpaulin can be used to wrap the fish in if it is unable to fit into an ice chest. Even better is an insulated fish bag, normally found through an internet provider rather than at your local Wal-Mart. Canyon makes some very nice ones and you can do a search for a source: “Canyon insulated fish bags.” Ice may be placed around the fish if the trip in will take more than several hours in hot weather.\r\n\r\nNow, with any good fortune, catching Ol’\"Charlie\" will be a cinch!','Yellowfin Tuna Fishing How-To For Small-Boat Owners','','inherit','open','open','','223-revision-5','','','2011-12-05 19:44:34','2011-12-05 19:44:34','',223,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=230',0,'revision','',0),(231,1,'2011-04-01 19:51:13','2011-04-01 19:51:13','<img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-235\" title=\"19\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/19.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"313\" height=\"465\" />Anglers have been trying to beat the mythical 400 lb mark for yellowfin tuna for decades - and the feat has finally been accomplished. Three months and seven days after his momentous catch aboard the long-range sportfisher Vagabond, the IGFA is pleased to announce that retired school superintendant Mike Livingston, of Sunland, California, has been awarded the All-Tackle record for yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares). His 405 lb fish, boated on November 30, 2010 now replaces a 33 year old record set in 1977 by Curt Wiesenhutter.\r\n\r\n“I think Mike did a lot more than just catch the new All-Tackle yellowfin tuna record,” IGFA Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser observed. “He also demonstrated to people that it is possible to hook, fight and land incredibly large and powerful fish from long-range boats in accordance with IGFA rules.”\r\nIndeed, the significance of this record and the manner in which it was caught are two of the chief reasons the approval process for this record took some time. The IGFA examines all record submissions with extreme rigor, no matter if it is a 1 lb bluegill or a 1,000 lb blue marlin. However, big tuna caught on long-range boats are often not eligible for IGFA records because the angler may have handed off the rod to get around other anglers or used the rail at some point during the fight – both of which are against IGFA Interna- tional Angling Rules.\r\n\r\nAs with all other records, the review process was conducted by Record Coordinator Jack Vitek, Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser and IGFA President Rob Kramer. Each staff member scrutinized the application to ensure that IGFA angling and equipment rules were adhered to. In addition, all witnesses listed on the application were independently queried to give a detailed description of the catch from hook up to gaff.\r\n\r\nThe witness reports were key in this case, and each of the witnesses responded with very detailed testimony that indicated that Mike was able to hook and fight the fish without interacting with any other anglers on the boat. These inde- pendent testimonies coupled with a me- ticulously documented application made IGFA staff very comfort- able in approving the record. Basically, it all came down to a very accomplished angler hooking the right fish and fishing by\r\nIGFA rules.\r\n\r\n\"I’d say it’s one of the most significant world-record catches in recent history,” Rob Kramer commented. “It’s great to see a fish like this caught by an angler that knew the rules and adhered to them.\r\n\r\nIGFA President Rob Kramer will present Livingston with his world-record certificate at the upcoming Fred Hall Show in Long Beach, California, which kicks off this week, running from March 9-13. Make sure to swing by the IGFA booth and get the full story about the catch.','IGFA Approves NEW All-Tackle Yellowfin Tuna World Record','','publish','open','open','','igfa-approves-new-all-tackle-yellowfin-tuna-world-record','','','2013-04-02 12:57:28','2013-04-02 16:57:28','',0,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=231',55,'post','',0),(232,1,'2011-12-05 19:51:21','2011-12-05 19:51:21','\nAnglers have been trying to beat the mythical 400 lb mark for yellowfin tuna for decades - and the feat has finally been accomplished. Three months and seven days after his momentous catch aboard the long-range sportfisher Vagabond, the IGFA is pleased to announce that retired school superintendant Mike Livingston, of Sunland, California, has been awarded the All-Tackle record for yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares). His 405 lb fish, boated on November 30, 2010 now replaces a 33 year old record set in 1977 by Curt Wiesenhutter.\n“I think Mike did a lot more than just catch the new All-Tackle yellowfin tuna record,” IGFA Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser observed. “He also demonstrated to people that it is possible to hook, fight and land incredibly large and powerful fish from long-range boats in accordance with IGFA rules.”\nIndeed, the significance of this record and the manner in which it was caught are two of the chief reasons the approval process for this record took some time. The IGFA examines all record submissions with extreme rigor, no matter if it is a 1 lb bluegill or a 1,000 lb blue marlin. However, big tuna caught on long-range boats are often not eligible for IGFA records because the angler may have handed off the rod to get around other anglers or used the rail at some point during the fight – both of which are against IGFA Interna- tional Angling Rules.\nAs with all other records, the review process was conducted by Record Coordinator Jack Vitek, Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser and IGFA President Rob Kramer. Each staff member scrutinized the application to ensure that IGFA angling and equipment rules were adhered to. In addition, all witnesses listed on the application were independently queried to give a detailed description of the catch from hook up to gaff.\nThe witness reports were key in this case, and each of the witnesses responded with very detailed testimony that indicated that Mike was able to hook and fight the fish without\ninteracting with any other anglers on the boat. These inde- pendent testimonies coupled with a me- ticulously documented application made IGFA staff very comfort- able in approving the record. Basically, it all came down to a very accomplished angler hooking the right fish and fishing by\nIGFA rules.\n“I’d say it’s one of the most significant world-record catches in recent history,” Rob Kramer commented. “It’s great to see a fish like this caught by an angler that knew the rules and adhered to them.”\nIGFA President Rob Kramer will present Livingston with his world-record certificate at the upcoming Fred Hall Show in Long Beach, California, which kicks off this week, running from March 9-13. Make sure to swing by the IGFA booth and get the full story about the catch.','IGFA Approves NEW All-Tackle Yellowfin Tuna World Record','','inherit','open','open','','231-revision','','','2011-12-05 19:51:21','2011-12-05 19:51:21','',231,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=232',0,'revision','',0),(233,1,'2011-12-05 19:51:50','2011-12-05 19:51:50','\r\nAnglers have been trying to beat the mythical 400 lb mark for yellowfin tuna for decades - and the feat has finally been accomplished. Three months and seven days after his momentous catch aboard the long-range sportfisher Vagabond, the IGFA is pleased to announce that retired school superintendant Mike Livingston, of Sunland, California, has been awarded the All-Tackle record for yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares). His 405 lb fish, boated on November 30, 2010 now replaces a 33 year old record set in 1977 by Curt Wiesenhutter.\r\n“I think Mike did a lot more than just catch the new All-Tackle yellowfin tuna record,” IGFA Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser observed. “He also demonstrated to people that it is possible to hook, fight and land incredibly large and powerful fish from long-range boats in accordance with IGFA rules.”\r\nIndeed, the significance of this record and the manner in which it was caught are two of the chief reasons the approval process for this record took some time. The IGFA examines all record submissions with extreme rigor, no matter if it is a 1 lb bluegill or a 1,000 lb blue marlin. However, big tuna caught on long-range boats are often not eligible for IGFA records because the angler may have handed off the rod to get around other anglers or used the rail at some point during the fight – both of which are against IGFA Interna- tional Angling Rules.\r\nAs with all other records, the review process was conducted by Record Coordinator Jack Vitek, Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser and IGFA President Rob Kramer. Each staff member scrutinized the application to ensure that IGFA angling and equipment rules were adhered to. In addition, all witnesses listed on the application were independently queried to give a detailed description of the catch from hook up to gaff.\r\nThe witness reports were key in this case, and each of the witnesses responded with very detailed testimony that indicated that Mike was able to hook and fight the fish without\r\ninteracting with any other anglers on the boat. These inde- pendent testimonies coupled with a me- ticulously documented application made IGFA staff very comfort- able in approving the record. Basically, it all came down to a very accomplished angler hooking the right fish and fishing by\r\nIGFA rules.\r\n“I’d say it’s one of the most significant world-record catches in recent history,” Rob Kramer commented. “It’s great to see a fish like this caught by an angler that knew the rules and adhered to them.”\r\nIGFA President Rob Kramer will present Livingston with his world-record certificate at the upcoming Fred Hall Show in Long Beach, California, which kicks off this week, running from March 9-13. Make sure to swing by the IGFA booth and get the full story about the catch.','IGFA Approves NEW All-Tackle Yellowfin Tuna World Record','','inherit','open','open','','231-revision-2','','','2011-12-05 19:51:50','2011-12-05 19:51:50','',231,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=233',0,'revision','',0),(234,1,'2011-12-05 19:56:09','2011-12-05 19:56:09','<img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-235\" title=\"19\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/19.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"313\" height=\"465\" />Anglers have been trying to beat the mythical 400 lb mark for yellowfin tuna for decades - and the feat has finally been accomplished. Three months and seven days after his momentous catch aboard the long-range sportfisher Vagabond, the IGFA is pleased to announce that retired school superintendant Mike Livingston, of Sunland, California, has been awarded the All-Tackle record for yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares). His 405 lb fish, boated on November 30, 2010 now replaces a 33 year old record set in 1977 by Curt Wiesenhutter.\n\n“I think Mike did a lot more than just catch the new All-Tackle yellowfin tuna record,” IGFA Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser observed. “He also demonstrated to people that it is possible to hook, fight and land incredibly large and powerful fish from long-range boats in accordance with IGFA rules.”\nIndeed, the significance of this record and the manner in which it was caught are two of the chief reasons the approval process for this record took some time. The IGFA examines all record submissions with extreme rigor, no matter if it is a 1 lb bluegill or a 1,000 lb blue marlin. However, big tuna caught on long-range boats are often not eligible for IGFA records because the angler may have handed off the rod to get around other anglers or used the rail at some point during the fight – both of which are against IGFA Interna- tional Angling Rules.\n\nAs with all other records, the review process was conducted by Record Coordinator Jack Vitek, Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser and IGFA President Rob Kramer. Each staff member scrutinized the application to ensure that IGFA angling and equipment rules were adhered to. In addition, all witnesses listed on the application were independently queried to give a detailed description of the catch from hook up to gaff.\n\nThe witness reports were key in this case, and each of the witnesses responded with very detailed testimony that indicated that Mike was able to hook and fight the fish without interacting with any other anglers on the boat. These inde- pendent testimonies coupled with a me- ticulously documented application made IGFA staff very comfort- able in approving the record. Basically, it all came down to a very accomplished angler hooking the right fish and fishing by\nIGFA rules.\n\n\"I’d say it’s one of the most significant world-record catches in recent history,” Rob Kramer commented. “It’s great to see a fish like this caught by an angler that knew the rules and adhered to them.\n\nIGFA President Rob Kramer will present Livingston with his world-record certificate at the upcoming Fred Hall Show in Long Beach, California, which kicks off this week, running from March 9-13. Make sure to swing by the IGFA booth and get the full story about the catch.','IGFA Approves NEW All-Tackle Yellowfin Tuna World Record','','inherit','open','open','','231-autosave','','','2011-12-05 19:56:09','2011-12-05 19:56:09','',231,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=234',0,'revision','',0),(235,1,'2011-12-05 19:54:35','2011-12-05 19:54:35','','19','','inherit','open','open','','19-2','','','2011-12-05 19:54:35','2011-12-05 19:54:35','',231,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/19.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(236,1,'2011-12-05 19:52:19','2011-12-05 19:52:19','Anglers have been trying to beat the mythical 400 lb mark for yellowfin tuna for decades - and the feat has finally been accomplished. Three months and seven days after his momentous catch aboard the long-range sportfisher Vagabond, the IGFA is pleased to announce that retired school superintendant Mike Livingston, of Sunland, California, has been awarded the All-Tackle record for yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares). His 405 lb fish, boated on November 30, 2010 now replaces a 33 year old record set in 1977 by Curt Wiesenhutter.\r\n\r\n“I think Mike did a lot more than just catch the new All-Tackle yellowfin tuna record,” IGFA Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser observed. “He also demonstrated to people that it is possible to hook, fight and land incredibly large and powerful fish from long-range boats in accordance with IGFA rules.”\r\nIndeed, the significance of this record and the manner in which it was caught are two of the chief reasons the approval process for this record took some time. The IGFA examines all record submissions with extreme rigor, no matter if it is a 1 lb bluegill or a 1,000 lb blue marlin. However, big tuna caught on long-range boats are often not eligible for IGFA records because the angler may have handed off the rod to get around other anglers or used the rail at some point during the fight – both of which are against IGFA Interna- tional Angling Rules.\r\n\r\nAs with all other records, the review process was conducted by Record Coordinator Jack Vitek, Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser and IGFA President Rob Kramer. Each staff member scrutinized the application to ensure that IGFA angling and equipment rules were adhered to. In addition, all witnesses listed on the application were independently queried to give a detailed description of the catch from hook up to gaff.\r\n\r\nThe witness reports were key in this case, and each of the witnesses responded with very detailed testimony that indicated that Mike was able to hook and fight the fish without interacting with any other anglers on the boat. These inde- pendent testimonies coupled with a me- ticulously documented application made IGFA staff very comfort- able in approving the record. Basically, it all came down to a very accomplished angler hooking the right fish and fishing by\r\nIGFA rules.\r\n\r\n<blockquote>“I’d say it’s one of the most significant world-record catches in recent history,” Rob Kramer commented. “It’s great to see a fish like this caught by an angler that knew the rules and adhered to them.”</blockquote>\r\n\r\nIGFA President Rob Kramer will present Livingston with his world-record certificate at the upcoming Fred Hall Show in Long Beach, California, which kicks off this week, running from March 9-13. Make sure to swing by the IGFA booth and get the full story about the catch.','IGFA Approves NEW All-Tackle Yellowfin Tuna World Record','','inherit','open','open','','231-revision-3','','','2011-12-05 19:52:19','2011-12-05 19:52:19','',231,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=236',0,'revision','',0),(237,1,'2011-12-05 19:54:50','2011-12-05 19:54:50','<img src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/19.jpg\" alt=\"\" title=\"19\" width=\"376\" height=\"560\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-235\" />Anglers have been trying to beat the mythical 400 lb mark for yellowfin tuna for decades - and the feat has finally been accomplished. Three months and seven days after his momentous catch aboard the long-range sportfisher Vagabond, the IGFA is pleased to announce that retired school superintendant Mike Livingston, of Sunland, California, has been awarded the All-Tackle record for yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares). His 405 lb fish, boated on November 30, 2010 now replaces a 33 year old record set in 1977 by Curt Wiesenhutter.\r\n\r\n“I think Mike did a lot more than just catch the new All-Tackle yellowfin tuna record,” IGFA Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser observed. “He also demonstrated to people that it is possible to hook, fight and land incredibly large and powerful fish from long-range boats in accordance with IGFA rules.”\r\nIndeed, the significance of this record and the manner in which it was caught are two of the chief reasons the approval process for this record took some time. The IGFA examines all record submissions with extreme rigor, no matter if it is a 1 lb bluegill or a 1,000 lb blue marlin. However, big tuna caught on long-range boats are often not eligible for IGFA records because the angler may have handed off the rod to get around other anglers or used the rail at some point during the fight – both of which are against IGFA Interna- tional Angling Rules.\r\n\r\nAs with all other records, the review process was conducted by Record Coordinator Jack Vitek, Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser and IGFA President Rob Kramer. Each staff member scrutinized the application to ensure that IGFA angling and equipment rules were adhered to. In addition, all witnesses listed on the application were independently queried to give a detailed description of the catch from hook up to gaff.\r\n\r\nThe witness reports were key in this case, and each of the witnesses responded with very detailed testimony that indicated that Mike was able to hook and fight the fish without interacting with any other anglers on the boat. These inde- pendent testimonies coupled with a me- ticulously documented application made IGFA staff very comfort- able in approving the record. Basically, it all came down to a very accomplished angler hooking the right fish and fishing by\r\nIGFA rules.\r\n\r\n\"I’d say it’s one of the most significant world-record catches in recent history,” Rob Kramer commented. “It’s great to see a fish like this caught by an angler that knew the rules and adhered to them.\r\n\r\nIGFA President Rob Kramer will present Livingston with his world-record certificate at the upcoming Fred Hall Show in Long Beach, California, which kicks off this week, running from March 9-13. Make sure to swing by the IGFA booth and get the full story about the catch.','IGFA Approves NEW All-Tackle Yellowfin Tuna World Record','','inherit','open','open','','231-revision-4','','','2011-12-05 19:54:50','2011-12-05 19:54:50','',231,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=237',0,'revision','',0),(238,1,'2011-04-01 19:58:25','2011-04-01 19:58:25','<h3>Blended fuels present new, and potentially costly, problems for gasoline engines.</h3>\r\nWho wouldn’t accept with open arms a renewable product that is produced right here in the United States, reduces our dependency on foreign oil, and reduces pollution? You’ve probably already heard of biodiesel, a fuel made from, among other things, soybeans and used deep-fryer oils. Similarly, ethanol or ethyl alcohol is made from various agricultural products such as sugar cane and corn. (It’s what moonshiners used to make in rural stills in the early part of the last century.) Here in the U.S., where huge quantities of corn are grown, this seems like a natural fit. When mixed with gasoline, usually at a 10-percent ratio, it’s referred to as either E10 or gasohol. The resulting product, an oxygenate, allows fuel to burn more efficiently and thus produces less pollution.\r\n\r\nThe main impetus for using or switching to E10 stems from the problems that the previous pollution-reducing additive, MTBE (an acronym for a type of ether and known carcinogen), was causing when it leaked from underground storage tanks into ground water.\r\n\r\nThe switch to E10 created almost immediate noticeable effects in one of the largest recreational boating regions in the U.S., the Northeast and Long Island Sound. Initially, mixing fuel that contained MTBE and ethanol created a sludgy material that quickly clogged fuel filters, carburetors, and fuel injection systems. Anecdotal evidence suggests that fuel system repairs in this region increased noticeably during the 2005 boating season.\r\n\r\nThat problem paled in comparison, however, to the effect that E10 appears to be having on the luckless owners of gasoline-powered vessels equipped with fiberglass fuel tanks.\r\n\r\nFiberglass is acknowledged by many boatbuilders and professionals in the marine industry as the material to use for a “forever tank.” It doesn’t rust, cor- rode, or otherwise suffer like other materials. (It fades and needs wax, but that’s not an issue for fuel tanks.) Fiberglass fuel tanks are more expensive than other materials such as steel, aluminum, and plastic, and as a result, they often found their way into high-end power cruisers and sportfishing boats such as those made by Hatterass, Bertram, and Chris Craft in the ’60s and ’70s, along with some later-model small boats like Boston Whalers.\r\n\r\nWhen used to store E10, these fiberglass tanks dissolve, literally. The alcohol, which is a solvent, begins to molecularly disassemble the fiberglass resin matrix. Eventually, the tank may become structurally unstable as it softens, and fuel may begin to leak. A number of cases have already been reported.\r\nAs if this isn’t bad enough, the dissolved components, styrene and polyester, make their way along with the fuel to the engine. The result is a black, gooey substance that can be found beneath the carburetor and on valves and valve guides. This often leads to valve seizure, poor running, and eventually engine failure. In some cases, repairs are not economically feasible. Ethanol may also damage plastic and rubber components such as fuel lines and filters. Fuel hose that is alcohol-resistant, such as type A1, is usually so labeled.\r\n\r\nIf you suspect you have fuel in your tank that contains MTBE, try to use it up before refilling with new fuel that may contain ethanol. If you have fiberglass tanks, you will probably be fac- ing the unpleasant task of replacing your fuel tanks with aluminum, upgraded fiberglass, polyethylene, or stainless steel (ABYC now approves stain- less steel as long as it’s 316L and at least .075 inches thick.)\r\n\r\nThe final nail in the E10 coffin is ethanol’s affinity for water it absorbs it and holds it in suspension, to a point. In some cases, this may be desirable. Some water-ab- sorbing “dry gas” products allow water to be suspended and then burned with the fuel. But too much water can present a problem. If the water content of the tank rises much above 0.5 percent that’s half a gallon in a 100-gallon tank the ethanol’s water-supporting capacity will be overwhelmed. This is called phase separation. The ethanol/water mix will drop out of the fuel and sink to the bottom of the tank where your engine will suck it up. Engines don’t run well, if at all, on this gelatinous mixture. Plus, the remaining fuel in the tank, now devoid of the ethanol, will be of a significantly lower octane rating, as low as 83, which will also lead to running problems.\r\n\r\nE10 fuel is apparently less stable than ordinary gasoline, on the order of 60 to 90 days. So some experts are now suggesting, contrary to previously held wisdom, that tanks be stored empty rather than full. A tank full of E10 may spoil, and it will tend to absorb water through fuel vents, leading to more trouble for the tank and the engine. Fuel stabilizers will help and should be used even for short-term fuel storage; however, seasonal lay-up is probably too long to rely on additives.\r\n\r\nEvidence indicates that 40 percent of all service stations will be selling E10 by the time you read this, and that number is likely to grow. What’s next? E20, and some locations are offering E85.','Ethanol Fuel Attacks Outboard Engines, Inboard Engines and Fuel Tanks','','publish','open','open','','ethanol-fuel-attacks-outboard-engines-inboard-engines-and-fuel-tanks','','','2013-04-02 12:57:28','2013-04-02 16:57:28','',0,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=238',54,'post','',0),(239,1,'2011-12-05 19:58:10','2011-12-05 19:58:10','<h3>Blended fuels present new, and potentially costly, problems for gasoline engines.</h3>\nWho wouldn’t accept with open arms a renewable product that is produced right here in the United States, reduces our dependency on foreign oil, and reduces pollution? You’ve probably already heard of biodiesel, a fuel made from, among other things, soybeans and used deep-fryer oils. Similarly, ethanol or ethyl alcohol is made from various agricultural products such as sugar cane and corn. (It’s what moonshiners used to make in rural stills in the early part of the last century.) Here in the U.S., where huge quantities of corn are grown, this seems like a natural fit. When mixed with gasoline, usually at a 10-percent ratio, it’s referred to as either E10 or gasohol. The resulting product, an oxygenate, allows fuel to burn more efficiently and thus produces less pollution.\nThe main impetus for using or switching to E10 stems from the problems that the previous pollution-reducing additive, MTBE (an acronym for a type of ether and known carcinogen), was causing when it leaked from underground storage tanks into ground water.\n\nThe switch to E10 created almost immediate noticeable effects in one of the largest recreational boating regions in the U.S., the Northeast and Long Island Sound. Initially, mixing fuel that contained MTBE and ethanol created a sludgy material that quickly clogged fuel filters, carburetors, and fuel injection systems. Anecdotal evidence suggests that fuel system repairs in this region increased noticeably during the 2005 boating season.\n\nThat problem paled in comparison, however, to the effect that E10 appears to be having on the luckless owners of gasoline-powered vessels equipped with fiberglass fuel tanks.\n\nFiberglass is acknowledged by many boatbuilders and professionals in the marine industry as the material to use for a “forever tank.” It doesn’t rust, cor- rode, or otherwise suffer like other materials. (It fades and needs wax, but that’s not an issue for fuel tanks.) Fiberglass fuel tanks are more expensive than other materials such as steel, aluminum, and plastic, and as a result, they often found their way into high-end power cruisers and sportfishing boats such as those made by Hatterass, Bertram, and Chris Craft in the ’60s and ’70s, along with some later-model small boats like Boston Whalers.\n\nWhen used to store E10, these fiberglass tanks dissolve, literally. The alcohol, which is a solvent, begins to molecularly disassemble the fiberglass resin matrix. Eventually, the tank may become structurally unstable as it softens, and fuel may begin to leak. A number of cases have already been reported.\nAs if this isn’t bad enough, the dissolved components, styrene and polyester, make their way along with the fuel to the engine. The result is a black, gooey substance that can be found beneath the carburetor and on valves and valve guides. This often leads to valve seizure, poor running, and eventually engine failure. In some cases, repairs are not economically feasible. Ethanol may also damage plastic and rubber components such as fuel lines and filters. Fuel hose that is alcohol-resistant, such as type A1, is usually so labeled.\n\nIf you suspect you have fuel in your tank that contains MTBE, try to use it up before refilling with new fuel that may contain ethanol. If you have fiberglass tanks, you will probably be fac- ing the unpleasant task of replacing your fuel tanks with aluminum, upgraded fiberglass, polyethylene, or stainless steel (ABYC now approves stain- less steel as long as it’s 316L and at least .075 inches thick.)\n\nThe final nail in the E10 coffin is ethanol’s affinity for water it absorbs it and holds it in suspension, to a point. In some cases, this may be desirable. Some water-ab- sorbing “dry gas” products allow water to be suspended and then burned with the fuel. But too much water can present a problem. If the water content of the tank rises much above 0.5 percent that’s half a gallon in a 100-gallon tank the ethanol’s water-supporting capacity will be overwhelmed. This is called phase separation. The ethanol/water mix will drop out of the fuel and sink to the bottom of the tank where your engine will suck it up. Engines don’t run well, if at all, on this gelatinous mixture. Plus, the remaining fuel in the tank, now devoid of the ethanol, will be of a significantly lower octane rating, as low as 83, which will also lead to running problems.\n\nE10 fuel is apparently less stable than ordinary gasoline, on the order of 60 to 90 days. So some experts are now suggesting, contrary to previously held wisdom, that tanks be stored empty rather than full. A tank full of E10 may spoil, and it will tend to absorb water through fuel vents, leading to more trouble for the tank and the engine. Fuel stabilizers will help and should be used even for short-term fuel storage; however, seasonal lay-up is probably too long to rely on additives.\n\nEvidence indicates that 40 percent of all service stations will be selling E10 by the time you read this, and that number is likely to grow. What’s next? E20, and some locations are offering E85.','Ethanol Fuel Attacks Outboard Engines, Inboard Engines and Fuel Tanks','','inherit','open','open','','238-revision','','','2011-12-05 19:58:10','2011-12-05 19:58:10','',238,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=239',0,'revision','',0),(240,1,'2011-12-05 19:58:25','2011-12-05 19:58:25','<h3>Blended fuels present new, and potentially costly, problems for gasoline engines.</h3>\r\nWho wouldn’t accept with open arms a renewable product that is produced right here in the United States, reduces our dependency on foreign oil, and reduces pollution? You’ve probably already heard of biodiesel, a fuel made from, among other things, soybeans and used deep-fryer oils. Similarly, ethanol or ethyl alcohol is made from various agricultural products such as sugar cane and corn. (It’s what moonshiners used to make in rural stills in the early part of the last century.) Here in the U.S., where huge quantities of corn are grown, this seems like a natural fit. When mixed with gasoline, usually at a 10-percent ratio, it’s referred to as either E10 or gasohol. The resulting product, an oxygenate, allows fuel to burn more efficiently and thus produces less pollution.\r\nThe main impetus for using or switching to E10 stems from the problems that the previous pollution-reducing additive, MTBE (an acronym for a type of ether and known carcinogen), was causing when it leaked from underground storage tanks into ground water.\r\n\r\nThe switch to E10 created almost immediate noticeable effects in one of the largest recreational boating regions in the U.S., the Northeast and Long Island Sound. Initially, mixing fuel that contained MTBE and ethanol created a sludgy material that quickly clogged fuel filters, carburetors, and fuel injection systems. Anecdotal evidence suggests that fuel system repairs in this region increased noticeably during the 2005 boating season.\r\n\r\nThat problem paled in comparison, however, to the effect that E10 appears to be having on the luckless owners of gasoline-powered vessels equipped with fiberglass fuel tanks.\r\n\r\nFiberglass is acknowledged by many boatbuilders and professionals in the marine industry as the material to use for a “forever tank.” It doesn’t rust, cor- rode, or otherwise suffer like other materials. (It fades and needs wax, but that’s not an issue for fuel tanks.) Fiberglass fuel tanks are more expensive than other materials such as steel, aluminum, and plastic, and as a result, they often found their way into high-end power cruisers and sportfishing boats such as those made by Hatterass, Bertram, and Chris Craft in the ’60s and ’70s, along with some later-model small boats like Boston Whalers.\r\n\r\nWhen used to store E10, these fiberglass tanks dissolve, literally. The alcohol, which is a solvent, begins to molecularly disassemble the fiberglass resin matrix. Eventually, the tank may become structurally unstable as it softens, and fuel may begin to leak. A number of cases have already been reported.\r\nAs if this isn’t bad enough, the dissolved components, styrene and polyester, make their way along with the fuel to the engine. The result is a black, gooey substance that can be found beneath the carburetor and on valves and valve guides. This often leads to valve seizure, poor running, and eventually engine failure. In some cases, repairs are not economically feasible. Ethanol may also damage plastic and rubber components such as fuel lines and filters. Fuel hose that is alcohol-resistant, such as type A1, is usually so labeled.\r\n\r\nIf you suspect you have fuel in your tank that contains MTBE, try to use it up before refilling with new fuel that may contain ethanol. If you have fiberglass tanks, you will probably be fac- ing the unpleasant task of replacing your fuel tanks with aluminum, upgraded fiberglass, polyethylene, or stainless steel (ABYC now approves stain- less steel as long as it’s 316L and at least .075 inches thick.)\r\n\r\nThe final nail in the E10 coffin is ethanol’s affinity for water it absorbs it and holds it in suspension, to a point. In some cases, this may be desirable. Some water-ab- sorbing “dry gas” products allow water to be suspended and then burned with the fuel. But too much water can present a problem. If the water content of the tank rises much above 0.5 percent that’s half a gallon in a 100-gallon tank the ethanol’s water-supporting capacity will be overwhelmed. This is called phase separation. The ethanol/water mix will drop out of the fuel and sink to the bottom of the tank where your engine will suck it up. Engines don’t run well, if at all, on this gelatinous mixture. Plus, the remaining fuel in the tank, now devoid of the ethanol, will be of a significantly lower octane rating, as low as 83, which will also lead to running problems.\r\n\r\nE10 fuel is apparently less stable than ordinary gasoline, on the order of 60 to 90 days. So some experts are now suggesting, contrary to previously held wisdom, that tanks be stored empty rather than full. A tank full of E10 may spoil, and it will tend to absorb water through fuel vents, leading to more trouble for the tank and the engine. Fuel stabilizers will help and should be used even for short-term fuel storage; however, seasonal lay-up is probably too long to rely on additives.\r\n\r\nEvidence indicates that 40 percent of all service stations will be selling E10 by the time you read this, and that number is likely to grow. What’s next? E20, and some locations are offering E85.','Ethanol Fuel Attacks Outboard Engines, Inboard Engines and Fuel Tanks','','inherit','open','open','','238-revision-2','','','2011-12-05 19:58:25','2011-12-05 19:58:25','',238,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=240',0,'revision','',0),(241,1,'2011-12-05 19:59:12','2011-12-05 19:59:12',' ','','','publish','open','closed','','241','','','2014-11-18 11:37:23','2014-11-18 16:37:23','',7,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=241',30,'nav_menu_item','',0),(242,1,'2011-12-05 20:00:53','2011-12-05 20:00:53','','16','','inherit','open','open','','16','','','2011-12-05 20:00:53','2011-12-05 20:00:53','',218,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/16.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(243,1,'2011-12-05 19:39:58','2011-12-05 19:39:58','Many phrases that have been adopted into everyday use originate from seafaring - in particular from the days of sail. Virtually all of these are metaphorical and the original nautical meanings are now forgotten. That association of travel and metaphor is significant in that the word metaphor derives from ancient Greek for ‘to carry’ or ‘to travel’. The influence of other languages and other cultures is evident in many of the long list of English phrases that have nautical origins.\r\n\r\nIt is an undoubted fact that seafaring is also the source of more false etymology than any other sphere. This can be attributed to the attractiveness of the romantic image of horny-handed sailors singing shanties and living a hearty and rough life at sea. After all, it sounds plausible that ‘cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey’ comes from brass ship’s fittings and that POSH means ‘Port out, starboard home’, but neither of these is correct. CANOE, theCommittee to Ascribe a Naval Origin to Everything, doesn’t really exist, but the number of these folk myths makes it seem as though they do.\r\n\r\nIt is lucky for us, in our endeavors’ to distinguish truth from false- hood, that activities at sea have been scrupulously recorded over the centuries, in insurance records, newspaper accounts and, not least, in ships’ log books. The term log-book has an interesting derivation in itself. An early form of measuring a ship’s progress was by casting overboard a wooden board (the log) with a string attached. The rate at which the string was payed out as the ship moved away from the stationary log was measured by counting how long it took between knots in the string. These measurements were later transcribed into a book. Hence we get the term ‘log-book’ and also the name ‘knot’as the unit of speed at sea.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Over the Barrel</em></strong>\r\nThe most common method of punishment aboard ship was flogging. The unfor- tunate sailor was tied to a grating, mast or over a barrel. Kissing the gunner’s daughter was being tied over the barrel of a deck cannon whilst it was fired.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>To Know the Ropes</em></strong>\r\nThere are miles rope in the rigging of a square rigged ship. The only way of keeping track of the function of all of these lines was to memorize (know) where they were located. It took an experienced seaman to know the ropes.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Dressing Down</em></strong>\r\nThin and worn sails were often treated with oil or wax to renew their effective- ness. This was called dressing down. An officer or sailor who was reprimanded or scolded received a dressing down.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Footloose</em></strong>\r\nThe bottom portion of a sail is called the foot. If it is not secured, it is footloose and it dances randomly in the wind. Also known for a sail with no boom.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>First Rate</em></strong>\r\nImplies excellence. From the sixteenth century until steam powered ships took over, British naval ships were rated as to the number of heavy cannon they carried. A ship of 100 or more guns was a First Rate line-of-battle ship. Second rates carried 90 to 98 guns; Third Rates, 64 to 89 guns; Fourth Rates, 50 to 60 guns. Frigates carrying 20 to 48 guns were fifth and sixth rated.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Pipe Down</em></strong>\r\nMeans stop talking and be quiet. The Pipe Down was the last signal from the Boson’s pipe each day which meant lights out and silence.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Feeling Blue</em></strong>\r\nWhen a ship’s captain died during a voyage, his ship would return to port flying a blue flag and bearing a blue stripe on its hull. The term “feeling blue” signifies depression or sadness today.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Three Sheets to the Wind</em></strong>\r\nA sheet is a rope line which controls the tension on corners of a square sail. If, on a three masted ship, the sheets of the three lower course sails are loose, the sails will flap and flutter and are said to be in the wind. A ship in this condition would stagger and wander aimlessly downwind acting much like a drunken sailor.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Pooped</em></strong>\r\nThe poop is the stern section of a ship. To be pooped is to be struck by a high, following sea or wave on the stern.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>As the Crow Flies</em></strong>\r\nWhen lost or unsure of their position in coastal waters, ships would re- lease a caged crow. The crow would fly straight towards the nearest land thus giving the vessel some sort of a navigational fix. The tallest lookout platform on a ship came to be known as the crow’s nest.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>Cut and Run</em></strong>\r\nIf a smaller ship at anchor was discovered by a larger enemy vessel, the smaller ship might decide that discretion is the better part of valor, and so would order the crew to cut the anchor cable and sail off in a hurry.\r\n\r\n<strong><em>The Bitter End</em></strong>\r\nThe end of an anchor cable is fastened to the bits at the ship’s bow. If all of the anchor cable has been paid out you have come to the bitter end.\r\n\r\nToe the Line\r\nWhen called to line up at attention, the ship’s crew would form up with their toes touching a seam in the deck planking.\r\n\r\nBear Down\r\nTo sail downwind rapidly towards another ship or landmark.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Under the Weather</strong></em>\r\nIf a crewman is standing watch on the weather side of the bow, he will be subject to the constant beating of the sea and the ocean spray. He will be under the weather.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea</strong></em>\r\nThe devil seam was the curved seam in the deck planking closest to the side of the ship and next to the scupper gutters. If a sailor were hanging off the side in a boatswains chair you would be between the devil and the deep blue sea.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>The Devil to Pay</strong></em>\r\nTo pay the deck seams meant to seal them with tar. The devil seam was the most difficult to pay because it was curved and intersected with the straight deck planking. Paying the Devil was considered to be a most difficult and unpleasant task, sometimes used as mild punishment.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>A Square Meal</strong></em>\r\nThe crews’ mess was a warm meal served on square wooden platters. They were not nutritionally balanced.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Son of a Gun</strong></em>\r\nWhen in port, and with the crew restricted to the ship for any extended period of time, wives and ladies of easy virtue often were allowed to visit or even live aboard along with the crew. Infrequently, but not uncom- monly, children were born aboard, and a convenient place for this was between guns on the gun deck. If the child’s father was unknown, they were entered in the ship’s log as son of a gun.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Taking the wind out of his sails</strong></em>\r\nSailing in a manner so as to steal or divert wind from another ship’s sails.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Let the Cat Out of the Bag</strong></em>\r\nAboard ship the punishment prescribed for most serious crimes was flogging. This was administered by the Boson’s Mate using a whip called a cat o’ nine tails. The cat was kept in a red dyed bag. It was considered bad news indeed when the cat was let out of the bag.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Fly-by-Night</strong></em>\r\nThe word fly means “to sail” in nautical jargon. Sailing at night was a difficult and dangerous task. Therefore, when the night watch began, the elaborate sails used during the day were replaced by one large sail requir- ing rather little attention. This was the easiest sail to set and take down thus it could be put up and taken down quickly.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Give (someone) a Wide Berth</strong></em>\r\nTo anchor a ship far enough away from another ship so that they did not hit each other when they swung with the wind or tide.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>High and dry</strong></em>\r\nStranded, without help or hope of recovery. This term originally referred to ships that were beached. The ‘dry’ implies that, not only were they out of the water, but had been for some time and could be expected to remain so.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Garbled</strong></em>\r\nGarbling was the prohibited practice of mixing rubbish with the cargo. A distorted or mixed up signal or message was said to be garbled.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Press Into Service</strong></em>\r\nThe British navy filled their ships’ crew quotas by kidnapping men off the streets and forcing them into service. This was called Pressment and was done by Press Gangs.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Touch and Go</strong></em>\r\nThis referred to a ship’s keel touching the bottom and getting right off again.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Scuttlebutt</strong></em>\r\nA butt was a large barrel. Scuttle meant to chop a hole in something. The scuttlebutt was a water barrel with a hole cut into it so that sailors could reach in and dip out drinking water. The scuttlebutt was the place where the ship’s gossip was exchanged.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>Batten down the hatches</strong></em>\r\nPrepare for trouble. The securing of property, especially the covering with protective sheeting (tarpaulin), is called ‘battening down’. A batten is a strip of wood used to secure the sheeting. It has a nautical origin and ‘battening down’ was done on ships when bad weather was expected.\r\n\r\n<em><strong>True colors</strong></em>\r\nEarly warships often carried flags from many nations on board in order to elude or deceive the enemy. The rules of civilized warfare called for all ships to hoist their true national ensigns before firing a shot.','Nautical Sayings','','inherit','open','open','','218-revision-4','','','2011-12-05 19:39:58','2011-12-05 19:39:58','',218,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=243',0,'revision','',0),(244,1,'2011-12-05 19:58:39','2011-12-05 19:58:39','<h3>Blended fuels present new, and potentially costly, problems for gasoline engines.</h3>\r\nWho wouldn’t accept with open arms a renewable product that is produced right here in the United States, reduces our dependency on foreign oil, and reduces pollution? You’ve probably already heard of biodiesel, a fuel made from, among other things, soybeans and used deep-fryer oils. Similarly, ethanol or ethyl alcohol is made from various agricultural products such as sugar cane and corn. (It’s what moonshiners used to make in rural stills in the early part of the last century.) Here in the U.S., where huge quantities of corn are grown, this seems like a natural fit. When mixed with gasoline, usually at a 10-percent ratio, it’s referred to as either E10 or gasohol. The resulting product, an oxygenate, allows fuel to burn more efficiently and thus produces less pollution.\r\nThe main impetus for using or switching to E10 stems from the problems that the previous pollution-reducing additive, MTBE (an acronym for a type of ether and known carcinogen), was causing when it leaked from underground storage tanks into ground water.\r\n\r\nThe switch to E10 created almost immediate noticeable effects in one of the largest recreational boating regions in the U.S., the Northeast and Long Island Sound. Initially, mixing fuel that contained MTBE and ethanol created a sludgy material that quickly clogged fuel filters, carburetors, and fuel injection systems. Anecdotal evidence suggests that fuel system repairs in this region increased noticeably during the 2005 boating season.\r\n\r\nThat problem paled in comparison, however, to the effect that E10 appears to be having on the luckless owners of gasoline-powered vessels equipped with fiberglass fuel tanks.\r\n\r\nFiberglass is acknowledged by many boatbuilders and professionals in the marine industry as the material to use for a “forever tank.” It doesn’t rust, cor- rode, or otherwise suffer like other materials. (It fades and needs wax, but that’s not an issue for fuel tanks.) Fiberglass fuel tanks are more expensive than other materials such as steel, aluminum, and plastic, and as a result, they often found their way into high-end power cruisers and sportfishing boats such as those made by Hatterass, Bertram, and Chris Craft in the ’60s and ’70s, along with some later-model small boats like Boston Whalers.\r\n\r\nWhen used to store E10, these fiberglass tanks dissolve, literally. The alcohol, which is a solvent, begins to molecularly disassemble the fiberglass resin matrix. Eventually, the tank may become structurally unstable as it softens, and fuel may begin to leak. A number of cases have already been reported.\r\nAs if this isn’t bad enough, the dissolved components, styrene and polyester, make their way along with the fuel to the engine. The result is a black, gooey substance that can be found beneath the carburetor and on valves and valve guides. This often leads to valve seizure, poor running, and eventually engine failure. In some cases, repairs are not economically feasible. Ethanol may also damage plastic and rubber components such as fuel lines and filters. Fuel hose that is alcohol-resistant, such as type A1, is usually so labeled.\r\n\r\nIf you suspect you have fuel in your tank that contains MTBE, try to use it up before refilling with new fuel that may contain ethanol. If you have fiberglass tanks, you will probably be fac- ing the unpleasant task of replacing your fuel tanks with aluminum, upgraded fiberglass, polyethylene, or stainless steel (ABYC now approves stain- less steel as long as it’s 316L and at least .075 inches thick.)\r\n\r\nThe final nail in the E10 coffin is ethanol’s affinity for water it absorbs it and holds it in suspension, to a point. In some cases, this may be desirable. Some water-ab- sorbing “dry gas” products allow water to be suspended and then burned with the fuel. But too much water can present a problem. If the water content of the tank rises much above 0.5 percent that’s half a gallon in a 100-gallon tank the ethanol’s water-supporting capacity will be overwhelmed. This is called phase separation. The ethanol/water mix will drop out of the fuel and sink to the bottom of the tank where your engine will suck it up. Engines don’t run well, if at all, on this gelatinous mixture. Plus, the remaining fuel in the tank, now devoid of the ethanol, will be of a significantly lower octane rating, as low as 83, which will also lead to running problems.\r\n\r\nE10 fuel is apparently less stable than ordinary gasoline, on the order of 60 to 90 days. So some experts are now suggesting, contrary to previously held wisdom, that tanks be stored empty rather than full. A tank full of E10 may spoil, and it will tend to absorb water through fuel vents, leading to more trouble for the tank and the engine. Fuel stabilizers will help and should be used even for short-term fuel storage; however, seasonal lay-up is probably too long to rely on additives.\r\n\r\nEvidence indicates that 40 percent of all service stations will be selling E10 by the time you read this, and that number is likely to grow. What’s next? E20, and some locations are offering E85.','Ethanol Fuel Attacks Outboard Engines, Inboard Engines and Fuel Tanks','','inherit','open','open','','238-revision-3','','','2011-12-05 19:58:39','2011-12-05 19:58:39','',238,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=244',0,'revision','',0),(245,1,'2011-12-05 20:01:59','2011-12-05 20:01:59','<h3>Blended fuels present new, and potentially costly, problems for gasoline engines.</h3>\r\nWho wouldn’t accept with open arms a renewable product that is produced right here in the United States, reduces our dependency on foreign oil, and reduces pollution? You’ve probably already heard of biodiesel, a fuel made from, among other things, soybeans and used deep-fryer oils. Similarly, ethanol or ethyl alcohol is made from various agricultural products such as sugar cane and corn. (It’s what moonshiners used to make in rural stills in the early part of the last century.) Here in the U.S., where huge quantities of corn are grown, this seems like a natural fit. When mixed with gasoline, usually at a 10-percent ratio, it’s referred to as either E10 or gasohol. The resulting product, an oxygenate, allows fuel to burn more efficiently and thus produces less pollution.\r\nThe main impetus for using or switching to E10 stems from the problems that the previous pollution-reducing additive, MTBE (an acronym for a type of ether and known carcinogen), was causing when it leaked from underground storage tanks into ground water.\r\n\r\nThe switch to E10 created almost immediate noticeable effects in one of the largest recreational boating regions in the U.S., the Northeast and Long Island Sound. Initially, mixing fuel that contained MTBE and ethanol created a sludgy material that quickly clogged fuel filters, carburetors, and fuel injection systems. Anecdotal evidence suggests that fuel system repairs in this region increased noticeably during the 2005 boating season.\r\n\r\nThat problem paled in comparison, however, to the effect that E10 appears to be having on the luckless owners of gasoline-powered vessels equipped with fiberglass fuel tanks.\r\n\r\nFiberglass is acknowledged by many boatbuilders and professionals in the marine industry as the material to use for a “forever tank.” It doesn’t rust, cor- rode, or otherwise suffer like other materials. (It fades and needs wax, but that’s not an issue for fuel tanks.) Fiberglass fuel tanks are more expensive than other materials such as steel, aluminum, and plastic, and as a result, they often found their way into high-end power cruisers and sportfishing boats such as those made by Hatterass, Bertram, and Chris Craft in the ’60s and ’70s, along with some later-model small boats like Boston Whalers.\r\n\r\nWhen used to store E10, these fiberglass tanks dissolve, literally. The alcohol, which is a solvent, begins to molecularly disassemble the fiberglass resin matrix. Eventually, the tank may become structurally unstable as it softens, and fuel may begin to leak. A number of cases have already been reported.\r\nAs if this isn’t bad enough, the dissolved components, styrene and polyester, make their way along with the fuel to the engine. The result is a black, gooey substance that can be found beneath the carburetor and on valves and valve guides. This often leads to valve seizure, poor running, and eventually engine failure. In some cases, repairs are not economically feasible. Ethanol may also damage plastic and rubber components such as fuel lines and filters. Fuel hose that is alcohol-resistant, such as type A1, is usually so labeled.\r\n\r\nIf you suspect you have fuel in your tank that contains MTBE, try to use it up before refilling with new fuel that may contain ethanol. If you have fiberglass tanks, you will probably be fac- ing the unpleasant task of replacing your fuel tanks with aluminum, upgraded fiberglass, polyethylene, or stainless steel (ABYC now approves stain- less steel as long as it’s 316L and at least .075 inches thick.)\r\n\r\nThe final nail in the E10 coffin is ethanol’s affinity for water it absorbs it and holds it in suspension, to a point. In some cases, this may be desirable. Some water-ab- sorbing “dry gas” products allow water to be suspended and then burned with the fuel. But too much water can present a problem. If the water content of the tank rises much above 0.5 percent that’s half a gallon in a 100-gallon tank the ethanol’s water-supporting capacity will be overwhelmed. This is called phase separation. The ethanol/water mix will drop out of the fuel and sink to the bottom of the tank where your engine will suck it up. Engines don’t run well, if at all, on this gelatinous mixture. Plus, the remaining fuel in the tank, now devoid of the ethanol, will be of a significantly lower octane rating, as low as 83, which will also lead to running problems.\r\n\r\nE10 fuel is apparently less stable than ordinary gasoline, on the order of 60 to 90 days. So some experts are now suggesting, contrary to previously held wisdom, that tanks be stored empty rather than full. A tank full of E10 may spoil, and it will tend to absorb water through fuel vents, leading to more trouble for the tank and the engine. Fuel stabilizers will help and should be used even for short-term fuel storage; however, seasonal lay-up is probably too long to rely on additives.\r\n\r\nEvidence indicates that 40 percent of all service stations will be selling E10 by the time you read this, and that number is likely to grow. What’s next? E20, and some locations are offering E85.','Ethanol Fuel Attacks Outboard Engines, Inboard Engines and Fuel Tanks','','inherit','open','open','','238-revision-4','','','2011-12-05 20:01:59','2011-12-05 20:01:59','',238,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=245',0,'revision','',0),(246,1,'2011-12-05 20:03:15','2011-12-05 20:03:15','<h3>Blended fuels present new, and potentially costly, problems for gasoline engines.</h3>\nWho wouldn’t accept with open arms a renewable product that is produced right here in the United States, reduces our dependency on foreign oil, and reduces pollution? You’ve probably already heard of biodiesel, a fuel made from, among other things, soybeans and used deep-fryer oils. Similarly, ethanol or ethyl alcohol is made from various agricultural products such as sugar cane and corn. (It’s what moonshiners used to make in rural stills in the early part of the last century.) Here in the U.S., where huge quantities of corn are grown, this seems like a natural fit. When mixed with gasoline, usually at a 10-percent ratio, it’s referred to as either E10 or gasohol. The resulting product, an oxygenate, allows fuel to burn more efficiently and thus produces less pollution.\n\nThe main impetus for using or switching to E10 stems from the problems that the previous pollution-reducing additive, MTBE (an acronym for a type of ether and known carcinogen), was causing when it leaked from underground storage tanks into ground water.\n\nThe switch to E10 created almost immediate noticeable effects in one of the largest recreational boating regions in the U.S., the Northeast and Long Island Sound. Initially, mixing fuel that contained MTBE and ethanol created a sludgy material that quickly clogged fuel filters, carburetors, and fuel injection systems. Anecdotal evidence suggests that fuel system repairs in this region increased noticeably during the 2005 boating season.\n\nThat problem paled in comparison, however, to the effect that E10 appears to be having on the luckless owners of gasoline-powered vessels equipped with fiberglass fuel tanks.\n\nFiberglass is acknowledged by many boatbuilders and professionals in the marine industry as the material to use for a “forever tank.” It doesn’t rust, cor- rode, or otherwise suffer like other materials. (It fades and needs wax, but that’s not an issue for fuel tanks.) Fiberglass fuel tanks are more expensive than other materials such as steel, aluminum, and plastic, and as a result, they often found their way into high-end power cruisers and sportfishing boats such as those made by Hatterass, Bertram, and Chris Craft in the ’60s and ’70s, along with some later-model small boats like Boston Whalers.\n\nWhen used to store E10, these fiberglass tanks dissolve, literally. The alcohol, which is a solvent, begins to molecularly disassemble the fiberglass resin matrix. Eventually, the tank may become structurally unstable as it softens, and fuel may begin to leak. A number of cases have already been reported.\nAs if this isn’t bad enough, the dissolved components, styrene and polyester, make their way along with the fuel to the engine. The result is a black, gooey substance that can be found beneath the carburetor and on valves and valve guides. This often leads to valve seizure, poor running, and eventually engine failure. In some cases, repairs are not economically feasible. Ethanol may also damage plastic and rubber components such as fuel lines and filters. Fuel hose that is alcohol-resistant, such as type A1, is usually so labeled.\n\nIf you suspect you have fuel in your tank that contains MTBE, try to use it up before refilling with new fuel that may contain ethanol. If you have fiberglass tanks, you will probably be fac- ing the unpleasant task of replacing your fuel tanks with aluminum, upgraded fiberglass, polyethylene, or stainless steel (ABYC now approves stain- less steel as long as it’s 316L and at least .075 inches thick.)\n\nThe final nail in the E10 coffin is ethanol’s affinity for water it absorbs it and holds it in suspension, to a point. In some cases, this may be desirable. Some water-ab- sorbing “dry gas” products allow water to be suspended and then burned with the fuel. But too much water can present a problem. If the water content of the tank rises much above 0.5 percent that’s half a gallon in a 100-gallon tank the ethanol’s water-supporting capacity will be overwhelmed. This is called phase separation. The ethanol/water mix will drop out of the fuel and sink to the bottom of the tank where your engine will suck it up. Engines don’t run well, if at all, on this gelatinous mixture. Plus, the remaining fuel in the tank, now devoid of the ethanol, will be of a significantly lower octane rating, as low as 83, which will also lead to running problems.\n\nE10 fuel is apparently less stable than ordinary gasoline, on the order of 60 to 90 days. So some experts are now suggesting, contrary to previously held wisdom, that tanks be stored empty rather than full. A tank full of E10 may spoil, and it will tend to absorb water through fuel vents, leading to more trouble for the tank and the engine. Fuel stabilizers will help and should be used even for short-term fuel storage; however, seasonal lay-up is probably too long to rely on additives.\n\nEvidence indicates that 40 percent of all service stations will be selling E10 by the time you read this, and that number is likely to grow. What’s next? E20, and some locations are offering E85.','Ethanol Fuel Attacks Outboard Engines, Inboard Engines and Fuel Tanks','','inherit','open','open','','238-autosave','','','2011-12-05 20:03:15','2011-12-05 20:03:15','',238,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=246',0,'revision','',0),(247,1,'2011-04-01 20:35:12','2011-04-01 20:35:12','<strong><em>By Katharine Houreld</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe first time John Rodriguez tried to sail around the world a hurricane sunk his boat. His second attempt failed because of a scourge bedeviling mariners in the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden: pirates.\r\n\r\nRodriguez is among thousands of sailors who once steered their yachts across the warm Indian Ocean without a second thought, but are now rerouting, hiring replacement crews, packing their boats aboard cargo ships and contracting armed guards, or canceling their dream voyages altogether.\r\n\r\nWith Somali pirates seizing vessels and killing hostages in an area as vast as the continental United States, boatyards, restaurants and other establishments among the yachters’ routes have seen business fall, with some of their customer base scared off.\r\n\r\nRodriguez, a 44-year-old Briton, sailed from his homeland to Florida with his wife and two children. But the family didn’t push on through the Panama Canal. They knew their around-the-world route would eventually take them past waters infested by Somali pi- rates, who in 2009 kidnapped a British yachting couple, the Chandlers, near the Seychelles and held them for 388 days under often brutal conditions.\r\n\r\n“We bought our charts the day before the Chandlers got taken,” Rodriguez said. “Three months of angst followed while we tried to decide what to do ... it’s an enormous effort to do a trip like that and you don’t get the opportunity very often.”\r\n\r\nSomali pirates killed four American yachters last month and kidnapped a Danish family aboard their 43-foot sailboat last week. A South African couple taken off their sailboat in October are still being held.\r\n\r\nThe European Union Naval Force has done its best to warn yachters of the danger, said spokesman Wing Cmdr. Paddy O’Kennedy. But from their blog posts, it appeared the Danes felt safe enough because of the presence of warships on anti-piracy patrol in the area.\r\n\r\n“The latest attacks have certainly changed the game completely,” said Paul Gelder, the editor of Yachting Monthly.\r\n\r\nIn posts on the magazine’s web site forum Scuttlebutt, worried sailors discuss canceled or rerouted plans and trade frightening stories of witnessing attacks. Yachts trying to sail from Asia to Europe through the Suez Canal face tough choices. They can’t sail in the other direction because the winds aren’t right. Bigger yachts can go around the southern tip of Africa, but the Cape of Good Hope is notorious for storms and shipwrecks.\r\n\r\nFor those who live aboard their boats and want to get home, few choices remain: shell out big money to ship home their yacht or hire guards - or run the Somali gauntlet.\r\n\r\nOver the past six months, Peters & May Ltd., a company that specializes in shipping boats and yachts, has seen a roughly 300 percent increase in inquiries from captains interested in shipping their vessels rather than risking going through pirate-infested waters, said managing director Angus Bruce Jones.\r\n\r\nAnother option is to use a company like Naval Guards, a private security outfit based in Britainwhose guards escort vessels on speedboats. They sent their first of three boats to the region in September, and are now working at full capacity, said chief of operations Thomas Jakobsson.\r\n\r\nOn Wednesday, six Naval Guards employees fought off six pirates who had attacked and boarded the Capricorn, a yacht crewed by a Dutch couple, Jakobsson said.\r\n\r\nBut some yacht owners can’t or won’t pay for expensive shipping or guards. Instead, they might hire a crew to take the risk for them, said Mat Sandys-Winsch of Direct Yacht Deliver- ies. His company used to sail three or four yachts a year through the Indian Ocean to deliver to owners who would meet them in the Mediterranean. But since Christmas, the company has suspended sailing betweenIndia and the Suez Canal because of pirates.\r\n\r\n“The attacks had spread north to the Omani coast. They had basically blocked off the route we were taking,” he said, adding that many in the yachting community don’t take pirates seriously enough.\r\n\r\n“The feeling is that it is a big wide ocean and no one can touch you,” Sandys-Winsch said. “That’s not true,”\r\n\r\nRene Tiemessem, who is organizing a rally from Thailand to Turkey, said the people on his convoy through the Indian Ocean live on their yachts and don’t have the spare cash for guards or shipping.\r\n\r\nHe’s asked for an escort from the international warships fighting piracy off East Africa. But the only vessels who get those are the ones delivering food aid to war-ravaged Somalia, whose lawless shores are dotted with pirate camps. Navies say they are too thinly stretched already to start escorting everyone.\r\n“There’s no alternative for us” than to sail this route, he said. “People feel abandoned.” With many yachtsmen abandoning the region altogether, industries dependent on the routes are being devastated.\r\n\r\nAt Kilifi Boatyard in Kenya, Peter Bateman has laid off half his permanent staff. Ten years ago, they’d see more than a dozen yachts come in needing repairs, paint and other work. This year, not one. Out of 20 yachts considering coming here from the Chagos islands in the Indian Ocean this year, he said, 17 had turned around and gone back to Asia and three had gone around South Africa.\r\n\r\nThe tiny island nation of the Seychelles, a favorite with yachters, has seen tourism revenue drop by 15 percent, while fisheries, shipping and fuel sales to boats are all down by 30 percent or more, its Foreign Ministry said.\r\n\r\nBlue Water Rallies, which organized the sailing rally attended by the four Americans before they peeled off and were captured and executed as American warships trailed the seized yacht, has canceled its next rally because of the poor economic climate and fears over pirate attacks, said Blue Water director Richard Bolt, who knew the four Americans.\r\n\r\nAs the hotels, restaurants and businesses among the yachters’ sun-drenched route scan the empty waves expectantly, Rodriguez and his family are back in chilly, overcast England. Abandoning their dream journey was an awful decision, he said, and he was full of regret. But with every day that passes, and every new attack, he sees that there are many things worse than regret.','Yachts Shun Pirate Waters After String Of Hijacks','','publish','open','open','','yachts-shun-pirate-waters-after-string-of-hijacks','','','2013-04-02 12:57:28','2013-04-02 16:57:28','',0,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=247',53,'post','',0),(248,1,'2011-12-05 20:36:14','2011-12-05 20:36:14','<strong><em>By Katharine Houreld</em></strong>\n\nThe first time John Rodriguez tried to sail around the world a hurricane sunk his boat. His second attempt failed because of a scourge bedeviling mariners in the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden: pirates.\n\nRodriguez is among thousands of sailors who once steered their yachts across the warm Indian Ocean without a second thought, but are now rerouting, hiring replacement crews, packing their boats aboard cargo ships and contracting armed guards, or canceling their dream voyages altogether.\n\nWith Somali pirates seizing vessels and killing hostages in an area as vast as the continental United States, boatyards, restaurants and other establishments among the yachters’ routes have seen business fall, with some of their customer base scared off.\n\nRodriguez, a 44-year-old Briton, sailed from his homeland to Florida with his wife and two children. But the family didn’t push on through the Panama Canal. They knew their around-the-world route would eventually take them past waters infested by Somali pi- rates, who in 2009 kidnapped a British yachting couple, the Chandlers, near the Seychelles and held them for 388 days under often brutal conditions.\n\n“We bought our charts the day before the Chandlers got taken,” Rodriguez said. “Three months of angst followed while we tried to decide what to do ... it’s an enormous effort to do a trip like that and you don’t get the opportunity very often.”\n\nSomali pirates killed four American yachters last month and kidnapped a Danish family aboard their 43-foot sailboat last week. A South African couple taken off their sailboat in October are still being held.\n\nThe European Union Naval Force has done its best to warn yachters of the danger, said spokesman Wing Cmdr. Paddy O’Kennedy. But from their blog posts, it appeared the Danes felt safe enough because of the presence of warships on antipiracy patrol in the area.\n\n“The latest attacks have certainly changed the game completely,” said Paul Gelder, the editor of Yachting Monthly.\n\nIn posts on the magazine’s web site forum Scuttlebutt, worried sailors discuss canceled or rerouted plans and trade frightening stories of witnessing attacks.\nYachts trying to sail from Asia to Europe through the Suez Canal face tough choices. They can’t sail in the other direction because the winds aren’t right. Bigger yachts can go around the southern tip of Africa, but the Cape of Good Hope is notorious for storms and shipwrecks.\n\nFor those who live aboard their boats and want to get home, few choices remain: shell out big money to ship home their yacht or hire guards - or run the Somali gauntlet.\nOver the past six months, Peters & May Ltd., a company that specializes in shipping boats and yachts, has seen a roughly 300 percent increase in inquiries from captains interested in shipping their vessels rather than risking going through pirate-infested waters, said managing director Angus Bruce Jones.\n\nAnother option is to use a company like Naval Guards, a private security outfit based in Britainwhose guards escort vessels on speedboats. They sent their first of three boats to the region in September, and are now working at full capacity, said chief of operations Thomas Jakobsson.\n\nOn Wednesday, six Naval Guards employees fought off six pirates who had attacked and boarded the Capricorn, a yacht crewed by a Dutch couple, Jakobsson said.\nBut some yacht owners can’t or won’t pay for expensive shipping or guards. Instead, they might hire a crew to take the risk for them, said Mat Sandys-Winsch of Direct Yacht Deliver- ies. His company used to sail three or four yachts a year through the Indian Ocean to deliver to owners who would meet them in the Mediterranean. But since Christmas, the company has suspended sailing betweenIndia and the Suez Canal because of pirates.\n\n“The attacks had spread north to the Omani coast. They had basically blocked off the route we were taking,” he said, adding that many in the yachting community don’t take pirates seriously enough.\n\n“The feeling is that it is a big wide ocean and no one can touch you,” Sandys-Winsch said. “That’s not true,”\n\nRene Tiemessem, who is organizing a rally from Thailand to Turkey, said the people on his convoy through the Indian Ocean live on their yachts and don’t have the spare cash for guards or shipping.\n\nHe’s asked for an escort from the international warships fighting piracy off East Africa. But the only vessels who get those are the ones delivering food aid to war-ravaged Somalia, whose lawless shores are dotted with pirate camps. Navies say they are too thinly stretched already to start escorting everyone.\n“There’s no alternative for us” than to sail this route, he said. “People feel abandoned.” With many yachtsmen abandoning the region altogether, industries dependent on the routes are being devastated.\n\nAt Kilifi Boatyard in Kenya, Peter Bateman has laid off half his permanent staff. Ten years ago, they’d see more than a dozen yachts come in needing repairs, paint and other work. This year, not one. Out of 20 yachts considering coming here from the Chagos islands in the Indian Ocean this year, he said, 17 had turned around and gone back to Asia and three had gone around South Africa.\n\nThe tiny island nation of the Seychelles, a favorite with yachters, has seen tourism revenue drop by 15 percent, while fisheries, shipping and fuel sales to boats are all down by 30 percent or more, its Foreign Ministry said.\n\nBlue Water Rallies, which organized the sailing rally attended by the four Americans before they peeled off and were captured and executed as American warships trailed the seized yacht, has canceled its next rally because of the poor economic climate and fears over pirate attacks, said Blue Water director Richard Bolt, who knew the four Americans.\n\nAs the hotels, restaurants and businesses among the yachters’ sun-drenched route scan the empty waves expectantly, Rodriguez and his family are back in chilly, overcast England. Abandoning their dream journey was an awful decision, he said, and he was full of regret.\nBut with every day that passes, and every new attack, he sees that there are many things worse than regret.','Yachts Shun Pirate Waters After String Of Hijacks','','inherit','open','open','','247-revision','','','2011-12-05 20:36:14','2011-12-05 20:36:14','',247,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=248',0,'revision','',0),(249,1,'2011-12-05 20:36:55','2011-12-05 20:36:55','<strong><em>By Katharine Houreld</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe first time John Rodriguez tried to sail around the world a hurricane sunk his boat. His second attempt failed because of a scourge bedeviling mariners in the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden: pirates.\r\n\r\nRodriguez is among thousands of sailors who once steered their yachts across the warm Indian Ocean without a second thought, but are now rerouting, hiring replacement crews, packing their boats aboard cargo ships and contracting armed guards, or canceling their dream voyages altogether.\r\n\r\nWith Somali pirates seizing vessels and killing hostages in an area as vast as the continental United States, boatyards, restaurants and other establishments among the yachters’ routes have seen business fall, with some of their customer base scared off.\r\n\r\nRodriguez, a 44-year-old Briton, sailed from his homeland to Florida with his wife and two children. But the family didn’t push on through the Panama Canal. They knew their around-the-world route would eventually take them past waters infested by Somali pi- rates, who in 2009 kidnapped a British yachting couple, the Chandlers, near the Seychelles and held them for 388 days under often brutal conditions.\r\n\r\n“We bought our charts the day before the Chandlers got taken,” Rodriguez said. “Three months of angst followed while we tried to decide what to do ... it’s an enormous effort to do a trip like that and you don’t get the opportunity very often.”\r\n\r\nSomali pirates killed four American yachters last month and kidnapped a Danish family aboard their 43-foot sailboat last week. A South African couple taken off their sailboat in October are still being held.\r\n\r\nThe European Union Naval Force has done its best to warn yachters of the danger, said spokesman Wing Cmdr. Paddy O’Kennedy. But from their blog posts, it appeared the Danes felt safe enough because of the presence of warships on anti-piracy patrol in the area.\r\n\r\n“The latest attacks have certainly changed the game completely,” said Paul Gelder, the editor of Yachting Monthly.\r\n\r\nIn posts on the magazine’s web site forum Scuttlebutt, worried sailors discuss canceled or rerouted plans and trade frightening stories of witnessing attacks.\r\nYachts trying to sail from Asia to Europe through the Suez Canal face tough choices. They can’t sail in the other direction because the winds aren’t right. Bigger yachts can go around the southern tip of Africa, but the Cape of Good Hope is notorious for storms and shipwrecks.\r\n\r\nFor those who live aboard their boats and want to get home, few choices remain: shell out big money to ship home their yacht or hire guards - or run the Somali gauntlet.\r\nOver the past six months, Peters & May Ltd., a company that specializes in shipping boats and yachts, has seen a roughly 300 percent increase in inquiries from captains interested in shipping their vessels rather than risking going through pirate-infested waters, said managing director Angus Bruce Jones.\r\n\r\nAnother option is to use a company like Naval Guards, a private security outfit based in Britainwhose guards escort vessels on speedboats. They sent their first of three boats to the region in September, and are now working at full capacity, said chief of operations Thomas Jakobsson.\r\n\r\nOn Wednesday, six Naval Guards employees fought off six pirates who had attacked and boarded the Capricorn, a yacht crewed by a Dutch couple, Jakobsson said.\r\nBut some yacht owners can’t or won’t pay for expensive shipping or guards. Instead, they might hire a crew to take the risk for them, said Mat Sandys-Winsch of Direct Yacht Deliver- ies. His company used to sail three or four yachts a year through the Indian Ocean to deliver to owners who would meet them in the Mediterranean. But since Christmas, the company has suspended sailing betweenIndia and the Suez Canal because of pirates.\r\n\r\n“The attacks had spread north to the Omani coast. They had basically blocked off the route we were taking,” he said, adding that many in the yachting community don’t take pirates seriously enough.\r\n\r\n“The feeling is that it is a big wide ocean and no one can touch you,” Sandys-Winsch said. “That’s not true,”\r\n\r\nRene Tiemessem, who is organizing a rally from Thailand to Turkey, said the people on his convoy through the Indian Ocean live on their yachts and don’t have the spare cash for guards or shipping.\r\n\r\nHe’s asked for an escort from the international warships fighting piracy off East Africa. But the only vessels who get those are the ones delivering food aid to war-ravaged Somalia, whose lawless shores are dotted with pirate camps. Navies say they are too thinly stretched already to start escorting everyone.\r\n“There’s no alternative for us” than to sail this route, he said. “People feel abandoned.” With many yachtsmen abandoning the region altogether, industries dependent on the routes are being devastated.\r\n\r\nAt Kilifi Boatyard in Kenya, Peter Bateman has laid off half his permanent staff. Ten years ago, they’d see more than a dozen yachts come in needing repairs, paint and other work. This year, not one. Out of 20 yachts considering coming here from the Chagos islands in the Indian Ocean this year, he said, 17 had turned around and gone back to Asia and three had gone around South Africa.\r\n\r\nThe tiny island nation of the Seychelles, a favorite with yachters, has seen tourism revenue drop by 15 percent, while fisheries, shipping and fuel sales to boats are all down by 30 percent or more, its Foreign Ministry said.\r\n\r\nBlue Water Rallies, which organized the sailing rally attended by the four Americans before they peeled off and were captured and executed as American warships trailed the seized yacht, has canceled its next rally because of the poor economic climate and fears over pirate attacks, said Blue Water director Richard Bolt, who knew the four Americans.\r\n\r\nAs the hotels, restaurants and businesses among the yachters’ sun-drenched route scan the empty waves expectantly, Rodriguez and his family are back in chilly, overcast England. Abandoning their dream journey was an awful decision, he said, and he was full of regret. But with every day that passes, and every new attack, he sees that there are many things worse than regret.','Yachts Shun Pirate Waters After String Of Hijacks','','inherit','open','open','','247-revision-2','','','2011-12-05 20:36:55','2011-12-05 20:36:55','',247,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=249',0,'revision','',0),(250,1,'2011-12-05 20:37:09','2011-12-05 20:37:09','<strong><em>By Katharine Houreld</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe first time John Rodriguez tried to sail around the world a hurricane sunk his boat. His second attempt failed because of a scourge bedeviling mariners in the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden: pirates.\r\n\r\nRodriguez is among thousands of sailors who once steered their yachts across the warm Indian Ocean without a second thought, but are now rerouting, hiring replacement crews, packing their boats aboard cargo ships and contracting armed guards, or canceling their dream voyages altogether.\r\n\r\nWith Somali pirates seizing vessels and killing hostages in an area as vast as the continental United States, boatyards, restaurants and other establishments among the yachters’ routes have seen business fall, with some of their customer base scared off.\r\n\r\nRodriguez, a 44-year-old Briton, sailed from his homeland to Florida with his wife and two children. But the family didn’t push on through the Panama Canal. They knew their around-the-world route would eventually take them past waters infested by Somali pi- rates, who in 2009 kidnapped a British yachting couple, the Chandlers, near the Seychelles and held them for 388 days under often brutal conditions.\r\n\r\n“We bought our charts the day before the Chandlers got taken,” Rodriguez said. “Three months of angst followed while we tried to decide what to do ... it’s an enormous effort to do a trip like that and you don’t get the opportunity very often.”\r\n\r\nSomali pirates killed four American yachters last month and kidnapped a Danish family aboard their 43-foot sailboat last week. A South African couple taken off their sailboat in October are still being held.\r\n\r\nThe European Union Naval Force has done its best to warn yachters of the danger, said spokesman Wing Cmdr. Paddy O’Kennedy. But from their blog posts, it appeared the Danes felt safe enough because of the presence of warships on anti-piracy patrol in the area.\r\n\r\n“The latest attacks have certainly changed the game completely,” said Paul Gelder, the editor of Yachting Monthly.\r\n\r\nIn posts on the magazine’s web site forum Scuttlebutt, worried sailors discuss canceled or rerouted plans and trade frightening stories of witnessing attacks.\r\nYachts trying to sail from Asia to Europe through the Suez Canal face tough choices. They can’t sail in the other direction because the winds aren’t right. Bigger yachts can go around the southern tip of Africa, but the Cape of Good Hope is notorious for storms and shipwrecks.\r\n\r\nFor those who live aboard their boats and want to get home, few choices remain: shell out big money to ship home their yacht or hire guards - or run the Somali gauntlet.\r\nOver the past six months, Peters & May Ltd., a company that specializes in shipping boats and yachts, has seen a roughly 300 percent increase in inquiries from captains interested in shipping their vessels rather than risking going through pirate-infested waters, said managing director Angus Bruce Jones.\r\n\r\nAnother option is to use a company like Naval Guards, a private security outfit based in Britainwhose guards escort vessels on speedboats. They sent their first of three boats to the region in September, and are now working at full capacity, said chief of operations Thomas Jakobsson.\r\n\r\nOn Wednesday, six Naval Guards employees fought off six pirates who had attacked and boarded the Capricorn, a yacht crewed by a Dutch couple, Jakobsson said.\r\nBut some yacht owners can’t or won’t pay for expensive shipping or guards. Instead, they might hire a crew to take the risk for them, said Mat Sandys-Winsch of Direct Yacht Deliver- ies. His company used to sail three or four yachts a year through the Indian Ocean to deliver to owners who would meet them in the Mediterranean. But since Christmas, the company has suspended sailing betweenIndia and the Suez Canal because of pirates.\r\n\r\n“The attacks had spread north to the Omani coast. They had basically blocked off the route we were taking,” he said, adding that many in the yachting community don’t take pirates seriously enough.\r\n\r\n“The feeling is that it is a big wide ocean and no one can touch you,” Sandys-Winsch said. “That’s not true,”\r\n\r\nRene Tiemessem, who is organizing a rally from Thailand to Turkey, said the people on his convoy through the Indian Ocean live on their yachts and don’t have the spare cash for guards or shipping.\r\n\r\nHe’s asked for an escort from the international warships fighting piracy off East Africa. But the only vessels who get those are the ones delivering food aid to war-ravaged Somalia, whose lawless shores are dotted with pirate camps. Navies say they are too thinly stretched already to start escorting everyone.\r\n“There’s no alternative for us” than to sail this route, he said. “People feel abandoned.” With many yachtsmen abandoning the region altogether, industries dependent on the routes are being devastated.\r\n\r\nAt Kilifi Boatyard in Kenya, Peter Bateman has laid off half his permanent staff. Ten years ago, they’d see more than a dozen yachts come in needing repairs, paint and other work. This year, not one. Out of 20 yachts considering coming here from the Chagos islands in the Indian Ocean this year, he said, 17 had turned around and gone back to Asia and three had gone around South Africa.\r\n\r\nThe tiny island nation of the Seychelles, a favorite with yachters, has seen tourism revenue drop by 15 percent, while fisheries, shipping and fuel sales to boats are all down by 30 percent or more, its Foreign Ministry said.\r\n\r\nBlue Water Rallies, which organized the sailing rally attended by the four Americans before they peeled off and were captured and executed as American warships trailed the seized yacht, has canceled its next rally because of the poor economic climate and fears over pirate attacks, said Blue Water director Richard Bolt, who knew the four Americans.\r\n\r\nAs the hotels, restaurants and businesses among the yachters’ sun-drenched route scan the empty waves expectantly, Rodriguez and his family are back in chilly, overcast England. Abandoning their dream journey was an awful decision, he said, and he was full of regret. But with every day that passes, and every new attack, he sees that there are many things worse than regret.','Yachts Shun Pirate Waters After String Of Hijacks','','inherit','open','open','','247-revision-3','','','2011-12-05 20:37:09','2011-12-05 20:37:09','',247,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=250',0,'revision','',0),(251,1,'2011-12-05 20:37:40','2011-12-05 20:37:40','<strong><em>By Katharine Houreld</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe first time John Rodriguez tried to sail around the world a hurricane sunk his boat. His second attempt failed because of a scourge bedeviling mariners in the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden: pirates.\r\n\r\nRodriguez is among thousands of sailors who once steered their yachts across the warm Indian Ocean without a second thought, but are now rerouting, hiring replacement crews, packing their boats aboard cargo ships and contracting armed guards, or canceling their dream voyages altogether.\r\n\r\nWith Somali pirates seizing vessels and killing hostages in an area as vast as the continental United States, boatyards, restaurants and other establishments among the yachters’ routes have seen business fall, with some of their customer base scared off.\r\n\r\nRodriguez, a 44-year-old Briton, sailed from his homeland to Florida with his wife and two children. But the family didn’t push on through the Panama Canal. They knew their around-the-world route would eventually take them past waters infested by Somali pi- rates, who in 2009 kidnapped a British yachting couple, the Chandlers, near the Seychelles and held them for 388 days under often brutal conditions.\r\n\r\n“We bought our charts the day before the Chandlers got taken,” Rodriguez said. “Three months of angst followed while we tried to decide what to do ... it’s an enormous effort to do a trip like that and you don’t get the opportunity very often.”\r\n\r\nSomali pirates killed four American yachters last month and kidnapped a Danish family aboard their 43-foot sailboat last week. A South African couple taken off their sailboat in October are still being held.\r\n\r\nThe European Union Naval Force has done its best to warn yachters of the danger, said spokesman Wing Cmdr. Paddy O’Kennedy. But from their blog posts, it appeared the Danes felt safe enough because of the presence of warships on anti-piracy patrol in the area.\r\n\r\n“The latest attacks have certainly changed the game completely,” said Paul Gelder, the editor of Yachting Monthly.\r\n\r\nIn posts on the magazine’s web site forum Scuttlebutt, worried sailors discuss canceled or rerouted plans and trade frightening stories of witnessing attacks.\r\nYachts trying to sail from Asia to Europe through the Suez Canal face tough choices. They can’t sail in the other direction because the winds aren’t right. Bigger yachts can go around the southern tip of Africa, but the Cape of Good Hope is notorious for storms and shipwrecks.\r\n\r\nFor those who live aboard their boats and want to get home, few choices remain: shell out big money to ship home their yacht or hire guards - or run the Somali gauntlet.\r\n\r\nOver the past six months, Peters & May Ltd., a company that specializes in shipping boats and yachts, has seen a roughly 300 percent increase in inquiries from captains interested in shipping their vessels rather than risking going through pirate-infested waters, said managing director Angus Bruce Jones.\r\n\r\nAnother option is to use a company like Naval Guards, a private security outfit based in Britainwhose guards escort vessels on speedboats. They sent their first of three boats to the region in September, and are now working at full capacity, said chief of operations Thomas Jakobsson.\r\n\r\nOn Wednesday, six Naval Guards employees fought off six pirates who had attacked and boarded the Capricorn, a yacht crewed by a Dutch couple, Jakobsson said.\r\nBut some yacht owners can’t or won’t pay for expensive shipping or guards. Instead, they might hire a crew to take the risk for them, said Mat Sandys-Winsch of Direct Yacht Deliver- ies. His company used to sail three or four yachts a year through the Indian Ocean to deliver to owners who would meet them in the Mediterranean. But since Christmas, the company has suspended sailing betweenIndia and the Suez Canal because of pirates.\r\n\r\n“The attacks had spread north to the Omani coast. They had basically blocked off the route we were taking,” he said, adding that many in the yachting community don’t take pirates seriously enough.\r\n\r\n“The feeling is that it is a big wide ocean and no one can touch you,” Sandys-Winsch said. “That’s not true,”\r\n\r\nRene Tiemessem, who is organizing a rally from Thailand to Turkey, said the people on his convoy through the Indian Ocean live on their yachts and don’t have the spare cash for guards or shipping.\r\n\r\nHe’s asked for an escort from the international warships fighting piracy off East Africa. But the only vessels who get those are the ones delivering food aid to war-ravaged Somalia, whose lawless shores are dotted with pirate camps. Navies say they are too thinly stretched already to start escorting everyone.\r\n“There’s no alternative for us” than to sail this route, he said. “People feel abandoned.” With many yachtsmen abandoning the region altogether, industries dependent on the routes are being devastated.\r\n\r\nAt Kilifi Boatyard in Kenya, Peter Bateman has laid off half his permanent staff. Ten years ago, they’d see more than a dozen yachts come in needing repairs, paint and other work. This year, not one. Out of 20 yachts considering coming here from the Chagos islands in the Indian Ocean this year, he said, 17 had turned around and gone back to Asia and three had gone around South Africa.\r\n\r\nThe tiny island nation of the Seychelles, a favorite with yachters, has seen tourism revenue drop by 15 percent, while fisheries, shipping and fuel sales to boats are all down by 30 percent or more, its Foreign Ministry said.\r\n\r\nBlue Water Rallies, which organized the sailing rally attended by the four Americans before they peeled off and were captured and executed as American warships trailed the seized yacht, has canceled its next rally because of the poor economic climate and fears over pirate attacks, said Blue Water director Richard Bolt, who knew the four Americans.\r\n\r\nAs the hotels, restaurants and businesses among the yachters’ sun-drenched route scan the empty waves expectantly, Rodriguez and his family are back in chilly, overcast England. Abandoning their dream journey was an awful decision, he said, and he was full of regret. But with every day that passes, and every new attack, he sees that there are many things worse than regret.','Yachts Shun Pirate Waters After String Of Hijacks','','inherit','open','open','','247-revision-4','','','2011-12-05 20:37:40','2011-12-05 20:37:40','',247,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=251',0,'revision','',0),(252,1,'2011-12-05 20:41:35','2011-12-05 20:41:35','','pirates','','inherit','open','open','','100531-n-0553r-215','','','2011-12-05 20:41:35','2011-12-05 20:41:35','',247,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/100531-N-0553R-215.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(253,1,'2011-12-05 20:38:36','2011-12-05 20:38:36','<strong><em>By Katharine Houreld</em></strong>\r\n\r\nThe first time John Rodriguez tried to sail around the world a hurricane sunk his boat. His second attempt failed because of a scourge bedeviling mariners in the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden: pirates.\r\n\r\nRodriguez is among thousands of sailors who once steered their yachts across the warm Indian Ocean without a second thought, but are now rerouting, hiring replacement crews, packing their boats aboard cargo ships and contracting armed guards, or canceling their dream voyages altogether.\r\n\r\nWith Somali pirates seizing vessels and killing hostages in an area as vast as the continental United States, boatyards, restaurants and other establishments among the yachters’ routes have seen business fall, with some of their customer base scared off.\r\n\r\nRodriguez, a 44-year-old Briton, sailed from his homeland to Florida with his wife and two children. But the family didn’t push on through the Panama Canal. They knew their around-the-world route would eventually take them past waters infested by Somali pi- rates, who in 2009 kidnapped a British yachting couple, the Chandlers, near the Seychelles and held them for 388 days under often brutal conditions.\r\n\r\n“We bought our charts the day before the Chandlers got taken,” Rodriguez said. “Three months of angst followed while we tried to decide what to do ... it’s an enormous effort to do a trip like that and you don’t get the opportunity very often.”\r\n\r\nSomali pirates killed four American yachters last month and kidnapped a Danish family aboard their 43-foot sailboat last week. A South African couple taken off their sailboat in October are still being held.\r\n\r\nThe European Union Naval Force has done its best to warn yachters of the danger, said spokesman Wing Cmdr. Paddy O’Kennedy. But from their blog posts, it appeared the Danes felt safe enough because of the presence of warships on anti-piracy patrol in the area.\r\n\r\n“The latest attacks have certainly changed the game completely,” said Paul Gelder, the editor of Yachting Monthly.\r\n\r\nIn posts on the magazine’s web site forum Scuttlebutt, worried sailors discuss canceled or rerouted plans and trade frightening stories of witnessing attacks. Yachts trying to sail from Asia to Europe through the Suez Canal face tough choices. They can’t sail in the other direction because the winds aren’t right. Bigger yachts can go around the southern tip of Africa, but the Cape of Good Hope is notorious for storms and shipwrecks.\r\n\r\nFor those who live aboard their boats and want to get home, few choices remain: shell out big money to ship home their yacht or hire guards - or run the Somali gauntlet.\r\n\r\nOver the past six months, Peters & May Ltd., a company that specializes in shipping boats and yachts, has seen a roughly 300 percent increase in inquiries from captains interested in shipping their vessels rather than risking going through pirate-infested waters, said managing director Angus Bruce Jones.\r\n\r\nAnother option is to use a company like Naval Guards, a private security outfit based in Britainwhose guards escort vessels on speedboats. They sent their first of three boats to the region in September, and are now working at full capacity, said chief of operations Thomas Jakobsson.\r\n\r\nOn Wednesday, six Naval Guards employees fought off six pirates who had attacked and boarded the Capricorn, a yacht crewed by a Dutch couple, Jakobsson said.\r\n\r\nBut some yacht owners can’t or won’t pay for expensive shipping or guards. Instead, they might hire a crew to take the risk for them, said Mat Sandys-Winsch of Direct Yacht Deliver- ies. His company used to sail three or four yachts a year through the Indian Ocean to deliver to owners who would meet them in the Mediterranean. But since Christmas, the company has suspended sailing betweenIndia and the Suez Canal because of pirates.\r\n\r\n“The attacks had spread north to the Omani coast. They had basically blocked off the route we were taking,” he said, adding that many in the yachting community don’t take pirates seriously enough.\r\n\r\n“The feeling is that it is a big wide ocean and no one can touch you,” Sandys-Winsch said. “That’s not true,”\r\n\r\nRene Tiemessem, who is organizing a rally from Thailand to Turkey, said the people on his convoy through the Indian Ocean live on their yachts and don’t have the spare cash for guards or shipping.\r\n\r\nHe’s asked for an escort from the international warships fighting piracy off East Africa. But the only vessels who get those are the ones delivering food aid to war-ravaged Somalia, whose lawless shores are dotted with pirate camps. Navies say they are too thinly stretched already to start escorting everyone.\r\n“There’s no alternative for us” than to sail this route, he said. “People feel abandoned.” With many yachtsmen abandoning the region altogether, industries dependent on the routes are being devastated.\r\n\r\nAt Kilifi Boatyard in Kenya, Peter Bateman has laid off half his permanent staff. Ten years ago, they’d see more than a dozen yachts come in needing repairs, paint and other work. This year, not one. Out of 20 yachts considering coming here from the Chagos islands in the Indian Ocean this year, he said, 17 had turned around and gone back to Asia and three had gone around South Africa.\r\n\r\nThe tiny island nation of the Seychelles, a favorite with yachters, has seen tourism revenue drop by 15 percent, while fisheries, shipping and fuel sales to boats are all down by 30 percent or more, its Foreign Ministry said.\r\n\r\nBlue Water Rallies, which organized the sailing rally attended by the four Americans before they peeled off and were captured and executed as American warships trailed the seized yacht, has canceled its next rally because of the poor economic climate and fears over pirate attacks, said Blue Water director Richard Bolt, who knew the four Americans.\r\n\r\nAs the hotels, restaurants and businesses among the yachters’ sun-drenched route scan the empty waves expectantly, Rodriguez and his family are back in chilly, overcast England. Abandoning their dream journey was an awful decision, he said, and he was full of regret. But with every day that passes, and every new attack, he sees that there are many things worse than regret.','Yachts Shun Pirate Waters After String Of Hijacks','','inherit','open','open','','247-revision-5','','','2011-12-05 20:38:36','2011-12-05 20:38:36','',247,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=253',0,'revision','',0),(254,1,'2011-04-01 20:44:22','2011-04-01 20:44:22','<h3>How Pew Charitable Trusts has co-opted the management process using paid-for science and a well-oiled media machine.</h3>\r\n<img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-258\" title=\"recreational fishing alliance\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/rfa_logo-2-300x289.jpg\" alt=\"recreational fishing alliance\" width=\"300\" height=\"289\" />In late 2006, “Fisheries Face Collapse by 2048!” was the headline read and heard around the world – at least in the world of Washington, DC. It just so happens that Congress was debating the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act at that precise moment. The press stories sighted a study led by Dr. Boris Worm of Dalhousie University. While objective observers might question elements of the study, it was the media hype that the Pew Charitable Trusts (“Pew” or “the Trust”) wanted out there as part of a carefully orchestrated campaign to influence the Congressional debate on the Nation’s primary fisheries law. Dr. Worm, a regular recipient of funding from Pew, working with SeaWeb, a Pew-funded public research group that specializes in media campaigns, worked on the message and the timing to get as much media coverage as possible. They were successful. Big media loves a crisis, and when you have the money and the manpower it’s easy to plant a good fish tale.\r\n\r\nDr. Worm’s article was quickly labeled by top fisheries scientists and managers for what it really was – a Pew advocacy piece like much of his prior work funded by the Trust. The kicker at the end of the piece calling for “no-fishing marine reserves” as the cure was the final giveaway, a goal high on the agenda of most Pew funded organizations! Worm’s work in the past had been branded “invalid”, “misleading” and “undermining the trust placed in science.” As it turns out this was a textbook study in disseminating misinformation disguised as science to a willing media with the express purpose of influencing Congressional debate. Such scare tactics have become the darling of the radical environmental movement.\r\n\r\nThe media firestorm was part of a broader, coordinated attack that included misleading ad campaigns aimed at smearing key politicians facing re-election. The targeted Members of Congress just happened to be those involved in crafting scientifically sound legislation that also recognized the needs of recreational fishermen and industry. This campaign was led by another Pew-funded environmental group, the Marine Fish Conservation Network.\r\n\r\nThe Pew Charitable Trusts is the 800-pound gorilla of ocean issues. Created with funding from the Sun Oil Company and sitting on a $4.1 billion war chest, it is an organization that refuses to let reality get in the way of their agenda. In public documents their self-mandated mission is to “save” the oceans. They claim that the primary purpose (of the Trust) ‘is to award grants to other organizations as well as direct planning and conducting projects and initiatives that carryout the organizations religious, charitable, scientific, literary and educational purposes.’This validates that Pew grant recipients are carrying out the ideas and motivations of Pew. The impact of such tactics is changing the direction of fisheries policy. True management and conservation is gradually being replaced by a call to stop all fishing through the use of paid-for science funneled to the media through Pew-financed conduits, and touted by Pew-funded environmental organizations. Much of their agenda is anti-fishing, even on well managed, rebuilt or rebuilding fish stocks, to the point of being little more than a cleverly disguised attack on the public’s access to the ocean. That’s recreational fishermen like us.\r\n\r\nFor example, Pew funding has enabled ecologists to drive the scientific agenda for the implementation of California’s Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA), which is now on course to close 20% of that state’s waters to recreational fishing. Pew Fellows serve on the Science Advisory Team of the MLPA, where they push closures while ignoring current fishery management practices, which, on the West Coast, are already the most restrictive in the world! Fishermen proposed a constructive network of MPA’s that exceeded Pew-funded scientific guidelines, but the political faction wanted blood! Their network lobbied the Governor for an even more extreme proposal and now California’s angling community is fighting a losing battle to stop a runaway train that is making it harder to find a place to fish.\r\nPew is a major grant provider to universities and professors in the marine sciences and the major provider of funds to environmental groups that push the party line. Those groups include The National Environmental Trust, Oceana, Earthjustice Legal Defense, the New England Aquarium, the Public Interest Research Group, National Audubon Society, National Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, Conservation Law Foundation, Marine Conservation Biology Institute, Marine Fish Conservation Network, Wildlife Conservation Society, Friends of the Earth and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. Combined, these groups have received over $200 million of Pew money and most have openly endorsed the implementation of arbitrary no-fishing zones!\r\n\r\nThe Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership is particularly worrisome. It is attempting to become an umbrella group for sportsman’s organizations and has attracted the participation of some fishing organizations with the lure of Pew money. The American Sportfishing Association and the Coastal Conservation Association are among the board members of the Partnership. And when the going got tough during the Magnuson Act reauthorization, they ended up on the same page as the Pew-funded groups.\r\n\r\nThis is what Congressman Pombo, then chair of the House Resources Committee had to say recently. “Throughout the long process to reauthorize the Magnuson Act the RFA was consistently at the table, insisting on sound conservation policies based on the most accurate science. Their goal was clear, a sustainable fishery so that this generation of recreational fishermen and the following generations would have fish to catch. Most of the other organizations engaged in this debate had other agendas or were totally missing in action. At the end of the 109th Congress it was clear to me that the RFA was the only player left insisting on protecting the future of recreational fishing. I will always be grateful to them and respect their tenacity during what proved to be a difficult reauthorization.”\r\n\r\nSince the implementation of the Sustainable Fisheries Act in 1996 the management of U.S. fisheries, while far from perfect, has become a model for the rest of the world. Yet Pew continues to use scare tactics to drive its agenda domestically while the most egregious problems can easily be found abroad. Their agenda may sound laudable, but the reality is that their goal is to stop fishing. Pew used the money of its well-heeled donors like a school-yard bully during the debate and attacked those who stood in their way. Pew has seriously damaged the ability of recreational fishermen to do what we love to do – go fishing.','Hijacking Fisheries Management','','publish','open','open','','hijacking-fisheries-management','','','2013-04-02 12:57:28','2013-04-02 16:57:28','',0,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=254',52,'post','',0),(255,1,'2011-12-05 20:43:52','2011-12-05 20:43:52','How Pew Charitable Trusts has co-opted the management process using paid-for science and a well-oiled media machine.\n\nIn late 2006, “Fisheries Face Collapse by 2048!” was the headline read and heard around the world – at least in the world of Washington, DC. It just so happens that Congress was debating the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act at that precise moment. The press stories sighted a study led by Dr. Boris Worm of Dalhousie University. While objective observers might question elements of the study, it was the media hype that\nthe Pew Charitable Trusts (“Pew” or “the Trust”) wanted out there as part of a carefully orchestrated campaign to influence the Congressional debate on the Nation’s primary fisheries law. Dr. Worm, a regular recipient of funding from Pew, working with SeaWeb, a Pew-funded public research group that specializes in media campaigns, worked on the message and the timing to get as much media coverage as possible. They were successful. Big media loves a crisis, and when you have the money and the manpower it’s easy to plant a good fish tale.\n\nDr. Worm’s article was quickly labeled by top fisheries scientists and managers for what it really was – a Pew advocacy piece like much of his prior work funded by the Trust. The kicker at the end of the piece calling for “no-fishing marine reserves” as the cure was the final giveaway, a goal high on the agenda of most Pew funded organizations! Worm’s work in the past had been branded “invalid”, “misleading” and “undermining the trust placed in science.” As it turns out this was a textbook study in disseminating misinformation disguised as science to a willing media with the express purpose of influencing Congressional debate. Such scare tactics have become the darling of the radical environmental movement.\n\nThe media firestorm was part of a broader, coordinated attack that included misleading ad campaigns aimed at smearing key politicians facing re-election. The targeted Members of Congress just happened to be those involved in crafting scientifically sound legislation that also recognized the needs of recreational fishermen and industry. This campaign was led by another Pew-funded environmental group, the Marine Fish Conservation Network.\n\nThe Pew Charitable Trusts is the 800-pound gorilla of ocean issues. Created with funding from the Sun Oil Company and sitting on a $4.1 billion war chest, it is an organization that refuses to let reality get in the way of their agenda. In public documents their self-mandated mission is to “save” the oceans. They claim that the primary purpose (of the Trust) ‘is to award grants to other organizations as well as direct planning and conducting projects and initiatives that carryout the organizations religious, charitable, scientific, literary and educational purposes.’This validates that Pew grant recipients are carrying out the ideas and motivations of Pew. The impact of such tactics is changing the direction of fisheries policy. True management and conservation is gradually being replaced by a call to stop all fishing through the use of paid-for science funneled to the media through Pew-financed conduits, and touted by Pew-funded environmental organizations. Much of their agenda is anti-fishing, even on well managed, rebuilt or rebuilding fish stocks, to the point of being little more than a cleverly disguised attack on the public’s access to the ocean. That’s recreational fishermen like us.\n\nFor example, Pew funding has enabled ecologists to drive the scientific agenda for the implementation of California’s Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA), which\nis now on course to close 20% of that state’s waters to recreational fishing. Pew Fellows serve on the Science Advisory Team of the MLPA, where they push closures while ignoring current fishery management practices, which, on the West Coast, are already the most restrictive in the world! Fishermen proposed a constructive network of MPA’s that exceeded Pew-funded scientific guidelines, but the political faction wanted blood! Their network lobbied the Governor for an even more extreme proposal and now California’s angling community is fighting a losing battle to stop a runaway train that is making it harder to find a place to fish.\nPew is a major grant provider to universities and professors in the marine sciences and the major provider of funds to environmental groups that push the party line. Those groups include The National Environmental Trust, Oceana, Earthjustice Legal Defense, the New England Aquarium, the Public Interest Research Group, National Audubon Society, National Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, Conservation Law Foundation, Marine Conservation Biology Institute, Marine Fish Conservation Network, Wildlife Conservation Society, Friends of the Earth and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. Combined, these groups have received over $200 million of Pew money and most have openly endorsed the implementation of arbitrary no-fishing zones!\n\nThe Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership is particularly worrisome. It is attempting to become an umbrella group for sportsman’s organizations and has attracted the participation of some fishing organizations with the lure of Pew money. The American Sportfishing Association and the Coastal Conservation Association are among the board members of the Partnership. And when the going got tough during the Magnuson Act reauthorization, they ended up on the same page as the Pew-funded groups.\n\nThis is what Congressman Pombo, then chair of the House Resources Committee had to say recently. “Throughout the long process to reauthorize the Magnuson Act the RFA was consistently at the table, insisting on sound conservation policies based on the most accurate science. Their goal was clear, a sustainable fishery so that this generation of recreational fishermen and the following generations would have fish to catch. Most of the other organizations engaged in this debate had other agendas or were totally missing in action. At the end of the 109th Congress it was clear to me that the RFA was the only player left insisting on protecting the future of recreational fishing. I will always be grateful to them and respect their tenacity during what proved to be a difficult reauthorization.”\n\nSince the implementation of the Sustainable Fisheries Act in 1996 the management of U.S. fisheries, while far from perfect, has become a model for the rest of the world. Yet Pew continues to use scare tactics to drive its agenda domestically while the most egregious problems can easily be found abroad. Their agenda may sound laudable, but the reality is that their goal is to stop fishing. Pew used the money of its well-heeled donors like a school-yard bully during the debate and attacked those who stood in their way. Pew has seriously damaged the ability of recreational fishermen to do what we love to do – go fishing.','Hijacking Fisheries Management','','inherit','open','open','','254-revision','','','2011-12-05 20:43:52','2011-12-05 20:43:52','',254,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=255',0,'revision','',0),(256,1,'2011-12-05 20:44:22','2011-12-05 20:44:22','<h3>How Pew Charitable Trusts has co-opted the management process using paid-for science and a well-oiled media machine.</h3>\r\nIn late 2006, “Fisheries Face Collapse by 2048!” was the headline read and heard around the world – at least in the world of Washington, DC. It just so happens that Congress was debating the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act at that precise moment. The press stories sighted a study led by Dr. Boris Worm of Dalhousie University. While objective observers might question elements of the study, it was the media hype that the Pew Charitable Trusts (“Pew” or “the Trust”) wanted out there as part of a carefully orchestrated campaign to influence the Congressional debate on the Nation’s primary fisheries law. Dr. Worm, a regular recipient of funding from Pew, working with SeaWeb, a Pew-funded public research group that specializes in media campaigns, worked on the message and the timing to get as much media coverage as possible. They were successful. Big media loves a crisis, and when you have the money and the manpower it’s easy to plant a good fish tale.\r\n\r\nDr. Worm’s article was quickly labeled by top fisheries scientists and managers for what it really was – a Pew advocacy piece like much of his prior work funded by the Trust. The kicker at the end of the piece calling for “no-fishing marine reserves” as the cure was the final giveaway, a goal high on the agenda of most Pew funded organizations! Worm’s work in the past had been branded “invalid”, “misleading” and “undermining the trust placed in science.” As it turns out this was a textbook study in disseminating misinformation disguised as science to a willing media with the express purpose of influencing Congressional debate. Such scare tactics have become the darling of the radical environmental movement.\r\n\r\nThe media firestorm was part of a broader, coordinated attack that included misleading ad campaigns aimed at smearing key politicians facing re-election. The targeted Members of Congress just happened to be those involved in crafting scientifically sound legislation that also recognized the needs of recreational fishermen and industry. This campaign was led by another Pew-funded environmental group, the Marine Fish Conservation Network.\r\n\r\nThe Pew Charitable Trusts is the 800-pound gorilla of ocean issues. Created with funding from the Sun Oil Company and sitting on a $4.1 billion war chest, it is an organization that refuses to let reality get in the way of their agenda. In public documents their self-mandated mission is to “save” the oceans. They claim that the primary purpose (of the Trust) ‘is to award grants to other organizations as well as direct planning and conducting projects and initiatives that carryout the organizations religious, charitable, scientific, literary and educational purposes.’This validates that Pew grant recipients are carrying out the ideas and motivations of Pew. The impact of such tactics is changing the direction of fisheries policy. True management and conservation is gradually being replaced by a call to stop all fishing through the use of paid-for science funneled to the media through Pew-financed conduits, and touted by Pew-funded environmental organizations. Much of their agenda is anti-fishing, even on well managed, rebuilt or rebuilding fish stocks, to the point of being little more than a cleverly disguised attack on the public’s access to the ocean. That’s recreational fishermen like us.\r\n\r\nFor example, Pew funding has enabled ecologists to drive the scientific agenda for the implementation of California’s Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA), which is now on course to close 20% of that state’s waters to recreational fishing. Pew Fellows serve on the Science Advisory Team of the MLPA, where they push closures while ignoring current fishery management practices, which, on the West Coast, are already the most restrictive in the world! Fishermen proposed a constructive network of MPA’s that exceeded Pew-funded scientific guidelines, but the political faction wanted blood! Their network lobbied the Governor for an even more extreme proposal and now California’s angling community is fighting a losing battle to stop a runaway train that is making it harder to find a place to fish.\r\nPew is a major grant provider to universities and professors in the marine sciences and the major provider of funds to environmental groups that push the party line. Those groups include The National Environmental Trust, Oceana, Earthjustice Legal Defense, the New England Aquarium, the Public Interest Research Group, National Audubon Society, National Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, Conservation Law Foundation, Marine Conservation Biology Institute, Marine Fish Conservation Network, Wildlife Conservation Society, Friends of the Earth and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. Combined, these groups have received over $200 million of Pew money and most have openly endorsed the implementation of arbitrary no-fishing zones!\r\n\r\nThe Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership is particularly worrisome. It is attempting to become an umbrella group for sportsman’s organizations and has attracted the participation of some fishing organizations with the lure of Pew money. The American Sportfishing Association and the Coastal Conservation Association are among the board members of the Partnership. And when the going got tough during the Magnuson Act reauthorization, they ended up on the same page as the Pew-funded groups.\r\n\r\nThis is what Congressman Pombo, then chair of the House Resources Committee had to say recently. “Throughout the long process to reauthorize the Magnuson Act the RFA was consistently at the table, insisting on sound conservation policies based on the most accurate science. Their goal was clear, a sustainable fishery so that this generation of recreational fishermen and the following generations would have fish to catch. Most of the other organizations engaged in this debate had other agendas or were totally missing in action. At the end of the 109th Congress it was clear to me that the RFA was the only player left insisting on protecting the future of recreational fishing. I will always be grateful to them and respect their tenacity during what proved to be a difficult reauthorization.”\r\n\r\nSince the implementation of the Sustainable Fisheries Act in 1996 the management of U.S. fisheries, while far from perfect, has become a model for the rest of the world. Yet Pew continues to use scare tactics to drive its agenda domestically while the most egregious problems can easily be found abroad. Their agenda may sound laudable, but the reality is that their goal is to stop fishing. Pew used the money of its well-heeled donors like a school-yard bully during the debate and attacked those who stood in their way. Pew has seriously damaged the ability of recreational fishermen to do what we love to do – go fishing.','Hijacking Fisheries Management','','inherit','open','open','','254-revision-2','','','2011-12-05 20:44:22','2011-12-05 20:44:22','',254,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=256',0,'revision','',0),(257,1,'2011-12-05 20:44:38','2011-12-05 20:44:38','<h3>How Pew Charitable Trusts has co-opted the management process using paid-for science and a well-oiled media machine.</h3>\r\nIn late 2006, “Fisheries Face Collapse by 2048!” was the headline read and heard around the world – at least in the world of Washington, DC. It just so happens that Congress was debating the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act at that precise moment. The press stories sighted a study led by Dr. Boris Worm of Dalhousie University. While objective observers might question elements of the study, it was the media hype that the Pew Charitable Trusts (“Pew” or “the Trust”) wanted out there as part of a carefully orchestrated campaign to influence the Congressional debate on the Nation’s primary fisheries law. Dr. Worm, a regular recipient of funding from Pew, working with SeaWeb, a Pew-funded public research group that specializes in media campaigns, worked on the message and the timing to get as much media coverage as possible. They were successful. Big media loves a crisis, and when you have the money and the manpower it’s easy to plant a good fish tale.\r\n\r\nDr. Worm’s article was quickly labeled by top fisheries scientists and managers for what it really was – a Pew advocacy piece like much of his prior work funded by the Trust. The kicker at the end of the piece calling for “no-fishing marine reserves” as the cure was the final giveaway, a goal high on the agenda of most Pew funded organizations! Worm’s work in the past had been branded “invalid”, “misleading” and “undermining the trust placed in science.” As it turns out this was a textbook study in disseminating misinformation disguised as science to a willing media with the express purpose of influencing Congressional debate. Such scare tactics have become the darling of the radical environmental movement.\r\n\r\nThe media firestorm was part of a broader, coordinated attack that included misleading ad campaigns aimed at smearing key politicians facing re-election. The targeted Members of Congress just happened to be those involved in crafting scientifically sound legislation that also recognized the needs of recreational fishermen and industry. This campaign was led by another Pew-funded environmental group, the Marine Fish Conservation Network.\r\n\r\nThe Pew Charitable Trusts is the 800-pound gorilla of ocean issues. Created with funding from the Sun Oil Company and sitting on a $4.1 billion war chest, it is an organization that refuses to let reality get in the way of their agenda. In public documents their self-mandated mission is to “save” the oceans. They claim that the primary purpose (of the Trust) ‘is to award grants to other organizations as well as direct planning and conducting projects and initiatives that carryout the organizations religious, charitable, scientific, literary and educational purposes.’This validates that Pew grant recipients are carrying out the ideas and motivations of Pew. The impact of such tactics is changing the direction of fisheries policy. True management and conservation is gradually being replaced by a call to stop all fishing through the use of paid-for science funneled to the media through Pew-financed conduits, and touted by Pew-funded environmental organizations. Much of their agenda is anti-fishing, even on well managed, rebuilt or rebuilding fish stocks, to the point of being little more than a cleverly disguised attack on the public’s access to the ocean. That’s recreational fishermen like us.\r\n\r\nFor example, Pew funding has enabled ecologists to drive the scientific agenda for the implementation of California’s Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA), which is now on course to close 20% of that state’s waters to recreational fishing. Pew Fellows serve on the Science Advisory Team of the MLPA, where they push closures while ignoring current fishery management practices, which, on the West Coast, are already the most restrictive in the world! Fishermen proposed a constructive network of MPA’s that exceeded Pew-funded scientific guidelines, but the political faction wanted blood! Their network lobbied the Governor for an even more extreme proposal and now California’s angling community is fighting a losing battle to stop a runaway train that is making it harder to find a place to fish.\r\nPew is a major grant provider to universities and professors in the marine sciences and the major provider of funds to environmental groups that push the party line. Those groups include The National Environmental Trust, Oceana, Earthjustice Legal Defense, the New England Aquarium, the Public Interest Research Group, National Audubon Society, National Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, Conservation Law Foundation, Marine Conservation Biology Institute, Marine Fish Conservation Network, Wildlife Conservation Society, Friends of the Earth and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. Combined, these groups have received over $200 million of Pew money and most have openly endorsed the implementation of arbitrary no-fishing zones!\r\n\r\nThe Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership is particularly worrisome. It is attempting to become an umbrella group for sportsman’s organizations and has attracted the participation of some fishing organizations with the lure of Pew money. The American Sportfishing Association and the Coastal Conservation Association are among the board members of the Partnership. And when the going got tough during the Magnuson Act reauthorization, they ended up on the same page as the Pew-funded groups.\r\n\r\nThis is what Congressman Pombo, then chair of the House Resources Committee had to say recently. “Throughout the long process to reauthorize the Magnuson Act the RFA was consistently at the table, insisting on sound conservation policies based on the most accurate science. Their goal was clear, a sustainable fishery so that this generation of recreational fishermen and the following generations would have fish to catch. Most of the other organizations engaged in this debate had other agendas or were totally missing in action. At the end of the 109th Congress it was clear to me that the RFA was the only player left insisting on protecting the future of recreational fishing. I will always be grateful to them and respect their tenacity during what proved to be a difficult reauthorization.”\r\n\r\nSince the implementation of the Sustainable Fisheries Act in 1996 the management of U.S. fisheries, while far from perfect, has become a model for the rest of the world. Yet Pew continues to use scare tactics to drive its agenda domestically while the most egregious problems can easily be found abroad. Their agenda may sound laudable, but the reality is that their goal is to stop fishing. Pew used the money of its well-heeled donors like a school-yard bully during the debate and attacked those who stood in their way. Pew has seriously damaged the ability of recreational fishermen to do what we love to do – go fishing.','Hijacking Fisheries Management','','inherit','open','open','','254-revision-3','','','2011-12-05 20:44:38','2011-12-05 20:44:38','',254,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=257',0,'revision','',0),(258,1,'2011-12-05 20:45:57','2011-12-05 20:45:57','','recreational fishing alliance','','inherit','open','open','','rfa_logo-2','','','2011-12-05 20:45:57','2011-12-05 20:45:57','',254,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/rfa_logo-2.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(259,1,'2011-12-05 20:44:56','2011-12-05 20:44:56','<h3>How Pew Charitable Trusts has co-opted the management process using paid-for science and a well-oiled media machine.</h3>\r\nIn late 2006, “Fisheries Face Collapse by 2048!” was the headline read and heard around the world – at least in the world of Washington, DC. It just so happens that Congress was debating the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act at that precise moment. The press stories sighted a study led by Dr. Boris Worm of Dalhousie University. While objective observers might question elements of the study, it was the media hype that the Pew Charitable Trusts (“Pew” or “the Trust”) wanted out there as part of a carefully orchestrated campaign to influence the Congressional debate on the Nation’s primary fisheries law. Dr. Worm, a regular recipient of funding from Pew, working with SeaWeb, a Pew-funded public research group that specializes in media campaigns, worked on the message and the timing to get as much media coverage as possible. They were successful. Big media loves a crisis, and when you have the money and the manpower it’s easy to plant a good fish tale.\r\n\r\nDr. Worm’s article was quickly labeled by top fisheries scientists and managers for what it really was – a Pew advocacy piece like much of his prior work funded by the Trust. The kicker at the end of the piece calling for “no-fishing marine reserves” as the cure was the final giveaway, a goal high on the agenda of most Pew funded organizations! Worm’s work in the past had been branded “invalid”, “misleading” and “undermining the trust placed in science.” As it turns out this was a textbook study in disseminating misinformation disguised as science to a willing media with the express purpose of influencing Congressional debate. Such scare tactics have become the darling of the radical environmental movement.\r\n\r\nThe media firestorm was part of a broader, coordinated attack that included misleading ad campaigns aimed at smearing key politicians facing re-election. The targeted Members of Congress just happened to be those involved in crafting scientifically sound legislation that also recognized the needs of recreational fishermen and industry. This campaign was led by another Pew-funded environmental group, the Marine Fish Conservation Network.\r\n\r\nThe Pew Charitable Trusts is the 800-pound gorilla of ocean issues. Created with funding from the Sun Oil Company and sitting on a $4.1 billion war chest, it is an organization that refuses to let reality get in the way of their agenda. In public documents their self-mandated mission is to “save” the oceans. They claim that the primary purpose (of the Trust) ‘is to award grants to other organizations as well as direct planning and conducting projects and initiatives that carryout the organizations religious, charitable, scientific, literary and educational purposes.’This validates that Pew grant recipients are carrying out the ideas and motivations of Pew. The impact of such tactics is changing the direction of fisheries policy. True management and conservation is gradually being replaced by a call to stop all fishing through the use of paid-for science funneled to the media through Pew-financed conduits, and touted by Pew-funded environmental organizations. Much of their agenda is anti-fishing, even on well managed, rebuilt or rebuilding fish stocks, to the point of being little more than a cleverly disguised attack on the public’s access to the ocean. That’s recreational fishermen like us.\r\n\r\nFor example, Pew funding has enabled ecologists to drive the scientific agenda for the implementation of California’s Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA), which is now on course to close 20% of that state’s waters to recreational fishing. Pew Fellows serve on the Science Advisory Team of the MLPA, where they push closures while ignoring current fishery management practices, which, on the West Coast, are already the most restrictive in the world! Fishermen proposed a constructive network of MPA’s that exceeded Pew-funded scientific guidelines, but the political faction wanted blood! Their network lobbied the Governor for an even more extreme proposal and now California’s angling community is fighting a losing battle to stop a runaway train that is making it harder to find a place to fish.\r\nPew is a major grant provider to universities and professors in the marine sciences and the major provider of funds to environmental groups that push the party line. Those groups include The National Environmental Trust, Oceana, Earthjustice Legal Defense, the New England Aquarium, the Public Interest Research Group, National Audubon Society, National Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, Conservation Law Foundation, Marine Conservation Biology Institute, Marine Fish Conservation Network, Wildlife Conservation Society, Friends of the Earth and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. Combined, these groups have received over $200 million of Pew money and most have openly endorsed the implementation of arbitrary no-fishing zones!\r\n\r\nThe Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership is particularly worrisome. It is attempting to become an umbrella group for sportsman’s organizations and has attracted the participation of some fishing organizations with the lure of Pew money. The American Sportfishing Association and the Coastal Conservation Association are among the board members of the Partnership. And when the going got tough during the Magnuson Act reauthorization, they ended up on the same page as the Pew-funded groups.\r\n\r\nThis is what Congressman Pombo, then chair of the House Resources Committee had to say recently. “Throughout the long process to reauthorize the Magnuson Act the RFA was consistently at the table, insisting on sound conservation policies based on the most accurate science. Their goal was clear, a sustainable fishery so that this generation of recreational fishermen and the following generations would have fish to catch. Most of the other organizations engaged in this debate had other agendas or were totally missing in action. At the end of the 109th Congress it was clear to me that the RFA was the only player left insisting on protecting the future of recreational fishing. I will always be grateful to them and respect their tenacity during what proved to be a difficult reauthorization.”\r\n\r\nSince the implementation of the Sustainable Fisheries Act in 1996 the management of U.S. fisheries, while far from perfect, has become a model for the rest of the world. Yet Pew continues to use scare tactics to drive its agenda domestically while the most egregious problems can easily be found abroad. Their agenda may sound laudable, but the reality is that their goal is to stop fishing. Pew used the money of its well-heeled donors like a school-yard bully during the debate and attacked those who stood in their way. Pew has seriously damaged the ability of recreational fishermen to do what we love to do – go fishing.','Hijacking Fisheries Management','','inherit','open','open','','254-revision-4','','','2011-12-05 20:44:56','2011-12-05 20:44:56','',254,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=259',0,'revision','',0),(260,1,'2011-12-05 20:47:48','2011-12-05 20:47:48','<h3>How Pew Charitable Trusts has co-opted the management process using paid-for science and a well-oiled media machine.</h3>\n<img class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-258\" title=\"recreational fishing alliance\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/rfa_logo-2-300x289.jpg\" alt=\"recreational fishing alliance\" width=\"300\" height=\"289\" />In late 2006, “Fisheries Face Collapse by 2048!” was the headline read and heard around the world – at least in the world of Washington, DC. It just so happens that Congress was debating the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act at that precise moment. The press stories sighted a study led by Dr. Boris Worm of Dalhousie University. While objective observers might question elements of the study, it was the media hype that the Pew Charitable Trusts (“Pew” or “the Trust”) wanted out there as part of a carefully orchestrated campaign to influence the Congressional debate on the Nation’s primary fisheries law. Dr. Worm, a regular recipient of funding from Pew, working with SeaWeb, a Pew-funded public research group that specializes in media campaigns, worked on the message and the timing to get as much media coverage as possible. They were successful. Big media loves a crisis, and when you have the money and the manpower it’s easy to plant a good fish tale.\n\nDr. Worm’s article was quickly labeled by top fisheries scientists and managers for what it really was – a Pew advocacy piece like much of his prior work funded by the Trust. The kicker at the end of the piece calling for “no-fishing marine reserves” as the cure was the final giveaway, a goal high on the agenda of most Pew funded organizations! Worm’s work in the past had been branded “invalid”, “misleading” and “undermining the trust placed in science.” As it turns out this was a textbook study in disseminating misinformation disguised as science to a willing media with the express purpose of influencing Congressional debate. Such scare tactics have become the darling of the radical environmental movement.\n\nThe media firestorm was part of a broader, coordinated attack that included misleading ad campaigns aimed at smearing key politicians facing re-election. The targeted Members of Congress just happened to be those involved in crafting scientifically sound legislation that also recognized the needs of recreational fishermen and industry. This campaign was led by another Pew-funded environmental group, the Marine Fish Conservation Network.\n\nThe Pew Charitable Trusts is the 800-pound gorilla of ocean issues. Created with funding from the Sun Oil Company and sitting on a $4.1 billion war chest, it is an organization that refuses to let reality get in the way of their agenda. In public documents their self-mandated mission is to “save” the oceans. They claim that the primary purpose (of the Trust) ‘is to award grants to other organizations as well as direct planning and conducting projects and initiatives that carryout the organizations religious, charitable, scientific, literary and educational purposes.’This validates that Pew grant recipients are carrying out the ideas and motivations of Pew. The impact of such tactics is changing the direction of fisheries policy. True management and conservation is gradually being replaced by a call to stop all fishing through the use of paid-for science funneled to the media through Pew-financed conduits, and touted by Pew-funded environmental organizations. Much of their agenda is anti-fishing, even on well managed, rebuilt or rebuilding fish stocks, to the point of being little more than a cleverly disguised attack on the public’s access to the ocean. That’s recreational fishermen like us.\n\nFor example, Pew funding has enabled ecologists to drive the scientific agenda for the implementation of California’s Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA), which is now on course to close 20% of that state’s waters to recreational fishing. Pew Fellows serve on the Science Advisory Team of the MLPA, where they push closures while ignoring current fishery management practices, which, on the West Coast, are already the most restrictive in the world! Fishermen proposed a constructive network of MPA’s that exceeded Pew-funded scientific guidelines, but the political faction wanted blood! Their network lobbied the Governor for an even more extreme proposal and now California’s angling community is fighting a losing battle to stop a runaway train that is making it harder to find a place to fish.\nPew is a major grant provider to universities and professors in the marine sciences and the major provider of funds to environmental groups that push the party line. Those groups include The National Environmental Trust, Oceana, Earthjustice Legal Defense, the New England Aquarium, the Public Interest Research Group, National Audubon Society, National Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club, Conservation Law Foundation, Marine Conservation Biology Institute, Marine Fish Conservation Network, Wildlife Conservation Society, Friends of the Earth and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. Combined, these groups have received over $200 million of Pew money and most have openly endorsed the implementation of arbitrary no-fishing zones!\n\nThe Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership is particularly worrisome. It is attempting to become an umbrella group for sportsman’s organizations and has attracted the participation of some fishing organizations with the lure of Pew money. The American Sportfishing Association and the Coastal Conservation Association are among the board members of the Partnership. And when the going got tough during the Magnuson Act reauthorization, they ended up on the same page as the Pew-funded groups.\n\nThis is what Congressman Pombo, then chair of the House Resources Committee had to say recently. “Throughout the long process to reauthorize the Magnuson Act the RFA was consistently at the table, insisting on sound conservation policies based on the most accurate science. Their goal was clear, a sustainable fishery so that this generation of recreational fishermen and the following generations would have fish to catch. Most of the other organizations engaged in this debate had other agendas or were totally missing in action. At the end of the 109th Congress it was clear to me that the RFA was the only player left insisting on protecting the future of recreational fishing. I will always be grateful to them and respect their tenacity during what proved to be a difficult reauthorization.”\n\nSince the implementation of the Sustainable Fisheries Act in 1996 the management of U.S. fisheries, while far from perfect, has become a model for the rest of the world. Yet Pew continues to use scare tactics to drive its agenda domestically while the most egregious problems can easily be found abroad. Their agenda may sound laudable, but the reality is that their goal is to stop fishing. Pew used the money of its well-heeled donors like a school-yard bully during the debate and attacked those who stood in their way. Pew has seriously damaged the ability of recreational fishermen to do what we love to do – go fishing.','Hijacking Fisheries Management','','inherit','open','open','','254-autosave','','','2011-12-05 20:47:48','2011-12-05 20:47:48','',254,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=260',0,'revision','',0),(261,1,'2011-04-01 20:53:18','2011-04-02 00:53:18','<h3>Trolling for Dolphin is Simple - Anyone with a Boat Can Do It.</h3>\r\n<strong><em>By Ron Brooks</em></strong>\r\n\r\nOwning a boat, maybe for the first time, and deciding to head offshore, maybe for the first time, a number of readers ask about getting into dolphin fishing. That’s dolphin fish, mahi mahi, not dolphin porpoise! I have answered some specifics, but now it is time to lay out some basics on fishing for these prolific, blue water acrobats.\r\n\r\n<strong>The Water</strong>\r\nThe first thing to remember is that dolphin, for the most part, are found in blue water. Along the southern Atlantic coast, that usually means the Gulfstream. For all but Florida anglers, that means a small boat is out of luck. The Gulfstream begins moving away from the North American continent around the northern part of Florida. From Jacksonville, the run to the stream is sometimes 80 miles.\r\n\r\nBut, because the stream meanders in and out, and sometimes warm water currents off the stream can move close, dolphin can be found as close in as ten miles during the summer months. There won’t be a lot of them, but they can be caught. You just need to pay attention to the fishing reports.\r\n\r\nIn South Florida and the Florida Keys, the stream runs from three to five miles off the beach, and I have actually caught dolphin over the edge of the reef in forty feet of water or less. Again, it isn’t the norm, but it does happen. So, take account of where you are and plan accordingly.\r\n\r\n<strong>The Season</strong>\r\nWatch and read the fishing reports in your area and see when and where the dolphin are being caught. Dolphin can be caught year round, but in general, the hot season is from about April all the way through to the first cold weather.\r\n\r\nDolphin will stay in the warm waters of the Gulfstream when the surrounding wa- ter is cold. So, winter time means getting right in the stream to fish. In warm and hot weather, the waters surrounding the stream heat up and dolphin will wander in closer to the reef in search of food.\r\n\r\n<strong>Feeding Habits</strong>\r\nDolphin are voracious eaters. They are virtual feeding machines. Although I have had some days when I could not get a school that was swimming under my boat to bite, in general, they live to eat. The lifespan of a dolphin is only five years, and in that time they reach weights of fifty pounds or more.\r\n\r\nAs far as a favorite food, the flying fish has to be close to the top of the list. Great schools of flying fish will leap into the air, gliding the wind currents for several hundred yards to escape a predator fish. They are all over the Gulfstream, and dolphin, among other fish, love them.\r\n\r\nDolphin also feed on ballyhoo, another baitfish common in the area, and on the small fish and crustaceans that live in and around floating Sargasso weed. This weed comes into the Gulfstream from the great Sargasso Sea, a sea within a sea, in the tropical Atlantic. It is home to a variety of sea life, and Dolphin will usually be found patrolling an area of weeds.\r\n\r\nThe Sargasso weeds are free floating. They provide not only food, but shade from the sun (yes, fish need to stay out of the sun just like us!). The weeds tend to be found in long lines that have been formed by current wave action. Some of these weed lines can be a hundred yards wide and stretch for several miles. Others are a few yards wide and only a hundred yards long. Whatever the size, remember that dolphin like them and feed under them.\r\n\r\n<strong>The Tackle</strong>\r\nDolphin fishing is more fun on light tackle. By light, I mean no bigger than thirty pound IGFA class tackle. I actually prefer twenty pound tackle, because the vast majority of dolphin you will catch are under twenty pounds. The occasional big bull dolphin can still be caught on this light tackle; you will simply have to run him down and fight him!\r\n\r\nConventional trolling rods and reels work well, but medium to heavy spinning tackle will work equally as well. Just make sure the reel holds several hundred yards of line.\r\n\r\nI use twenty to thirty pound test monofilament line on my dolphin reels. But, remember, I am specifically targeting dolphin. Charter boats will usually be trolling fifty or even eighty pound line. The beauty of trolling the Gulfstream is that you never know what you will find. So, charter boats – wanting to make sure their paying customers don’t miss a big tuna or wahoo because the line is too light – will use the heavier tackle.\r\n\r\n<strong>Terminal Tackle</strong>\r\nThis is an area that people spend a lot of money on, yet it’s an area that can be so simple. Remember, we are after dolphin. If something else jumps on our line, we want a reasonable chance at catching it, so we need terminal rigs – the business end of the line – to be beefy enough to handle them.\r\n\r\nI use a five foot long, fifty pound test, stainless steel, wire leader. This is the standard wire leader found in any tackle shop, including the big box discount department stores. Why wire? Remember – you never know what you might find. A roving king mackerel or wahoo may jump on your trolled bait, and a monofilament leader will be sliced in half before you ever feel the fish.\r\n\r\n\"But, you can see the wire in all that clear water\", he said. Yes, but you are trolling and skipping a bait on the surface (more on that later).\r\n\r\nI use a number 3 swivel on one end of the leader and a 7/0 single O’shaunessy hook on the other end. When I wrap the wire leader to the hook, I leave a one-half inch tip of the leader at a 90 degree angle to the hook. See one of the pictures for an illustration. This tip is used to hold the ballyhoo bait in place.\r\n\r\n<strong>Bait and Rigging</strong>\r\nBy far my preference in bait both because of availability and success rate is ballyhoo. Fresh or brined are best, but flash frozen work well if you can get them from a repu- table bait source. I place the point of the hook in and under the ballyhoo’s gill plate and run the hook down into the stomach. I force the hook point out the bottom of the fish so that the hook eye and leader are right at the mouth of the ‘Hoo and the hook is turned down under the belly of the bait.\r\n\r\nThis is where the leader tip comes in handy. I force the leader tip through the bot- tom and top jaw of the ballyhoo so that it protrudes just at the front of\r\nthe top lip. With a tie wrap from an old loaf of bread, I wrap the bill and leader tip to keep the mouth of the ballyhoo closed, and then I break off the bill right at the leader.\r\n\r\nSometimes I may use a pink or chartreuse skirt available at most tackle shops. The skirt offers color and protection of the nose area of the bait, but it really is not nec- essary. Commercial nose cone type products are also available, but in my experience not really necessary. That leader tip works just fine.\r\n\r\n<strong>Trolling</strong>\r\nDolphin usually prefer what I call a semi-hot bait. That is, not too slow and not too fast. I place a rod in a rod holder and let line back behind the boat. These are flat lines – ones that are not attached to an outrigger. I put one on each side of the boat back thirty to fifty yards. I run the trolling speed of the boat up until the bait is one the surface and “skipping” with the front of the bait just out of the water. Sometimes I will troll four rods, two way back fifty to sixty yards, one half way back and one bait right up close to the boat in the prop wash.\r\n\r\n<strong>Technique</strong>\r\nFinding and catching dolphin is easy if you follow some basics. • Look for a weed line or any other kind of flotsam in the water. Dolphin will be\r\nunder anything they can find to escape the sun. • Troll the edge of the weed line heading one direction and then crossing and heading back the other direction.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Vary the speed of your troll if you have not attracted a fish. Speed up or slow down – just break the pattern.</li>\r\n	<li>Watch for flying fish. If you spook some flying fish while trolling, chances are dolphin will be in the area. They follow the baitfish.</li>\r\n	<li>Look for birds – either a flock of birds diving or a solitary frigate bird. The flock of birds will usually be on a school of baitfish being chased by bonito or false albacore, but eh dolphin will be in the area as well. A solitary frigate bird will stay over a school of fish – sometimes solitary big fish – looking for an easy meal. It is wise to head their direction as well.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Simplicity</strong>\r\nEverything we talked about can be done with minimal expense and literally no special tackle. Big rods, outriggers, and the like are generally not necessary. Dolphin are very cooperative fish and a bait that skips without spinning and twisting will catch fish if you fish where the dolphin live.','Beginner Dolphin Trolling Basics','','publish','open','open','','beginner-dolphin-trolling-basics','','','2013-04-02 12:57:28','2013-04-02 16:57:28','',0,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=261',51,'post','',0),(262,1,'2011-12-05 20:57:20','2011-12-05 20:57:20','<h3>Trolling for Dolphin is Simple - Anyone with a Boat Can Do It.</h3>\n\n<strong><em>By Ron Brooks</em></strong>\n\nOwning a boat, maybe for the first time, and deciding to head offshore, maybe for the first time, a number of readers ask about getting into dolphin fishing. That’s dolphin fish, mahi mahi, not dolphin porpoise! I have answered some specifics, but now it is time to lay out some basics on fishing for these prolific, blue water acrobats.\n\n<strong>The Water</strong>\nThe first thing to remember is that dolphin, for the most part, are found in blue water. Along the southern Atlantic coast, that usually means the Gulfstream. For all but Florida anglers, that means a small boat is out of luck. The Gulfstream begins moving away from the North American continent around the northern part of Florida. From Jacksonville, the run to the stream is sometimes 80 miles.\n\nBut, because the stream meanders in and out, and sometimes warm water currents off the stream can move close, dolphin can be found as close in as ten miles during the summer months. There won’t be a lot of them, but they can be caught. You just need to pay attention to the fishing reports.\n\nIn South Florida and the Florida Keys, the stream runs from three to five miles off the beach, and I have actually caught dolphin over the edge of the reef in forty feet of water or less. Again, it isn’t the norm, but it does happen. So, take account of where you are and plan accordingly.\n\n<strong>The Season</strong>\nWatch and read the fishing reports in your area and see when and where the dolphin are being caught. Dolphin can be caught year round, but in general, the hot season is from about April all the way through to the first cold weather.\n\nDolphin will stay in the warm waters of the Gulfstream when the surrounding wa- ter is cold. So, winter time means getting right in the stream to fish. In warm and hot weather, the waters surrounding the stream heat up and dolphin will wander in closer to the reef in search of food.\n\n<strong>Feeding Habits</strong>\nDolphin are voracious eaters. They are virtual feeding machines. Although I have had some days when I could not get a school that was swimming under my boat to bite, in general, they live to eat. The lifespan of a dolphin is only five years, and in that time they reach weights of fifty pounds or more.\n\nAs far as a favorite food, the flying fish has to be close to the top of the list. Great schools of flying fish will leap into the air, gliding the wind currents for several hundred yards to escape a predator fish. They are all over the Gulfstream, and dolphin, among other fish, love them.\n\nDolphin also feed on ballyhoo, another baitfish common in the area, and on the small fish and crustaceans that live in and around floating Sargasso weed. This weed comes into the Gulfstream from the great Sargasso Sea, a sea within a sea, in the tropical Atlantic. It is home to a variety of sea life, and Dolphin will usually be found patrolling an area of weeds.\n\nThe Sargasso weeds are free floating. They provide not only food, but shade from the sun (yes, fish need to stay out of the sun just like us!). The weeds tend to be found in long lines that have been formed by current wave action. Some of these weed lines can be a hundred yards wide and stretch for several miles. Others are a few yards wide and only a hundred yards long. Whatever the size, remember that dolphin like them and feed under them.\n\n<strong>The Tackle</strong>\nDolphin fishing is more fun on light tackle. By light, I mean no bigger than thirty pound IGFA class tackle. I actually prefer twenty pound tackle, because the vast majority of dolphin you will catch are under twenty pounds. The occasional big bull dolphin can still be caught on this light tackle; you will simply have to run him down and fight him!\n\nConventional trolling rods and reels work well, but medium to heavy spinning tackle will work equally as well. Just make sure the reel holds several hundred yards of line.\n\nI use twenty to thirty pound test monofilament line on my dolphin reels. But, remember, I am specifically targeting dolphin. Charter boats will usually be trolling fifty or even eighty pound line. The beauty of trolling the Gulfstream is that you never know what you will find. So, charter boats – wanting to make sure their paying customers don’t miss a big tuna or wahoo because the line is too light – will use the heavier tackle.\n\n<strong>Terminal Tackle</strong>\nThis is an area that people spend a lot of money on, yet it’s an area that can be so simple. Remember, we are after dolphin. If something else jumps on our line, we want a reasonable chance at catching it, so we need terminal rigs – the business end of the line – to be beefy enough to handle them.\n\nI use a five foot long, fifty pound test, stainless steel, wire leader. This is the standard wire leader found in any tackle shop, including the big box discount department stores. Why wire? Remember – you never know what you might find. A roving king mackerel or wahoo may jump on your trolled bait, and a monofilament leader will be sliced in half before you ever feel the fish.\n\n\"But, you can see the wire in all that clear water\", he said. Yes, but you are trolling and skipping a bait on the surface (more on that later).\n\nI use a number 3 swivel on one end of the leader and a 7/0 single O’shaunessy hook on the other end. When I wrap the wire leader to the hook, I leave a one-half inch tip of the leader at a 90 degree angle to the hook. See one of the pictures for an illustration. This tip is used to hold the ballyhoo bait in place.\n\n<strong>Bait and Rigging</strong>\nBy far my preference in bait both because of availability and success rate is ballyhoo. Fresh or brined are best, but flash frozen work well if you can get them from a repu- table bait source. I place the point of the hook in and under the ballyhoo’s gill plate and run the hook down into the stomach. I force the hook point out the bottom of the fish so that the hook eye and leader are right at the mouth of the ‘Hoo and the hook is turned down under the belly of the bait.\n\nThis is where the leader tip comes in handy. I force the leader tip through the bot- tom and top jaw of the ballyhoo so that it protrudes just at the front of \nthe top lip. With a tie wrap from an old loaf of bread, I wrap the bill and leader tip to keep the mouth of the ballyhoo closed, and then I break off the bill right at the leader.\n\nSometimes I may use a pink or chartreuse skirt available at most tackle shops. The skirt offers color and protection of the nose area of the bait, but it really is not nec- essary. Commercial nose cone type products are also available, but in my experience not really necessary. That leader tip works just fine.\n\n<strong>Trolling</strong>\nDolphin usually prefer what I call a semi-hot bait. That is, not too slow and not too fast. I place a rod in a rod holder and let line back behind the boat. These are flat lines – ones that are not attached to an outrigger. I put one on each side of the boat back thirty to fifty yards. I run the trolling speed of the boat up until the bait is one the surface and “skipping” with the front of the bait just out of the water. Sometimes I will troll four rods, two way back fifty to sixty yards, one half way back and one bait right up close to the boat in the prop wash.\n\n<strong>Technique</strong>\nFinding and catching dolphin is easy if you follow some basics. • Look for a weed line or any other kind of flotsam in the water. Dolphin will be\nunder anything they can find to escape the sun. • Troll the edge of the weed line heading one direction and then crossing and heading back the other direction. \n\n• Vary the speed of your troll if you have not attracted a fish. Speed up or slow down – just break the pattern. \n\n• Watch for flying fish. If you spook some flying fish while trolling, chances are dolphin will be in the area. They follow the baitfish. \n\n• Look for birds – either a flock of birds diving or a solitary frigate bird. The flock of birds will usually be on a school of baitfish being chased by bonito or false albacore, but eh dolphin will be in the area as well. A solitary frigate bird will stay over a school of fish – sometimes solitary big fish – looking for an easy meal. It is wise to head their direction as well.\n\n<strong>Simplicity</strong>\nEverything we talked about can be done with minimal expense and literally no special tackle. Big rods, outriggers, and the like are generally not necessary. Dolphin are very cooperative fish and a bait that skips without spinning and twisting will catch fish if you fish where the dolphin live.','Beginner Dolphin Trolling Basics','','inherit','open','open','','261-revision','','','2011-12-05 20:57:20','2011-12-05 20:57:20','',261,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=262',0,'revision','',0),(263,1,'2011-12-05 20:57:25','2011-12-05 20:57:25','<h3>Trolling for Dolphin is Simple - Anyone with a Boat Can Do It.</h3>\r\n\r\n<strong><em>By Ron Brooks</em></strong>\r\n\r\nOwning a boat, maybe for the first time, and deciding to head offshore, maybe for the first time, a number of readers ask about getting into dolphin fishing. That’s dolphin fish, mahi mahi, not dolphin porpoise! I have answered some specifics, but now it is time to lay out some basics on fishing for these prolific, blue water acrobats.\r\n\r\n<strong>The Water</strong>\r\nThe first thing to remember is that dolphin, for the most part, are found in blue water. Along the southern Atlantic coast, that usually means the Gulfstream. For all but Florida anglers, that means a small boat is out of luck. The Gulfstream begins moving away from the North American continent around the northern part of Florida. From Jacksonville, the run to the stream is sometimes 80 miles.\r\n\r\nBut, because the stream meanders in and out, and sometimes warm water currents off the stream can move close, dolphin can be found as close in as ten miles during the summer months. There won’t be a lot of them, but they can be caught. You just need to pay attention to the fishing reports.\r\n\r\nIn South Florida and the Florida Keys, the stream runs from three to five miles off the beach, and I have actually caught dolphin over the edge of the reef in forty feet of water or less. Again, it isn’t the norm, but it does happen. So, take account of where you are and plan accordingly.\r\n\r\n<strong>The Season</strong>\r\nWatch and read the fishing reports in your area and see when and where the dolphin are being caught. Dolphin can be caught year round, but in general, the hot season is from about April all the way through to the first cold weather.\r\n\r\nDolphin will stay in the warm waters of the Gulfstream when the surrounding wa- ter is cold. So, winter time means getting right in the stream to fish. In warm and hot weather, the waters surrounding the stream heat up and dolphin will wander in closer to the reef in search of food.\r\n\r\n<strong>Feeding Habits</strong>\r\nDolphin are voracious eaters. They are virtual feeding machines. Although I have had some days when I could not get a school that was swimming under my boat to bite, in general, they live to eat. The lifespan of a dolphin is only five years, and in that time they reach weights of fifty pounds or more.\r\n\r\nAs far as a favorite food, the flying fish has to be close to the top of the list. Great schools of flying fish will leap into the air, gliding the wind currents for several hundred yards to escape a predator fish. They are all over the Gulfstream, and dolphin, among other fish, love them.\r\n\r\nDolphin also feed on ballyhoo, another baitfish common in the area, and on the small fish and crustaceans that live in and around floating Sargasso weed. This weed comes into the Gulfstream from the great Sargasso Sea, a sea within a sea, in the tropical Atlantic. It is home to a variety of sea life, and Dolphin will usually be found patrolling an area of weeds.\r\n\r\nThe Sargasso weeds are free floating. They provide not only food, but shade from the sun (yes, fish need to stay out of the sun just like us!). The weeds tend to be found in long lines that have been formed by current wave action. Some of these weed lines can be a hundred yards wide and stretch for several miles. Others are a few yards wide and only a hundred yards long. Whatever the size, remember that dolphin like them and feed under them.\r\n\r\n<strong>The Tackle</strong>\r\nDolphin fishing is more fun on light tackle. By light, I mean no bigger than thirty pound IGFA class tackle. I actually prefer twenty pound tackle, because the vast majority of dolphin you will catch are under twenty pounds. The occasional big bull dolphin can still be caught on this light tackle; you will simply have to run him down and fight him!\r\n\r\nConventional trolling rods and reels work well, but medium to heavy spinning tackle will work equally as well. Just make sure the reel holds several hundred yards of line.\r\n\r\nI use twenty to thirty pound test monofilament line on my dolphin reels. But, remember, I am specifically targeting dolphin. Charter boats will usually be trolling fifty or even eighty pound line. The beauty of trolling the Gulfstream is that you never know what you will find. So, charter boats – wanting to make sure their paying customers don’t miss a big tuna or wahoo because the line is too light – will use the heavier tackle.\r\n\r\n<strong>Terminal Tackle</strong>\r\nThis is an area that people spend a lot of money on, yet it’s an area that can be so simple. Remember, we are after dolphin. If something else jumps on our line, we want a reasonable chance at catching it, so we need terminal rigs – the business end of the line – to be beefy enough to handle them.\r\n\r\nI use a five foot long, fifty pound test, stainless steel, wire leader. This is the standard wire leader found in any tackle shop, including the big box discount department stores. Why wire? Remember – you never know what you might find. A roving king mackerel or wahoo may jump on your trolled bait, and a monofilament leader will be sliced in half before you ever feel the fish.\r\n\r\n\"But, you can see the wire in all that clear water\", he said. Yes, but you are trolling and skipping a bait on the surface (more on that later).\r\n\r\nI use a number 3 swivel on one end of the leader and a 7/0 single O’shaunessy hook on the other end. When I wrap the wire leader to the hook, I leave a one-half inch tip of the leader at a 90 degree angle to the hook. See one of the pictures for an illustration. This tip is used to hold the ballyhoo bait in place.\r\n\r\n<strong>Bait and Rigging</strong>\r\nBy far my preference in bait both because of availability and success rate is ballyhoo. Fresh or brined are best, but flash frozen work well if you can get them from a repu- table bait source. I place the point of the hook in and under the ballyhoo’s gill plate and run the hook down into the stomach. I force the hook point out the bottom of the fish so that the hook eye and leader are right at the mouth of the ‘Hoo and the hook is turned down under the belly of the bait.\r\n\r\nThis is where the leader tip comes in handy. I force the leader tip through the bot- tom and top jaw of the ballyhoo so that it protrudes just at the front of \r\nthe top lip. With a tie wrap from an old loaf of bread, I wrap the bill and leader tip to keep the mouth of the ballyhoo closed, and then I break off the bill right at the leader.\r\n\r\nSometimes I may use a pink or chartreuse skirt available at most tackle shops. The skirt offers color and protection of the nose area of the bait, but it really is not nec- essary. Commercial nose cone type products are also available, but in my experience not really necessary. That leader tip works just fine.\r\n\r\n<strong>Trolling</strong>\r\nDolphin usually prefer what I call a semi-hot bait. That is, not too slow and not too fast. I place a rod in a rod holder and let line back behind the boat. These are flat lines – ones that are not attached to an outrigger. I put one on each side of the boat back thirty to fifty yards. I run the trolling speed of the boat up until the bait is one the surface and “skipping” with the front of the bait just out of the water. Sometimes I will troll four rods, two way back fifty to sixty yards, one half way back and one bait right up close to the boat in the prop wash.\r\n\r\n<strong>Technique</strong>\r\nFinding and catching dolphin is easy if you follow some basics. • Look for a weed line or any other kind of flotsam in the water. Dolphin will be\r\nunder anything they can find to escape the sun. • Troll the edge of the weed line heading one direction and then crossing and heading back the other direction. \r\n\r\n• Vary the speed of your troll if you have not attracted a fish. Speed up or slow down – just break the pattern. \r\n\r\n• Watch for flying fish. If you spook some flying fish while trolling, chances are dolphin will be in the area. They follow the baitfish. \r\n\r\n• Look for birds – either a flock of birds diving or a solitary frigate bird. The flock of birds will usually be on a school of baitfish being chased by bonito or false albacore, but eh dolphin will be in the area as well. A solitary frigate bird will stay over a school of fish – sometimes solitary big fish – looking for an easy meal. It is wise to head their direction as well.\r\n\r\n<strong>Simplicity</strong>\r\nEverything we talked about can be done with minimal expense and literally no special tackle. Big rods, outriggers, and the like are generally not necessary. Dolphin are very cooperative fish and a bait that skips without spinning and twisting will catch fish if you fish where the dolphin live.','Beginner Dolphin Trolling Basics','','inherit','open','open','','261-revision-2','','','2011-12-05 20:57:25','2011-12-05 20:57:25','',261,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=263',0,'revision','',0),(264,1,'2011-12-05 21:02:25','2011-12-05 21:02:25','<h3>Trolling for Dolphin is Simple - Anyone with a Boat Can Do It.</h3>\n<strong><em>By Ron Brooks</em></strong>\n\nOwning a boat, maybe for the first time, and deciding to head offshore, maybe for the first time, a number of readers ask about getting into dolphin fishing. That’s dolphin fish, mahi mahi, not dolphin porpoise! I have answered some specifics, but now it is time to lay out some basics on fishing for these prolific, blue water acrobats.\n\n<strong>The Water</strong>\nThe first thing to remember is that dolphin, for the most part, are found in blue water. Along the southern Atlantic coast, that usually means the Gulfstream. For all but Florida anglers, that means a small boat is out of luck. The Gulfstream begins moving away from the North American continent around the northern part of Florida. From Jacksonville, the run to the stream is sometimes 80 miles.\n\nBut, because the stream meanders in and out, and sometimes warm water currents off the stream can move close, dolphin can be found as close in as ten miles during the summer months. There won’t be a lot of them, but they can be caught. You just need to pay attention to the fishing reports.\n\nIn South Florida and the Florida Keys, the stream runs from three to five miles off the beach, and I have actually caught dolphin over the edge of the reef in forty feet of water or less. Again, it isn’t the norm, but it does happen. So, take account of where you are and plan accordingly.\n\n<strong>The Season</strong>\nWatch and read the fishing reports in your area and see when and where the dolphin are being caught. Dolphin can be caught year round, but in general, the hot season is from about April all the way through to the first cold weather.\n\nDolphin will stay in the warm waters of the Gulfstream when the surrounding wa- ter is cold. So, winter time means getting right in the stream to fish. In warm and hot weather, the waters surrounding the stream heat up and dolphin will wander in closer to the reef in search of food.\n\n<strong>Feeding Habits</strong>\nDolphin are voracious eaters. They are virtual feeding machines. Although I have had some days when I could not get a school that was swimming under my boat to bite, in general, they live to eat. The lifespan of a dolphin is only five years, and in that time they reach weights of fifty pounds or more.\n\nAs far as a favorite food, the flying fish has to be close to the top of the list. Great schools of flying fish will leap into the air, gliding the wind currents for several hundred yards to escape a predator fish. They are all over the Gulfstream, and dolphin, among other fish, love them.\n\nDolphin also feed on ballyhoo, another baitfish common in the area, and on the small fish and crustaceans that live in and around floating Sargasso weed. This weed comes into the Gulfstream from the great Sargasso Sea, a sea within a sea, in the tropical Atlantic. It is home to a variety of sea life, and Dolphin will usually be found patrolling an area of weeds.\n\nThe Sargasso weeds are free floating. They provide not only food, but shade from the sun (yes, fish need to stay out of the sun just like us!). The weeds tend to be found in long lines that have been formed by current wave action. Some of these weed lines can be a hundred yards wide and stretch for several miles. Others are a few yards wide and only a hundred yards long. Whatever the size, remember that dolphin like them and feed under them.\n\n<strong>The Tackle</strong>\nDolphin fishing is more fun on light tackle. By light, I mean no bigger than thirty pound IGFA class tackle. I actually prefer twenty pound tackle, because the vast majority of dolphin you will catch are under twenty pounds. The occasional big bull dolphin can still be caught on this light tackle; you will simply have to run him down and fight him!\n\nConventional trolling rods and reels work well, but medium to heavy spinning tackle will work equally as well. Just make sure the reel holds several hundred yards of line.\n\nI use twenty to thirty pound test monofilament line on my dolphin reels. But, remember, I am specifically targeting dolphin. Charter boats will usually be trolling fifty or even eighty pound line. The beauty of trolling the Gulfstream is that you never know what you will find. So, charter boats – wanting to make sure their paying customers don’t miss a big tuna or wahoo because the line is too light – will use the heavier tackle.\n\n<strong>Terminal Tackle</strong>\nThis is an area that people spend a lot of money on, yet it’s an area that can be so simple. Remember, we are after dolphin. If something else jumps on our line, we want a reasonable chance at catching it, so we need terminal rigs – the business end of the line – to be beefy enough to handle them.\n\nI use a five foot long, fifty pound test, stainless steel, wire leader. This is the standard wire leader found in any tackle shop, including the big box discount department stores. Why wire? Remember – you never know what you might find. A roving king mackerel or wahoo may jump on your trolled bait, and a monofilament leader will be sliced in half before you ever feel the fish.\n\n\"But, you can see the wire in all that clear water\", he said. Yes, but you are trolling and skipping a bait on the surface (more on that later).\n\nI use a number 3 swivel on one end of the leader and a 7/0 single O’shaunessy hook on the other end. When I wrap the wire leader to the hook, I leave a one-half inch tip of the leader at a 90 degree angle to the hook. See one of the pictures for an illustration. This tip is used to hold the ballyhoo bait in place.\n\n<strong>Bait and Rigging</strong>\nBy far my preference in bait both because of availability and success rate is ballyhoo. Fresh or brined are best, but flash frozen work well if you can get them from a repu- table bait source. I place the point of the hook in and under the ballyhoo’s gill plate and run the hook down into the stomach. I force the hook point out the bottom of the fish so that the hook eye and leader are right at the mouth of the ‘Hoo and the hook is turned down under the belly of the bait.\n\nThis is where the leader tip comes in handy. I force the leader tip through the bot- tom and top jaw of the ballyhoo so that it protrudes just at the front of\nthe top lip. With a tie wrap from an old loaf of bread, I wrap the bill and leader tip to keep the mouth of the ballyhoo closed, and then I break off the bill right at the leader.\n\nSometimes I may use a pink or chartreuse skirt available at most tackle shops. The skirt offers color and protection of the nose area of the bait, but it really is not nec- essary. Commercial nose cone type products are also available, but in my experience not really necessary. That leader tip works just fine.\n\n<strong>Trolling</strong>\nDolphin usually prefer what I call a semi-hot bait. That is, not too slow and not too fast. I place a rod in a rod holder and let line back behind the boat. These are flat lines – ones that are not attached to an outrigger. I put one on each side of the boat back thirty to fifty yards. I run the trolling speed of the boat up until the bait is one the surface and “skipping” with the front of the bait just out of the water. Sometimes I will troll four rods, two way back fifty to sixty yards, one half way back and one bait right up close to the boat in the prop wash.\n\n<strong>Technique</strong>\nFinding and catching dolphin is easy if you follow some basics. • Look for a weed line or any other kind of flotsam in the water. Dolphin will be\nunder anything they can find to escape the sun. • Troll the edge of the weed line heading one direction and then crossing and heading back the other direction.\n<ul>\n	<li>Vary the speed of your troll if you have not attracted a fish. Speed up or slow down – just break the pattern.</li>\n	<li>Watch for flying fish. If you spook some flying fish while trolling, chances are dolphin will be in the area. They follow the baitfish.</li>\n	<li>Look for birds – either a flock of birds diving or a solitary frigate bird. The flock of birds will usually be on a school of baitfish being chased by bonito or false albacore, but eh dolphin will be in the area as well. A solitary frigate bird will stay over a school of fish – sometimes solitary big fish – looking for an easy meal. It is wise to head their direction as well.</li>\n</ul>\n<strong>Simplicity</strong>\nEverything we talked about can be done with minimal expense and literally no special tackle. Big rods, outriggers, and the like are generally not necessary. Dolphin are very cooperative fish and a bait that skips without spinning and twisting will catch fish if you fish where the dolphin live.','Beginner Dolphin Trolling Basics','','inherit','open','open','','261-autosave','','','2011-12-05 21:02:25','2011-12-05 21:02:25','',261,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=264',0,'revision','',0),(265,1,'2011-12-05 21:01:03','2011-12-05 21:01:03','','Dolphin fish, mahi mahi','','inherit','open','open','','dolphin','','','2011-12-05 21:01:03','2011-12-05 21:01:03','',261,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Dolphin.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(266,1,'2011-12-05 20:58:07','2011-12-05 20:58:07','<h3>Trolling for Dolphin is Simple - Anyone with a Boat Can Do It.</h3>\r\n<strong><em>By Ron Brooks</em></strong>\r\n\r\nOwning a boat, maybe for the first time, and deciding to head offshore, maybe for the first time, a number of readers ask about getting into dolphin fishing. That’s dolphin fish, mahi mahi, not dolphin porpoise! I have answered some specifics, but now it is time to lay out some basics on fishing for these prolific, blue water acrobats.\r\n\r\n<strong>The Water</strong>\r\nThe first thing to remember is that dolphin, for the most part, are found in blue water. Along the southern Atlantic coast, that usually means the Gulfstream. For all but Florida anglers, that means a small boat is out of luck. The Gulfstream begins moving away from the North American continent around the northern part of Florida. From Jacksonville, the run to the stream is sometimes 80 miles.\r\n\r\nBut, because the stream meanders in and out, and sometimes warm water currents off the stream can move close, dolphin can be found as close in as ten miles during the summer months. There won’t be a lot of them, but they can be caught. You just need to pay attention to the fishing reports.\r\n\r\nIn South Florida and the Florida Keys, the stream runs from three to five miles off the beach, and I have actually caught dolphin over the edge of the reef in forty feet of water or less. Again, it isn’t the norm, but it does happen. So, take account of where you are and plan accordingly.\r\n\r\n<strong>The Season</strong>\r\nWatch and read the fishing reports in your area and see when and where the dolphin are being caught. Dolphin can be caught year round, but in general, the hot season is from about April all the way through to the first cold weather.\r\n\r\nDolphin will stay in the warm waters of the Gulfstream when the surrounding wa- ter is cold. So, winter time means getting right in the stream to fish. In warm and hot weather, the waters surrounding the stream heat up and dolphin will wander in closer to the reef in search of food.\r\n\r\n<strong>Feeding Habits</strong>\r\nDolphin are voracious eaters. They are virtual feeding machines. Although I have had some days when I could not get a school that was swimming under my boat to bite, in general, they live to eat. The lifespan of a dolphin is only five years, and in that time they reach weights of fifty pounds or more.\r\n\r\nAs far as a favorite food, the flying fish has to be close to the top of the list. Great schools of flying fish will leap into the air, gliding the wind currents for several hundred yards to escape a predator fish. They are all over the Gulfstream, and dolphin, among other fish, love them.\r\n\r\nDolphin also feed on ballyhoo, another baitfish common in the area, and on the small fish and crustaceans that live in and around floating Sargasso weed. This weed comes into the Gulfstream from the great Sargasso Sea, a sea within a sea, in the tropical Atlantic. It is home to a variety of sea life, and Dolphin will usually be found patrolling an area of weeds.\r\n\r\nThe Sargasso weeds are free floating. They provide not only food, but shade from the sun (yes, fish need to stay out of the sun just like us!). The weeds tend to be found in long lines that have been formed by current wave action. Some of these weed lines can be a hundred yards wide and stretch for several miles. Others are a few yards wide and only a hundred yards long. Whatever the size, remember that dolphin like them and feed under them.\r\n\r\n<strong>The Tackle</strong>\r\nDolphin fishing is more fun on light tackle. By light, I mean no bigger than thirty pound IGFA class tackle. I actually prefer twenty pound tackle, because the vast majority of dolphin you will catch are under twenty pounds. The occasional big bull dolphin can still be caught on this light tackle; you will simply have to run him down and fight him!\r\n\r\nConventional trolling rods and reels work well, but medium to heavy spinning tackle will work equally as well. Just make sure the reel holds several hundred yards of line.\r\n\r\nI use twenty to thirty pound test monofilament line on my dolphin reels. But, remember, I am specifically targeting dolphin. Charter boats will usually be trolling fifty or even eighty pound line. The beauty of trolling the Gulfstream is that you never know what you will find. So, charter boats – wanting to make sure their paying customers don’t miss a big tuna or wahoo because the line is too light – will use the heavier tackle.\r\n\r\n<strong>Terminal Tackle</strong>\r\nThis is an area that people spend a lot of money on, yet it’s an area that can be so simple. Remember, we are after dolphin. If something else jumps on our line, we want a reasonable chance at catching it, so we need terminal rigs – the business end of the line – to be beefy enough to handle them.\r\n\r\nI use a five foot long, fifty pound test, stainless steel, wire leader. This is the standard wire leader found in any tackle shop, including the big box discount department stores. Why wire? Remember – you never know what you might find. A roving king mackerel or wahoo may jump on your trolled bait, and a monofilament leader will be sliced in half before you ever feel the fish.\r\n\r\n\"But, you can see the wire in all that clear water\", he said. Yes, but you are trolling and skipping a bait on the surface (more on that later).\r\n\r\nI use a number 3 swivel on one end of the leader and a 7/0 single O’shaunessy hook on the other end. When I wrap the wire leader to the hook, I leave a one-half inch tip of the leader at a 90 degree angle to the hook. See one of the pictures for an illustration. This tip is used to hold the ballyhoo bait in place.\r\n\r\n<strong>Bait and Rigging</strong>\r\nBy far my preference in bait both because of availability and success rate is ballyhoo. Fresh or brined are best, but flash frozen work well if you can get them from a repu- table bait source. I place the point of the hook in and under the ballyhoo’s gill plate and run the hook down into the stomach. I force the hook point out the bottom of the fish so that the hook eye and leader are right at the mouth of the ‘Hoo and the hook is turned down under the belly of the bait.\r\n\r\nThis is where the leader tip comes in handy. I force the leader tip through the bot- tom and top jaw of the ballyhoo so that it protrudes just at the front of\r\nthe top lip. With a tie wrap from an old loaf of bread, I wrap the bill and leader tip to keep the mouth of the ballyhoo closed, and then I break off the bill right at the leader.\r\n\r\nSometimes I may use a pink or chartreuse skirt available at most tackle shops. The skirt offers color and protection of the nose area of the bait, but it really is not nec- essary. Commercial nose cone type products are also available, but in my experience not really necessary. That leader tip works just fine.\r\n\r\n<strong>Trolling</strong>\r\nDolphin usually prefer what I call a semi-hot bait. That is, not too slow and not too fast. I place a rod in a rod holder and let line back behind the boat. These are flat lines – ones that are not attached to an outrigger. I put one on each side of the boat back thirty to fifty yards. I run the trolling speed of the boat up until the bait is one the surface and “skipping” with the front of the bait just out of the water. Sometimes I will troll four rods, two way back fifty to sixty yards, one half way back and one bait right up close to the boat in the prop wash.\r\n\r\n<strong>Technique</strong>\r\nFinding and catching dolphin is easy if you follow some basics. • Look for a weed line or any other kind of flotsam in the water. Dolphin will be\r\nunder anything they can find to escape the sun. • Troll the edge of the weed line heading one direction and then crossing and heading back the other direction.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Vary the speed of your troll if you have not attracted a fish. Speed up or slow down – just break the pattern.</li>\r\n	<li>Watch for flying fish. If you spook some flying fish while trolling, chances are dolphin will be in the area. They follow the baitfish.</li>\r\n	<li>Look for birds – either a flock of birds diving or a solitary frigate bird. The flock of birds will usually be on a school of baitfish being chased by bonito or false albacore, but eh dolphin will be in the area as well. A solitary frigate bird will stay over a school of fish – sometimes solitary big fish – looking for an easy meal. It is wise to head their direction as well.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Simplicity</strong>\r\nEverything we talked about can be done with minimal expense and literally no special tackle. Big rods, outriggers, and the like are generally not necessary. Dolphin are very cooperative fish and a bait that skips without spinning and twisting will catch fish if you fish where the dolphin live.','Beginner Dolphin Trolling Basics','','inherit','open','open','','261-revision-3','','','2011-12-05 20:58:07','2011-12-05 20:58:07','',261,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=266',0,'revision','',0),(267,1,'2011-10-27 17:48:59','2011-10-27 17:48:59','<img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-76\" title=\"braid dorado teaser\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/braid.gif\" alt=\"braid dorado teaser\" width=\"331\" height=\"191\" />The Braid Dorado Teaser is designed look like a small Dorado. You can use it to attract gamefish through either a drop back method or running your hook bait along side the Dorado Teaser or under it. Mirrors on both sides. 18.5” Long. 4.0lbs. Can be trolled from 6-10 knots.','Braid Dorado Teaser','','inherit','open','open','','75-revision-4','','','2011-10-27 17:48:59','2011-10-27 17:48:59','',75,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=267',0,'revision','',0),(268,1,'2011-12-05 21:05:11','2011-12-05 21:05:11','<img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-76\" title=\"braid dorado teaser\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/braid.gif\" alt=\"braid dorado teaser\" width=\"331\" height=\"191\" />The Braid Dorado Teaser is designed look like a small Dorado. You can use it to attract gamefish through either a drop back method or running your hook bait along side the Dorado Teaser or under it. Mirrors on both sides. 18.5” Long. 4.0lbs. Can be trolled from 6-10 knots.','Braid Dorado Teaser','','inherit','open','open','','75-autosave','','','2011-12-05 21:05:11','2011-12-05 21:05:11','',75,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=268',0,'revision','',0),(269,1,'2011-10-17 22:31:43','2011-10-17 22:31:43','We know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\r\n\r\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on\r\nthe swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\r\n\r\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair\r\namount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\r\n\r\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining.\r\nTo rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo.\r\nSlide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\r\n\r\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\r\n\r\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth. \r\n\r\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-3','','','2011-10-17 22:31:43','2011-10-17 22:31:43','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=269',0,'revision','',0),(270,1,'2011-12-05 21:06:39','2011-12-05 21:06:39','We know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\r\n\r\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on the swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\r\n\r\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair amount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\r\n\r\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining. To rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo. Slide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\r\n\r\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\r\n\r\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth.\r\n\r\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-4','','','2011-12-05 21:06:39','2011-12-05 21:06:39','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=270',0,'revision','',0),(271,1,'2011-12-05 21:07:56','2011-12-05 21:07:56','We know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\n\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on the swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\n\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair amount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\n\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining. To rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo. Slide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\n\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\n\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth.\n\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-autosave','','','2011-12-05 21:07:56','2011-12-05 21:07:56','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=271',0,'revision','',0),(272,1,'2011-12-05 21:14:23','2011-12-05 21:14:23','','swim2','','inherit','open','open','','swim2','','','2011-12-05 21:14:23','2011-12-05 21:14:23','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/swim2.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(273,1,'2011-12-05 21:14:58','2011-12-05 21:14:58','','swim5','','inherit','open','open','','swim5','','','2011-12-05 21:14:58','2011-12-05 21:14:58','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/swim5.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(274,1,'2011-12-05 21:15:44','2011-12-05 21:15:44','','swim3','','inherit','open','open','','swim3','','','2011-12-05 21:15:44','2011-12-05 21:15:44','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/swim3.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(275,1,'2011-12-05 21:15:57','2011-12-05 21:15:57','','swim4','','inherit','open','open','','swim4','','','2011-12-05 21:15:57','2011-12-05 21:15:57','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/swim4.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(276,1,'2011-12-05 21:16:01','2011-12-05 21:16:01','','swim6','','inherit','open','open','','swim6','','','2011-12-05 21:16:01','2011-12-05 21:16:01','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/swim6.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(278,1,'2011-12-05 21:06:53','2011-12-05 21:06:53','We know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\r\n\r\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on the swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\r\n\r\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair amount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\r\n\r\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining. To rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo. Slide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\r\n\r\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\r\n\r\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth.\r\n\r\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-5','','','2011-12-05 21:06:53','2011-12-05 21:06:53','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=278',0,'revision','',0),(279,1,'2011-12-05 21:17:19','2011-12-05 21:17:19','We know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\r\n\r\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on the swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\r\n\r\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair amount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\r\n\r\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining. To rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo. Slide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\r\n\r\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\r\n\r\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth.\r\n\r\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-6','','','2011-12-05 21:17:19','2011-12-05 21:17:19','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=279',0,'revision','',0),(280,1,'2011-12-05 21:17:30','2011-12-05 21:17:30','We know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\r\n\r\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on the swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\r\n\r\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair amount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\r\n\r\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining. To rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo. Slide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\r\n\r\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\r\n\r\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth.\r\n\r\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-7','','','2011-12-05 21:17:30','2011-12-05 21:17:30','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=280',0,'revision','',0),(281,1,'2011-12-05 21:17:55','2011-12-05 21:17:55','[gallery link=\"file\" columns=\"5\"]\r\n\r\nWe know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\r\n\r\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on the swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\r\n\r\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair amount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\r\n\r\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining. To rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo. Slide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\r\n\r\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\r\n\r\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth.\r\n\r\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-8','','','2011-12-05 21:17:55','2011-12-05 21:17:55','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=281',0,'revision','',0),(282,1,'2011-12-05 21:18:18','2011-12-05 21:18:18','[gallery link=\"file\" columns=\"3\"]\r\n\r\nWe know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\r\n\r\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on the swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\r\n\r\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair amount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\r\n\r\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining. To rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo. Slide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\r\n\r\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\r\n\r\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth.\r\n\r\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-9','','','2011-12-05 21:18:18','2011-12-05 21:18:18','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=282',0,'revision','',0),(283,1,'2011-12-05 21:18:35','2011-12-05 21:18:35','We know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\r\n\r\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on the swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\r\n\r\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair amount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\r\n\r\n[gallery link=\"file\" columns=\"3\"]\r\n\r\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining. To rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo. Slide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\r\n\r\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\r\n\r\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth.\r\n\r\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-10','','','2011-12-05 21:18:35','2011-12-05 21:18:35','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=283',0,'revision','',0),(284,1,'2011-12-05 21:19:09','2011-12-05 21:19:09','We know that fishing with circle hooks is better for the billfish that we catch while using normal, drop back techniques. In addition to this, there are times when we are required to fish with circle hooks, either by government regulations or by tournament rules. For these reasons, anglers have come up with a number of ways to rig ballyhoo with circle hooks. Many ways have been used to rig a ballyhoo to skip with a circle hook. A naked, skipping ballyhoo is a wonderful billfish bait but my absolute, favorite bait for white marlin is a naked, swimming ballyhoo.\r\n\r\nTo get a ballyhoo to swim with a J-hook, the classic split-bill rig is used. Trying to rig a split-bill ballyhoo with a circle hook does not work very well so other rigging techniques have been developed to get a ballyhoo to swim with a circle hook. One way is to use a swivel attached to the head of the ballyhoo. The circle hook is run through the ring of swivel. This rig swims great and it is an excel- lent fish catcher. A problem with it is that the ring on the swivel and the hook have to be perfectly matched. If the ring is too small, you cannot get the barb off the hook to slide through it. If the ring is too big, you risk the hook sliding out of the ring during your drop back. The solution to this is to get rid of the swivel. You can just use a loop in rigging wire in place of the swivel. The rigging wire is attached to the bend in the hook via a haywire twist. The loop is loose enough to allow the circle hook to move but small enough so that it cannot slide over the shank of the hook. This is another great rigging technique which also has a problem. Sometimes, the rigging wire will fatigue and break. This typically will happen at just the wrong moment.\r\n\r\nWhile helping Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with his study of white marlin, I have been fortunate to spend a fair amount of time fishing with some of the best captains and mates in the world. These guys can rig a ballyhoo anyway you can think of and we have tried most of them. While fishing off of Venezuela, we learned another circle hook swimming rig. It has become my favorite for a number of reasons. It is simple to rig. It does not matter what hook you use which was a real advantage when we kept changing hooks as part of the study. Hooks do not fall out during drop back and there is no wire to fatigue and break.\r\n\r\n[gallery link=\"file\" columns=\"3\"]\r\n\r\nPrepare your ballyhoo how you normally prepare it for rigging. Remove the eyes. You can snip off the pectoral fins. I usually leave them alone as long as they are positioned normally along the body. If they are stuck forward, I cut them off. Cut or break the bill off square leaving about 1⁄2 inch of bill remaining. To rig your ballyhoo you simply need a piece of waxed rigging floss about twenty inches long and an egg sinker of 1/4 to 1/3 ounce to use for a chin weight. Fold the floss in half and tie an overhand knot at the tag end. Thread the loop end through the egg sinker and you are ready to rig your ballyhoo. Slide the loop over the head of the ballyhoo. Pass the floss under the gill plates on both sides. Position the egg sinker under the ballyhoo’s chin. Slide the tag end of your floss over the bill. Pull the tag ends apart and the knot will slide down, snug it up. Make sure the sinker is centered and the knot ties the mouth closed.\r\n\r\nNow, pass each tag end through the eyes from opposite sides and form another overhand knot with the tag ends under the ballyhoo. Pull the tag ends apart and snug the knot down behind the sinker. Form another overhand knot and snug it down again. Cut off the tag ends and you are ready to go fishing.\r\n\r\nYou now have a chin weighted ballyhoo with a harness. To fish it, simply slide your hook behind the harness where the knot is sitting on top of the ballyhoo’s mouth.\r\n\r\nYou can rig a bunch of these ahead of time and it does not matter which circle or even a J-hook that you are going to use. Ballyhoo rigged like this have proven to be very effective on sailfish, white marlin and blue marlin. It is easy to rig and it swims well. The next time you are fishing for billfish, give it a try.','Swim a Circle Hook','','inherit','open','open','','55-revision-11','','','2011-12-05 21:19:09','2011-12-05 21:19:09','',55,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=284',0,'revision','',0),(285,1,'2011-12-05 21:31:54','2011-12-05 21:31:54','<em>By Aaron Derr</em>\n\nA novice fisherman will hit the water armed only with the knowledge of an overhand knot. A real angler wouldn’t dare venture out with such a limited arsenal.\nDifferent situations call for different knots. The knots needed for tying fishing line to a hook are different from the knots needed to join two sections of line together.\n\nTo be prepared for anything, learn these knots before you hit the water.\n<h2>IMPROVED CLINCH KNOT</h2>\n<h2><a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-287\" title=\"improved cinch\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a></h2>\n(for tying line to a hook)\n<ol>\n	<li>Thread the line through the eye of the hook, then make 5 to 7 wraps around the line with the loose end.</li>\n	<li>Thread the loose end of the line through the loop closest to the eye, then back around inside the loose section of line.</li>\n	<li>Pull both ends of the line until tight.</li>\n	<li>Trim the loose end of the line if necessary.</li>\n</ol>\n<h2>TURLE KNOT</h2>\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/turtle.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-291\" title=\"turle knot\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/turtle-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"turle knot\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>(for tying thin line to a small hook)\n<ol>\n	<li>Run the line through the eye of the hook, then tie a loose double overhand knot in the end of the line.</li>\n	<li>Pass the open loop over the hook and tighten the whole thing so that the loop tightens around the eye.</li>\n</ol>\n<h2>BLOOD KNOT</h2>\n(for joining two sections of line together)\n<ol>\n	<li>Line up the ends of each line together for several inches, then wrap the first line around the second at least five times.</li>\n	<li>Wrap the second around the first at least five times, and bring both loose ends back to the middle between the two lines.</li>\n	<li>Pull tight on each line until the knot is snug.</li>\n</ol>\n<h2>PALOMAR KNOT</h2>\n(for tying line to a hook)\n<ol>\n	<li>Double your line to make a loop, then push the loop through the eye of your hook.</li>\n	<li>Tie a loose overhand knot.</li>\n	<li>Pass the loop around the end of the hook and pull on the line to tighten.</li>\n</ol>\n<h2>DOUBLE SURGEON\'S LOOP</h2>\n(for forming a loop in the end of a line)\n<ol>\n	<li>Fold over the end of the line to make a double line, then tie a single overhand knot.</li>\n	<li>Pass the loop through the hole in the overhand knot one more time.</li>\n	<li>Moisten the knot and tighten.</li>\n</ol>\n<h2>WIRE LINE TO MONO KNOT</h2>\n(for attaching wire line to monofilament)\n<ol>\n	<li>Fold four inches of wire line back over itself to form a bend at the end of the line.</li>\n</ol>\n<h2>TUCKED SHEET BEND</h2>\n(for attaching line to a leader loop, or snelled hook to the line)\n<ol>\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the loop, then make a simple sheet bend knot.</li>\n	<li>Pass the end of the line back through the loop of the sheet bend.</li>\n	<li>Tighten until snug.</li>\n</ol>\n<h2>SNELLING A HOOK</h2>\n(for attaching monofilament to a hook)\n<ol>\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the eye of the hook twice, creating a loop that hangs alongside the hook.</li>\n	<li>Wrap the loop around the hook, forming tight coils, 5 to 10 times.</li>\n	<li>Holding the coils in place with one finger, pull the line up until the loop is snug under the coils.</li>\n</ol>','8 Fishing Knots to Know','','inherit','open','open','','58-autosave','','','2011-12-05 21:31:54','2011-12-05 21:31:54','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=285',0,'revision','',0),(286,1,'2011-10-17 22:35:59','2011-10-17 22:35:59','<em>By Aaron Derr</em>\r\n\r\nA novice fisherman will hit the water armed only with the knowledge of an overhand knot. A real angler wouldn’t dare venture out with such a limited arsenal.\r\nDifferent situations call for different knots. The knots needed for tying fishing line to a hook are different from the knots needed to join two sections of line together.\r\n\r\nTo be prepared for anything, learn these knots before you hit the water.\r\n<h2>IMPROVED CLINCH KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n1. Thread the line through the eye of the hook, then make 5 to 7 wraps around the line with the loose end.\r\n2. Thread the loose end of the line through the loop closest to the eye, then back around inside the loose section of line.\r\n3. Pull both ends of the line until tight.\r\n4. Trim the loose end of the line if necessary.\r\n<h2>TURLE KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying thin line to a small hook)\r\n1. Run the line through the eye of the hook, then tie a loose double overhand knot in the end of the line.\r\n2. Pass the open loop over the hook and tighten the whole thing so that the loop tightens around the eye.\r\n<h2>BLOOD KNOT</h2>\r\n(for joining two sections of line together)\r\n1. Line up the ends of each line together for several inches, then\r\nwrap the first line around the second at least five times.\r\n<h2>PALOMAR KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n1. Double your line to make a loop, then push the loop through the eye of your hook.\r\n2. Tie a loose overhand knot.\r\n3. Pass the loop around the end of the hook and pull on the line to tighten.\r\n2. Wrap the second around the first at least five times, and bring both loose ends back to the middle between the two lines.\r\n3. Pull tight on each line until the knot is snug.\r\n<h2>DOUBLE SURGEON\'S LOOP</h2>\r\n(for forming a loop in the end of a line)\r\n1. Fold over the end of the line to make a double line, then tie a single overhand knot.\r\n2. Pass the loop through the hole in the overhand knot one more time.\r\n3. Moisten the knot and tighten.\r\n<h2>WIRE LINE TO MONO KNOT</h2>\r\n(for attaching wire line to monofilament)\r\n1. Fold four inches of wire line back over itself to form a bend at the end of the line.\r\n<h2>TUCKED SHEET BEND</h2>\r\n(for attaching line to a leader loop, or snelled hook to the line)\r\n1. Pass the end of the line through the loop, then make a simple sheet bend knot.\r\n2. Pass the end of the line back through the loop of the sheet bend.\r\n3. Tighten until snug.\r\n<h2>SNELLING A HOOK</h2>\r\n(for attaching monofilament to a hook)\r\n1. Pass the end of the line through the eye of the hook twice, creating a loop that hangs alongside the hook.\r\n2. Wrap the loop around the hook, forming tight coils, 5 to 10 times.\r\n3. Holding the coils in place with one finger, pull the line up until the loop is snug under the coils.','8 Fishing Knots to Know','','inherit','open','open','','58-revision-5','','','2011-10-17 22:35:59','2011-10-17 22:35:59','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=286',0,'revision','',0),(287,1,'2011-12-05 21:26:45','2011-12-05 21:26:45','','improved cinch','','inherit','open','open','','improvedcinch','','','2011-12-05 21:26:45','2011-12-05 21:26:45','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(288,1,'2011-12-05 21:25:37','2011-12-05 21:25:37','<em>By Aaron Derr</em>\r\n\r\nA novice fisherman will hit the water armed only with the knowledge of an overhand knot. A real angler wouldn’t dare venture out with such a limited arsenal.\r\nDifferent situations call for different knots. The knots needed for tying fishing line to a hook are different from the knots needed to join two sections of line together.\r\n\r\nTo be prepared for anything, learn these knots before you hit the water.\r\n<h2>IMPROVED CLINCH KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Thread the line through the eye of the hook, then make 5 to 7 wraps around the line with the loose end.</li>\r\n	<li>Thread the loose end of the line through the loop closest to the eye, then back around inside the loose section of line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull both ends of the line until tight.</li>\r\n	<li>Trim the loose end of the line if necessary.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TURLE KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying thin line to a small hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Run the line through the eye of the hook, then tie a loose double overhand knot in the end of the line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the open loop over the hook and tighten the whole thing so that the loop tightens around the eye.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>BLOOD KNOT</h2>\r\n(for joining two sections of line together)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Line up the ends of each line together for several inches, then wrap the first line around the second at least five times.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the second around the first at least five times, and bring both loose ends back to the middle between the two lines.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull tight on each line until the knot is snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>PALOMAR KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Double your line to make a loop, then push the loop through the eye of your hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Tie a loose overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop around the end of the hook and pull on the line to tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>DOUBLE SURGEON\'S LOOP</h2>\r\n(for forming a loop in the end of a line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold over the end of the line to make a double line, then tie a single overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop through the hole in the overhand knot one more time.</li>\r\n	<li>Moisten the knot and tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>WIRE LINE TO MONO KNOT</h2>\r\n(for attaching wire line to monofilament)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold four inches of wire line back over itself to form a bend at the end of the line.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TUCKED SHEET BEND</h2>\r\n(for attaching line to a leader loop, or snelled hook to the line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the loop, then make a simple sheet bend knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line back through the loop of the sheet bend.</li>\r\n	<li>Tighten until snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>SNELLING A HOOK</h2>\r\n(for attaching monofilament to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the eye of the hook twice, creating a loop that hangs alongside the hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the loop around the hook, forming tight coils, 5 to 10 times.</li>\r\n	<li>Holding the coils in place with one finger, pull the line up until the loop is snug under the coils.</li>\r\n</ol>','8 Fishing Knots to Know','','inherit','open','open','','58-revision-6','','','2011-12-05 21:25:37','2011-12-05 21:25:37','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=288',0,'revision','',0),(289,1,'2011-12-05 21:27:00','2011-12-05 21:27:00','<em>By Aaron Derr</em>\r\n\r\nA novice fisherman will hit the water armed only with the knowledge of an overhand knot. A real angler wouldn’t dare venture out with such a limited arsenal.\r\nDifferent situations call for different knots. The knots needed for tying fishing line to a hook are different from the knots needed to join two sections of line together.\r\n\r\nTo be prepared for anything, learn these knots before you hit the water.\r\n<h2>IMPROVED CLINCH KNOT</h2>\r\n<img class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-287\" title=\"improved cinch\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"252\" height=\"288\" />(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Thread the line through the eye of the hook, then make 5 to 7 wraps around the line with the loose end.</li>\r\n	<li>Thread the loose end of the line through the loop closest to the eye, then back around inside the loose section of line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull both ends of the line until tight.</li>\r\n	<li>Trim the loose end of the line if necessary.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TURLE KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying thin line to a small hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Run the line through the eye of the hook, then tie a loose double overhand knot in the end of the line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the open loop over the hook and tighten the whole thing so that the loop tightens around the eye.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>BLOOD KNOT</h2>\r\n(for joining two sections of line together)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Line up the ends of each line together for several inches, then wrap the first line around the second at least five times.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the second around the first at least five times, and bring both loose ends back to the middle between the two lines.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull tight on each line until the knot is snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>PALOMAR KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Double your line to make a loop, then push the loop through the eye of your hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Tie a loose overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop around the end of the hook and pull on the line to tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>DOUBLE SURGEON\'S LOOP</h2>\r\n(for forming a loop in the end of a line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold over the end of the line to make a double line, then tie a single overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop through the hole in the overhand knot one more time.</li>\r\n	<li>Moisten the knot and tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>WIRE LINE TO MONO KNOT</h2>\r\n(for attaching wire line to monofilament)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold four inches of wire line back over itself to form a bend at the end of the line.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TUCKED SHEET BEND</h2>\r\n(for attaching line to a leader loop, or snelled hook to the line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the loop, then make a simple sheet bend knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line back through the loop of the sheet bend.</li>\r\n	<li>Tighten until snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>SNELLING A HOOK</h2>\r\n(for attaching monofilament to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the eye of the hook twice, creating a loop that hangs alongside the hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the loop around the hook, forming tight coils, 5 to 10 times.</li>\r\n	<li>Holding the coils in place with one finger, pull the line up until the loop is snug under the coils.</li>\r\n</ol>','8 Fishing Knots to Know','','inherit','open','open','','58-revision-7','','','2011-12-05 21:27:00','2011-12-05 21:27:00','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=289',0,'revision','',0),(290,1,'2011-12-05 21:27:39','2011-12-05 21:27:39','<em>By Aaron Derr</em>\r\n\r\nA novice fisherman will hit the water armed only with the knowledge of an overhand knot. A real angler wouldn’t dare venture out with such a limited arsenal.\r\nDifferent situations call for different knots. The knots needed for tying fishing line to a hook are different from the knots needed to join two sections of line together.\r\n\r\nTo be prepared for anything, learn these knots before you hit the water.\r\n<h2><a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-287\" title=\"improved cinch\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>IMPROVED CLINCH KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Thread the line through the eye of the hook, then make 5 to 7 wraps around the line with the loose end.</li>\r\n	<li>Thread the loose end of the line through the loop closest to the eye, then back around inside the loose section of line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull both ends of the line until tight.</li>\r\n	<li>Trim the loose end of the line if necessary.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TURLE KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying thin line to a small hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Run the line through the eye of the hook, then tie a loose double overhand knot in the end of the line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the open loop over the hook and tighten the whole thing so that the loop tightens around the eye.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>BLOOD KNOT</h2>\r\n(for joining two sections of line together)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Line up the ends of each line together for several inches, then wrap the first line around the second at least five times.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the second around the first at least five times, and bring both loose ends back to the middle between the two lines.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull tight on each line until the knot is snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>PALOMAR KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Double your line to make a loop, then push the loop through the eye of your hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Tie a loose overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop around the end of the hook and pull on the line to tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>DOUBLE SURGEON\'S LOOP</h2>\r\n(for forming a loop in the end of a line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold over the end of the line to make a double line, then tie a single overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop through the hole in the overhand knot one more time.</li>\r\n	<li>Moisten the knot and tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>WIRE LINE TO MONO KNOT</h2>\r\n(for attaching wire line to monofilament)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold four inches of wire line back over itself to form a bend at the end of the line.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TUCKED SHEET BEND</h2>\r\n(for attaching line to a leader loop, or snelled hook to the line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the loop, then make a simple sheet bend knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line back through the loop of the sheet bend.</li>\r\n	<li>Tighten until snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>SNELLING A HOOK</h2>\r\n(for attaching monofilament to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the eye of the hook twice, creating a loop that hangs alongside the hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the loop around the hook, forming tight coils, 5 to 10 times.</li>\r\n	<li>Holding the coils in place with one finger, pull the line up until the loop is snug under the coils.</li>\r\n</ol>','8 Fishing Knots to Know','','inherit','open','open','','58-revision-8','','','2011-12-05 21:27:39','2011-12-05 21:27:39','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=290',0,'revision','',0),(291,1,'2011-12-05 21:31:32','2011-12-05 21:31:32','','turle knot','','inherit','open','open','','turtle','','','2011-12-05 21:31:32','2011-12-05 21:31:32','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/turtle.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(292,1,'2011-12-05 21:31:58','2011-12-05 21:31:58','','blood knot','','inherit','open','open','','blood','','','2011-12-05 21:31:58','2011-12-05 21:31:58','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/blood.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(293,1,'2011-12-05 21:32:18','2011-12-05 21:32:18','','palomar knot','','inherit','open','open','','parla','','','2011-12-05 21:32:18','2011-12-05 21:32:18','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/parla.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(294,1,'2011-12-05 21:27:51','2011-12-05 21:27:51','<em>By Aaron Derr</em>\r\n\r\nA novice fisherman will hit the water armed only with the knowledge of an overhand knot. A real angler wouldn’t dare venture out with such a limited arsenal.\r\nDifferent situations call for different knots. The knots needed for tying fishing line to a hook are different from the knots needed to join two sections of line together.\r\n\r\nTo be prepared for anything, learn these knots before you hit the water.\r\n<h2>IMPROVED CLINCH KNOT</h2>\r\n<h2><a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-287\" title=\"improved cinch\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a></h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Thread the line through the eye of the hook, then make 5 to 7 wraps around the line with the loose end.</li>\r\n	<li>Thread the loose end of the line through the loop closest to the eye, then back around inside the loose section of line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull both ends of the line until tight.</li>\r\n	<li>Trim the loose end of the line if necessary.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TURLE KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying thin line to a small hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Run the line through the eye of the hook, then tie a loose double overhand knot in the end of the line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the open loop over the hook and tighten the whole thing so that the loop tightens around the eye.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>BLOOD KNOT</h2>\r\n(for joining two sections of line together)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Line up the ends of each line together for several inches, then wrap the first line around the second at least five times.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the second around the first at least five times, and bring both loose ends back to the middle between the two lines.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull tight on each line until the knot is snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>PALOMAR KNOT</h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Double your line to make a loop, then push the loop through the eye of your hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Tie a loose overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop around the end of the hook and pull on the line to tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>DOUBLE SURGEON\'S LOOP</h2>\r\n(for forming a loop in the end of a line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold over the end of the line to make a double line, then tie a single overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop through the hole in the overhand knot one more time.</li>\r\n	<li>Moisten the knot and tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>WIRE LINE TO MONO KNOT</h2>\r\n(for attaching wire line to monofilament)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold four inches of wire line back over itself to form a bend at the end of the line.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TUCKED SHEET BEND</h2>\r\n(for attaching line to a leader loop, or snelled hook to the line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the loop, then make a simple sheet bend knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line back through the loop of the sheet bend.</li>\r\n	<li>Tighten until snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>SNELLING A HOOK</h2>\r\n(for attaching monofilament to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the eye of the hook twice, creating a loop that hangs alongside the hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the loop around the hook, forming tight coils, 5 to 10 times.</li>\r\n	<li>Holding the coils in place with one finger, pull the line up until the loop is snug under the coils.</li>\r\n</ol>','8 Fishing Knots to Know','','inherit','open','open','','58-revision-9','','','2011-12-05 21:27:51','2011-12-05 21:27:51','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=294',0,'revision','',0),(295,1,'2011-12-05 21:33:02','2011-12-05 21:33:02','','doubleSurgeon','','inherit','open','open','','doublesurgeon','','','2011-12-05 21:33:02','2011-12-05 21:33:02','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/doubleSurgeon.png',0,'attachment','image/png',0),(296,1,'2011-12-05 21:33:14','2011-12-05 21:33:14','','wireline','','inherit','open','open','','wireline','','','2011-12-05 21:33:14','2011-12-05 21:33:14','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/wireline.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(297,1,'2011-12-05 21:33:29','2011-12-05 21:33:29','','tucked sheet bend knot','','inherit','open','open','','sheep','','','2011-12-05 21:33:29','2011-12-05 21:33:29','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/sheep.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(298,1,'2011-12-05 21:33:49','2011-12-05 21:33:49','','snelling a hook','','inherit','open','open','','snelling','','','2011-12-05 21:33:49','2011-12-05 21:33:49','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/snelling.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),(299,1,'2011-12-05 21:32:35','2011-12-05 21:32:35','<em>By Aaron Derr</em>\r\n\r\nA novice fisherman will hit the water armed only with the knowledge of an overhand knot. A real angler wouldn’t dare venture out with such a limited arsenal.\r\nDifferent situations call for different knots. The knots needed for tying fishing line to a hook are different from the knots needed to join two sections of line together.\r\n\r\nTo be prepared for anything, learn these knots before you hit the water.\r\n<h2>IMPROVED CLINCH KNOT</h2>\r\n<h2><a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-287\" title=\"improved cinch\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a></h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Thread the line through the eye of the hook, then make 5 to 7 wraps around the line with the loose end.</li>\r\n	<li>Thread the loose end of the line through the loop closest to the eye, then back around inside the loose section of line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull both ends of the line until tight.</li>\r\n	<li>Trim the loose end of the line if necessary.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TURLE KNOT</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/turtle.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-291\" title=\"turle knot\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/turtle-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"turle knot\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>(for tying thin line to a small hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Run the line through the eye of the hook, then tie a loose double overhand knot in the end of the line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the open loop over the hook and tighten the whole thing so that the loop tightens around the eye.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>BLOOD KNOT</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/blood.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-292\" title=\"blood knot\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/blood-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"blood knot\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>(for joining two sections of line together)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Line up the ends of each line together for several inches, then wrap the first line around the second at least five times.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the second around the first at least five times, and bring both loose ends back to the middle between the two lines.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull tight on each line until the knot is snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>PALOMAR KNOT</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/parla.png\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-293\" title=\"palomar knot\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/parla-150x150.png\" alt=\"palomar knot\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Double your line to make a loop, then push the loop through the eye of your hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Tie a loose overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop around the end of the hook and pull on the line to tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>DOUBLE SURGEON\'S LOOP</h2>\r\n(for forming a loop in the end of a line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold over the end of the line to make a double line, then tie a single overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop through the hole in the overhand knot one more time.</li>\r\n	<li>Moisten the knot and tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>WIRE LINE TO MONO KNOT</h2>\r\n(for attaching wire line to monofilament)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold four inches of wire line back over itself to form a bend at the end of the line.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TUCKED SHEET BEND</h2>\r\n(for attaching line to a leader loop, or snelled hook to the line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the loop, then make a simple sheet bend knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line back through the loop of the sheet bend.</li>\r\n	<li>Tighten until snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>SNELLING A HOOK</h2>\r\n(for attaching monofilament to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the eye of the hook twice, creating a loop that hangs alongside the hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the loop around the hook, forming tight coils, 5 to 10 times.</li>\r\n	<li>Holding the coils in place with one finger, pull the line up until the loop is snug under the coils.</li>\r\n</ol>','8 Fishing Knots to Know','','inherit','open','open','','58-revision-10','','','2011-12-05 21:32:35','2011-12-05 21:32:35','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=299',0,'revision','',0),(300,1,'2011-12-05 21:34:00','2011-12-05 21:34:00','<em>By Aaron Derr</em>\r\n\r\nA novice fisherman will hit the water armed only with the knowledge of an overhand knot. A real angler wouldn’t dare venture out with such a limited arsenal.\r\nDifferent situations call for different knots. The knots needed for tying fishing line to a hook are different from the knots needed to join two sections of line together.\r\n\r\nTo be prepared for anything, learn these knots before you hit the water.\r\n<h2>IMPROVED CLINCH KNOT</h2>\r\n<h2><a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-287\" title=\"improved cinch\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/improvedcinch-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a></h2>\r\n(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Thread the line through the eye of the hook, then make 5 to 7 wraps around the line with the loose end.</li>\r\n	<li>Thread the loose end of the line through the loop closest to the eye, then back around inside the loose section of line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull both ends of the line until tight.</li>\r\n	<li>Trim the loose end of the line if necessary.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TURLE KNOT</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/turtle.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-291\" title=\"turle knot\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/turtle-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"turle knot\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>(for tying thin line to a small hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Run the line through the eye of the hook, then tie a loose double overhand knot in the end of the line.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the open loop over the hook and tighten the whole thing so that the loop tightens around the eye.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>BLOOD KNOT</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/blood.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-292\" title=\"blood knot\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/blood-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"blood knot\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>(for joining two sections of line together)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Line up the ends of each line together for several inches, then wrap the first line around the second at least five times.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the second around the first at least five times, and bring both loose ends back to the middle between the two lines.</li>\r\n	<li>Pull tight on each line until the knot is snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>PALOMAR KNOT</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/parla.png\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-293\" title=\"palomar knot\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/parla-150x150.png\" alt=\"palomar knot\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>(for tying line to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Double your line to make a loop, then push the loop through the eye of your hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Tie a loose overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop around the end of the hook and pull on the line to tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>DOUBLE SURGEON\'S LOOP</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/doubleSurgeon.png\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-295\" title=\"doubleSurgeon\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/doubleSurgeon-150x150.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></a>(for forming a loop in the end of a line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold over the end of the line to make a double line, then tie a single overhand knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the loop through the hole in the overhand knot one more time.</li>\r\n	<li>Moisten the knot and tighten.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>WIRE LINE TO MONO KNOT</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/wireline.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-296\" title=\"wireline\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/wireline-150x120.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"120\" /></a>(for attaching wire line to monofilament)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Fold four inches of wire line back over itself to form a bend at the end of the line.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>TUCKED SHEET BEND</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/sheep.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-297\" title=\"tucked sheet bend knot\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/sheep-150x63.jpg\" alt=\"tucked sheet bend knot\" width=\"150\" height=\"63\" /></a>(for attaching line to a leader loop, or snelled hook to the line)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the loop, then make a simple sheet bend knot.</li>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line back through the loop of the sheet bend.</li>\r\n	<li>Tighten until snug.</li>\r\n</ol>\r\n<h2>SNELLING A HOOK</h2>\r\n<a href=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/snelling.jpg\"><img class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-298\" title=\"snelling a hook\" src=\"http://www.coastalmariner.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/snelling-150x144.jpg\" alt=\"snelling a hook\" width=\"150\" height=\"144\" /></a>(for attaching monofilament to a hook)\r\n<ol>\r\n	<li>Pass the end of the line through the eye of the hook twice, creating a loop that hangs alongside the hook.</li>\r\n	<li>Wrap the loop around the hook, forming tight coils, 5 to 10 times.</li>\r\n	<li>Holding the coils in place with one finger, pull the line up until the loop is snug under the coils.</li>\r\n</ol>','8 Fishing Knots to Know','','inherit','open','open','','58-revision-11','','','2011-12-05 21:34:00','2011-12-05 21:34:00','',58,'http://www.coastalmariner.com/?p=300',0,'revision','',0),