Saltwater Fishing with Freshwater Boat?

[Slow Ride]

Re: Saltwater Fishing with Freshwater Boat?

Sorry that was so long. I just hate to see someone being told they can't when they can with the proper precautions! I started on small boats and know you can have a ton of fun out there with the propper planning!

 

[nlain]

Re: Saltwater Fishing with Freshwater Boat?

Another thing is fuel, 1/3 out, 1/3 to get back and 1/3 for having rough water to come back in, it takes more fuel to navigate rough water. You may even have to come back inside at a different inlet than the one you went out of, it happens when people do not watch the weather or a suprise storm pops up. People here go outside in all kinds of boats, there have been reports of 13' boat at the radar towers that are offshore in our area, they should not be there, but, they do it and most of the time get back home safely just because they check the weather and look at all the conditions at the time. In this area you can catch Redfish in the range of too short to too long, 10" to 40" fish, Sheepshead around bridges and docks, Bass, Trout, Flounder, sharks, and others, all on the inside. Learn to use a castnet and catch your on bait or when the shrimp are all grown up, you can catch supper. Get a VHF radio, a gps/fishfinder/depthfinder/charplotter, if going offshore. When out on the open water if you get out of sight of land it all looks like water so you need to know which way to go to get back home. GPS/fishfinder/depthfinder will give you a cookie trail to follow which will get you back home, chartplotter will allow you to create a route to follow to get to a gps co-ordinance out in the ocean and back home again. The VHF radio will give you contact with others out on the water and if you are in range of land the various tow companies, Coast Guard, and if not in range of land other boats that are out on the water where you are. As other have said, take a boating course, stay inland until you get a feel for that water, then you can start to venture out into the ocean and see how it is, if rough inside, it is rough outside. You have to study boating, charts, weather and how the water can change with the wind. I have gone out to St Catherines Sound with water so rough that I had to go very slow to work my way to the beach I go to and then come back home on glass slick water, other times the exact opposite. The days that I went out on smooth waters and came back on the severe rough water, I would have went back home if it had been that way when I went out. Work the inland waters and get a feel for them then venture to others.
In Destin, the Choctawhatchee Bay can get as rough as the Gulf, it is a shallow bay and when the wind/tide combination is right it can be a bear to navigate and it at other times can be very smooth.
You can enjoy Saltwater and fresh water, get the proper safety equipment, study the waters, weather, and plan accordingly, get experience, training and then enjoy.

 

[Texasmark]

Re: Saltwater Fishing with Freshwater Boat?

This is total BS! Why would you tell someone this and ruin a possible great time boating and fishing?

I have been boating between salt and freshwater my entire life and have NEVER had any sort of mechanical, electrical, and/or structural problem related to saltwater. Simply flush your engine with freshwather after use and clean the boat/trailer to remove salt residue.

Boats are designed to go into saltwater environments...how else could you look at the coast of every single country that borders saltwater and see literally millions of boats floating? Proper preventative maintenance is the key. Use the search function on this site and you will see hundreds of posts on how to properly maintain your boat in a saltwater environment.

No it's not!

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Saltwater Fishing with Freshwater Boat?

all the advice about giving it a try, getting some experience and being careful would be all good except that he has that scoop bow bowrider. It's not length, it's design that worries me. If he had a different boat I'd go along with the "go for it" side. I just don't consider them seaworthy.

Maybe pondworthy, but not seaworthy.

 

[Texasmark]

Re: Saltwater Fishing with Freshwater Boat?

Mark's comments describe why the skill of the captain and the design (not the length) of the boat make all the difference. I assume the OP is not experienced outside lake boating from his post, and I looked at a picture of the boat and my opinion is that it is not designed to handle weather. Mark's bow flare is a crucial distinction.

I am a life-long salt water boater and have lived on one salt water system (estuary/bay); second place on a seaside island. I agree that the "never be the same" statement is absurd, but with one qualification. I understand there are some boats, like some of the bass boats, that are made with substandard fittings that cannot abide salt air (salt air is worse than salt water BTW). So while the occasional trip is no problem, some boats can't be kept there for 100% use. It's a shame but that happens. So we need to know if a Tahoe is such a boat--anyone keep one moored and stored in or over salt water?

As for fishing tackle, I have through the years accidentally bought tackle that could not handle salt air--even brand names like Ugly Stick turned green at the fittings. Fresh water lures don't last and I don't feel like sanding off my hooks every time I pull a lure out of the box. So like boats, get good quality and you are OK.

In my opinion they shouldn't make any boat/marine equipment that can't handle salt water, and most can, but there are exceptions to avoid.

We are on the same sheet of music. I grew up on the Texas gulf coast and while in the service on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

I loved the salt water and especially the way the fish tasted, crabs, shrimp, yes yes yes....took awhile to get accustomed to the taste of freshwater fish when that was all that I could catch when I moved inland, even though I fished Crappie and Black Bass when I was younger in fresh water lakes down south.

Seemed to me that once the salt got into things you just couldn't get it out, I don't care what kind of hygenic measures you undertook. I mean, the things wouldn't fail necessarily, even SS items, they just had this corrosion stuff in all the little nooks and crannies and everything felt like it had a scum on it....salt scum if you will...and if you had anything with any iron content in it.....forget it.

Sometimes it was subtle and sometimes it was overwhelming and yes the quality of the products made available from the supplier had a lot to do with my comment.

But it's my comment and my observation and I posted it as such.

Thanks,

Mark

 

[Texasmark]

Re: Saltwater Fishing with Freshwater Boat?

all the advice about giving it a try, getting some experience and being careful would be all good except that he has that scoop bow bowrider. It's not length, it's design that worries me. If he had a different boat I'd go along with the "go for it" side. I just don't consider them seaworthy.

Maybe pondworthy, but not seaworthy.

"Act II" if you will. Posted this after the below comment.

Not too long ago I saw a sales brochure for a Tahoe of the type described. I totally agree with with you on this. That boat seems to fit the name of the lake very well, I guess, I guess it doesn't get rough. But for family fun in calm water it looks like a gem.

I really,really liked the 20' lapstrake boats with the hard top and open arrangement, not enclosed cabins, like Thompson and the others made back in the '60's. Those boats, especially the Thompsons, with their high, flared bows, high sides, adequate length, deck and windshield is what I would have "died for" in the day.

When I got out of the service I wanted to stay down there and go out and fish Chandelier Island off the SE coast of Louisiana after purchasing a boat such as we are talking about, but you just couldn't earn the money down there, even as an appliance store service manager to support a household with 4 chillins with all your parental duties and all and afford a boat such as that....but I still dream about it.

Mark

 

[Viet Le Nguyen]

Re: Saltwater Fishing with Freshwater Boat?

Hello Everybody,

First of all, I really want to Thanks You all for the replies to the questions that I posted. I have read all of the replies and I learned alot from them. I know it is not a saltwater fishing boat, but since I have paid for the boat in full when I bought it, I may as well enjoy it for a few years before I trade it in for new saltwater fishing boat if we move down to Destin, FL. For now, I will take all your advises to enjoy this boat with my family and be safe. If I decide to go offshore for fishing, I'll probably go out for a few miles where I can still see the beach and lots of land...

Again, Thank You very much everybody for all your replies...

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Saltwater Fishing with Freshwater Boat?

with that boat, don't go any further than you feel comfortable swimming back.