Thoughts....charter

HotSoup

Old Mossy Horns
What are you guys thoughts on this.

You pay $2400 to go fishing. You know its going to be rough so your party of 6 decide that mahi would be a better choice since the tuna have been few and far between. You let the captain and mate know this before you leave the dock and get told. "We have been catching some where we are going". You ride around in a washtub all day for 2 mahi and one tuna while the docks are full of mahi when you get back. Im rather disappointed, but should I feel this way? Ive fished many days and caught nothing so I understand that is fishing but I also didnt use a days wages to do so.
 

Mr.Gadget

Old Mossy Horns
Sounded like he did not do what you paid for....
Time to cut in to his tip or ask for a discount on the next trip after mahi.
 

sky hawk

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Different perspectives on that. Basically, 1) I paid for the trip- the captain should obey our wishes, or 2) I trust the captain to make the choice that will give us the best trip.

Either way, I’m sure he wanted you to be successful. There’s always a bit of risk-reward.
 

Buxndiverdux

Old Mossy Horns
What are you guys thoughts on this.

You pay $2400 to go fishing. You know its going to be rough so your party of 6 decide that mahi would be a better choice since the tuna have been few and far between. You let the captain and mate know this before you leave the dock and get told. "We have been catching some where we are going". You ride around in a washtub all day for 2 mahi and one tuna while the docks are full of mahi when you get back. Im rather disappointed, but should I feel this way? Ive fished many days and caught nothing so I understand that is fishing but I also didnt use a days wages to do so.

That’s fishing. Not sure about your situation, but when I book a charter for anything, I have researched what that captain and mate have done over a considerable amount of time, so I know exactly what I’m dealing with. If the fish don’t cooperate, it is what it is. Normally those charter fleets work together to help make a trip. I would say it was unusual to not hear a captain talking via vhf or sat phone if he was on fish or looking some fish.
 

wolfpacker

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
I had a so/so experience too on charter boat one time too. , i wasn't paying so i couldn't say much.

Is trolling easier to do than bottom fishing? The 2 groups of us went out. My boat the captain only trolled and we cought very little. Other boat bottom fished and caught a ton. When he checked with bottom fishing boat he said they were only catching sharks.
 

oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
What are you guys thoughts on this.

You pay $2400 to go fishing. You know its going to be rough so your party of 6 decide that mahi would be a better choice since the tuna have been few and far between. You let the captain and mate know this before you leave the dock and get told. "We have been catching some where we are going". You ride around in a washtub all day for 2 mahi and one tuna while the docks are full of mahi when you get back. Im rather disappointed, but should I feel this way? Ive fished many days and caught nothing so I understand that is fishing but I also didnt use a days wages to do so.
well yeah you should feel disappointed. you want to catch fish when you go fishing. Trolling around all day in rough seas and not catching anything is akin to torture.

Why would the captain deliberately take you off fish? It's just dolphin, the sea is full of them.
Surely radio chatter indicated they were being caught?
golden rule is don't guide the guide but we really have to be clear in our wishes. and sometimes they cant catch them doing their best.
I hope that was your case, not that they rode around to kill time.
That's my thoughts. OMMV.
 

Justin

Old Mossy Horns
Post the boat and captain so others wont make the same mistake. Any capt worth a darn should be able to find mahi
We don’t see eye to eye on much but damn if you didn’t hit the nail on the head here. I’d be curious as to who it was and why they didn’t have a working relationship with the rest of the fleet. Dolphin are the bream of the bluewater.
 

HotSoup

Old Mossy Horns
Very well known boat and captain. Have had great success in the past with him for the last few years. They tried no doubt but our expectations were thrown out there from the beginning and ignored. The fleet split that morning, 2 different game plans with 2 different outcomes.
 

btsharky

Twelve Pointer
Post the boat and captain so others wont make the same mistake. Any capt worth a darn should be able to find mahi
Really? If his sat shots showed him a temp break then that is probably where he went and USUALLY you catch fish, I really don't think he decided to say screw it and have a bad day. I probably go out 15-20 times a summer (not on a charter) and some days are just slow. I am sure he thought he was doing what was best for his customers. No need to run the captain or boat down guys.
 

Buffet Trout

Twelve Pointer
If you directed him to get you on dolphin, he should have followed your directions. How assertive/passive were you?
 

Justin

Old Mossy Horns
Really? If his sat shots showed him a temp break then that is probably where he went and USUALLY you catch fish, I really don't think he decided to say screw it and have a bad day. I probably go out 15-20 times a summer (not on a charter) and some days are just slow. I am sure he thought he was doing what was best for his customers. No need to run the captain or boat down guys.


Wasn’t much to run him down, but my understanding was he wasn’t with the rest of the fleet (that obviously caught), and if that’s the case, then maybe there was a potentially toxic situation. Not really as much to do with his efforts or knowledge, as it was why he wasn’t in the loop. Now it appears half the fleet went one way and half went the other. In the initial post, I took it as they were lone wolfing it, which is a little odd. Makes more sense now that he says half the fleet had the same result.
 

btsharky

Twelve Pointer
We stayed about a couple of miles from the fleet Sunday most of the day and caught 6 tuna with no shark bites. The chatter from the fleet was they were not getting many fish to the boat without sharks eating them. Sometimes it's better to follow your instinct.
 

btsharky

Twelve Pointer
We stayed about a couple of miles from the fleet Sunday most of the day and caught 6 tuna with no shark bites. The chatter from the fleet was they were not getting many fish to the boat without sharks eating them. Sometimes it's better to follow your instinct.
HotSoup, I am sorry that you had a slow day but I assure you it happens to the best of them!!
 

oldest school

Old Mossy Horns
Very well known boat and captain. Have had great success in the past with him for the last few years. They tried no doubt but our expectations were thrown out there from the beginning and ignored. The fleet split that morning, 2 different game plans with 2 different outcomes.
Given this I don't think you should be so disappointed. You go with anyone and have great success repeatedly just gets you closer to a bomb day imo/e.
 

Roanoke

Eight Pointer
You had a slow day. It happens and it will happen again if you spend enough time on the water. Our dolphin fishing is not what it use to be. We have world class offshore fishing in NC but the gaffer fishing in May and June use to be amazing. Very common to fill the box by 10:00am and spend the rest of the day in the deep looking for billfish. It is not as consistent as it use to be. I can remember one June when you could not keep a line out for more than ten seconds before a gaffer would get on. I would pray for a fish not to bite so that I could catch my breath and get my gear organized. That fishery made for some happy clients. Hopefully it is a cycle but I think the increase in international long liners may have some impact.
 
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Justin

Old Mossy Horns
You had a slow day. It happens and it will happen again if you spend enough time on the water. Our dolphin fishing is not what it use to be. We have world class offshore fishing in NC but the gaffer fishing in May and June use to be amazing. Very common to fill the box by 10:00am and spend the rest of the day in the deep looking for billfish. It is not as consistent as it use to be. I can remember one June when you could not keep a line out for more than ten seconds before a gaffer would get on. I would pray for a fish not to bite so that I could catch my breath and get my gear organized. That fishery made for some happy clients. Hopefully it is a cycle but I think the increase in international long liners may have some impact.

Best day I recall is full box by 10 and doing exactly as described. 580lbs when we got back to the dock. Spent the rest of the day looking for billfish
 

Roanoke

Eight Pointer
My advise is to travel to a place where you can really have some consistency. Charter Boats that fish 200 plus days a year may only catch 10 to 15 Blue Marlins and that is a good year. If you want to catch Billfish then I recommend that you travel. NC can have good fishing but do not expect to charter a boat and catch a Blue Marlin in one day. My best day ever in NC was back in the 90's off of Hatteras and caught 4 blue marlins. I was filling in for Burl Wilson's mate on the Good Times that day. Those old Maine lobster boat designs can raise some fish! The best blue marlin fishing that I have experienced was years ago when I traveled to Venezuela. The next trip I want to do is a three day FAD trip off of Costa Rica.
If you want to catch just billfish then I would go to OI in Sept. to fish for White Marlin. Check reports and make sure fish are there. . Other than that I would go to Isla Mujeres in the early spring for Sailfish. Very affordable. Costa Rica is great but it is getting more expensive. If you wanted to catch big Marlin then I would go to Australia. I have still never caught a grander. Make sure you do your research before you travel.


MISSION STATEMENT
The North Carolina Watermen United organization represents the needs of our coastal communities by protecting the livelihood of the people who fish for a living and provides a voice for fair regulations.



http://ncwu.net/
 
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