Innholdsfortegnelse for July/August 2019 i Sport Fishing

The 33T Aventura heralds a new era in design for Stamas Yacht, the oldest family-owned boatbuilder in the United States. The Tarpon Springs, Florida-based company was founded in 1938, and in recent years, its Aegean express series and Tarpon center-console line have served as rock-solid pillars in a heretofore seven-model stable of saltwater fishing boats that stretches from 28 feet, 9 inches to 39 feet in length. I have run a number of Stamas models, and have always admired the top-quality construction and abundant fishing features of this tried-and-true lineup. So I was anxious to get aboard the new model. That opportunity arrived on a sunny day in early April at Thunder Marine in St. Petersburg, Florida. Even from afar, I recognized that the Aventura represented a new approach for…

EMERGENCY CRACKER STASH You never know when the weather might turn a one-day outing into a multiday trip, as you’re forced to anchor up in the lee of a remote cay or island to wait for safer sea conditions to return home. That’s why I always carry aboard extra drinking water for hydration. I also stash away a supply of cheese and peanut-butter sandwich crackers. Each packet comes sealed, and the contents seem to last forever. These are also handy if someone forgets to bring sufficient provisions. You can pick up a variety pack of 45 Austin Toasty Crackers for about $12. ROYAL FLUSH At the end of a long fishing day, who wouldn’t want to complete boat cleanup chores faster and easier? That’s the idea behind the Fast Flushem…

The ocean surface stretched like an endless pane of glass that magnified the sun’s glaring heat on this June Florida morning. Sweat poured from my brow as I slung a scoop of pre-mixed sand-and-chum gruel into the clear water behind the boat, then free-lined a chunk of bonito, a hook buried inside, allowing it to descend amid the aromatic grit. I watched it sink into the deep blue until I could see it no more. ¶ Within seconds after the bait disappeared from sight, line began to melt from the spinning reel in a spiraling blur. I closed the bail and wound tight to set the hook. Violent head shakes 100 feet below nearly wrenched the rod from my grasp. That fish is not happy, I thought to myself. For…

SHALLOW STALKER Airmar’s new TM165HW transducer delivers 600 watts of power, is chirp-ready, and provides inshore anglers with more sensitivity to detect fish close to the bottom and more-accurate returns of fish and bait. To do all that, Airmar delivers an average beam width of 30 degrees—wider than most high-frequency transducers—across the entire 150 to 250 kHz band. The wider beam also means greater fish detection in the upper water column nearer the boat. The transducer pairs with current-model Lowrance, Simrad, Raymarine, Garmin and Humminbird units via an adapter. The retail price for the transducer is $499. SURPRISE REVEAL C-Map has released its new Reveal charts, featuring ultra-high-resolution bathymetric imagery of select coastal and offshore areas, including crisp views of structure, wrecks, isolated reefs and ledges between the contour lines.…

For more than a decade, FLIR Systems has built thermal cameras for the marine market. What was once considered luxury technology best-suited for the biggest oceangoing vessels and sport-fishers now finds purpose on boats of all sizes. To be sure, thermal-imaging technology mainly assists with safety and navigation—at night and during the day. But it also helps find fish. To explore all of the ways this visual aid works for anglers, I spoke to FLIR/Raymarine marketing manager Jim McGowan. Here are his tips for when and how to best use thermal. IN TRANSIT Anglers leaving early from any East Coast port head directly into the rising sun as they run offshore. “The low sun reflecting off the water can create some very serious glare issues that make seeing objects ahead…

Thank goodness for boat trailers. Without them, many anglers might not own boats. Marinas would fill to capacity, and prospective boat owners would be out of luck. That, of course, is not the case. An estimated 11 million boats ride to and from the water on trailers in the United States. To me, a trailer is a chariot that carries my fishing boat to new adventures. Yet a trailer for a saltwater boat faces a tough life. It requires rugged construction and corrosion-resistant finishes and equipment, as well as regular maintenance, to keep it safely rolling down the highway. Here are 10 factors to consider when choosing your chariot. 1 WEIGHT RATING When buying a new trailer, your boatbuilder, dealer or trailer shop serves as an invaluable source in helping…

The South Florida seas had grown into nasty 4- to 5-footers; the sky darkened. If it hadn’t been the August full-moon period, Capt. Chris Fay would not have ventured offshore. But he and his buddy were confident that it was prime time to catch a wahoo. ¶ “It was rough…nasty,” recalls Fay, a Deerfield Beach, Florida, charter captain (poseidontoo.net). “We had been fishing in 300 feet, but we saw a storm coming in, so we went into shallow water, 97 feet.” Fay continues: “Right before the sun went down, the moon was coming up. As soon as that moon popped, the one fish that we were looking for decided to feed. We were doing a turn, and I looked over at the short planer rod, and that thing just started…

I arrived at the dock outside Intrepid Powerboats’ Dania Beach, Florida, facility about 15 minutes before my captain on the morning of my early-April test day—a calculated move that would allow me to privately peruse my test platform: the new 375 Nomad. As I scanned the marina to locate the boat, my eyes locked on a rakish, green-sided center-console powered by triple Mercury 400R outboards. Its ever-so-subtle sweeping sheer line, integrated hardtop and wraparound glass windshield put me in mind of a highper-formance fighter aircraft. “That’s it,” I said to myself. Later I would learn that the 375’s unusual, custom iridescent green hull is the same shade as that on a Chrysler Hellcat muscle car owned by Intrepid president Ken Clinton. I stepped aboard through the beefy dive door on…

THE FIRST MODEL in Gamefisherman’s Nex Gen composite series is a new 46-foot walkaround powered by quad 300 or 350 outboards. The 46 features a Bausch American custom hardtop, carbon-fiber outriggers and a fully air-conditioned helm deck with a clear vinyl enclosure. Other fishing amenities include two 25-cubic-foot in-deck fish boxes and a 50-gallon livewell built into the transom. The oversize cockpit comes with a custom tackle station designed by the company’s owner, and belowdecks, anglers will find a roomy V-berth forward, a large galley with a refrigerator and microwave, a separate third bunk aft, and a spacious head and separate stand-up shower. Gamefisherman expects the quad outboards to propel the 46 to a cruising speed of 40 mph, and a top end approaching 52 mph. The first model should…

Our panga wallowed in a hefty Pacific swell just a few hundred yards off a rocky peninsula while the skipper used the engine to hold us in a position both safe and close enough so we could cast our lures into the sweet spot behind the heaving mass of green water. Balancing precariously on the raised foredeck, one angler launched a popper, an industrial-size lure subscribing a graceful arc. The second it splashed down behind the breaking crest of a swell, he snapped the spinner’s bail shut, and with stiff popping action, began plunging the cup-faced lure over the wave. Moments later, the surface to the right of the popper boiled as a rusty brown shape suddenly appeared and inhaled the lure. The line came taut, the rod bent and—despite…