"Wayne.B" wrote in message
news
On Wed, 08 Dec 2004 13:27:29 GMT, "NOYB" wrote:

I prefer fishing for tarpon from the 17' for that very reason. The
biggest
one I caught weighed about 100 lbs. I fought him on spinning gear (Penn
7500 SS and 30 lb test) for 45 minutes...and he passed under the anchor
line
7 times.

============================

Where did you catch it, and what kind of bait?

Off the doubles (two condos side-by-side) by FMB. 13 ft. of water. Bait:
catfish chunk (mid-section). 5/0 Owner hook. 80 lb. Fluorocarbon leader
tied uni-to-uni to the 30 lb. Momoi. Free-lined with no weight. I had live
thread herrings out on the bottom and a foot under the surface, but with no
takers. I caught the fish in late April/early May of this year.

You should join the FMB Tarpon Hunters club...or at least monitor channel 6
on the VHF from mid-March through June. You'll see 10-20 boats bunched up
anywhere from 1/4 mile to 2 miles off FMB and south Sanibel. If the boats
are drifting, then idle *slowly* up-current from them and get in the end of
the line. If they're anchored, then idle in *slowly* and make sure you're
at least a couple of hundred *yards* aways from another anchored boat.

Best bait: catfish chunks, spanish mackeral chunks (catch them now and
freeze them), live threadfin herring (greenies).

On Wed, 08 Dec 2004 13:27:29 GMT, "NOYB" wrote:


"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
.. .
On Wed, 08 Dec 2004 12:50:20 GMT, "NOYB" wrote:

~~ snippage ~~

I've owned (in order) a 13' Whaler, a 22' Whaler, and a 23' Grady-White.
I
currently own a 17' Whaler and 25' Whaler. My dad owns a 15' Whaler, and
my
brother owns an 18' Whaler. For the exact reason that you give, I prefer
the
Whaler. I loved the lay-out of the Grady (easier to fish), but the ride
was
worse than the 22 or 25 Whaler, it was wetter, and it wasn't unsinkable.

Prior to the Contender, I was looking for a new, larger boat for
longer offshore trips and trips outside of the islands. Boston Whaler
was high on my list of boats, but the pricing was outrageous compared
to other boats I looked at. I could certainly afford one - it just
went against my natural reluctance to pay the biggest bucks for
something. That and Whaler didn't really make a boat similar to the
Fountain/Contender/Regulator/Mako type of center consoles with the
enclosed cuddy in the bow (although they did once).

That's the one that I have. 25' Boston Whaler Outrage Cuddy. It's great
with the kids because they can escape the sun or bad weather and take a nap.
To be honest though, I'd rather have Whaler's 28' Outrage from 1999-2002.
It's a center console...but the console is really just a big cabin plunked
down in the middle of the boat. It provides true 360 degree fishability
without having to step up onto a narrow walkaround platform like a Grady
requires. Contender makes a 31' and a 36' with this same configuration...but
Contender's cabins are sleeker, thus providing more fishability above decks.
Tarpon, Kings, and Permit are three fish that will circle your boat several
times while fighting them. If you happen to be anchored, you better be able
to pass that rod under the anchor line when the fish goes under it.

I've never had that problem although I've come close. Normally, I'm
fishing with guests and I maneuver the boat to prevent that kind of
problem.

I prefer fishing for tarpon from the 17' for that very reason. The biggest
one I caught weighed about 100 lbs. I fought him on spinning gear (Penn
7500 SS and 30 lb test) for 45 minutes...and he passed under the anchor line
7 times.

I also didn't
care for the lack of room in the Outrage series - the cockpit seemed
very cramped.

Yes, the new ones are tight. I believe that Whaler has mislabeled them, by
counting the added length from the pulpit and Euro transom. The 24' has the
cockpit and walkaround room of a 21-footer. The 27' has the room of a
24-footer, and the 32' has the room of a 29-footer. When you take that into
account, then the Whaler *really* looks expensive when you compare it to
boats with equal room. Nevertheless, I'd buy one...but I'd wait until it was
4 or 5 years old and a little bit cheaper. Once the initial depreciation is
out of a new Whaler, you can sell it several years later for almost the same
price that you paid for it..

Good point.

But they are good boats - no doubt about it.

I still wouldn't trade my Contender for one. :)

Even in 8 foot confused seas, with two dead batteries, and a leaky live-well
thru-hull? ;-)

Sea//Tow. :)

Later,

Tom

"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 08 Dec 2004 13:27:29 GMT, "NOYB" wrote:


"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in
message
. ..
On Wed, 08 Dec 2004 12:50:20 GMT, "NOYB" wrote:

~~ snippage ~~

I've owned (in order) a 13' Whaler, a 22' Whaler, and a 23'
Grady-White.
I
currently own a 17' Whaler and 25' Whaler. My dad owns a 15' Whaler, and
my
brother owns an 18' Whaler. For the exact reason that you give, I prefer
the
Whaler. I loved the lay-out of the Grady (easier to fish), but the ride
was
worse than the 22 or 25 Whaler, it was wetter, and it wasn't unsinkable.

Prior to the Contender, I was looking for a new, larger boat for
longer offshore trips and trips outside of the islands. Boston Whaler
was high on my list of boats, but the pricing was outrageous compared
to other boats I looked at. I could certainly afford one - it just
went against my natural reluctance to pay the biggest bucks for
something. That and Whaler didn't really make a boat similar to the
Fountain/Contender/Regulator/Mako type of center consoles with the
enclosed cuddy in the bow (although they did once).

That's the one that I have. 25' Boston Whaler Outrage Cuddy. It's great
with the kids because they can escape the sun or bad weather and take a
nap.
To be honest though, I'd rather have Whaler's 28' Outrage from 1999-2002.
It's a center console...but the console is really just a big cabin plunked
down in the middle of the boat. It provides true 360 degree fishability
without having to step up onto a narrow walkaround platform like a Grady
requires. Contender makes a 31' and a 36' with this same
configuration...but
Contender's cabins are sleeker, thus providing more fishability above
decks.
Tarpon, Kings, and Permit are three fish that will circle your boat
several
times while fighting them. If you happen to be anchored, you better be
able
to pass that rod under the anchor line when the fish goes under it.

I've never had that problem although I've come close. Normally, I'm
fishing with guests and I maneuver the boat to prevent that kind of
problem.

I prefer fishing for tarpon from the 17' for that very reason. The
biggest
one I caught weighed about 100 lbs. I fought him on spinning gear (Penn
7500 SS and 30 lb test) for 45 minutes...and he passed under the anchor
line
7 times.

I also didn't
care for the lack of room in the Outrage series - the cockpit seemed
very cramped.

Yes, the new ones are tight. I believe that Whaler has mislabeled them,
by
counting the added length from the pulpit and Euro transom. The 24' has
the
cockpit and walkaround room of a 21-footer. The 27' has the room of a
24-footer, and the 32' has the room of a 29-footer. When you take that
into
account, then the Whaler *really* looks expensive when you compare it to
boats with equal room. Nevertheless, I'd buy one...but I'd wait until it
was
4 or 5 years old and a little bit cheaper. Once the initial depreciation
is
out of a new Whaler, you can sell it several years later for almost the
same
price that you paid for it..

Good point.

But they are good boats - no doubt about it.

I still wouldn't trade my Contender for one. :)

Even in 8 foot confused seas, with two dead batteries, and a leaky
live-well
thru-hull? ;-)

Sea//Tow. :)


That's true. Plus, if you were sinking, the Coast Guard could always come
out to help you in *their* Boston Whaler. ;-)

Subject: Boston Whaler or Grady White?
From: Wayne.B

Good information, thanks. I can run down to FMB in about 45 mins from
here but had not realized there were big Tarpon offshore there.


There's big tarpon all along this coast.

Capt. Bill

On 08 Dec 2004 23:46:12 GMT, (LaBomba182) wrote:

Subject: Boston Whaler or Grady White?
From: Wayne.B

Good information, thanks. I can run down to FMB in about 45 mins from
here but had not realized there were big Tarpon offshore there.

There's big tarpon all along this coast.

Of all the species that I have in my log book, I don't have a tarpon.

Later,

Tom

"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
...
On 08 Dec 2004 23:46:12 GMT, (LaBomba182) wrote:

Subject: Boston Whaler or Grady White?
From: Wayne.B

Good information, thanks. I can run down to FMB in about 45 mins from
here but had not realized there were big Tarpon offshore there.

There's big tarpon all along this coast.

Of all the species that I have in my log book, I don't have a tarpon.


I'm sure your list of "dont-haves" is a lot shorter than mine. ;-)

On Wed, 8 Dec 2004 20:13:41 -0500, "NOYB" wrote:


"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
.. .
On 08 Dec 2004 23:46:12 GMT, (LaBomba182) wrote:

Subject: Boston Whaler or Grady White?
From: Wayne.B

Good information, thanks. I can run down to FMB in about 45 mins from
here but had not realized there were big Tarpon offshore there.

There's big tarpon all along this coast.

Of all the species that I have in my log book, I don't have a tarpon.

I'm sure your list of "dont-haves" is a lot shorter than mine. ;-)

Ok, I'm not bragging here - just so that we understand each other.

And we'll keep this to sal****er game fish.

Billfish: Pacific/Atlantic Blue, black, white marlin - don't have a
striped or green. Atlantic/Pacific Sail, sword and a spearfish, but I
can't take credit for it because it didn't get tagged.

Tunas: All eight species.

Shark: Mako, blue, black tip, hammerhead, tiger.

Misc: Barracuda, wahoo, dolphin, snook, bonefish, permit, King
salmon, two species of grouper, striped bass

That's right off the top of my head - actually the most memorable fish
I've caught.

Later,

Tom

"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in message
news
On Wed, 8 Dec 2004 20:13:41 -0500, "NOYB" wrote:


"Short Wave Sportfishing" wrote in
message
. ..
On 08 Dec 2004 23:46:12 GMT, (LaBomba182) wrote:

Subject: Boston Whaler or Grady White?
From: Wayne.B

Good information, thanks. I can run down to FMB in about 45 mins from
here but had not realized there were big Tarpon offshore there.

There's big tarpon all along this coast.

Of all the species that I have in my log book, I don't have a tarpon.

I'm sure your list of "dont-haves" is a lot shorter than mine. ;-)

Ok, I'm not bragging here - just so that we understand each other.

And we'll keep this to sal****er game fish.

Billfish: Pacific/Atlantic Blue, black, white marlin - don't have a
striped or green. Atlantic/Pacific Sail, sword and a spearfish, but I
can't take credit for it because it didn't get tagged.


Tunas: All eight species.

Shark: Mako, blue, black tip, hammerhead, tiger.

Misc: Barracuda, wahoo, dolphin, snook, bonefish, permit, King
salmon, two species of grouper, striped bass

That's right off the top of my head - actually the most memorable fish
I've caught.


See! I told you your list of "never-caught" would be a lot shorter than
mine. The only fish in the tuna family that I've caught was a *big* little
tunny. Man they fight hard. He measured 37", and I suspect about
20-25lbs...but he fought like a 5 foot shark.

I've caught most of my prized catches this year: 5 1/2 foot blacktip shark
in January, 90-100 lb. Tarpon in April, several 20-30 lb. cobia in May, an
eight-foot nurse shark in June, and a 125lb (est.) striped marlin in August.
All but the marlin were caught within 5 miles of shore, and within 15 miles
of my home pass (you call them "inlets" on the East coast). The marlin came
out of the Pacific off of Los Cabos. Because of the heavy gear we used for
the Marlin, the tarpon fight seemed like a lot harder work-out.

I'm hoping to get a "smoker" king this year. I've caught several "snakes"
(skinny kings) the last few times out. I also hear the blackfin tuna are
out about 30-50 miles around the shrimp boats. I'm waiting for those things
to move to within 20-30 miles so I can target them.

Ooooop's sorry, I thought the thread was about boats, Grady Whites and
Boston Whalers. Silly me.

It is. It was diverted to a sidebar by an OT remark from NOYB and my response
to him. He should have started an OT thread, not cluttered this one.

"Gould 0738" wrote in message
...
Ooooop's sorry, I thought the thread was about boats, Grady Whites and
Boston Whalers. Silly me.

It is. It was diverted to a sidebar by an OT remark from NOYB and my
response
to him. He should have started an OT thread, not cluttered this one.

Or you could have responded in an OT thread...