fishing sailboat

Matt Weidert

Sailboat Fishing Guide: How to Fish from a Sailboat

Fishing tackle and equipment, fishing techniques and the lures to bring, where to fish while sailboat fishing, we've caught one, now what.

To rent, or to bring your own?

Bring your own gear, shimano tld-30iia reel .

Other equipment for fishing off a sailboat

Trolling from a sailboat for bluewater sportfish

Casting for mahi-mahi or tuna on the surface

• Birds or a disturbed water surface. This usually means the birds and fish are attacking a bait ball. Go join in on the action! They are in a frenzy and will eat anything.
• Mahi-mahi love to hang around weed lines or other floating debris. It is said they don't like the sun very much. Get close to investigate - you can often see them in clear water.

Bottom dropping for reef fish species

Jigging for bottom fish.

How to fillet your fish

• Tuna (yellowfin or blackfin)

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Home » Blog » Sail » Sailboat fishing: expert tips on fishing from a sailboat

Sailboat fishing: expert tips on fishing from a sailboat

By Author Guest Post

Posted on Last updated: November 20, 2023

Many sailors don’t realize that sailboat fishing is really quite simple and can be a sustainable (and delicious!) way to supplement their diets.

This article explains how to fish from your sailboat (and dingy) and is an edited extract from The Hunter & The Gatherer, a cookbook and provisioning guide by Catherine Lawson and David Bristow.

Catherine and David are long-time, liveaboard sailors and are currently cruising with their 10-year-old daughter on their 40ft cat, Wild One . 

If the idea of harvesting your own seafood appeals to you, we recommend checking out their book The Hunter & The Gatherer, published by Exploring Eden Media . For every copy sold, one tree is planted! Check it out or order your copy here .

If you needed any more motivation to give sailboat fishing a try, Catherine and David have included a kickass recipe for Fijian Queenfish Kokoda (a conconut, lime, and chile infused ceviche) at the end of this post.

Waterborne is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Fishing from the back of your sailboat or yacht

Our boat Wild One really pulls its weight when we sail, and it’s a rare (or rough) day on the water when we don’t have at least one hand line out.

We regularly (fingers crossed) catch all kinds of tuna and mackerel, giant trevally, and maybe a mahi mahi (dolphinfish or dorado) or a wahoo this way.

I tend to keep the lines out longer than Catherine, but as long as we wind them in before sunset, we can usually avoid snaring sharks and the delicate mission of getting them off the line without harm.

Fishing tackle and equipment

On long, leisurely sails, we’ll often detour across sandy shoals or pinnacles where large pelagics (and the seabirds that give them away) tend to hunt.

We use large hand lines secured to the stern rails with bungy loops to take the shock load when a large pelagic bites down. Ours are wrapped with overpowered 350-500 pound mono to prevent big fish from snapping the lines.

I add a heavy-duty swivel, and trolling lures are crimped on for strength and to make the system more streamlined. I never tie knots, and we rarely lose a fish and never a lure (although they do get retired after too many bites).

My favorite lures are Halco’s deep diving, red-and-white ‘Qantas’ lures, but when big pelagics are around, I swap the standard treble hooks out for large singles.

There are a few reasons I choose hand lines over boat rods.

1. Hand lines are dirt cheap and available everywhere (we often beach comb them off the high tide mark).

2. They have no moving parts to break and are very quick to wind in when retrieving a catch, although you do need a bit of strength to wrangle in big fish.

Being on a catamaran, we can run out two lines without them fouling each other. But we do run them at different distances (one 25 meters, the other 40 meters) and with lures that swim at different depths.

Catching fish by boat is by no means a certainty, but it increases our chances of reaching an anchorage with protein ready to cook.

Dispatching your fish

I can’t stress enough how important it is to kill your catch swiftly and humanely, even when underway.

If the sailing conditions become too hectic to deal with a potential catch, I feel it’s better to pull the lines in rather than catch a fish that I can’t treat properly and respectfully.

There are lots of ways to bring large pelagics on board when underway, but here’s what I do aboard Wild One .

Once gaffed and safely on board, dispatch your catch humanely and swiftly by spiking its brain.

The brain is located in the middle of the fish’s head, just behind the eye, and you will know when you’ve hit it because your fish will spasm briefly, its fins will flare for a moment, and then the fish will then go limp.

Cleaning and fileting

To bleed the fish, lay it flat and cut behind the gills with your knife facing toward the fish’s head.

Slice from top to bottom until you see blood flow, then repeat on the other side.

Submerge or rinse the fish well in salt water, or if conditions permit, drag it by its tail for a minute or two to flush and clean it ready for filleting.

Slice off your fillets (don’t wet the fish again if you can help it), and place them in a large colander over a bowl (covered with a beeswax wrap or similar) to drain and rest in the fridge.

This resting helps drain the lactic acid that builds up in large, fighting pelagic fish. I usually drain fillets overnight, and whatever doesn’t get eaten while it’s fresh is bagged, labeled, and frozen.

Some sailors abhor the idea of sending fresh fish to the freezer, but when we’re cruising, especially in remote sailing grounds, fish provide an essential source of protein, and nothing is wasted.

Those species that are prolific and sustainably caught, prepared with respect, and fully utilized to reduce wastage, can help to feed you and your family when stores are a distant memory, and on all those days when the fish aren’t biting.

Shore Fishing

Boat life can get busy, but when I do have some downtime, you’ll find me holding the end of a rod while nursing something cold at day’s end.

When we jump into the dinghy to explore a new anchorage or to head ashore, I’ll always run a few lines out in the hope of snaring a fish before we hit the beach. If we have to use our fuel, we may as well turn every dinghy run into a fishing expedition.

When trolling in the tender along reefs, sand troughs, or mangrove-fringed shorelines, I use a scaled-down version of the hand reels on board or cast an overhead bait caster rod with smaller hard body lures or soft plastics.

This rod combo is extremely accurate when trying to land a lure into a tight location, or when chasing those ever-elusive barramundis, mangrove jack, and delicious varieties of cod.

These fighters demand patience and are all excellent eating, but if things don’t go your way, the mangroves are also great places to gather a feed of oysters at low tide.

In northern Australia, queenfish and trevally are regularly caught while dinghy trolling over sandbars, off river mouths, over inshore reefs, and sometimes by rod while standing on a beach with a beer.

Spearing reef fish

We spend a lot of time cruising in the tropics where coral reefs, and the trout, snapper, jobfish, and trevally they nurture, are generally abundant.

Anytime we can get in the water is an adventure, and while we are exploring a new reef, spearfishing provides a selective way to get dinner on board.

With a long enough breath-hold and plenty of patience, spearfishing can provide us with a meal in a manner that’s sustainable and respectful to the reefs.

This is really what got me into spearfishing because I can consciously choose a fish that is of suitable size and abundant in the places we drop anchor without harming any other fish in the process.

It’s also a great skill to learn, provides an excellent workout, and is one of the most authentic ways to take a fish.

I use a Rob Allen 1200 Sniper rail gun with dual bands and a 7mm carbon steel shaft. I find that the shaft stays true and is more accurate than other guns I’ve owned.

EDITOR’s Note: Some reef fish contain a toxin that causes a food-borne illness known as Ciguatera . It causes gastrointestinal and neurological symptoms and in very rare cases can be fatal. For this reason, many cruisers avoid eating reef fish altogether.

When you have to buy fish

Sometimes the fish just aren’t biting, and the reef fish are too skittish and too small to be speared. When we face a dry spell, we revert to our vegetarian ways, tucking into tempeh, beans, eggs, and lentils.

There’s always the option of buying fish as we go, from passing fishermen who visit our anchorages or in local markets where the daily catch comes with few food miles.

But bigger centers and supermarkets challenge conscious consumers who want to know just how sustainable their dinner really is. It can be difficult (and sometimes impossible) to know where and how a fish has been caught and whether a particular species is abundant in the location where it was taken.

These questions matter. 85% of global fish stocks are fully or over-exploited, depleted, or in recovery from exploitation . Thanks to our collective, growing hunger for seafood, all ocean ecosystems, including by-catch populations, are in peril.

The bulk of the guilt can be levied at large-scale fishing operations – trawlers, longliners, and gillnetters. But even at local levels, the stripping of coral reefs and continuing use of dynamite (blast) fishing has a devastating, irreversible impact.

When a blast went off in eastern Indonesia’s Kei Islands in late 2022, we thought our rigging had snapped and the mast was coming down.

We rushed out on deck, puzzled and perplexed, only to see a boatload of fishermen working with hand nets to scoop up fish. This desperate means to a meal is short-sighted at best, and the heartbreaking destruction of the reef and its minute and complex ecosystems will haunt these island populations for decades to come.

Fish farms or ‘sea ranches’ don’t always provide a better alternative and can be incredibly wasteful. Take, for example, Australia’s southern bluefin tuna.

This critically endangered species is caught from the wild and fattened in feedlots off the South Australian coast, primarily for export to foreign markets.

The Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) reports that it takes up to 12 kilograms of wild-caught fish to grow one kilogram of southern bluefin tuna .

The maths just doesn’t add up, and wild-caught fish stocks used as tuna food are jeopardized further by the release of pollution from aquaculture farms back into the sea via uneaten fishmeal, antibiotics, and concentrated fish waste .

The good news is that you can wade through the confusion by downloading the Sustainable Seafood Guide app or check your choices at goodfish.org.au . In the USA, download the Seafood Watch Consumer Guide for a list of best buys wherever you live.

Recipe from The Hunter & The Gatherer

Queenfish kokoda.

Love it or hate it, raw fish gets a lot of people excited. When you land a beautiful fish (and it doesn’t have to be tuna), or someone gifts you a couple of fresh fillets after a day at sea, ceviche is a tasty, no-fuss way to get any meal started.

This Fijian-style ceviche, known as kokoda, balances out the raw fish perfectly and packs it with flavor.

To add crunch (and stretch the dish), stir through chopped tomato, cucumber, and fresh capsicum before serving, and dish it up in coconut shells, clams or, lettuce cups. Otherwise, savor it in its virgin state, slowly.

Ingredients

• 500g (1lb) queenfish (or any firm white fish)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 2 finely chopped spring onions (scallion)(or 1/2 red onion or 4-5 shallots)
• 1/3 cup finely chopped coriander (cilantro) and mint
• 1 fresh red chili, finely chopped(or 1 tsp dried crushed chili)
• 1/3 cup coconut milk
• cracked black pepper
• extra fresh coriander sprigs to serve
• Optional: add 1 roughly chopped tomato, 1 small cucumber (diced), and ½ small capsicum (bell pepper), chopped

Instructions

• Trim and rinse the fish, pat dry, and cut into small cubes.
• Place in a mixing bowl and squeeze over 1 ½ limes.
• Season with salt, and toss to combine.
• Refrigerate for 2-3 hours until the fish turns opaque.
• When ready to eat, drain the fish, add the spring onion, chopped herbs, chilli, coconut milk, a generous pinch of black pepper, and any extra vegetables, and stir well.
• Serve with lime wedges and extra coriander sprigs.

Safety note: Citrus juice does not kill bacteria or parasites that may be in the fish. Always choose either commercially-frozen fish or high-quality sushi-grade fresh fish for ceviche. Avoid cod, swordfish, monkfish, and all freshwater fish as they are highly parasitic. When in doubt ask an experienced local angler or fisherman.

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Fishing From A Yacht: The Complete Guide

Want to know about fishing from a yacht? This article will give you everything you need to get started.

There’s nothing like catching your fish at sea and hearing the satisfying sizzle of the frying pan announcing your dinner. The real treat happens when you get to recount tales about the big fishes you snagged, the stubborn ones that got away, and the wily ones that never took the bait.

The best part of it all is this: It’s easier than you think.

The idea of fishing from a yacht calls for questions such as these: How exactly do I  go about fishing from a sailboat? What equipment and gear do I take along with me? What sot of fish should we expect to catch? Are there any techniques that are particularly useful for fishing while under sail? 

This article aims to be a complete guide to fishing from a yacht; including the basic essentials and tools needed to ensure everything goes well right from the start. Enjoy!

Basic List of Fishing Gear

You might be an experienced sailor, but if you’ve never been fishing before there might be a steep learning curve. If you’re a fishing beginner, getting the necessary fishing equipment might be daunting and overwhelming; simply because there are many options to pick from. We’ve put together a basic list of equipment, along with some specific recommendations, with the aim of making this process as easy as possible for you. 

1. Fishing rods

Fishing rods are poles used to hurl fishing lines into the water; at a deeper depth. Each rod is differentiated according to its toughness, power, and action. 

For fishing from a sailing yacht, we recommend the PLUSINNO Fishing Rod and Reel Combo

2. Fishing reels

These are gears that are attached to the rods to help retrieve baits by drawing in your catch and at selective speed.

3. Fishing lines

Fishing lines are specially crafted strings or cords for fishing. They come in varieties of strengths, elasticity, and visibility. The selection of a type of fishing line depends on the fish you’re aiming to reel in.

The Berkley Trilene XL Monofilament Fishing Line is a good all purpose fishing line.

These hooks could be single, double, treble, or circle. They are used for trapping the fishes by the mouth whenever they take a bite of the bait. The type of fishing hook you choose will depend on the type of fish you are hoping to catch, and where you are fishing (or sailing). 

5. Live baits

Baits are what you attach at the end of the hooks to tempt the fishes. There are options of live baits, e.g. worms or even leftover fish from your last endeavour.

Lures are artificial baits fashioned to look like real fishes, to attract predator fishes in the water. These are the most practical for fishing from a sailing boat, as it’s likely that you will be unable to pick up or store live bait easily.

Swivels prevent the problem of the fishing line twisting when the bait is spinning and moving around.

A pack such as the ReeMoo 200PCS Fishing Rolling Ball Bearing Barrel Swivel with Safety Snap Connector Fishing Accessories should give you everything you need. 

A sinker is essential in the process of stabilising the fishing line as the hook and baits submerge in the water.

9. Rod holders

Rod holders assure you that your rods are safe. The excitement of making a catch, coupled with the fishing line’s tugging, could yank the rod right out of the boat. Hence, a rod holder is essential.

These rod holders will attach right on to your guardrail. 

Other useful fishing gear includes:

1. filleting knife and board for preparing the fish, 2. fishing gloves for protection, 3. leaders for protecting the fishing lines against the sharp teeth of some fishes., 4. gaffs and nets for bringing large fishes on board.

5. You will probably already have one, but a boat hook can be really useful for pulling your catch aboard.

Also, you can take advice from the local tackle shops. That, coupled with the type of fish you’re hoping to catch and the area you’re fishing in, will streamline your options greatly.

Different techniques for fishing from a yacht

Now that you’ve bought your gear, you’re pumped and already set up. What next? There are three basic ways to fish from a sailboat. You could fish while towing a lure behind your boat while either under power or sail (also known as trolling ), or while drifting (also known as jigging ), or at anchor.

1. Trolling

This technique involves casting the hook with a ready bait behind a slow-moving boat. Ideally, you need to move at no more than 2 – 4 knots. Thus speed ensures that the lure appears realistic to the fishes.

The best way of fishing underway from a yacht is with some form of wind vane or autopilot system, so you can focus on fishing and keeping the lines clear. For this, you will definitely want some form of rod holder attached to your read guard rail to make sure that all the lines are kept clear of the lines and sails, and to free your hands to operate the yacht while underway. 

2. Fishing At Anchor

Fishing at the anchor is the simplest method of catching dinner. The simple rocking of the boat will cause the necessary disturbance needed to attract the fishes.

Fishing while under anchor means that you can give it your full attention, and is much like fishing from the shore. However, if using this technique, as opposed to trolling while under sail, you may need to cast your line and bring it in repeatedly in order to make your bait appeal ‘live’.  

What Is The Best Time For Fishing from a Yacht?

Generally, it’s advisable to fish at dawn or dusk. However, great fish can and are caught at all hours of the day, including at night. To be honest, sailing is fairly all-consuming at times, so you will probably have to fish at a time that’s dictated by the weather, your crew and your sailing itinerary. 

Safety Tips You Ought To Know

As harmless as it could appear at first glance, it is quite possible to sustain injuries while fishing from a yacht or sailboat. Here are a couple of tips to help keep you safe while fishing. 

• When reeling in a fish, don’t do so without wearing hand gloves.
• Don’t eat any fish you are unsure of. A fish identification chart could come in handy here.
• Don’t be in a rush to take the hook from the fish’s mouth.
• Do cover the gaff hook with a cork when not in use.
• Do attach a leader or swivel before placing the lure.
• Do select fishing lines that are strong enough to hold on to the fish you hope to catch.
• Do ask for advice from local fishers about what has worked for them.
• Do invest in quality equipment.
• Take extra care if you are sailing with children or dogs on board

It’s also very important to realise that sailing can be dangerous even when you don’t have the added complexities of fishing lies, hooks ad lures to deal with. The key to fishing safely from a sailing boat is to know your limitations, and to only do it when things on the yacht are firmly under control. 

And that ends the guide to fishing from a yacht. The best thing to do is seek directions from pros, practice, learn from mistakes, and of course, have fun. Enjoy!

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10 Top Sailboat Fishing Tips for Offshore Sailors

As an offshore sailor and a saltwater angler, sailboat fishing is my passion. For any sailor on a long offshore passage, the ability to pull a few protein packed, omega 3 rich fish from the sea is a rather useful skill. So here I'll ignore the fishing-for-sport element and concentrate instead on fishing-for-food.

The other good news is that the fishing gear required is inexpensive - just a simple trolling line and a few lures.

In fact, the market value of your first decent-sized fish is likely to exceed your investment in the fishing equipment used to catch it - not that you'll want to sell it, of course. You'll want to eat it and catch more, which presumably is why you're here.

So if it's that easy, why do some yachtsmen tell you that sailboat fishing is a waste of time?

Well, it's because they haven't read the small print. So here's the small print...

Sailboat Fishing Tip #1 ~ Use a Snubber

First, let's think about what happens if you don't use a snubber on your offshore trolling handline . So, you're sailing along nicely when a tuna hits your lure. Instantly realising he's made a serious error of judgement, the tuna sets off lickety split in the other direction. Bang! Probably a broken line and no lure - definitely no tuna!

But with a snubber there's no bang, just a satisfying booiiing as it does its thing, taking all the shock load out of the tuna's instinctive reaction and alerting your crew to the tug of war to come. A vital part of any trolling handline, is the snubber.

It's made up from a length of bungee cord - essentially a large elastic band between the handline and the boat. Alternatively, if you've got one handy, an old bicycle tyre inner tube will do the job just fine.

The safety line, made up from a length of 8mm nylon line (or similar) is attached to a cleat or some other strong-point on the boat. Make sure the loop in it is long enough for the snubber to fully extend, but not so long that the snubber can be stressed beyond its yield point.

Sailboat Fishing Tip #2 ~ Be Invisible

Not you or your boat, just the business end of your handline.

Up until quite recently I used a 5m (16ft) long nylon monofilament leader at the end of my trolling line, and very happy with it I was too.

After all, it was cheap and seemed to work.

Then I discovered fluorocarbon fishing line , a sort of hi-tech monofilament line.

It's thinner, stronger than mono, and best of all it's invisible!

Underwater that is, a trick resulting from fluorocarbon line having almost the same refractive index as water.

I'm absolutely, 100 percent, hand-on-heart sure that it's brought more good fish to Alacazam's galley than would otherwise have been the case.

Sailboat Fishing Tip #3 ~ The Right Type of Lure

Most of the fish that you're likely to catch will be looking upwards, hoping to spot their prey silhouetted against the sunlit surface. So this is where your lure should be, close to the surface, and it's no bad thing if it leaps out now and again like a flying fish in escape mode.

A cheap and cheerful Bulb Head Squid should get results here, but a slightly more expensive skirted trolling lure may well get better results, particularly if it leaves astern a fish-attracting bubble train, as it pops and fizzes down the face of a following sea.

But what about when you're sailing on the wind and a following sea is but the stuff of dreams? Here a lure that leaps out of the sea will not be so effective, the wave train and the motion of the boat causing it to crash through wave crests, rather than slaloming down the front face of the waves. You need a lure that will get down deeper, below all the unpleasantness on the surface.

There are several ways of achieving this. One is to rig a trolling weight on your main line - not on the leader - to take the same lure down deeper.

If that still doesn't work, you could replace the trolling weight with a planer - and, if your hull speed is not more than 3 knots or so you could replace the lure with a stainless steel trolling spoon. These lures are particularly robust and should have a place in all sailboater's fishing kits

Or you could forget about weights and planers altogether and use a deep diving plug.

Yup, they are more pricey but they really do what it says on the box - 6 knots with the right deep-diver (like the Rapala X-Rap Magnum shown here) will get you down 15 to 30 feet.

These deep-diving trolling plugs are characterised by the long, broad beak at the head of the lure. The greater its surface area, and the closer it's angled to the horizontal the deeper it will dive.

In the other extreme where the wind is light, the sea almost flat and the boat just ambling slowly along, a topwater lure - like the Williamson 'Jet Popper' - is well worth a try.

Sailboat Fishing Tip #4 ~ Use a Bird Teaser

But only if you're off the wind and using a skirted lure of the type that swims along close to the surface. So what's a bird teaser ? It's a decoy lure which you should attach at the end of your trolling line and ahead of your leader. The leader should be shorter now, around 3m (10ft) or so.

The bird is buoyant and skips smartly along astern, splashing noisily around ahead of the lure. The little winglets on either side of it shoot out an arc of spray either side increasing the area of disturbance on the surface.

To really maximise the effect of one of these, rig it ahead of a daisy chain like the Boone Bird/Daisy Chain Rig shown here.

Any predator within, er, earshot, will wonder what all the fuss is about, and is likely to amble over and take a look. What he'll see is an unsuspecting prey - your lure - in hot pursuit of a shoal of baitfish. The rest, as they say, will soon be history.

Sailboat Fishing Tip #5 ~ Double Your Chances!

Are you serious about putting together a robust handline for offshore trolling?

Do you want to know exactly what to buy, where to buy it online and how much to pay for it?

If so, take a look at  Assembling Your Offshore Trolling Handline .

An easy way to do this is to play the numbers game. Use two trolling lines, one from each quarter.

To reduce the risk of them tangling together (note my use of the word reduce, not avoid), make the windward one shorter than the leeward one. Your boat's leeway will help keep them apart - more so if you clip the leeward one to a higher point such as the backstay, or the stern gantry if you've got one.

If you've only got one bird, use it on the shorter of the two trolling lines. Multihull owners could easily find somewhere to add a couple more handlines to help feed the multitudinous crew.

Sailboat Fishing Tip #6 ~ Killing It Kindly

It's often said in sailboat fishing circles, that to avoid making a crimson mess in your cockpit, you should leave your hooked fish attached and tow it astern until it drowns. The two obvious reasons for not doing this are:

• It's unnecessarily cruel - the fish deserves better than this
• If the fish is too large for your culinary requirements, you should release it unharmed and return the beast from whence it came
• A shark may get to it before you do

And there's another reason. When the fish is fighting for its life, lactic acid accumulates in the fish's muscles - it's flesh - which will taint the taste. The longer and harder it has to fight, the greater the accumulation will be, and the greater the taste will be affected.

My advice? Get it aboard as soon as you can - using a gaff - and kill it quickly and humanely. Not by beating it to death with a heavy blunt instrument - that will end in tears, most probably yours. Just pour some strong alcohol down its gills. Not your finest malt of course - a splash of the rot-gut firewater you give only to your most persistent guests will be fine. This will cause brain death very quickly and it will leave this world in a spirit of great contentment.

Sailboat Fishing Tip #7 ~ Don't Miss the Point!

Check the point before each use and touch it up with a Hook File as necessary.

The technique is to stroke the file towards the bend of the hook - not towards the point. Use the file on the two flats to ensure that the flats converge in a razor edge and a sharp point. After a few strokes, try the following thumbnail test...

Drag the point of the hook lightly over your thumbnail. If it tends to dig in, leaving a white scratch, it's sharp. If it doesn't, it isn't.

Do it correctly and it'll soon be 'up to scratch'!

Sailboat Fishing Tip #8 ~ Be Safe!

• It's not just shark that have an impressive set of dental equipment. Barracuda do too, and wahoo have smaller but razor-sharp teeth that can do you serious damage;
• Don't try to unhook a large fish when it's leaping about the cockpit in a most unruly fashion. Wait until it calms down - a dark wet cloth placed over it may help. Another tip that seems to calm the fish, is to place it on the cockpit sole where its tail isn't touching anything. I've no idea why this works - maybe it tickles...
• Always, but always, wear heavy protective gloves when hauling in a fish by hand, and take care not to step in any coils of line that you've recovered;
• Always have a sharp knife to hand, just in case you need to cut yourself free. If that perilous situation arises, you won't have time to go looking for one!
• With all the action going on at the stern, don't neglect your legal obligation to keep a good lookout at all times.

Sailboat Fishing Tip #9 ~ Making the Right Connections

Forget about even the best fishing knots in lines of the diameters we're talking about here - you'd never be able to pull them up tight. Crimped connections to hooks and swivels are your only option.

Use only top quality hooks and swivels by well-known manufacturers. Forged bronzed mild-steel hooks and ball-bearing swivels are what you need.

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25 Best Sportfishing Boats of the Last Decade

• By By Jim Hendricks and Chris Woodward
• Updated: March 27, 2019

We all have our list of we think are the best boats for fishing. If we’re lucky, we already own them. If not, we lust after them with undiminished fervor. We dug through our archives and found 25 awesome sport fishing boats that we felt are worthy of making our best of the best list. Is your favorite among them? If not, is your dream boat one of these captains’ favorites ?

We listed our best boats for fishing alphabetically by manufacturer. You’ll find a wide variety of fishing boat brands, and we also did our best to incorporate a combination of small and big fishing boats.

Albury Brothers 23

Boston Whaler 370 Outrage

Carolina Skiff 218DLV

Contender 32 ST

EdgeWater 318CC

Everglades 243cc

Grady-White Express 330

Hell's Bay Professional

Hydra-Sports 3400 CC

Invincible 36 Open Fisherman

Jarrett Bay 77

Jupiter 41 Sport Bridge

Maverick Mirage 17 HPX-V

Pathfinder 2200 TRS

Pursuit OS 385

Regulator 28

Scout 350 LXF

SeaHunter Tournament 37

Southport 29 TE

Sundance DX20

World Cat 320CC

Yellowfin 36

• More: fishing boats , photos

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Tracking Texas Tarpon

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Five Tips for Fishing the Florida Gulf Coast

Table of Contents

Last Updated on September 13, 2024 by Boatsetter Team

Fishing the Florida Gulf Coast is a great way to spend the day, and if you own a fishing boat or rent a center console you’ll have a shot at everything from snook to snappers. But before planning your trip be sure to get the lowdown on the 5 best fishing destinations along Florida’s Gulf Coast , and commit these five critical fishing tips to memory.

Focus on a Single Species

Focus on a single species, and don’t go fishing for “whatever bites.” The individual species found along the Gulf Coast each inhabit a specific niche, and trying to go after all of them at once is a fool’s game. Take speckled sea trout, for example. You’ll find this species throughout the coastal bays and you might luck into one or two at any time, using a multitude of tactics. But if you focus solely on them, locate a weedbed in a few feet of water near a drop-off, and fish a shrimp under a popping cork, you have an excellent chance of catching one after the next. Same goes for species like snook; if you fish for whatever you might catch one or two, but if you focus on snook and snook alone by casting a live mullet under a lighted dock in a strong current at night, your chances of hooking up go through the roof.

Play the tides

All of the areas along the Gulf Cost are subject to significant tidal swings that will have a huge effect on what’s biting, when, and where. On a dead low tide, for example, fishing the drop-offs near shallows will likely be good while fishing the shallows themselves is likely to be slow. On a high tide the same drop-offs will probably be a poor choice yet the shallows that were deserted on low tide should now be a far better bet. All the different species react to tides a bit differently so it’s hard to make too many generalizations about what to do and when. To know how to fine-tune your tactics you’ll need to do some research specific to the species you plan on chasing. But whatever that species might be, if you ignore the tides completely you may well end up fishing where there aren’t any fish.

Learn how to throw a cast net.

This is no easy task—it takes a lot of practice, and the bigger the net is the more difficult it will be. But throwing a cast net allows you to gather live baits on the spot. And as we all know, live bait trumps dead and/or frozen bait every time. Most people will start with a six- or eight-foot net, and after they’ve mastered throwing it, work up to a 10- or 12-footer. All of these are effective to some degree but in deeper water or when trying to collect larger, faster baits, bigger nets are definitely better. Once you get good at throwing one you’ll be able to fill the livewell with shrimp, pilchards, and more.

Dropping bait

If you plan to drop baits over structure or live bottom, upsize your leader and use fluorocarbon. Corals, barnacles, and oyster shells are tough on fishing line , and will shred light leaders in no time. So even if you’re fishing for relatively small fish that are unlikely to top five or six pounds, like mangrove snapper, 30- or even 40-pound test might be in order. And while most anglers use fluorocarbon leader for its unbeatably low visibility, this stuff is also incredibly abrasion resistant. Whenever you’re fishing in snaggy, craggy areas using it will be a smart move.

Match your lure color to watercolor

Anglers who fish artificials usually have a slew of different colors and patterns in the tacklebox, which is good. But most people simply take a guess as to which to use at any given time, which is bad. While it’s true that predicting what color or pattern the fish will react to at any given time with 100-percent accuracy is impossible, as a general rule of thumb matching the lure color with water color produces good results. In gin clear water silver and white tend to be top producers, in greenish water chartreuse is generally a great pick, and so on. You’ll encounter all sorts of conditions ranging from crystal clear water to muddy-colored water along the Gulf Coast, so come prepared for all of the above and choose colors wisely.

Okay: are you ready to head for the Florida Gulf Coast and enjoy a fun day of fishing? Depending on which venue you’re heading for, you may also want to check out:

• Destin, FL Fishing Guide
• Fishing in Clearwater, FL Guide
• Fishing in Islamorada Guide
• Fishing in Naples, FL Guide
• Fishing in St. Petersburg, FL Guide
• Fort Meyers Fishing Guide

About us

Boatsetter  is the leading online marketplace for boat rentals and on-water experiences. Download the Boatsetter app ( App Store  |  Google Play ) and follow us on  Instagram .

With over three decades of experience in marine journalism, Lenny Rudow has contributed to dozens of boating and fishing publications and websites ranging from BoatU.S. Magazine to BDOutdoors.com. Rudow is currently the Angler in Chief at Rudow’s FishTalk , he is a past president of Boating Writers International (BWI), a graduate of the Westlawn School of Yacht Design, and has won numerous BWI and OWAA writing awards.

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There's just something soothing about fishing. The tranquil sounds of the water. The sunshine glinting off the ebbs and flows of the sea. Having fun and laughing as you bait your hook or show your son or grandson or granddaughter how to fish for the first time. Whether you're looking for the most basic of boats or you want a full-on luxury fishing boat, there's a wide array of new and pre-owned options to consider as you shop eBay for the boat that will surely help you land the biggest bass around.

Not all boats are created equal. Different fishing boats come in handy for different types of water, specific categories of fish, and other considerations. Keep in mind what you're looking to land when you go to buy a new or used boat.

• A bass fishing boat, as the name implies, offers special features meant to aid you in catching bass, such as a deep-V hull. They're meant for freshwater fishing and offer high horsepower, which makes them a little less affordable than other boats, which is where buying a pre-owned boat is good option to consider.
• Looking for a model you can take out for the night and enjoy a relaxing evening out on? Then you're looking for a cruiser. These designs have a space underneath where you can sleep, and then you can fish off the deck when you desire.
• There are different types of engines. Choose between single or twin engines, and inboard or outboard. It comes down to power, as a twin engine not only offers you a backup engine but gives you more performance. However, a smaller craft only needs one engine. Outboard motors are less costly and take up less space, though inboard motors are more powerful and quieter. A Lund 16-foot boat offers a four-stroke engine.

You need a different type of fishing boat depending on the waters you'll be fishing and what type of fish you're aiming to catch. There are some variations between inshore saltwater fishing boats, offshore saltwater fishing, and freshwater fishing boats.

• Cooling systems - Cooling between saltwater and freshwater models differ. This is because saltwater boats must flush the salt from the system, so these parts vary.
• Hull strength - The hull may be different in these types of boats. Some designs offer a hull construction meant for staying close to shore, whereas saltwater models may not have that particular feature. The hull, which is the body of the boat, is constructed from fiberglass, which is more costly, or aluminum, which is durable and affordable.
• Maintenance - When you take your boat in saltwater, maintenance does become more imperative, as salt buildup can cause rust and have a negative effect on the way your boat's exterior looks. You'll need to clean it more thoroughly than you would a freshwater one.

Just like with any other type of vehicle, be it a car, motorcycle, or a fishing boat, there are different brands and models available with a host of features, ranging from Alumacraft and Boston Whaler to Bass Tracker and Grady White, among others.

• Crestliner offers some popular models, including pontoon, sport, and crappie fishing boats.
• Look to Tracker for durable aluminum designs, deep-V options, and multipurpose Jon designs.
• Check out what Ranger has to offer you, including offshore and inshore designs with a myriad of special features to make fishing a luxurious and deluxe experience for your family and friends.

Content is provided for informational purposes only. eBay is not affiliated or endorsed by brands mentioned above.