Just got back from Sitka. 

The weather and swell forecast changed dramatically on a daily basis, nothing was predictable more than a day out.  In a 4-day span we got the variety pack of rain, wind, extreme wind, freezing cold wind, sunshine, blue skies and more wind.  Sometimes a short move to different spots resulted in a different climate, sunshine to wind and rain.

Water temp was upper 40’s and the swell was up on day one of the trip, mixed up 7-9’ and reverb off the islands had things messy in exposed areas. We got offshore the second day when the wind laid down, swell was still present but spaced out a bit. Our skipper was super dialed on tides, current, wind and swell.  We waited on windows where everything aligned to fish and travel in certain areas.  It humbling when you realize how easy we have it here.

I’ve been to SE AK twice now, once this month and last year in September, both trips had some pretty wild weather variation.  I don’t know what it’s like in June but I’d imagine it’s got the same range of beautiful to frozen hell on earth.  I’ve also fished SCI down in SoCal where you got caught last time, it gets nasty between the gaps and on the windward side of the island…..and Monterey has its moments in winter time…..but  I don’t think they’re comparable to AK.  The cold and volatile weather are something else.  If you’re intent on going through with it, I’d highly suggest you invest in cold water survival gear, commercial grade equipment.  And get really good at reading weather reports, plan out your route so you have a plan b to duck out of the weather if you need to.

The fishing……lings, salmon, rockfish, halibut and other cool stuff.  The biggest challenge is gonna be the regulation book for every area you’re going to be traveling through; knowing what fish you can retain and size limits are crucial…..it’s not as easy as it is here. And don’t forget to buy licenses for each zone you’re in.

And I concur on that cracked hull….you’re equipment is your lifeline, why risk it with a compromised hull?  At a minimum I’d contact hobie to see what they’d be able to help out with. 

  I wonder where Eddie is in this thread? He is the pro! Gonna weigh-in for us amateurs?

How tall is he…hopefully Pacifico hasn’t chloroformed him and forced him into his hamper.

NCKA OG and publisher of the Gentleman’s Guide to Manlinees and Other Cool Sh*T,  @Pacifico , only operates at the peak of male grooming standards and I’m fairly positive he has a monthly manscaping budget that exceeds the average cost of most people’s rent.  He can probably recommend a full facial treatment of beard oils, mustache waxes and precision trimmers…..quite possibly offering up the personal services of the scissor trimming leprechaun that lives in the clothes hamper of one of his bathrooms. 

I’d be of little assistance in this conversation….i buy the cheapest trimmers I can find at target cause nothing is gonna make my mug any more attractive. One word of caution however, the norelco shaver I have feels like it’s individually tweezing hairs straight off my face….its as close to torture as you can get. 

I generally consider myself a fan of all watercraft…..except for that thing. 

..today got a little nautical.

If double duty is a must, I’ve had good luck with the Daiwa Inshore and Penn Fathom low profile, meaning I own em and have fished both fresh and salt with them for a couple years with little to no maintenance other than a freshwater rinse.  I haven’t used it a ton but the Okuma Komodo SS is also a decent reel, although doesn’t feel as refined in the hand.  All reels were designed for fishing fresh and salt; so internals/parts etc are made with materials that will hold up better than a traditional fw bass reel.  I have the most miles on the Penn Fathom 400, it’s landed all the local species (minus salmon) and halibut, wsb, sand bass and calicos down south.  No issues so far. 

While I don’t think the dream of having a double duty reel is out of the question, I second the notion of separation, if for nothing else, less maintenance and zero corrosion. I have a small army of shimano curados that only see action in FW.  They have a long reputation for being the workhorse, balancing decent performance with longevity.  I got about 5 years on my current set and they’re not showing any signs of slowing down.  A couple thousand casts every weekend and a few drops of oil in the spool keeps em smooth. 

Ratios are like any other gearing consideration; lower gear for torque, higher gear for speed, with each trading off the other when you get to the ends of the spectrum. I’ve found 6:1 to be an ok compromise but the ratio should reflect the predominant technique you’ll use.  I use mostly 7 or 8:1’s for bass fishing as I need a lot of quick pickup for punching, frogs and reaction baits.  I’ll move to the 5 or 6:1 for crankbaits, slower presentations or fishing high resistance baits.  If you’re a numbers geek, the other metric people like to dig into is Inches Per Turn (IPT) and the impact the rate/cadence of cranking has on the bait or presentation. Personally I think it’s nonsense as I fish alot on feel and sight, so I adjust as I go.

……isn’t Al collecting sailing vessels?