Guys were 100 yards off Black Rock. I have fished it from the surf 100 times and from a boat once. Just a dangerous place. 20 foot wave rolled them over. Luckily the Chief of Police on the Block was going spearfishing and rescued both guys.

Makes me rethink buying a 21' to fish the Block. Maybe too small?

How big do you have to go to handle 20 footers?

You have to be careful when you have the big swells. They look pretty harmless until they get shallow enough to break, and then they're monsters.
We were at sugar reef last weekend, and these swells were rolling over it, didn't look bad, and then one would come through that was big enough to break, and it was like a 10 foot wall - scary

Not too small. just pick your days. Being in tight to the shore with a big ground swell... not ideal!

watched a bunch of waves build, then break leaving a very scary sight and sound.
a smaller boat was fishing just near the edge of this, and my friend and i thought he was plain crazy. 2 minutes after he took off a giant swell, maybe 12', came and broke right where he was.....he woulda been all done for sure.
pretty scary stuff.

Same thing like Parker23, but 20' groundswell would cause framage to just about any boat in the wrong position.

Canceled a trip yesterday because of ground swells. I like anchoring in 15' of water when fishing near the shore, could not anchor within 20' and of course you always get that one un suspecting wave that breaks at your boat.

Sitting in Vineyard sound several years ago for the Derby. Drifting the lone rock rockpile between Squibnocket and Noman's in our 22 ft Hiliner Center Console.

10' swell coming in. Up and down all day. Only one there. Tide dropped and we weren't paying attention. Wave starts breaking directly in front of us about 25 yards. Full throttle, off the top over breaking white water. Elevator dropped the backside. Nearly cracked the hull in half. Yard sale of fishing gear and bodies in the cockpit.

Very very ugly. Very scary. Had a similar experience at Sow and Pigs a few years earlier, trolling tubes in a big swell. Trying to time swells correctly and one nearly put over sideways.

I have a 19' center console in Pt judith, and I have never taken it to block... call me chicken... no, call me a surf caster that owns a boat that rarely gets used!

i ahve been out to the second and third can several times on a 20'er, you just have to pick n choose ur days, and oh yea learn to drive a boat.
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It's also a good idea to always have someone at the helm, watching what's coming in from the sea and keeping you safe from shore [or reef, rocks, rips, etc], if some troubling waves come through, don't wait to reel in, just get out of there ... had to push my cousin out of the way to throttle the boat out of a cresting wave ... I was fighting a fish, saw the wave coming up and told him to get out of there ... for some reason he was frozen, said he did not want me to lose the fish ... fortunate that i was able to get out of there ... and that fish was still on the end of the rod when we were further out and safe ... still gets my hair standing up on end ...

I have a 19' center console in Pt judith, and I have never taken it to block... call me chicken... no, call me a surf caster that owns a boat that rarely gets used!

Follow the ferry, ferry;)

seriously. i was yakfishing the great salt Pond the day they towed that boat in, it was missing quite a few parts, they said if the anchor had not have caught then they would have been in deep doo doo. The cop swam out from shore to rescue the guys, talk about cajones, big platinum ones!

Here's an article on the story....

Block Island Times - Breaking news police chief saves two stranded fishermen in ?heroic? fashion (http://www.blockislandtimes.com/view/full_story/9598525/article-Breaking-news--police-chief-saves-two-stranded-fishermen-in-%E2%80%98heroic%E2%80%99-fashion?instance=home_news_1st_right)

I think the article say's they were in a 34 ft boat? i also read they were in a 31 ft. boat? It 's quite a stretch from a 23 to a 31. In either case the ocean can and will be a nasty beaaatch when given a chance to catch you not paying attention. Guy's are lucky all things worked out for them. I firmly believe that the higher powers love to be entertained by comedic fools and that is the only reason I'm still alive.:chased:

A few years ago there was an old cc hull lodged in the sand under the bluffs... Probably the same thing happened
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In the wrong place at the wrong time with the boat oriented sideways to the curling wave and almost any size boat can get rolled.

I think the article say's they were in a 34 ft boat? i also read they were in a 31 ft. boat? It 's quite a stretch from a 23 to a 31.

FWIW, a 23 flipped at Montauk. Maybe that's what confused things