Trolling at night
Besides being largely unproductive in my experience, trolling at night can be fraught with potential problems.
At the very least, any boat crossing your stern will probably have no idea that you are trolling and could result in you being cut off or spooled.
The bigger problem is Lobster pots and the up and down lines.
Now, I suppose you could troll an area where no one ever, ever puts them.
But it only takes one, and balling one up on your prop at night, can be a very hairy experience.
Picture yourself in the dark, dead in the water, now turned stern to those waves that the weatherman said would be one foot, but are more like three and building…
So as far as equipment, have a long handled boat hook or gaff to grab the line that’s not in the prop and a sharp knife to cut it. Now you’re dead in the water and drifting.
Next, throw the anchor that was at your fingertips and not buried all tangled up in a locker under two feet of crap.
Light the boat up like a Christmas tree so you don’t get run over.
If you’re an outboard, put your P.F.D. on, tie a safety line around your waist and cleat it off. Now, you get to crawl out over the transom to the very end of the outboard and start cutting. This is where a second sharp knife could come in handy.
If you’re an inboard/outboard, put your trunks on, because you’re going swimming.
If you are an inboard, get the mask and snorkel and that submersible light you always meant to buy, lose the P.F.D. and trail that safety line behind the boat now, because getting it tangled in the prop, rudder or struts is a real possibility.
And leave the trunks on, because now you’re going diving….at night.
I suppose you could always just call for help if your cell phone and/or V.H.F. are working and certainly you risk this problem anytime the prop is turning at night, but in my experience, the catching while trolling at night vs. the danger, just isn’t worth it.
Dave
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