FOG - to Go or Not? - Striper Talk Striped Bass Fishing, Surfcasting, Boating

fishonnelsons · 10-05-2007, 11:40 AM

This is not really a question, and maybe should be in Grumphy Old Farts, but anyways...

We had a charter this morning, left at 7 a.m. from Ptown and it was really fogged in tight, maybe 100 ft of visisbility. We have radar, GPS, etc etc so I just take it relatively easy and off we go.

We hit the spots, hit the fish, and then we start heading for the barn, maybe an eight mile run or so . The fog never let up, and even got worse in sections.

Now the bitch - I must have passed at least ten boats on the way in -and probably about 8 of them had no radar. My feeling is that in fog like that, if you don't have radar, don't go out. You are putting yourself at risk, and depending upon those boats which do have radar to watch out for you. I can understand going out in the clear, and then getting caught in the fog, but when it's that bad out why chance it?

Rip Runner · 10-05-2007, 12:39 PM

I'll be going out tomorrow morning on a charter in the fog, but I know I am properly equiped with an open array radar and two chart plotters. But I also added a high flyer deflector on a small pole that goes into one of the rocket launchers on the T-Top. This helps my boat look bigger to other boats with radar. Also I use an auto hailer so boats fishing around me know where I am by sound as well. It's difficult enough keeping yourself on your numbers, watch your radar, and leader fish without having to remember to keep blasting your horn.

When traveling to my spot I often plan a slightly alternate route and stay out of the main channels where most boats will apt to be, especially the ones working off just a GPS because they will make sure to stay right in the channel. While traveling you need to keep a close eye on the radar and assume the boats around you don't see you and be ready to react. If I didn't have radar I would stay home on days I know are going to be foggy.

blue oyster · 10-05-2007, 04:05 PM

i go out in the fog now that i have gps with no radar but i tend not to travel great distances and i stay out side of the channels , dumb thing to do maybe but that also happens to be some of the best fishing i have ever had and it keeps the googans home .

Duke41 · 10-05-2007, 04:37 PM

I fish BI Sound in the fog if I have to. My advice is you better have radar. And stay the hell away from any nav bouys as every dude with a GPS only will be going from bouy to bouy looking for a mark point. Geez its a wonder there aren't more rescues out there.

macojoe · 10-05-2007, 06:10 PM

Well maybe its stupid luck, but I am always in the fog and no radar, I have passed the ferry from the vinyard many times, passed a cruz ship off Nantucket, couldn't see 50 feet!
I just go real slow and watch the water, and I have been fine for 15 years.

But I will be going for radar next year on the new boat. But I have to get the radar tower first.

BigPete · 10-05-2007, 09:31 PM

After fog blew in at the BE buoy last summer and I had a very close encounter with a container ship that crossed my bow 200' ahead of me so silently that you would have thought it wasn't running. It scared the heck out of me and I now have a Furuno 1623 on my T-top so I don't get run over out there. I have had a bunch of close calls over the years with just a plotter and the big ship was the final straw.

fishonnelsons · 10-06-2007, 04:06 AM

Great point on steering your own course if you have radar and all the right equipment, and not nav buoy to nav buoy because those without radar will tend to stick to that course.

OLD GOAT · 10-06-2007, 03:37 PM

I have found that runing by gps out of the chanel is not allways safe because other boats are doing the same. Some are runing WIDE OPEN.

Raider Ronnie · 10-06-2007, 05:02 PM

Having radar or not, common sense should allways be used in fog !
We pre fished the friday before FLW in Dennis on the Ave Maria 2 that has $20k worth of electronics, including the 4k 48 mile Raymarine radar (thats awesome)
We were close to Nantucket drifting in pretty thick fog.
We picked up a boat coming at us on radar, and eventually heard a boat coming at us going pretty fast!
The boat nearly rammed us going WAY too fast, and of course, they had NO radar!
Turned out to be another boat fishing the tournament !
I would bet more than 3/4 operators of boats don't know fog signals according the rules !

stiff tip · 10-07-2007, 02:44 PM

i have radar... the fog $ucks....i hate the stuff.

parker23 · 10-10-2007, 10:16 AM

Running in the fog w/o radar is something I would not do. There are too many boats on the water. I have radar/chartplotter and fog still makes me nervous. I run @ 15kts max.