Author Archives: Tom Nelson

De-mystifying Cannon Downrigger’s Bottom Track Feature

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Somehow, the three words “looking forward to” this summer’s salmon season just doesn’t cut it…

Obviously this feeling is shared among a few members of our Forums as I’ve been getting a bit of verbal “heat” over the lack of a new downrigger tech blog. So, as a clear indication that I’m responsive to abuse (just ask Robbo), here is the requested –and promised- ‘rigger tech blog.

One of the recurring questions that we see on our Forums concerns the bottom tracking function of the Cannon Digi-Troll 10. Basically the DT 10 has a digital Depthsounder built right in to the downrigger and all you have to do is add a Cannon transom-mount transducer to unlock this powerful feature.

Now you must set three parameters: Maximum depth you wish to track, “Blowback” or the extra amount of cable you wish to pay out in addition to the digital depth and “Sensitivity” which is the amount that you allow depth to change before the downrigger will react. I usually set “Max Depth” to 225 ft. and “Sensitivity” to 3ft. Your “Blowback” setting will change with your fishing depth, speed and current conditions.

Rob Endsley and I have a video on the use of the Bottom Track feature and it should clear up any questions you may have.

A commonly asked bottom track question –and one that has likely occurred to you- is “what happens to my line tension when the downrigger automatically changes depth? Great question! Well, through my years of using bottom track, I’ve learned a few tricks to the trade.

One of the best tricks is the use of heavy-tension Offshore Red Releases when bottom tracking.

The Offshore Reds are a double spring pinch style release that will pull line off your reel as the downrigger automatically drops the ball in all but the highest drag settings.

On the other side of the equation when you troll into shallower water the ‘rigger will automatically raise the ball and so you’ll have a larger belly in your line which you should “tend” or crank up. If you don’t remove the slack, you’ll still hook fish but probably not with the high landing percentages you are used to.

When you consider how much effort you put in to fishing close to the bottom with a standard electric downrigger, constantly lowering and raising the weight while managing the line on your reel, it’s easy to see that Cannon’s bottom tracking feature is a huge labor-saving, fish catching advantage!

Tom Nelson
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle

Opening Day 2013 “Top Ten Tips”

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If there is a more popular fishing “rite of passage” than the lowland lakes trout opener, I sure don’t know what it is!

The Nelson Clan at Perrygin Lake in Okanogan County a few seasons ago…

I would venture to guess that more “first fish” are caught on this final weekend of April than at any other time of year. Fathers and sons, mothers and daughters all descend on the lakes of Washington, three-hundred thousand strong. In preparation of this massive effort, the State of Washington plants these lake with literally millions of rainbow and cutthroat trout which are ready, willing and more than able to provide action as well as dinner or a smoker full of a tasty treat!

To aid in their quest this weekend, I would like to offer the following ten tips for an enjoyable opening day experience!

1. Get legal!

The WDFW licensing cycle for the year runs from April 1 to March 31. In other words, if you are not sure if your license is current… it’s probably not. Which, brings us to the second item on our list:

2. Bring your crew to the store!

If you have a young bunch (and even if you don’t) it’s always worthwhile to bring the crew along to get their licenses, get a copy of the fishing regulations and do a little shopping. “There’s that new Snoopy rod Dad, Can we try this?” Let your fishing gang get a little fired up about their new gear and in all likelihood, your opening day will get a lot easier!

3. Know your fishermen!

What size raingear do they wear? Boots? Warm coats? Can they cast? What’s their favorite snack food? The correct answers to these questions are best found out well in advance of “O” day!

4. Know your gear.

Seriously now, when is the last time you opened your trout box? How old is the line on your reel? If the answer to either of those questions is “I don’t know”… You know what to do!

5. Float your boat

While a boat adds to the complexity of any fishing trip is also adds productivity, mobility, comfort and convenience. In my opinion, more than a fair trade. However, the early dawn of opening morning is a poor time to find out that the batteries are dead, the drain plug is missing, the trailer lights are burned out and the tabs are expired. Just don’t ask me how I found that out…

6. Rig all the rods

Another way to dodge Murphy’s Law is to rig all the rods in the garage the night before…or the night before that! Trust me, it’s a lot easier to tie up under a fluorescent light than a dome light.

7. Scout your location

One of my favorite opening day memories is taking my young son to our chosen opening day lake the day before the opener. The lake was stuffed to the lilly pads with rainbows that were literally jockeying for position to eat the next bug to hit the surface. Watching the surface activity was secondary to scouting out the ramp and available parking. A word to the wise: It’s time well spent!

8. Friday night load up!

Get it all in the rig the night before. If its missing, you still have time to find it or replace it… ’nuff said!

9. Get ‘em up easy…

Set the alarm a little early and let the gang go through a little of their morning routine. Rushing your charges out of the house so they can sit with you in a ramp line is not going to score you any points.

10. Make it fun!

Quick limits are great and are huge braggin’ rights fodder… on the Columbia for springers!…. Nobody is going to stop the presses and roll evening news tape for your stringer full of six inchers. The goal on opening day is to provide your friends and family with an introduction to a sport, a way of life that they will enjoy for the rest of their lives! Let the kids handle the rods and play every one of the fish! Let another kid handle the net, sit back and enjoy the mayhem that ensues!

Opening day is like a fishy Christmas. The more you give, the more you get and what you get from a successful opener you’ll never forget!

Tom Nelson

The Outdoor Line

710 ESPN Seattle

www.theoutdoorline.com

Dirty Downrigger Trick: Silver Horde’s Rudder Flasher!

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Now that “seminar season” is begrudgingly giving way to fishing season, I’m looking back on the most frequently asked questions I’ve heard after my  “Dirty Downrigger Tricks” PowerPoint presentations.

I’m always looking for some new and interesting blog ideas and I believe a series of blogs answering these questions regarding controlled-depth trolling techniques may just be what the “downrigger Doctor” ordered!

One of the relatively recent additions to the downrigger fisherman’s attraction repertoire is the Silver Horde Rudder Flasher!

“We originally marketed it as a halibut spreader back in the mid 1970′s and by the late ’80′s some guys out of Edmonds started using them as rudders on their downriggers” said Silver Horde’s Kelly Morrison. Indeed, it is the “spreader effect” that is one of the most endearing qualities of the Rudder Flasher. As soon as it’s placed in the water, it immediately “weather vanes” or points behind the boat which allows you to easily reach your release -without untangling it- and quickly get your gear back to the fishes’ depth.

There are two ways to rig the Silver Horde Rudder Flasher: One, simply run your release directly off the back of the rudder…

…and two, running a “Dummy” or remote flasher off of the Rudder Flasher and then stacking your release a few feet up from the flasher!

By far the biggest advantage of the Silver Horde Rudder Flasher is it’s fish attraction characteristics. The Rudder Flasher affords your downrigger presentation a consistent horizontal profile which allows salmon to find your gear more easily. Simply stated, a rotating flasher makes noise and vibration in the water column but it’s continually moving, rolling aspect can often be a challenge for a salmon on the far reaches of the attraction threshhold to locate. The combination of a rotating flasher and a Rudder Flasher is a one, two salmon attracting “punch” that will result in more fish in your box!

Next time you’re out on your favorite trolling drag and you see someone land a fish, take a close look at what is running just on top of their cannon ball… The Silver Horde Rudder Flasher used to be the trollers secret handshake. Now, it’s more like the mark of the highliner fishermen.

Tom Nelson
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

 

The 2013 Anacortes Salmon Derby!

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You’ve heard it a thousand times: “March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb.”

This year, the Anacortes Salmon Derby fell on the final weekend of March, with weather that could only be described as “spectacular” and I’m not sure that word does justice to the conditions, or the event!

There’s a darn, good reason that the Anacortes Salmon Derby sells out each and every year. It’s an extremely well run event in a world-class destination: The San Juan Islands. This year the festivities commenced with the first ever Greater Anacortes Fishing Film Festival or GAFFF.

 

Robbo did The Outdoor Line proud by winning the GAFFF’y for best video by a 6’8″ Charter Operator/Radio Show host. Strangly enough Robbo’s video was the only entry in that category…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Saturday morning came and the derby fleet departed into the fog, leaving The Outdoor Line Crew behind at Anthony’s Home Port which, by the way is our new favorite remote broadcast location!

 

 

After the show, we hustled out to the north end of Orcas Island and it wasn’t long until Robbo was into a nice fish! Here, Larry Carpenter and Duane clear the gear for the “Gringo Grande”.

 

 

Unfortunately…or, fortunately for the fish, it was wild so Robbo cradled it for a quick snapshot and it was left to swim free, hopefully to hit the gravel and make more salmon with intact adipose fins!

 

 

 

One of the best reasons to fish all the derbies you possibly can is to get your gear dialed in for summer “Hammer Time”. I’ve made the switch to Diawa Saltist reels and braid mainline with a 30-foot shot of 25lb monofilament top shot. So far, so excellent!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday morning found us rubbing elbows with some past winners of the Anacortes Salmon Derby, Here is SJI legend Rod Nau making a close quarters pass.

 

After the fishing was done, it was a race to the sling! Big Red shows off her reverse-chine, chambered design which is the reason she is a chop cutter, not a back buster,,,

 

 

The final leaderboad tells the story with Scott Fowler win, Rich Olson place and Jay Murphy show!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Over 250 fish were entered in the two day event with the top three fish carefully displayed on ice for all to look…and drool over! 


 

Anacortes Derby Founder, Chairman and Master of Ceremonies Jay Field prepares to get the award presentation underway in front of the 1000 participants.

 

Scott Fowler’s 21.5 pounder from day one held up and here he holds the coveted $15,000 grand prize! Not a bad weekends work!

 

Left to right, Rich Olson, second place with a 19.4, Scott Fowler 21.5 and Jay Murphy 19.1 comprise the top three “money” fish! Congratulations to all three!!!

 

If you have not had the opportunity to experience the San Juan Islands, this may be a great year to do just that. The Islands remain open for chinook until April 30th and will re-open for salmon on July first. In May and June there will be shrimp, lingcod and halibut seasons to keep us busy. Without question, three more reasons to head up to Anacortes and experience all this region has to offer! A big thanks to Jay Field, Terry and Keri Nemeth and the entire Anacortes Salmon Derby team. You are all first class people that put on a first class event in a world class location!

Tom Nelson

The Outdoor Line

710 ESPN Seattle

www.theoutdoorline.com

Boat trailering: Cougar Style!

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Meet Robert Lee Tobeck:

His resume is very impressive. Academic All American lineman at Washington State University, Pro Bowl center of the Seattle Seahawks during the highpoint of the franchise history: the 2006 Superbowl and former host of The Outdoor Line Radio Show.

Unfortunately, none of this tremendous life experience has prepared him for what has now become the greatest challenge of his life: Boattrailerautism.

Boattrailerautism or “BTA” is a fisherman’s developmental disorder that appears in the first 3 years of boat ownership and affects the brain’s normal development of mechanical, spacial and navigational skills. Most fishing buddies of the boattrailerautistic suspect that something is amiss when angry motorists pull up alongside, gesturing and yelling. In extreme cases of BTA, one may even observe the occurance of the dreaded “missing fender” syndrome.

Quite unfortunately, I was to bear witness to Tobeck’s latest BTA flare-up on what was to be merely a simple transducer installation. We met at his marina and due to high winds, Robbie was unable to get the boat on the trailer by himself so he requested my assistance and I was only too happy to help my friend out.

Tobeck’s trailer for his 30-foot Seaswirl Striper “Salmon Hawk” is a monster 5th wheel style extra heavy duty model with a “goose neck” design which requires the hitch to be placed directly above the rear axle to reduce tongue weight and increase trailer maneuverability.

While I remained ground level to crank the trailer up to above the ball height, Tobeck backed the truck up and then jumped in to hook up the lights, safety chains and secure the hitch…or so I thought…

We towed the empty trailer about 100 yards to the ramp and I jumped in Robbie’s boat to drive it on the trailer. Once the boat was secured to the trailer winch and cranked up tight, Tobeck returned to the truck. Little did we know that the unfortunate malady BTA was about to rear it’s ugly and mortifyingly embarrassing head.

I remained aboard as Robbie pulled the boat and trailer up the ramp. As the trailer started bearing the weight of the boat, I happened to be looking forward and BOOM!!! Simultaneously the trailer hitch jumped off the ball, landing in the bed of his truck as a geyser of Starbucks coffee hit the inside of Tobecks windshield.

Someone other than my friend Tobeck then emerged from the truck, hurling a blue streak of epithets and dripping with the remains of his mocha.

“Thank goodness for safety chains” was all I could utter as the bed of Tobeck’s new truck now appeared to be,…well… used.

As we cranked the tongue winch up, the hitch came up alright but the truck bed remained somewhat depressed.

Once we got the hitch back on the ball we found that Tobeck has a little bowl in the center of his truck bed that, once filled with rainwater, will be a handy and very mobile bird bath!

Always good natured -until he’s not- the Crimson Crusader takes his Boattrailerautism in stride and lets this latest “flare-up” roll off his back.

The rest of the morning and the transducer installation proceeded without incident. Heck, it could have been a lot worse….It could have been my fault!!!

Tom Nelson
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

 

Springer School!

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Just as every northwesterner counts down the waning days of winter looking forward to spring, salmon anglers eagerly await the arrival of our earliest running chinook affectionately known as “springers”.

Trying to fit the four-hour springer sojurn to the Columbia into a busy schedule is challenging enough. Add to that the inconsistent, early season springer fishing reports and the term “forcing the issue” comes to mind.

After Saturday morning’s weekly installment of The Outdoor Line Radio Show and then the annual Master Marine Spring Seminar in Mt Vernon, “The Commish” Larry Carpenter and I hooked up to Big Red and did some I-5 time, launching in the Columbia just before dark.

A Columbia River Sunday morning sunrise greets us. We had great baits -and great attitudes- working early and late…

 

Unfortunately for us, despite great bait and a long effort, we would not get a single bite on Sunday. Mark Coleman of All Rivers Guide Service was the only guide boat we saw land a fish. Here is Mark and his happy clients with a springer right under the I-5 Bridge.

 

Enter my ol’ buddy Eric Linde for a little technique refresher… “springer school” if you will… Eric and his clients had a tough day on Sunday as well and since he didn’t have clients on Monday, he agreed to jump onboard Big Red for the Monday morning bite.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And yes,… true to form, on the second drag of the day Eric’s rod lit up and no matter how hard he tried to pass off the rod, no one would accept it! We “made” him play the fish!

 

I’m pretty sure there was no more experienced net man on the entire Columbia River that day than Larry Carpenter. Here he checks traffic ahead while he waits for Eric to get control of a hot springer.

 

Just one more run alongside the boat….

 

…and our first Columbia River springer of the season is in the bag!

 

Nothing quite says “chrome” like a St. Patty’s Day springer. Eric Linde’s smile says it all!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are springers a lot bigger than this one, but what he lacks in size, he will more than make up in taste on the table tonight!!!

 

This year’s springer season is just getting cranked up. We’re guarenteed a season in the main stem of the Columbia through April 5th. After that, we’re at the mercy of an in-season update which may result in more days on the Columbia, but probably not until May. The Willamette, Wind and Drano Lake will remain open through April but keep in mind that until we see springer numbers over Bonneville in excess of 2000/day, the Bonne pool “bubble” fisheries will not be worth the drive.

Now, if you’ll excuse me… I have to put a springer on the “Bar-bie”

Tom Nelson

TheOutdoorLine.com

710 ESPN Seattle

 

The 2013 Salmon Forecasts!

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A sure sign of spring after a long winter is the annual arrival of our salmon forecasts and the “North of Falcon” meetings. I await the salmon forecast numbers like a kid waiting for Christmas morning. Hello, my name is Tom and I am a “salmon sicko”.

After watching the numbers for a number of years (never mind how many…) I’ve found that you can “call some shots” by digging into the forecast numbers. The WDFW, DFO Canada and The PFMC (Pacific Fisheries Management Council) work very hard to get their chinook and coho abundance estimates out in a timely manner. These figures take some pouring through to find the real “meat” but don’t worry, I’ve done all the leg work for you right here!

2013 Preseason adult Chinook Forecasts (in thousands)

Stock                    2009       2010     2011_    _2012       2013
Willapa fall             34.8      31.1       36.8        45.2         27.1
Hoh fall                   2.6         3.3        2.9           2.7           3.1
Nooksack/Sam       23.0      30.3      37.5         44.0        46.5
Skagit summer       23.4      13.0      15.9          9.6         13.2
Stillaguamish          1.0        1.4         1.9          0.9           1.3
Snohomish Wild      8.4        9.9         7.4          2.8          3.6
Snohomish Hatch   4.9         5.6         5.1         3.9           6.8
Tulalip Bay              4.0         3.4         3.5        5.9          10.9
S Puget Wild          17.2      12.7        8.9          8.9           5.2
S Puget Hatch        93.0      97.4      118.6       95.8       101.9
Hood Canal Wild     2.5      2.4           2.1         2.9            3.3
Hood Canal Hatch  40.1     42.6         38.3       43.9         65.7
Key Stock totals 255,600  253,100  278,900  266,500  288,600

This is a very significant Puget Sound chinook forecast to say the least! Easily the highest number we’ve seen for over a decade.  We can be fairly safe in the assumption that chinook seasons may be similar to last year. Generally these selected stocks are up from 2012, most notably in the Skagit, Snohomish, Tulalip Bay and south Sound. However, on the coast Willapa is down sharply and the Nooksack/Samish checks in with a solid forecast as well which should drive a very strong Marine Area 7 summer chinook season.
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The Silver Story! 2013 Preseason Adult Coho Forecasts (in thousands of fish)

Stock                     2009         2010            2011__ __2012        2013
Straits Wild              20.5          8.5              12.3           12.3       14.8
Straits Hatch            7.0            7.8              12.7           18.6       15.4
Nook/Sam W           7.0            9.6               29.5           25.2      45.4
Nook/Sam H          25.5          36.0               45.7           62.8      49.2
Skagit Wild             33.4          95.9             138.1          48.3     137.2
Skagit Hatch          11.7            9.5               16.2           14.9       16.3
Stilly Wild               13.4           25.9              66.5           45.5        33.1
Stilly hatch              0.0              5.4                0.6             4.1          3.1
Snohomish W         67.0           99.4            180.0         109.0     163.8
Snohomish H          53.6           24.5               8.4             8.5        12.6
S Sound W              53.6          25.3              98.9           43.1       36.0
S Sound H              188.8       186.4            173.3         162.9     150.9
Hood Wild                48.6          33.2              77.5           73.4       36.8
Hood Hatch              52.0          51.2              72.1           62.6       68.6
Key stocks Total   338,600   320,800      916,000   628,600     783,200

 

Bottom line: we should see a smokin’ coho fishery in Puget Sound this summer. The increase in Skagit stocks is almost double last year’s run and a look at the Snohomish numbers have me thinking that 2013 will not see many anglers stray far from Puget Sound come September! In fact, the overall feeling among fisheries managers is one of optimism bone of increasing oceanic salmonid survival.

Speaking of survival…. We can look for over 6 million pink salmon to stream into Puget Sound this summer as well!!! We’ll have a better breakdown of the “Humpy Hordes” coming to you in this blog in the very near future!

Keep in mind that these numbers are but the “raw material” that the co-managers will use to craft our local seasons and only by attending the North of Falcon meetings can you have an impact on the process. We will keep you posted here but I sincerely look forward to meeting some of you….at the meetings!!!

Tom Nelson
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com

2013 Olympic Peninsula Salmon Derby -Day One

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Last year was our first time at the Olympic Penninsula Salmon Derby and after experiencing the event, the location and of course the fishing… there was no way I was going to miss this year!

The Harborside Inn was very generous to host us and we did a remote broadcast of The Outdoor Line Radio Show from the lobby over the excellent complementary breakfast! Many anglers competing in the event stayed at the Harborside Inn and took no small enjoyment in pointing out that they were heading out on the water while we were stuck in the lobby to do the show. To make matters worse, our cell phones started blowing up with fish pictures from our “friends”…Brutal!

When we finally got out on the water, Robbo was still getting reports… and while he was on the phone…  Hey ROBBO! YOU GOT ONE!!! …Uh, just a sec Nelly…I’m on the phone…

Needless to say, we lost that first fish…and it was a good one… but it wouldn’t be too long before the good ol’ Coho Killer produced a nice blackmouth for me.

 

Olympic Peninsula Salmon Derby rules call for a 3pm weigh-in deadline so after a late start…it was an quick trip to the scale where lucky anglers were lined up to enter their fish.

Tony Dobson of Snatchin’ Lips Rods, fishing aboard John Keizer’s Team Lowrance boat, shares a laugh with the crew at the weigh in.

 

After my 8.9 pounder was weighed in, WDFW personnel were there to scale sample and measure the hatchery chinook entered in the event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Team Lowrance heads for its slip at Point Hudson to get ready for day two of this three day event… Three solid days of fishing… No wonder they call this derby the “Iron Man”!

As of the end of fishing Saturday 2/16/13, 123 fish have been submitted; top three are 15.90, 14.80, and 14.30. With a “sporty” forecast for Sunday… it would be nice to be sitting atop the leaderboard.That 15.9 pounder is looking good for the ten thousand dollar first prize!

SHOW BIZ 2013!

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For those of you that have not yet had the opportunity to attend, here’s a “Virtual hot lap” around the 2013 Seattle Boat Show at Century Link Field!

 

Stabicraft is here in Boat Country’s booth, showing off the new Pilot House design. One very salty ride here…

Master Marine of Mount Vernon has a huge display of Osprey’s and Weldcrafts just take your pick and Big Larry Carpenter will hook you right up!

 

Defiance Boats in ‘da house! In a relatively short time, Defiance has become synonymous with offshore success and with Arima joining the line they have added versatility to the mix!

 

Power to weight ratio is a HUGE aspect to choosing your next outboard. Look no further than Evinrude for trouble-free, dependable, low-maintenance power!

 

Three Rivers Marine is sporting a new logo and a new line with North River Boats joining the TRM family of brands!
Jeff Lalone and Annie from Bayside Marine are ready to answer any and all your questions and make your boating life a whole lot easier!

Looking for tackle and accessories??? Everything is right here in the Sportco/Outdoor Emporium booth and the gang is ready, willing and able to get you the right gear…at the right price!

I don’t know if the word “accessory” quite fits the Lowrance label… If I didn’t have a fishfinder as effective as my Lowrance, I wouldn’t catch as many fish…

Harbor Marine… “right on your way no matter where you’re going”, is showing heavy duty marine diesel power and transmissions to get you where you’re going dependably!

Cannon Downriggers? Don’t leave the dock without them… ’nuff said!!!

I sincerely hope you can make it to my seminars at the Seattle Boat Show! Here’s the rundown!

Tom Nelson – Seminar Schedule at the Seattle Boat Show:

Triple Threat Salmon Angling:

February 1st – 2:00 PM

February 2nd – 3:00 PM

Dirty Downrigger Tricks:

January 31st – 7:00 PM

February 1st – 4:00 PM

February 2nd – 1:00 PM

SEE YOU AT THE SEATTLE BOAT SHOW!!!

Stabicraft 2600 Pilothouse

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There’s a dirty, little secret in the boating industry that no one is willing to admit or even talk about. The fact of the matter is that the Florida and southern California boating markets are so large that they tremendously influence domestic boat designs.

If you want to appeal to warm weather markets…you build a warm-weather boat. So, here comes another Boat Show season and what do you get along with it? The endless array of plastic, “T-top” boats with “Clear Canvas” windows. Or, as they have been come to be called, “Florida boats”.

Friends, if the only time I used my boat here in the Pacific Northwest was during weather you could call “warm”…my boating season would be quite short indeed. The Northwest is hardtop boat country. Boats that will keep you -and your expensive marine electronics warm and dry. T-tops with clear canvas windows need not apply.

Stabicraft of New Zealand recognizes that most folks want to use their boats more than a couple of months per year and outfits their hulls with diesel heaters, insulated fishboxes and a ride that makes even winter waves whimper…

Introducing the Stabicraft 2600 Pilothouse

Stabicraft Marine pioneered positive buoyancy boats, turning out the first rigid hulled aluminum pontoon boat from a back street workshop in Invercargill, New Zealand. Word quickly spread about the reverse chine pontoon design boat that posessed a ride that had to be experienced to be believed.

The original Stabicraft design was a compilation of the wish list of local divers. They wanted an evolution of the traditional Rigid Hulled Inflatable boat – one that retained the RIB’s superior buoyancy, stability on the water and ease of handling, but within a sturdier construction framework to make it even safer in rough waters.

Need serious fishbox space? The 2600 Pilothouse will challenge any angler to fill these three fish coffins! The aft box (top of pic) even has cutting board lids!

 

We’ve been talking a lot lately about the ride, safety and stability of reverse chine hulls. Stabicraft has -without a doubt- the “gold standard” of reverse chine.

 

I actually got a shot of this Stabi 2600 before the top was attached to the hull. Here is a unique shot of the interior giving you a perspective of the “fisherman friendly” layout of this model.

Stabicraft 2600 Pilothouse Specifications

Length:  26 Feet
Max Adults – 9
Recommended HP – 225hp
Maximum HP – 300hp
Fuel Tank – 95gal
External Beam – 8ft 2in
Internal Beam – 6ft 8in
Deadrise (Transom) – 21.8
Tube Thickness – 5/32in
Hull Thickness – 1/4in
Reserve Buoyancy – 930gal*
Dry Hull Weight – 3858lb
Tow Weight – 6172lb
Length on Trailer – 31ft 2in
Height on Trailer – 10ft 3in

Tom Nelson
The Outdoor Line
710 ESPN Seattle
www.theoutdoorline.com