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Fully agree there Jarah Jack it is defiantly team work and then the results follow
I've been lucky recently to experience both sides of being a deckie. As a few of you probably know I towed my boat over 5000 k's to get to the M&G only to spend most of my time on other peoples boats.
The reason for that was because the deckie I had lined up couldn't make it and didn't bother to inform me until it was too late to make alternative arrangements.
It wasn't a bad thing as it turned out. I learn't a hell of a lot from the various skippers I went out with. More than I could ever learn by going out in my own boat. Thanks to the generosity of Lucky Phil, Marvin, Mr and Mrs Boat Hog and Uripper I've also experienced a number of different boats and set ups. If only I had a pocket GPS I would also have a lot more marks to explore next year.
I think anyone who has a good deckie who pays their way and works as a team with the skipper should never take their deckie for granted. I noticed a few teams up at Agnes that seemed to work very well together and they also managed to catch a lot of fish. I don't think it was a coincidence. Its not easy to find someone you can be totally compatable with on a small boat.
7G
Fully agree there Jarah Jack it is defiantly team work and then the results follow
Hey Tex............glad to see you made it home safe and well.
To say I wasn't a little upset and peeved off when I heard of your plight when I first got up there would be a lie.
As a fellow boat owner I fully understand the process one goes through before the drive north actually begins. Whilst most of us on here are boat owners ourselves the people we invite out aren't always in the same position and sometimes don't fully understand the gravity of what towing a boat 5000kms is like. The prepping of the tow vehicle, motor, transmission, tyres all have to be 100% before leaving home....boat, motor and trailer need to be in nothing less than perfect condition, once again more money and more time. Services, repairs, upgrades and last minute maintenance is the order of the day. For the misinformed or inexperienced when a boat rocks up at a holiday destination and is ready to, and is expected to perform flawlessly none stop for a week or two it's not by chance nor by fluke. Many many hours of prep work and many thousand of dollars are usually the norm when considering towing a boat a long way for a holiday if the owner doesn't have the pleasure for always making such a pilgrimage and that's just getting the bloody thing there. Fishing gear, bait, safety equipment and the serviceability of everything on board isn't a game of luck...........stuff works because the boat owner has taken the time, money and inclination to ensure this is the case.
I fully understand that unforeseen circumstances do pop up preventing deckies/friends/crew to attend such trips and in some cases these circumstances are far more important than some fishing trip and in these cases this little rant fails in comparison to some peoples real problems but when the excuse is due to lack of planning, lack of interest or down right lack of respect for the boat owner to just not rock up forgetting the effort and money the skipper has already poured in to such a trip is unacceptable in my books.
This isn't a rant specifically targeting any one scenario but in the last week I've heard stories of skippers being left high and dry without a crew, guys renting houses for a week that have been fully paid for only to move in to another house to have a bit of company and leave their fully paid up house sitting there for a week because people have backed out and stories of guys unwilling to help clean, prep and organise the boat for the next day whilst instead choosing to drink and watch the boat owner do it all.
You're right Terry, it is a team effort and far too often some people either forget about or have no real idea of what it takes to pull off a trip such as a two week holiday away from home with a boat. Paying a bit of fuel money doesn't magically turn it in to a fully serviced charter for the day............if you cringe at coughing up a bit of fuel money then for gods sake don't ever buy a boat!!!!
That's the end of my rant for the night, I consider myself pretty lucky for the guys I get to fish with and I think they appreciate the effort I go to as well.
Yep can't agree more, many deckies I regard as smarter than the average bear. Don't underestimate them, I often have named them as skipper for the day, I just supply the boat and let them go.
Learn heaps this way. Bonus marks in my gps that I didn't put in there, they mysteriously found their way into my system!
Scalem
I took a chick out on Friday fishing & reef hopping and it turns out we were very compatible. Ended up being one of the best days on the water so far... I'm looking forward to next time. Just sayin... lol
I don't get why it is so hard to find a deckie. Im in a position atm where I cant afford my own boat and wouldn't be able to do any offshore fishing without the generosity of the guys that I fish with and I fully appreciate it.
What I don't understand is why there isn't more people on here begging to do whatever it takes to get out there.
I've been fortunate enough to fish beautiful places like 1770 and Fraser and have caught some awesome fish and if it wasn't for guys like madmackrel, muddy toes and bull none of that would have ever happened.
I should probably offer to be a deckie for someone.
If you took the approach of being supportive and helpful in every operation of the trip, plus helping to properly clean up after the trip and put the gear away. And Help with maintenance and those little repairs between trips. Help plan trips...
Well if you took that approach you would be a real asset to the owner of the boat.
Some guys are not proper crew, they are just "rod holders"
Pauly
A Proud Member of
"The Rebel Alliance"
Terry, my hat off to you for dragging the boat all the way and then the circumstances that occurred and still being able to smile. Sometimes it seems like it would be easier just to be a deckie but end of the day I enjoy the position of being able to have final say over what I'm doing, although most of the time its a coordinated decision. The other factor is the size of my boat, quite capable of handling it on my own should I find myself without a deckie. Not so easy with some of the battleships you guys own.
Anyway I guess the message is if your a deckie then appreciate the expense it has taken to enable you to be fishing where your fishing and if your a skipper then appreciate the deckie that is up before you preparing food, getting gear ready and making a cup of coffee for you. Thanks Steve.
Mark
No such thing as a fat alcoholic, just fat piss pots...
That's pretty much why I don't make it to these trips, I only know unreliable deckies
I could use a good deckie! I done a solo mission on Sunday and left a pilchard in the live bait tank. I climbed into the boat last night and was greeted with a god awful stink, upon some further investigating I found said offender. If I had a deckie to blame for leavin it in there I'd feel I little better lolall applications considered
Well said Muddy. I know as a deckie, I fully appreciate and am grateful for the invites I get. I try to help out where I can and respect the skipper and their boat. I fish with trymyluck a far bit and we have done so for years. We have fished on both of our boats and it is always good. I will never take for granted that I get invited by Mark to do the 1770 M&G on his boat or any other one the refined country gentlemen attend.
I remember a few years ago, a mate took us on his big boat off 1770, we tried to keep the boat clean throughout the day and on anchouring up for the night, we assist with the anchouring, cleaned and washed down the boat, stored gear, ensured bait was stowed, packed fished away, set up nibblies and poured the skipper his drink by the time he had logged off, shutdown and came down from the flybridge. That sort of respect for the skipper and his boat got us invited back and gained us a lot of respect as deckies.
As a boat owner, I am more and more fishing by myself as I am sick of the BS of dealing with ungrateful or unhelpful deckies. I have a handful of blokes that have been on my boat that are welcome every time as they are great.
As far as team work is concerned, every fish that is caught on 2 deep is a 'boat' fish as far as I am concerned. If it wasn't for the team work or the discussion that happened prior to that fish, it would probably be still swimming.
I think it is very evident at the ramp, which boats have a good team of skipper and deckie(s). Things run smoothly, quickly and with minimal disruption to others.
Terry, great to hear you had a great time and buggar that you were put in that situation in the first place, but good on you for making that best of it.
Steve
I have become so used to fishing with either or both of the same 2 guys for a few years now, I get nervous about going to sea with someone new, without one of these guys on board my boat. Some of you will remember my "How to be a good Deckie" thread and will understand why one of these guys gets an auto invite 100% of every time I'm planning on going out, unless he's in FNQ catching marlin again. (actually they both get invited every time)
Terry,
I didn't know about your plight until I read your post. I am utterly dumbfounded...
I would kill for an opportunity like that, but a combination of work, family and a lack of dollars would stop me from taking part in a 1770 M&G.
I work part time as a professional deckie on a charter boat to help make ends meet, so I know EXACTLY what goes in to making a good deckie - they are worth their weight in gold. If you aren't any good, you won't be back on that charter boat again; or any other for that matter - they all talk to each other. For the 8hrs we have the punters out on the water, there is almost that amount of my time again spent doing the prep and post trip clean-up with the clean-up being the biggest part.
From the time the punters step on the boat, it is non-stop work and you hardly get two seconds to sit down - you are making up spare rigs, cutting up bait, making sure everything is good to go when you get to the spot, keeping the client's entertained, etc, on the way to the mark. Once you're out there, it is non-stop assisting the clients, giving tips and coaching, keeping them fed and watered all day, pulling fish off, sorting out tangles, replacing rigs, making sure spare rigs are ready to go, etc. All of this while keeping an eye on what 8-10 people are doing, communicating non-stop with the skipper and keeping an eye on the conditions, other boats, etc. Sometimes, if I am lucky, I get to drop a line.
On the way back, you are cleaning the boat, packing up, gutting and gilling the catch, etc, irrespective of the conditions. I have gutted and gilled in some pretty bloody atrocious weather, but always manage to have everything sorted by the time the clients step off.
Then, you spend the next 2-3hrs properly washing the boat, cleaning the gear, getting the rods re-rigged with all new terminal hardware for the next day, making sure the spools are full, sorting out the rubbish.
When I work out what I am paid per hour, I could probably make more money flipping burgers, but I would much rather be out on the water.
I would love the opportunity to come along as a deckie for someone so I can actually have a fish myself. I am happy to help with maintenance, pre-trip planning and prep, post trip clean-up, chip in for fuel, supply lunch/drinks/snacks and even provide the tow vehicle if the tow weight is 2t or less. Like I said, dollars are tight, so I can't afford to go out on something that burns $20+ an hour in fuel, but I'll help where I can. I'm hoping that early in the new year, the financial situation will change and may be able to afford a small boat myself.
Ben.
I do have my own boat although be it small, 4.25 runabout, but am lucky enough to have a good mate that takes me out every now and then offshore. I feel its a obligation not an option to do everything you can before, during and after the trip. I have developed a little game over the years called where will i hide the money this time. My mate never accepts money from me for expenses, says i do enough in helping him prep, lauch, maintain, and clean but feel this is the minimum requirement. I know have to stash some money, some where in his boat, car, takcle box as to pay my way. I remember being at the pub one night with him and he went into a story saying he thinks he is losing it as he keeps finding money in weird places that he never remembers putting it. I let him go for a while, a long while before i came clean........
JN
Fellas,I recon the best deckies are the ones that chip in for fuel,help clean the fish and boat,are willing to explore new grounds,and most of all are prepared to help when weather is bad to do some maintenance.I am probably one of the lucky ones,I have been married to my deckie for 22yrs,good fisherwoman as well.
CHEERS AND BEERS
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