Launch #2 - Success

[SVNET]

Hello all,

Well all the hard work building the trailer did paid off, and I had a very successful launch #2 today.

I had to succeed, I had the wife was with me...! We both had a great evening trolling up and down the Santa Fe River.

I now have a convertible trailer. Flip that rear gate up, it becomes a utility trailer, flip it down it becomes a boat trailer.

I actually like it a lot because of the platform that acts like a launching peer. It allowed me to actually release the boat into the water and then walk back and forth on the trailer to transfer all the accessories from the tracker to the boat, very cool and convenient, it was like walking on water.

It still work in progress and I do hope for one day to replace it with a dedicated boat trailer. I came back home with a lot of improvement ideas to be implemented as time allows.

We did not catch anything today but the overall experience was worth every minute of it. Having the wife in the boat for the first time, trolling the river under beautiful evening weather, priceless... By the way, we were only able to do this today thanks to Grandma who is staying with us for a month and now me and my wife can be like boyfriend and girlfriend again for a little while...

Discoveries:

1. Very useful to have a dedicated vehicle just for fishing, just live everything in there and clean up the next day.
2. anchor can get stock on the bottom of the river, it is very difficult to unhook it and pull it back up.
3. Trolling motor, that is what it is, best used on a lake, forget about going up stream on a river, very tormenting struggle.
4. Fishing is not something to be done on a rush, wait for a day off and take your time so that it is enjoyable.
5. Fishing on a river with a current is much more challenging then fishing on a lake for sure.
6. When you don't know what you are doing, you can be of much amusement to the bystanders who enjoy with a smile.
7. Jon boats are like motorcycle, the joy of owning one is customizing it to fit you and only your needs.
8. I am enjoying this whole experience very much and can't wait to be back on the water again. Thank you all so much.

Enjoy the pictures:

 

[dedawg1149]

congrats svnet, nice post and pictures

 

[SlimeTime]

Cool! I didn't see a winch on the front of the trailer in the pics, but having one would make loading the boat a breeze, plus it might be handy for loading other items into the trailer.

Glad to see you're getting your set-up fine-tuned....not to mention it looks like the whole family is able to enjoy it.

ST

 

[SVNET]

Cool! I didn't see a winch on the front of the trailer in the pics, but having one would make loading the boat a breeze, plus it might be handy for loading other items into the trailer.

Glad to see you're getting your set-up fine-tuned....not to mention it looks like the whole family is able to enjoy it.

ST

Right now I am just using a rachet cord to tighten the front of the boat, works some what like a winch.

I do want to install a winch, but I know very little about them, where to get one, the post where they mount, how to install it. I wonder if I could get a winch at Walmart or an auto parts store ?

Any help on how to get and install a winch will be greatly apreciated.

Regards.

 

[Nickk]

Looks like you made a good mod and have a trailer get the bike to the track too. You can find a winch at a Marine supply place like West Marine or you can order one online from McMaster Carr and save yourself some $$$. Not sure on how to mount it though, go to a trailer shop and see how they mount them there.

 

[ben2go]

Great outing.Looks like good fishing grounds.

 

[LarryA]

Glad your trailer works well for you. I wish there were places like that to fish around here. I wish there were ares like that to fish up here in the northeast. At least, I can't think of anything even close in my area. The only close river is hard to navigate with a canoe, a boat would be impossible. The local lakes are probably way over fished or weed clogged. Fishing locations around here pretty much suck but you make due with what you have. There are some places I'd like to try but thy are a fair drive and gas is expensive when your vehicle only gets between 10-15 MPG.
Anyway, great job on the dual purpose trailer.

 

[SVNET]

Glad your trailer works well for you. I wish there were places like that to fish around here. I wish there were ares like that to fish up here in the northeast. At least, I can't think of anything even close in my area. The only close river is hard to navigate with a canoe, a boat would be impossible. The local lakes are probably way over fished or weed clogged. Fishing locations around here pretty much suck but you make due with what you have. There are some places I'd like to try but thy are a fair drive and gas is expensive when your vehicle only gets between 10-15 MPG.
Anyway, great job on the dual purpose trailer.

I am right there with you man, I hear your sentiments and hope that one day you are able to move to a more fishing friendly area...

I am very blessed to live in an area known for its nature and outdoors, but must important is not over populated yet.

I am growing old and I don't have the patience and skills to deal with crowds. I love the fact that I pull up to the ramp and there are no lines and no waiting time. I love that I get on the river and it is only me and Nature.

But, I am not that close to any body of water either, about 35min to the river and 45min to the lake. And even with the Tracker that do about 26mi/g, I can still feel the effect of prices of gas.

But there are no perffect place, there is a lot to do around here except for work, and the jobs around here are very under pay so we do pay a price...

I only lived in Massachusetts and in Florida, so far very happy with both, I wish I could explore more of this beatiful country of ours.

God bless this country!

 

[SlimeTime]

You can get a cheap ($15-20) winch about anywhere, Tractor Supply, Rural King, Farm & Fleet, any place like that. It just bolts-on, and just use a good quality rope on it, you don't need a strap or cable. Just keep in mind when you mount it, where things are. Leave the boat on the trailer in it's loaded position so you don't mount the winch in the wrong place.

I always suggest to add an additional safety-rope to tie the bow to the trailer, in the event of a winch failure, don't just depend on the winch to keep the bow in place. If you have a spot, you might even want to mount a front snubber ($5) to tighten against.

ST

 

[Waterwings]

Great job on the launch and the trailer! I don't know what type of camera you're using, but it sure does take some nice pics!

 

[SVNET]

Great job on the launch and the trailer! I don't know what type of camera you're using, but it sure does take some nice pics!

Well, you just touched a hot button here, I am a digital camera collector and a frustrated not talented photographer.

The particular camera used on this last launch photos is an oldie from 2003, a Nikon 5700, Super zoom camera, a $1K camera on its glory days... Today, about a $200 used camera on ebay.

Camera makers are like car makers, some models are good an other not so good, so you can't really judge a brand based on just one particular model, but you can judge a brand by its consistency in putting out remarkable models year after year, and for that reason, I am a huge NIKON follower.

All of my other pictures here were actually taken with a discontinued model, Nikon L11, an exceptional $89 camera from Walmart.

In my personal history with digital cameras which dates back to 1997, have yet to find any other brand that produces such sharp and natural images as Nikon does, all the way from the $80 cameras to the $1K + cameras.

The world of cameras trickle down in the following form:

Nikon/Canon and then everything else.

Image quality vs feature and those two don't mix below the $300 mark.

Nikon/Canon producing limited feature cameras that have great image quality for the price.

Then you have all other brands producing cameras packed with features to compensate for their lacking image quality.

With great sadness, I have to announce that my $89 Nikon L11 died this weekend, I drop it at the beach.

Its replacement the L18 does not come up to the challenge and comes out short to the old L11 in image quality.

That is the reason I had to pull out my Trusty 5700 this last time.

So, 2006 was a good year for Nikon in the Sub $100 mark, but not this year.

This time I had to settle for a $115 Fuji J10, let see what that produces, I have not tried out yet.

I always like to keep a low budget camera around to go with me everywhere I go.

More then what you wanted to know about camera, but if you still hungry for more, PM I can answer just about anything about digital camera, I just lack the eye for amazing photos, but I am a camera freak none the less...

Take care!

 

[Waterwings]

Thanks for the info!

 

[DahFISH]

Nice job and nice pics, it looks like some really nice fishing spots as well. 8)