The Compleat (sailing) Angler
Issue 64 : Jan/Feb 2009
For more than 25 years, I’ve been doing practical research on the best method for fishing from a sailboat. The result of my accumulated research can be summed up in two words: nothing works. But as the saying goes, “A bad day fishing (on a sailboat) is better than a good day at work.”
I manufactured a couple of inexpensive rod holders from some scraps of white 1 1/2-inch (inside diameter) PVC plastic pipe.
First, I used a 1-inch hole saw to drill two big holes in the PVC pipe. Next, I used a sabre saw to cut an L-shaped slot for the starboard holder and a J-shaped slot for the port holder. These cuts were also made in the pipe. I used a file and sandpaper to smooth the cut surfaces.
The L- or J-shaped slot is used to lock an open-face spinning reel into the holder. Slip the rod into the port holder, then rotate the reel 90 degrees. Gravity locks it in place — Lake Erie fish love to brag to each other about pulling rods out of boats.
The slanted end, cut at the bottom of the pipe, matches the aft pulpit rails on my Catalina 30. I mount the pipes to the rails using stainless-steel hose clamps. Every couple of years I spray the pipes with a little white enamel paint.
Now I can troll plugs for bass and walleye while slowly sailing on Lake Erie.
The pole holders are also useful for fully extended boathooks. They hold the boathooks available for quick deployment during docking maneuvers.
Joe Orinko has sailed the waters of Presque Isle Bay and Lake Erie for 26 years, 20 of them in his O’Day 23, and for six seasons on a Catalina 30. Both vessels have been named Unicorn.
Thank you to Sailrite Enterprises, Inc., for providing free access to back issues of Good Old Boat through intellectual property rights. Sailrite.com
