Keeping the Boat Organized

[600 miles north]

     You're asking the $100,000 question. Every morning I spend sorting out the boat. Untangling fishing poles that got twisted up on the boat ride home. Fishing hooks stuck in life vests, stuck in the net, dried up worms and leeches, food wrappers, ( 4 kids ages 4-17 is an adventure fishing in itself!) Getting water out of the bottom of the boat. It has just become a tradition!  I grab a beer or two and start to work.

     I swear ever single year that I am limiting what I take with me each trip... But that never holds true. I have PVC pipe sections as rod holders to try and keep them off the floor of the boat. That never works because I have more rods than holders. I built a bench seat in the bow of the boat that hinges up and it holds many supplies, tool box, ropes, spark plugs, flares, all that kind of stuff. At the end of the day, fishing with all the kids, my most important feature is my cup holder... and a Kipawa sunset. Then all is good with the world... and tomorrow I can clean the boat once again!

[RHYBAK]

T-Bone, if you try the coat hangers don't cut them, leave it connected where the twisted part is so there are two wires(?) holding the poles. Just cut off the hook at the top. 31 more days!!! Bought the rib eye steak and a bunch more stuff today! If you don't have a vacuum sealer for your meats and sauces you should consider it. They really  keep the stuff fresh and compact. I'll be anxiously awaiting Rybak's report.

Oarin

This year I'm off with the videographer.
Hoping you'll have a nice video to watch before you leave.

[T-Bone]

     Every morning I spend sorting out the boat. I grab a beer or two and start to work.
     

600...you're busting me up!!! HA HA HA HA HA!!! I love it! Cripes, even the sots that I go up with wait until late morning to start cracking the Bleues!!! That's awesome. And truth be told, the "cleaning the boat out" ritual is commonly met with a sour face and long, slow walk down to the dock. Never fun. But maybe that's the problem...we're not sucking down suds when we're doing it. 

Good ideas Dog...thanks. I'm pretty good at 'MacGyver'ing' stuff, so a trip down the aisles of Home Deport is a good place to start.

Thanks. 

[rhinoboy]

Well, here is my 2 cents:

I've owned a place on kipawa for 11 years now, and along the way, i've expanded the cottage 3 separate times, went from boat to different boat, atv to side by side, car to pickup, built thousands of contraptions, etc, all with the intent of making camp life easier, less stressful, and "better".  Trust me, i've analyzed it from every angle.  I will admit, most of those things "helped", and i'm happy I did them, but truth be told, we all still get flustered at times.  Camps and boats get dirty, bugs bite, things are never perfect at camp.  The more I tried to make them that way, the less I got to enjoy, so last year I came to the conclusion, that BY FAR, the best camp/boat/anything upgrade was simply

MORE BOOZE 

I'm half joking, half not.  I guess what i'm trying to say, is the mere imperfections that make camp life difficult, are also what make it perfect.

Long story short, take it from a perfectionist, save the $50-$100 you were gonna spend trying to make the boat better, and grab more booze   It's surprising at how well booze masks small issues and relieves stress.  LOL.  Good luck Tbone!  Have fun, that's all that really matters.

[Oarin]

A portable bilge pump is a must have for us. Puckster,my neighbor also uses it to drain the water from the toilet at his cottage each fall. He says it works great. We also duct tape a foot long, 4" wide piece of styrofoam to the side of the boat by each of us to hold the jigs and lures we plan on using each trip. We have a water proof plastic bin that fits nicely in front of the middle seat to hold emergency gear, rain gear,spot light, tools, etc. T-Bone take a picture of your boat when you get it done. I'd like to see what you came up with.

[Marco]

Totally agree on the battery bilge pump.  We got one a few years back and it really simplifies the morning after a big Kip thunderstorm.  Most of the junk ends up being ciggie butts and bottle caps.  We have tried coffee cans for this, but they end up rolling on the boat as well.  Maybe taping them up in the front and back of the boat will help?

And for those of you who know Tbone, Ahab is his alter ego.  The worst of it is when you are his anchor boy.  I have fished with Ahab where we move more times than we fish as "we aren't on the spot". On the bright side by the end of the week your arms look like Popeye.

[johnny walleye]

ALWAYS A NEVER ENDING FIGHT TO PREVENT  A MIDWEEK CLEAN OUT

[Oarin]

So T-Bone, what are you going to do differently with your boat? Take a picture of your setup, I'm always looking for new ideas. Thanks, Oarin.

[CaptainCrappie]

All this talk about keeping the boat organized is making me feel like a messy slob!  Ever do or see that cartoon of a painter, painting himself in a corner?  Uh, now picture the boat, that guy that can't get out until he moves a rod or two, a tackle box or two, a camera or two, a cooler, etc. , that guy is me!  By Wednesday I gotta clean out the boat's gunnels and put away harnesses, jigs and lures that I was too lazy to do on the water.  I've been asked by everybody except my son why I take so much stuff.  My simple reason is that my Kipawa or any other fishin trip is so very special to me, the planning, day dreaming, anticipation, coupled with the cost of the trip demands that you have to be prepared for anything, so don't screw it up! You don't get these days back and besides, I'd rather be lookin at it than lookin for it!

C.C.

[Oarin]

One more thing that's important is to have the cell # of your outfitter on your phone or in your boat. Capt. Guy reminded me of that today. You never know when some catastrophe can pop up and you need help. We have flares, a flare rocket, SOS flag, etc. on board. Expect the best, prepare for the worst. Learned that lesson in the Gouin Reservoir.  Oarin.

[RHYBAK]

Here ia a picture of my boat after a typical Kipawa fishing excursion.

[Marco]

Here's the picture of mine and Tbone's boat after a couple of days on the water.  Looking forward to trying the coat hangar trick!

[SgtCrabby]

I like all the room you have available in your boat Marco  .   Reminds me of a load I once had in my canoe with three guys, and it still had freeboard.

Ryback, there's plenty of space in your boat, did you clean it out for it's photo op?

[RHYBAK]

Sarg.

No special treatment.
That is what my boat looked like all week.

Marco

That looks exactly like CaptainCrappies boat on a good day.

[SgtCrabby]

Rybak; You keep it fairly clean, no empty beer cans and other small loose stuff like lures and candy wrappers.

So that's what the captions boat looks like.

15 more days till I start my drive ...