Early warning: This will be a bit of a griping session...
Spent extended periods fishing the coast from the shore this year for the first time. I have never fished saltwater before. I studied and asked questions locally and read online, watched videos, searched through articles on NFR. NOWHERE did anyone say ANYTHING about how sand will get EVERYWHERE and how fast everything will corrode. Good grief.
Trailered some equipment and left it on an oceanfront lot for a few months as we had some extended time spent close by. I could not believe how fast it rusted poorly plated fasteners and any bare spots on steel. I had thought about taking my freshwater boat and hitting some of the rivers but after talking to some of the locals about how far up the salt mixes with the fresh water, and you have to treat it the same as saltwater, I bagged that idea. Not to mention the salt in the air that gets into and on everything from wiring to, well, everything.
The other thing was the sand. Since it blows often at the beach, the air dries the sand and it blows all over. Hard to imagine the sand right on the beach next to the water would dry up and blow but it does. There is one 'nice' reel I have that I used for one fishing session but it was blowing, foggy and water was splashing pretty good. I rinsed it but did not pull it clear down as I used it for a very short time. Next time I got it out I checked it before using it was surprised the drag felt 'off'. When I took it apart there was a fair amount of sand IN the drag mechanism. What the?!?! I didn't drag it down the beach for crying out loud!
Anyway, if any of you decide to fish salt for the first time be prepared to do some extra maintenance and be forewarned that there will be corrosion. Oh yes, there will be corrosion...
Will I go again? Probably. Well, yes, I will go again. Caught some fish (and crab) and it was fun, but next time I will know what to expect. Did I mention the corrosion? I am sure my friends are tired of hearing about it! Tight lines!
Saltwater, Sand And Equipment
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Forum Post Guidelines: This Forum is rated “Family Friendly”. Civil discussions are encouraged and welcomed. Name calling, negative, harassing, or threatening comments will be removed and may result in suspension or IP Ban without notice. Please refer to the Terms of Service and Forum Guidelines post for more information. Thank you
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TrackerPro16
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The Quadfather
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Re: Saltwater, Sand And Equipment
I don’t want to reply with “Haha”, like laughing at you, But I enjoyed your tale for sure. Yeah, just imagine owning home in that environment. You see how so many places out there just look ragged.
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TrackerPro16
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Re: Saltwater, Sand And Equipment
It IS funny if you don't let it make you crazy. Like you said, there are a lot of pretty ragged places and vehicles out there. Stuff just rotting into the ground... "Haha" would have been taken well, just to mention it.