Fishing Charters in Gloucester MA FAQ's

Q How do I book a trip

A Get a group of friends or Family you would like to share the day with. Go to the avalaible and booking calender at
http://www.kaymancharters.com/charter-reservations.htm
Pick a day by putting your cursor on that day and clicking. fill out the form and pay the deposit. You MUST then get a confirmation page to print as your reciept.

TIP.. Collect in Full plus Tip from everyone in your group, so if one can't make it the others or yourself don't have to pay for your buddies spot

Q What if some people in my group back out at the last minute?
A You are responsible for paying for the boat for the day or your deposit is forfieted. Please follow the tip above to prevent this.

Q How big are the boats?
A The Lisa&Jake is a 40' boat with 150sq feet of deck room a 10x10 wheel house with 5 bunks below, the head is on the main deck, The Kayman Too ia a 35' boat with a 118sq feet of deck room the wheel house is 7x12 and there are 2 bunks below and a dinnette table. The head is below the main deck.

Q Is there a head
A Yes both boats have a head

Q Do you supply the gear
A Yes, we supply fishing gear, all you have to bring is your lunch and drinks and appropriate clothing.

Q Do you allow alchohol?
A Yes we allow beer in moderation, no hard liquor We DO NOT run booze cruises!

Q What do I bring?
A Bring snacks and a lunch, always bring an extra snack and sandwich, there is no place to get anything at sea,
Wear appropriate clothing for adverse weather and water proof shoes,

Q Will you call me if there is a problem with the weather?
A No. It is up to you to call the evening before your trip 4-6 pm is prefferable

Q How do I get there?
A There are directions on the site for those who like there gps sets the address is 75 Essex ave Gloucester 10930

Q Any tips on how to prevent seasickness?
A Some people are affected by motion sickness than others . A few simple thing can help.
1. Do not drink the night before, have a few beers but avoid hard drinks
2 Get a good nights sleep
3 Eat a good breakfast, do not eat greasy foods! A full stomach will prevent a little from sloshing around.
4 If you take motion sickness medicion and have not taken it before, try it the day before you get on the boat to see how it affects you, Some people get wiped out from drammamine, A lot of people are now wearing the patch behind your ear, Ask your pharmisist to help you chose.

Q What if I do get seasick
A Try to get something to eat as soon as you do not feel good, fill up your stomach, If you do get sick DO NOT go into the head! The enclousure will make it worse, go onto the deck and do what you need to do and get some air.

Q What if our trip is cancelled due to weather or other problems?
A If the trip is cancelled by the captian you are entitled to rebook another day or get a refund of your deposit.

Q What time do we leave the dock
A The departure time varies during the year, we depart by 6AM at the latest for full day trips. Please confirm your departure time with the Captain.We will return to the dock 9-10 hrs after departure.

Q Is there a place to stay overnight?
A Yes there are several hotels in the area and one right next to the boat, Cape ann marina resort..978 283 2116 or the Manor Inn 978.283.0614 Tell the clek at the hotel you are fishing on Kayman Charters for a discount on your room.

Faq's pertaining to Cod fishing

Q How deep is the water we will be fishing
A All of our spots are 100-300 ft. We always try to catch the best Quality fish in as shallow of water as possible.

Q How long of a ride is it to the Cod grounds?
A The average ride is 11/2 to 2 hour ride.

Q Will we be fishing with bait or jigs?
A Always be prepared to switch your terminal set-up. You could jig at one spot and find bait works better at another.When the fish are feeding on bait fish jigs work the best, When they feed of the bottom' Star fish sea urcins ect' then bait is the choise, One area the fish can be on jigs and a 1-2 mile ride and the bottom will change as well as the feed.

Q How much heavy of a jig should I use?
A A common all around jig would be 14oz. That is what we reccomend if you are to just bring a couple of jigs. The weight depends on sea conditions and your ability. A fast strong tide is tough to hold bottom so a heavier jig can be used. A novice might have trouble feeling the bottom with a 20oz jig, but the experienced guy next to him can feel the bottom with a 7oz jig. REMEMBER if you are not on the bottom you will not catch fish!

Q What if I do not bring any jigs?
A. There are always jigs on the boat you can use,You are responsible for them, they are usually run around $10 ea if you lose them

Q How big are the fish?
A. The Cod fish run from a size to small to keep to a whopping 60-70 lbs. Average size fish that we target are 10-15lbs with 20-40lbers common. Haddock run from 4lbs to 12lbs, Pollock average 15-20 lbs with a good amount of 25-30 lbers

Q Do we keep the fish?
A. Yes all legal ground fish brought aboard are yours to keep.

Q Who will filet the fish?
A The fish fileting will be done by the crew, They will be fileted , bagged and put into the boats ice chest.

Q Do we need to bring coolers for the fish?
A No leave your coolers to transport the fish in your vehicle until you return, The boat has a large ice chest that will hold all the fish, The fewer coolers on the boat makes it much more comfortable for you and the crew.

Q What type of Fishing gear should I bring?
A A 4/0 reel is plenty for ground fishing with a medium action rod. A lot of the newer reels have a fast retreive ratio 6.5 to 1. These are good reels designed for New England bottom fishing.

Q Do you allow braided line?
A Yes, Not only do we allow it we reccomend it! Braided line can increase your catch 100%. Espesally in deep water or in a fast tide. Braided line is also much thinner than Dacron or Monofiliment lines so they are not affected by the tide as much. An 80# line is reccomended, anything lighter you can not untangle!

Q What if I do not have a fishing rod?
A The boat always has gear you can use the set-ups are new at the beginning of the year.

Q What is the average catch?
A This will depend highly on sea conditions and your ability, A group of experienced anglers can put 800-1000 + pounds of whole fish on the boat every time.

Q Any wolf fish or Monkfish?
A Wolffish and Monkfish are bycatch they do come up periodicly, they do not run in big schools so we rarely target them.

Tuna FAQ's

Q. How do we fish for them?
A Most of the time we troll for them first thing in the morning, We also catch live bait and drift of anchor while fishing the live baits.

Q How far out do we go?
A Our usual spot is only 12mi or 1hour outside the harbor, at times we must travel further.

Q Do we get to keep the fish.
A Yes all fish of recreational legal size will be fileted for you to take home. Commercial size fish 73'' and over get sold at the dock and the charter gets 1/3 of the proceeds returned to them.
Kayman Charters does not target commercial fish unless the charter requests to do so!

Q How many fish can we keep?
A. The catch limit varies from year to year, Call the Captian to get the latest regs.

Q What is the average size that you have been catching?
A The average fish are 55-65 inches or 120-160 lbs. There is only approximatly 1/3 waste and 2/3 meat from a Tuna were it is the opposite for ground fish. These fish are estimated to be 180 -300 lbs in the coming years.

Q.How long does it take to reel in these fish?
A The average time is 30-40 minutes. Some people can fight the whole fish themselves and sometimes it takes all 6 plus to bring the fish to gaff.

Q. What do we do if we catch our limit?
A After your limit has been caught the fish are tagged and released or we change the rods over and go for ground fish or Bass.

Q What do we use for gear?
A We have been using Shimano 50 series reels and 5' Stand-up rods

Q How many Tuna do you average in a day?
A This varies from day to day, Tuna do not feed 24/7 The bite will turn on and of during the day, We have had up to 12 Tuna hooked during one Charter.

Q What if they are not feeding and we dont get one?
A On days were the fish are none existant we will switch the trip to groundfishing or Bass.You will always catch fish!

Q How does the Combo trip work?
A Combo trips are a great way to get a taste of Tuna fishing while still having a day of groundfishing.
We will Tuna fish for 2 hours in the morning then steam to the Cod grounds for a day of groundfish, A 12 hr day is reccomended for these trips.