Southeast Fishing
5 min read
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Are inflatable stand up paddle boards good? That was my exact question before buying my first one. We’re going to get into that but first, what is an inflatable stand up paddle board, or “iSUP” for short? Well its is exactly what the name suggest, a paddle board that you inflate with air. Inflatable SUPs are long surf board looking things that you can, you guessed it, stand up and paddle through the water on. They are a great way to get out and enjoy the water. Whether you enjoy SUP touring, SUP yoga, SUP fishing or just paddling around the sandbar, there is certainly a SUP perfect for you. They are similar to a kayak but in my opinion, way more versatile! You can actually sit or stand to paddle. Anyone that has kayaked for a few hours knows that even with the most comfortable seat, it can still be hard on the back, butt and legs. That's where the iSUPs versatility comes in to play. You can get creative and add iSUP seats or even a cooler to sit on. That way you have the option to sit or stand. But what about the “inflatable” part? What if they pop, or get a hole? Are they durable? SUPs seem cool but I don't know about an inflatable one….. Relax, these were all my initial thoughts as well.

iSUPs are made using heavy-duty PVC with drop-stitch technology that creates a rigid air chamber that when inflated properly can feel as strong, rigid and stable as a traditional epoxy SUP. They are also extremely durable and are able to handle rough environments. Rest assured, these iSUPs are designed and ready to take on all the fun in the sun that you can dish at it.

Okay, now that you know they can handle anything that an epoxy SUP can, will you have to buy additional items, pumps, bags, etc..? Nope, iSUP packages come with everything you need to get out on the water. The board, the bag that the board fits in, the pump, the paddle, even a repair kit just in case you do in fact spring a leak… everything! Just open the package, inflate your new iSUP and hit the water. It’s that simple! Check out this best seller iSUP on Amazon to see what all comes in the package.

https://amzn.to/3PkCvBN

​What is the advantage of iSUPs over traditional epoxy hard shell SUPs?
First, in my opinion is cost. The lowest price that I have seen for a hard shell SUP in around $500. Prices typically range from $500 up to a couple thousand with average somewhere around $1000. Compare that to the lowest iSUP I’ve seen, coming in at $80, you can see how much savings they provide. Prices typically range from $80 to around $400 or so. You can get a very nice, well equipped iSUP for under $200, which leaves plenty of cash for extras or your ice cold beverage of choice!

The second advantage is transporting your new iSUP to the local watering hole! Both iSUPs and hard shell SUPs are usually somewhere around 10–11 feet in length. Not everyone that wants to enjoy this wonderful hobby owns trucks, trailers, roof racks or even a vehicle at all, all required to transport a hard shell SUP. You ever see a hard shell SUP strapped to a bicycle? Doesn't look like a fun ride!

That doesn't look very fun to ride!With an iSUP everything conveniently fits in a nice backpack bag so no matter how you are getting to the water, it’s sure to be much easier.

Much more convenient to transport…The third advantage, I believe, is storage. Again, because iSUPs fit into a bag, they can be stored pretty much anywhere indoors. Garages, sheds, closets, under your bed or even the back corner of your living room are all places to easily store your iSUP. Hard shell SUPs on the other hand, require a much larger area to store indoors, out of the elements. If you don't have that space, racks or brackets to store them outdoors off of the ground are required. This is not recommended due to the harmful UV sun rays that will certainly take a toll on your board.

The only other thing I recommend is getting some sort of electric powered air pump to help with the inflation task. These pumps can be plugged in at home or to your 12v outlet in your car, which gives you the option to inflate the board before you leave the house or after you get to the water. Although the packages do come with a manual pump, getting these big boards up to the 13–15psi requirement can be quite a task. Not impossible, but an electric air pump with definitely make it quicker and easier!

Electric air pumpAs you can see, iSUPs hold many advantages over hard shell SUPs. So what's next!?!? Nothing! Stop thinking about it and get your new iSUP ordered to start enjoying the water in probably the easiest, cheapest and most convenient way possible. Trust me, you will be happy you did.

Check out my website for many different iSUP options as well as photos of us enjoying ours! www.sefishing.com
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Thank you for reading and always remember to…..
“LIVE LIFE & STAY TIGHT”

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​On the island as the storm approached

​Set up and ready to spear..

Southeast Fishing

4 min read
  After a string of travel baseball tournaments for both my sons in mid June, I found myself with about a 5 hour window to get the boat out and do some fishing. It was a Monday and I knew that the boat traffic in Biscayne Bay would be minimum. If you are from the South Florida area, you know that weekends on the water can be crowded to say the least. Sandbar parties, wave runners flying around everywhere and anchored yachts with loud music, although makes for a fun day in it’s own right, is not what you want when you are looking for a nice relaxing day, fishing a local gem for mangrove snapper.

  Set up and ready to spear...After waking up and getting a quick side job in, I went home, hooked up the boat, picked up my youngest son (my avid fisherman) and we were off! After a quick 30 minute drive, we arrive at the boat ramp. Since it was a Monday we were able to back right in and dump the boat. We pulled out of the marina, hit the throttle and it felt great! Finally on the water and headed to our spot.
After a fairly short run we anchor up and start to get set up. My son wanted to snorkel the small wreck and possibly spear something. Chum, dive flag, safety rope and dive buoy deployed. As he is snorkeling around I hear a fait rumble far in the distance to the south. I can see grey skies but it was pretty far south and didn't pose a risk at that point. As I’m watching him snorkel, I hear the rumble again and this time it sounded closer. I looked south and sure enough, it looked like it was getting closer. Really?!?! I grab my phone and check the radar and sure enough it was coming our way. As I sit there cussing Mother Nature for a minute and checking the radar again, I decide to play it safe and start to pack up everything and prepare to move. At this point the radar showed it was coming closer but was still going to stay to our south. We quickly pack up everything and head to a small nearby island to wait it out. This thing was going to stay south and we would be fishing again in no time…………right???
ABSOULUTLY NOT!!

  Within 10 minutes of pulling up on the island, this storm had quadrupled in size. It was almost like it was growing right on top of us. Shit! What do we do….. the marina was too far to make a run for it at this point. The winds picked up, white caps in the Bay is never good, lightning started popping all around us and the torrential downpour had reduced visibility to almost nothing. As I sat there with my son contemplating my decisions, I continued to check the radar hoping to see that it was going to pass. Every time I checked the radar the storm was growing more and more. It was like we decided to hunker down directly below the fuel source of this storm, which by now was proving to be very angry. As this storm raged on for about an hour, we finally saw some light. Could it be, finally the break we needed!

  We jumped up, pulled the anchor from the sand, pushed the boat off the island and hammered the throttle! At this point I wasn’t particularly concerned with the “Minimum Wake Outside of Channel” sign. As we made our way north, we looked back at the storm and wow, it look ferocious! After a quick 15 minute run, we pulled into the marina and prepared to pull the boat out of the water. Much to my surprise, there were about 5 boats showing up to launch at the same time. I thought, where the heck are they going…. The South Florida boat culture is unique in many ways, but that’s for another blog! At this point I was happy and grateful to be back at port safely and in one piece with my son. We caught no fish, speared nothing and sat nervously on an island for a few hours but it still beat a day in the office and my son has a story to tell his buddies at practice!

 If you would like to check out a little video from this day you can check out the video on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@southeastfishingfl