Searcher was launched May 24, 1970!

Join us in wishing our gal a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Searcher docked at Driscoll Boat Works early this morning, to maneuver into position for the delivery of our brand new bait tank!  A crane lifted the tank from the flatbed truck and gently placed it on the prepped Searcher deck. Captains Art, Aaron and Ryan were on hand to guide the placement of this much-anticipated addition!

The new tank layout includes four cylindrical aluminum tanks, each of which has a 48″ diameter and is 42″ tall.  The new hand wells are 50″ long by 10″ wide and 10″ high – allowing 2-3 anglers to simultaneously access the wells on each side.  The new bait tank footprint has resulted in increased space in the stern for anglers on the port and starboard sides.

Design: Dean Adams – Cortez Marine

Fabrication: Matt Bramer – Blue Chip Machine

Sandblasting and Epoxy Primer: Randy LaPage – RW Little Co.

What’s next?

The tank will be secured to the deck, and the new plumbing will be installed. The seams will be filled and faired, then the tank will be sanded and Team Searcher will paint our new baby with two coats of gloss white 🙂

From Searcher Sportfishing – New Bait Tank 2016. Posted by SearcherSportfishing on 5/18/2016 (26 items)

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Hello Searcher friends!

Team Searcher recently returned from an EXCELLENT adventure to the Central Coast!  Captain Art piloted the car (with passengers/backseat drivers Captain Ryan, Celia and Jen) as we travelled from San Diego to Camarillo, Port Hueneme, Ventura and Oxnard!

We kicked off our arrival to the Central Coast on May 10 with a visit to the Gold Coast Lady Anglers – a respected organization of women who are as serious about fishing as they are about having fun!   As we enjoyed the delicious potluck options (including Captain Art’s ahi poke!) we heard all about local fishing when GCLA member/Seeker pro-staffer Sophia Huynh arrived fresh off of a successful trip.  After the captains gave their seminar about offshore live-bait tuna fishing – and a Q&A session with moderator Linda 🙂 – we drew winners for raffle door prizes and for the $250 Searcher gift certificate!  GCLA member Babsie was thrilled when her ticket was drawn for the gift certificate – she’ll be joining us for our Lady Angler Special in August!

In Ventura, we visited Hyun’s Tackle Shop, where we surprised long-time Searcher friend Thom Carney as he arrived to do some shopping, and then Thom surprised Captain Art and Captain Ryan with the gift of 4 custom trolling outfits for the boat! Austin, the shop owner, had just finished putting the finishing touches on the custom wraps!  Each custom-wrapped Seeker rod has a Penn International reel, and is named after one of our Searcher captains:  Aaron, Joe, Kenny and Ryan!

In Ventura, we also stopped in to Eric’s Tackle Shop and enjoyed looking through Eric’s amazing collection of vintage tackle and memorabilia, especially a well preserved Searcher brochure from the 80s!

Our Central Coast trip culminated with our May 11 visit to Turner’s Outdoorsman in Oxnard, where our host Mike Armenta (pictured below with the Searcher captains) greeted us with an impeccably clean and fully-stocked store!  The seminar was extremely well-attended – and the anglers had excellent questions for the captains.  Bootz sent some Searcher goodies to give out in addition to our door prizes, and Mike also had awesome raffle giveaways for the seminar attendees!  Tim, the winner of the Searcher gift certificate, is pictured below shaking hands with Captain Art 🙂

Team Searcher had a blast visiting the Central Coast!  We headed back to San Diego looking forward to our upcoming season and seeing all of our friends on board!  Our brand-new, custom bait tank will be installed this week!  

Searcher Road Trip Trivia:

Team Searcher listened to a blend of classic rock, disco and 80’s/90’s pop during our road trip….so guess which song made which team member yell out “Turn it up!”

a. What a Fool Believes – Doobie Brothers

b. Ring My Bell – Anita Ward

 c. My Heart Will Go On – Celine Dion

d. Rosalita – Bruce Springsteen

ANSWERS: a. Capt Art, b. Jen, c. Capt Ryan, d. Celia 🙂

We have the perfect 4-day trip–it’s a confirmed GO, a light load, you’ll return the morning of July 4th, and best of all…Izorline is the sponsor and Norm Fujimoto will be the pro-staffer on board!

Come fish with our top-notch crew and the latest/greatest bait tank in the fleet. You know the bluefin and yellowtail are biting, so take a turn for yourself!

It’s time for you to cast a bait and get off the grid. (Read up on Capt Art’s “Get Hooked on Bait” here.)

Click here and book your spot on this 4-day trip now: IZORLINE 4-day 4th of JULY.

Take the time NOW to check your passport. Is it valid through the entire fishing season? Renew it early, if not!

Chef Charley Erichsen is the newest member of our Searcher family! This spring, he’s been the focus of many accolades, having already prepared over a hundred gourmet meals for our Searcher Natural History Tours passengers!  He’s looking forward to the fishing season – and is already hard at work building menus and prepping his “kitchen with a view” aboard Searcher.

Charley was born in Wickenburg, Arizona, and he credits his mom’s amazing cooking skills to his early love and appreciation for good food.  “I have the best memories of just being in the kitchen, the great smells and flavors, and enjoying being in the one place in the house where everyone would come to hang out. One of my favorite family traditions is when my mom, her sisters and my grandma would get together at Christmastime and make handmade tamales and then distribute them among the whole family.”  

After a knee injury derailed his college baseball scholarship, Charley pursued his “second love” and entered culinary school, graduating with a degree in French cuisine. He spent years cooking for restaurants on 5-star properties in Scottsdale and Aspen, honing his skills by working with Culinary Hall of Fame Executive Chef Scott Tompkins. Charley and his fiancé Dyana Hanouneh began to look west in search of the SoCal lifestyle they were craving. “I’m an outdoors person and I have open ocean experience, so when I saw  Searcher was looking for a chef, I jumped. This job has everything I was looking for and more, not to mention the unique opportunity to run a scratch kitchen on a boat! Plus every seat in my restaurant has an ocean view!”

So what is Chef Charley “cooking up” as he preps for the upcoming fishing season?  “I’m working on menus that highlight Baja French fusion, SoCal cuisine, and seasonal fresh produce.  Every dish has a background and it tells a story.”  When asked about his favorite fish to cook of all of the types caught aboard Searcher, he immediately replied, “Dorado. It’s like a blank canvas, and it accepts all flavors. It takes well to my fresh herb marinades.  It’s juicy and can be perfectly seared on the Searcher grill when treated right.”

Searcher anglers, when you fish with us this season, ask Charley about his signature BBQ sauce. It’s a recipe 10 years in the making! He describes it as Carolina-style: less sweet and more vinegar/tomato based.  “It complements pork unbelievably well. I serve it with corn, potato salad, red beans and rice. And dessert is banana bread with pecans and coconut Kahlua blondies.”

Fast Facts about Chef Charley:

• Baseball Position: Second Baseman
• Favorite Pastime: Hunting elk (He’s an avid bow hunter)
• Favorite color: Green
• Met his fiance: At the 2011 MLB All-Star Game
• Top item on his Christmas list: Add to his collection of chef’s knives
• His “signature dish”: Seared porcini-dusted scallops with poached Bosc pears and a vanilla riesling butter
• Favorite Meal: Mussels in a white wine broth with grilled bread
• Favorite Drink: 7-up
• Favorite Spirit: Maker’s Mark
• Favorite Baseball Team: Arizona Diamondbacks
• Looking forward to this on Searcher: Hooking up to a big tuna!
• Surprising Hobby: Dutch oven hunting camp cooking (He’s made crown roast rack of lamb and quail with Southern Comfort cream sauce.)

“Charley, you’re a star! I have never had such tasty and varied meals cooked in such a small, rocky kitchen before!” – Ieuan B.

Hello Searcher friends!

Well, when Bootz sent us his clue for Round 4 of “Where’s Bootz?” – we had no idea he would stump EVERYONE!  Our Searcher detectives were detoured by Bootz’ tricky ways until he sent his extra clue (“It’s not a bridge!”) after the guessing deadline passed.

After that, it was only a short time before some of our Searcher sleuthers figured out where Bootz was!

He was at the Maid of the Mist overlook tower at Niagara Falls, on the US side.  He must have snapped the pic before embarking on the Falls voyage.  We bet Bootz didn’t need to wear a rain poncho when they entered the Horseshoe Falls basin!

Congratulations to “Where’s Bootz?” All-Star and Round 4 winner John Plowman!  He wins a Searcher beanie AND a pack of 4/0 Owner circle hooks – Captain Art’s favorite!

Runner up goes to another “Where’s Bootz?” All-Star, Ron Shultz, who made his quick deduction as soon as the second clue was published!  Ron won a pack of 4/0 Owner circle hooks!

Honorary detective is Mike Sterenchuk, who also guessed the correct location!

Congrats to all who helped us to finally FIND BOOTZ!

I wonder what Bootz will be up to next???????

– Jen 🙂

Searcher Sportfishing’s own Captain Art Taylor will be visiting California’s Central Coast in May 2016 for two very special speaking engagements!  Mark your calendars!

May 10: “Live-bait Tuna Fishing” presentation to members of the Gold Coast Lady Anglers. www.goldcoastladyanglers.com

May 11: Captain Art will lead a free evening seminar at Turner’s Outdoorsman in Oxnard at 6 pm.

(store is just south of the 101 freeway,

between Walmart and Sam’s Club)

2051 N Rose Ave #280, Oxnard, CA 93036

Mike Armenta – Tackle Dept. Manager – 805-988-2049

Join Captain Art and Team Searcher to get the scoop on live bait techniques and tuna fishing!  We look forward to seeing you 🙂

A $250 gift certificate for a Searcher fishing trip will be given away to a lucky winner at each event! Don’t miss out!

Need a printable flyer? Click here: Flyer – Capt Art’s Excellent Adventure!

Which day is best to visit Del Mar Fairgrounds for the Fred Hall Show???

Saturday, March 19!

 Captain Art will be there at the Fisherman’s Landing booth to chat with all of our Searcher friends about our favorite subject: FISHING! 🙂

BOOTZ ALERT! — Apr. 12, 2016 —

Bootz is still on the loose! NOT ONE person sent in a guess for the March contest – we guess he had everyone stumped! Well, sneaky Bootz sent an extra “clue” this week and gave us till Tax Day (midnight April 18) to blow his cover!

SEARCHER FRIENDS: send me your guesses! ( email to jen@searchersportfishing.com ) by midnight PST Apr. 18, 2016.

What’s at stake?  Bragging rights and our still-unclaimed March prizes!

Check out his new clue! Guess what, it’s not a BRIDGE!

(quoted from March blog post)

Did you see Bootz at the Long Beach show?  He had a blast posing for photos with our Searcher friends!  But as soon as the show ended, he took off for his next adventure. When Bootz isn’t on the job as our Searcher Sportfishing official spokesperson, he’s vacationing in some interesting destination!

As you know, during this off-season he’s been sending the Searcher Office regular updates about his travels, but his communications have always been incomplete!

We need the help of our Searcher friends to figure out his location!  He really had us guessing during Round Three…

Are you ready for Round Four?

Here’s a photo of Bootz at his fourth stop:

Send in your guess via email, with “Where’s Bootz?” in the subject line to jen@searchersportfishing.com

Correct guesses submitted will be entered into a monthly drawing for a prize!

Our February winners received tickets to the 2016 FRED HALL FISHING TACKLE & BOAT SHOW in Long Beach!

This month’s drawing winner will be selected from all correct guesses submitted by midnight, APRIL 18, 2016.