Policies

We don’t have many policies, but a couple of things are worth highlighting for you.

1. Boating is an inherently “physical” activity and accidents can happen. For example, the boat rocks and rolls from wind and wave action, sometimes the boat lands hard coming off a wave and jolts all passengers, the decks get slippery from water; creating a threat of slipping or falling, wind and spray means everyone and everything aboard may get wet. Saltwater is very damaging to electronics like cameras so you may not want to risk expensive electronics. Sometimes sharp turns or sudden acceleration/deceleration are required to miss debris in the water which, again, may cause the possibility of jolts, falls or slips.

   Fishing obviously adds even more hazards due to the sharp hooks, heavy sinkers, fish fins and teeth, etc. that are part of the activity. Your (and your fellow angler’s) skill levels also play an important role in the level of risk involved.

   We aren’t trying to scare anyone away from boating. We obviously want you to charter us, but you need to understand that there are risks inherent with all boating activities and plan accordingly. For example, someone taking a powerful blood thinner for a heart condition may be willing to go for a boat tour but not risk fishing due to the chance of a cut or puncture wound. Someone with a chronic back problem would need to be very selective of weather conditions and be aware that sudden maneuvers may be required for safety reasons.

   As the clients chartering the boat you must understand the risks, evaluate your susceptibility to them and determine if you are willing to accept them as a condition of chartering. Accepting the normal risks (those listed above are a few examples but are not meant to be all inclusive) associated with boating activities is a requirement for chartering with us.

2. We provide a cooler, ice and water; you bring your food, drinks etc. Sunscreen, sunglasses and hats are good things to have with you. Due to the limited space available we may ask that you leave your coolers in your car and use the one we provide. This will be dependent on the number of people and the planned activities.

3. We do not have an enclosed “head” but we will provide a “portable potty” and cloth curtains for privacy if necessary.

4. Cleaning fish is not included in our prices. However, depending on our time restrictions due to other charters, we will normally clean a limited amount of fish for you. We don’t enjoy cleaning fish, so the emphasis is on “limited amount”.

Pricing

Pricing is subject to change due to changes in our costs. These are provided to give you a “ballpark” idea of costs. The prices will be confirmed when you make your reservation.

We provide chartering on a “per hour” basis that is very competitive with the traditional “half day” and “full day” charters available in the area. We think our method provides you with additional flexibility, but it is slightly more complicated than the familiar flat rate. We price for a boating tour and add a surcharge if the activity has additional costs that we must recover. Hopefully, we will answer all of your questions with the data provided. If not, please ask us to clarify anything that you don’t understand. We don’t want you to have any “surprises” concerning your costs.

Maximum number of clients per charter is 6

The rates are “per hour” and time is rounded to the nearest half hour (for example, a 2 hour 20 minute charter will be charged for 2.5 hours). As stated above, we price for a boat tour and add a surcharge if the activity has additional costs that we must recover. The clock starts when we leave the dock with our clients and ends when we return to the dock. For charters that involve taking clients to a location (such as Cumberland Island) and returning later to pick you up we will negotiate a flat rate price.

1. The first four hours are $85 per hour.
2. Additional hours are $65 per hour.
3. A backwater or inshore fishing charter (within approximately 20 miles) is an additional $50 to cover bait and tackle costs.
4. An offshore fishing charter (20 miles out to the gulf-stream) is the hourly charge, plus the $50 for bait and tackle plus up to $250 for additional fuel. The fuel surcharge will be based on the actual amount of fuel used for the trip based on the boats instruments. It is about 70 miles out to the gulf-stream and boats achieve about 1.5 mpg.
5. If the charter is for children without an accompanying adult, we charge an extra $15 per hour to cover our costs of hiring a “crew” person to help make the trip safe and enjoyable for the kids.