Team Searcher is still celebrating the birthday of our beloved spokesperson, Bootz!  Searcher friends from near and far showered Bootz with birthday wishes, and we even surprised the birthday boy with a big party aboard Searcher!

We shared everything you submitted with Bootz – all of the birthday messages, photos, videos and poems – and he was overcome with joy and gratitude to be recognized on his special day!

Our team of judges and the birthday Bootz unanimously selected Howard Folmer as the winner of Bootz’ Birthday Contest! Howard’s poem “Bootz” (submitted via Facebook) captures the true essence of fishing aboard Searcher!

Hearing the poem made everyone at the party long even more for the start of our fishing season!

Congratulations, Howard!  You won a new pair of Xtratuf boots!

Prize courtesy of our awesome sponsors Xtratuf! 🙂 🙂 🙂

Searcher friends: Please enjoy reading Howard’s winning poem and dream about getting your own fishing boots on Searcher‘s deck soon!  Season start is just around the corner! We can’t wait!

Bootz

by Howard Folmer

Bootz, my dear, what can I say?
I long to be with you night and day.

Big news from Team Searcher!

Bootz, our illustrious and well-travelled Searcher spokesperson,

is celebrating a birthday on June 13!

Put yourself in the running for an awesome prize when you send Bootz some birthday wishes!

Xtratuf Boots has joined the festivities by donating an amazing prize – A PAIR OF NEW XTRATUFS!!!!! – for the person who sends in our favorite submission (photo, video, poem or letter)!

Ways to send b-day wishes to Bootz: (must be received by midnight PST June 13,2016)

• post on SearcherSportfishing’s Facebook page as a reply to Bootz’ Birthday Contest announcement (don’t forget to add #getcaughtwearingbootz)
• OR post on Instagram (don’t forget to use #getcaughtwearingbootz)
• OR email to jen@searchersportfishing.com

Bootz and our panel of judges will make their determination and we will announce the winner on June 15!

Special thanks to Xtratuf Boots for participating in Bootz’ birthday with such a perfect gift! (*shipping of prize is restricted to US)

Check out these birthday wishes sent from Captains Aaron and Ryan! 🙂

Bootz celebrated last year’s birthday by kicking up his heels on Searcher’s new deck!

It’s the season to S.O.N.A.R!

Do you like to fish?

Do you like free stuff?

Do you like to win?

Well, you are going to LOVE our S.O.N.A.R. program!

Just book with a friend (who hasn’t fished Searcher before) on a 3-day trip (or longer) and let us know about it at your time of booking, and you’ll win an instant prize on your trip AND be entered into our end of the season drawing for:

• a Shimano rod/reel combo
• AND
• a FREE 3-day Searcher trip!

Wow! Check out what 2015 S.O.N.A.R. winner John Melton received!

Calling all new Team Searcher members!  See our Job Openings link here (scroll to the bottom of the page): Deckhand/Captain Jobs

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)

Generated by Facebook Photo Fetcher 2

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.