Going on an all day charter off the NJ coast tommorow, I have not fished in 20 years, and have never been on one of these. They provide the equipment.
Any quick sea-angling tips for me to keep in mind . . . or any tips so that I don’t make a complete ass out of myself?
(Besides use suntan lotion, don’t drink a lot of beer, etc etc)
Most of the charters I’ve been on, the staff do as much or as little as you want. If you want them to bait the hook and remove any fish, that’s usually not a problem.
They are used to first timers, and if they are any good they will explain the rules and the equipment before you cast a line into the water.
What are you fishing for? I’ve been deep-sea fishing a couple of times, and tuna fishing in the only time I’ve been skunked. Imagine catching a tuna though!
Just an update for the . . well based on the response, three people that actually took the time to read this post.
Coward, you are right; the crew was very helpful, and carefully explained all we needed to know about fishing that day, hooked our lines, blah blah blah and we caught about 150 fluke and sea bass!
I caught one fluke and a skate, but the more experienced anglers caught up to 10 (I am amazed at what skill fishing takes)!
The main lessons I learned: when you catch a fish, reel him in nice and steady, don’t jerk the line. Also, don’t try to pull the fish into the boat with your rod . . . let a crew member lean over the boat and catch it with a net. By doing either, you risk ripping the line out of the fishies mouth and losing him. Especially a big fish, which you don’t want to lose!
Bring an extra cooler.
Bring extra ice.
Take dramamine before going to the dock.
I went sea fishing one time when I was in Louisiana, on vacation about 6 years ago. My cousin took me out in his boat to near the oil rigs in the Gulf (international waters, I was told. Not sure if he was pulling my leg or not). We went for Redfish. I’d never fished outside of a lake or river, so this was new to me, too. We used smelts for bait, and DAMN!! these redfish hit hard! We’d reel the fish to the side of the boat, and he had a large handled hook that he’d slam into the fish to bring it into the boat. The fish we caught must have been 15-20 lbs each or more. I’d never seen such large fish. I’d heard of them before, my father used to tell me that the one’s that got away were at least “this big” (arms fully outstretched) and must have weighed 100 lbs 
.
During the outing, I asked if his boat had a bathroom. He pointed to the ocean all around us, and said “Don’t forget to flush…” It’s harder than it sounds to pee over the edge of the boat and not fall in. At one point, I must have looked like I was about to go over the edge, because he grabbed the back of my jacket to keep me from falling in.
Came back about 3 hours later with 12 redfish (probably 200 lbs total), went home, cleaned and fileted them, marinated them in his own sauce recipe (I’ve got to find out what it was. A1, worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, and other spices), and grilled them. Our family never ate anything so tasty!
I can’t wait to go back and go fishing again. Definately the best part of the trip.