What Is a Swamp Poodle?
"Swamp Poodle" is a nickname for the Boykin Spaniel breed, Capt. Josiah's first duck dog. An outgoing and energetic breed, they're always entertaining during the hunt and love to retrieve. Their small size makes them perfect while hunting from a boat. They are also the state dog of South Carolina.
What Should I Bring?
We have all of the necessary tackle for fishing trips so you are not "on the hook" for providing any equipment. You will need to bring water, food/snacks, SUNSCREEN, and a cooler to keep in your vehicle. We reccomend comfortable clothing for the weather conditions and keep in mind that you may get wet or bloody while handling fish. We also reccomend polarized sunglasses. Beer and wine are allowed on board but please no glass containers, and no hard liqour.
Duck hunters, please be dressed for the weather. The only gear you need to bring is your gun and shells, and make sure your gun has a plug limiting you to 3 shells. We recommend a 12ga with #2 or #3 shot as we are primarily hunting tough divers and sea ducks.
Do I Need a Fishing License?
No, all members of your party are covered by our blanket fishing license while on our for-hire vessels.
For duck hunters, you will need an active NC hunting license, Federal Duck Stamp, and a free HIP survey completed. All of this can be found on ncwildlife.org
How Do I Pay?
Please contact our crew via one of the methods below to secure a date. Once your date has been confirmed by the captain you will be sent an invoice for the $100 deposit. The email with the invoice will have a link to a secure payment method where you can pay online. Once that deposit has been paid you will see the date marked as "BOOKED" on the calendar on the Charters page. The rest of the trip balance is due the day of the trip and an invoice for that remaining amount will be sent at that time. Due to fees from the processing company, any payments made online will have a 4% processing fee added. If you plan to pay by cash or check please bring your payment on the day of the trip. 15-20% tips for mates are customary. Duck hunts are priced per-person, fishing trips are priced for-the-boat.
What If We Can't Go?
Weather is always a factor in this industry, but as long as there is not a severe storm or lightning we can usually modify the trip to still catch some fish that day by staying inside or close to the inlet. If the crew determines that to be necessary then you will also have the option to move your trip/deposit to a new date, or cancel your trip and be refunded, refunds are also available for any trip cancelled at the captain's discretion. We request that reservations be modified no less than 5 days prior to the trip, but we do understand that life happens, so any changes that are made at least 48 hours in advance may have the deposit moved to your new desired date or refunded. No-shows will not have their deposit refunded.