The boat
Benguela
Benguela is a Carrycat 1000 — custom-built, purpose-designed for offshore tuna fishing in the Cape, with no compromise on comfort.
What is on board
Everything on this list earns its place on a boat that works forty nautical miles from shore.
- Furuno radar, AIS and chart plotter for safe, accurate navigation
- Furuno searchlight sonar and echo sounder for efficient tuna location
- VHF, Kavicom and onboard internet, to stay connected with other vessels and with shore
- Shimano, Calstar and Daiwa tackle throughout — no compromise
- All tackle rigged and maintained in-house to international standards
Why the sonar matters
A conventional echo sounder looks straight down, so a school is found by crossing it. Searchlight sonar scans ahead and around the vessel, which is what lets a school be located at distance, approached properly and then held.
In practice that is the difference between taking hours to locate a school or finding them shortly after arriving in the right area.
Why one boat
Because a second boat means a second skipper, and the skipper is the product. The trade-off is that dates in season are genuinely limited, which is the honest reason to book early rather than a manufactured one.
Specifications
- Vessel
- Benguela
- Build
- Carrycat 1000
- Survey
- SAMSA Category B day/night (40 nm) — 12 people
- Home port
- Hout Bay Harbour
- Overall length
- 10 m / 33 ft
- Engines
- Twin Suzuki V6 200 hp outboards
New build
She went in the water this season
