Marilyn Jean IV

Amazing captain and crew. They knew just where to go to catch tremendous stripers. The crew was immensely helpful throughout and didn’t complain when we lost rigs or tangled lines. We will be back. Our new go-​to boat.

Had a great day of Porgy fishing on the Marilyn Jean IV yesterday. Me and my buddy filled a cooler with really nice sized Porgys. Some Seabasd and Bluefish also came up but we didn’t get any of those. I have been on a couple of other boats in sheepshead bay before both were half day trips which were nice but never got any «keepers» to take home. The Marilyn does full day trips from 7am to 3pm and the captain seriously works hard to put you on fish that you that you can take home. The crew on this boat is very personable and helpful, these guys had me rolling all day long. I can’t wait to get back out on her !!

I didn’t set foot on this boat and I’m giving this boat 1 star. My friend and I decided to go fishing on Sunday, we went early to go check out the boats. The first boat I saw was the Marilyn Jean IV. I asked the guy in front of the boat (short brown hair and blue eyes) for the price. He said $ 60 and it’s an all day trip. Then, I asked if he could give me a better price than $ 60. His exactly words were, «No wheeling and dealings here. Why do you need a discount? Are you on welfare? Look at your tattoos, you don’t need a discount. Its only $ 60.», then I asked him, «is it wrong to ask for discount?» and he didn’t respond. No wheeling and dealing??? You guys are on GROUPON for $ 35 what do you mean no wheeling and dealings!!! I understand you guys want to charge full price for people that don’t take advantage of your GROUPON but you guys offer a service and your customer service was no where to be found. Since you guys lack customer service skills, I took my business to OCEAN EAGLE and gladly paid full price, the mates at OCEAN EAGLE were awesome and the people I fished were awesome too. Marilyn Jean IV if you didn’t want to give me a discount on the spot you could have said, I will take care of you guys next time.

I «booked» a trip, via Living Social, on a Wednesday in which I planned to use two days later on Friday. I emailed the company requesting a reservation for myself and two other friends. The two friends were going to buy their tickets on Thursday and then send a request as well. I was informed by the company that they would not be able to reserve the Friday trip for my two friends since the company requires a 48-​advance notice. NOWHERE on LivingSocial or the company website is the 48-​hour notice listed. The company was not willing to help at all and instead told me to book full price on their website.
There are TONS of fishing boats in New York that are cheaper and willing to accommodate working professionals who have to book activities on a «last minute» basis.

My first time fishing on a boat out of Sheepshead Bay and I was very pleased. We went on the 7 – 12 evening charter on a Wednesday and there was not that many people on board. So lots of room and lots of attention for each person! Yay.
The boat was clean and well kept and one of the crew members; Rob, was very attentive and helpful. The captain is also on top of things, constantly shouting instructions and providing guidance when needed. People caught fish at every stop we made but a lot of the time they were not big enough to keep. We got the most action right under the Verrazano. I caught a weak fish there.
There is also a pool which keeps things exciting and competitive. The crew also offers to clean and fillet your catch; which is great. Don’t forget to tip them. I would definitely come back.

Great first time fishing experience on the Marilyn Jean IV. I didn’t really know what to expect when I got to the boat. The boat wasn’t very big, and it was packed for our 7:00am trip. The trip was from 7:00am to 3:00 pm. I was a bit worried about being packed on that little @ss boat all day with nothing to do but fish, but I had a blast!
The crew went around and showed all the first timers the ropes. They provided great bait and pretty decent rods. I think the thing that kept the day from being boring is that they kept on switching spots. They would sail out to a particular spot, blow the whistle to start fishing and you only had a short period of time until the «lines up» whistle was blown and the boat went to a new location. Because of this, every stop was like a little mini challenge to catch fish. Definitely kept things interesting. The ship was a mix of experienced fisherman and newbies like myself. Everyone was really friendly and shared tips on the best fishing techniques. The day flew by and by the end, I had caught 3 fish! Prior to exiting the boat the crew will clean and prepare the fish in the manner you wish (filleted or just cleaned) I thought that was a cool perk. Honestly I didn’t care for the fish I caught (ling fish), but it was fun to cook and eat my catch.
One thing to keep in mind is that the boat leaves on time! If you’re not on the boat at 7:00am, they will leave you. My boyfriend and I almost got left. that would have been tragic. There’s a little concession stand on the boat, but it’s probably best to bring your own food. Also, bring some cash to tip the crew. They work hard. :-)
Since this was my first fishing outing, I have nothing to compare it to, but at the end of he day, I had a great time and no complaints about the Marilyn Jean IV, so 5 stars from me!

Great boat to fish especially if you’ve never done it before. The mates will help you and even show you how to catch fish. Whatever you catch they will clean and prep for you to your liking, just do remember to tip as this is where the majority of their pay comes from.
Good mixed crowd on board meaning veteran and novice fishers, so no need to feel bashful if you’ve never fished before. My 10 year old step son caught fish his first time out.

Good boat + fantastic crew = serious fun.
I live in Manhattan and don’t have a car. About a month ago in mid August I felt the urge to go fishing. I’d heard about the Sheepshead bay fishing fleet but had never given it a shot. I’ve done quite a bit of fishing over the years, but never on a Brooklyn charter boat, so this would be a learning experience.
The Marilyn Jean IV got good reviews here and I booked a PayPal reservation for a 7am-​3pm porgy/​seabass trip. I took a 5:45am Q train from Union Square. The train was slow and held in station repeatedly but I got off at the Sheepshead bay station about 20 minutes to 7. I walked south over the highway overpass to Emmons Avenue (the north shore of a big marina) and headed towards the docks in the distance to the east. I was surprised to see lots of swans gliding around in the early morning calm.
I made it to the boat with 5 minutes to spare without hurrying and was ushered aboard. The boat looked well maintained and pretty clean for a hard core fishing vessel. It was a gorgeous day and the boat had a good complement of 30 – 40 anglers. I found a spot near the bow.
The crew took care of the payment formalities smoothly and we cast off and glided out. I didn’t have a rig and was set up with a standard bait casting rod and a high-​low hook rig with an 8 ounce sinker and a bucket of chopped clams. I explained I was not familiar with the reel and got important advice on how you need to always keep some thumb pressure on the spool when the reel is freewheeling. We motored into the bay for about 20 mins and the captain idled the engines and called «lines in!»
I got a hit almost immediately and pulled in a decent sized porgy. A crewman magically appeared and unhooked the fish for me. Later they judged I seemed to know enough about what I was doing and left me to my own devices – which I appreciated. But when a less-​than-​expert cast caused a hopelessly tangled birds nest in my reel they sorted it out promptly and expertly without making me feel like a total greenhorn.
There were flurries of activity when it looked like everybody was catching fish in the morning. But as the day progressed into the hot afternoon things got slacker.
There were a several very young kids on board and it was fun to see the looks on their faces (ranging from abject horror to complete triumph) when they landed their first fish.
The captain moved around quite a bit as conditions warranted, often drifting and sometimes anchoring. The stiff action on my hard used loaner reel was starting to get annoying and the crew kindly swapped it out for a better one when I asked.
The afternoon porgy action was getting pretty dull despite frequent changes of venue so the captain decided to go after croaker and spot off Breezy Point, where we had some decent luck.
Overall the fishing for the day was okay. I landed about 10 keeper porgies and four or five spot and croaker, but not having a cooler to bring them back home I gave them away as I caught them. Although one guy appeared to have a few too many beers, all the passengers got along well.
I was highly impressed by the crew. These guys were highly skilled and seasoned salts and really worked hard to be helpful and make everything fun and hassle free. This level of professionalism in is encountered all too rarely nowadays.
I had so much fun I decided to get outfitted with a nice medium carbon fiber 7′ 3-​piece travel rod and a Penn bait casting reel at Capitol Fishing Tackle ($ 200). I bought a sturdy little wheeled insulated fabric cooler and some cryopacks at Kmart so I could bring the fish back home.
I found myself yesterday back on the deck of the MJIV. This time it wasn’t so crowded, with only about 16 folks aboard. The sky was partly overcast in the morning but would clear to sunshine in the afternoon.
The action was steady throughout the day with lots of porgies of which I landed about a dozen, some «jumbo». The new rod and reel were a real pleasure to use. A highlight was a late afternoon strike by a nice sized young bluefish which took a number of good runs on me before I could bring it over the side.
Less fun were the plentiful and pesky sea robins, which I was not familiar with. I learned the hard way not to grab them from the head to unhook and received some painful spine wounds (wait until they settle a bit, and when they open their mouth grab them by the jaw). Everybody seemed to consider them trash fish except the Asian guy next to me who assured me the fillets were delicious. I was a bit leery and gave the larger ones I caught to him and kept one to try later.
The captain moved the boat as soon as the action slackened. At each new location it usually wasn’t long before hits began.
At the end of the day I had a nice catch expertly scaled, gutted and filleted. Again the personable crew had performed flawlessly.
I just tasted sea robin sashimi and I won’t be throwing many of those back in the future. I should have trusted Way G.

Great boat! I have always had a great time on this boat with a helpful crew, great fishing and an awesome way to see a different part of NY. Go!

Fished on the Marilyn Jean the other day. First time fishing out of Sheepshead Bay in, possibly, 25 years.
Nice enough boat. We had @ 40 people on board and it wasn’t too crowded. I imagine that at 60 it could be awful. The crew was pretty good… helpful with tangles and rigs and overall just a friendly bunch of guys with very diverse personalities.
Like many other boats (and all airlines these days) they charge extra for everything: $ 5 for rod rental and $ 3 for rigs (that’s an additional $ 3 a pop if you lose yours to the weeds/rocks…only $ 3 but still pricey considering they buy in bulk and probably costs them no more than $ 1 for the sinker, 2 hooks and line set-​up), $ 5 for a dozen sand worms (worth it if it seems the fish are hitting this bait more than the free clams).
A snack bar with hot food is available once the boat is underway for a few hours. Coffee was not available that day… and I wish they would have said something while I still had time to run and get some.
$ 60 for an 8 hour trip (7AM to 3PM). Nearby boats are the same. Shorter trips (7 – 12) on other boats are $ 35 to $ 40.
Plenty of free parking on Emmons Avenue for the 7AM trip. Not much else nearby at that hour, so buy your breakfast and coffee before you get there.

The crew were very nice. One particular crewmen took a liking to a female in my party, and was fun flirting all day with her. He kept calling me Dad at the end of the trip and I had to consciously subdue the urge to throw him overboard. Fishing was poor, with only 2 Black Sea Bass and two of the ugliest fish I’ve ever seen– Juvenile Ling, from a depth of about 100′. I heard the Capt say at the beginning of the trip that days as of late were poor, with nights being better. But hey, I’ve never come down to fish from Sheepshead Bay before. Will have to come back!
As an after thought its worth mentioning that in addition to bringing some tipping money, since the crew really does work hard– you will pay extra, and in cash beforehand– rod rental and an extra $ 2 for every rig setup you lose to the sea God.

My dad and I went out on Sunday night from 7pm-​12am and had a great time. We picked the Marilyn Jean IV largely because they had a web presence and we could reserve our spots online.
We left out of Sheepshead Bay around 7:30, and got back around 12:30. Basically the captain would bring us to the fish, a couple people would get hits, and we’d move on. The crew was solid and helped us with our tangles/​rigs and some other anglers helped us with our technique. There are separate men’s and women’s heads (bathrooms) as well as an indoor area with a small food bar. You’d be surprised at how good a burger from that little galley smells after a couple hours on the water. It was a good time with a solid crew and I’d do it again.
That being said, there are some things you should know before you get on.
1. Bring a cooler. Use it for your food/​drink when you’re fishing, and use it for your fish when you’re done.
2. It can get packed. We had less than 20 folks on the boat, and it was great. It meant that it was possible to have all of us fish on one side of the boat easily. This helps when the boat is trolling so your bait doesn’t end up under the boat. However, that morning they had 66 people on the boat, and you’re dealing with a lot of tangles with that many folks.
3. If you think you might get seasick, you will get seasick. It’s not a very large boat, so it really rocks at times. Take something before you get on or consider a larger boat.
4. People smoke. It’s not really a big deal considering we’re out on the water and it doesn’t get in your face, but it’s something to keep in mind if you’re very sensitive or don’t want to expose your children to that. One of the anglers was smoking weed, and I assume that’s a random occurrence.
5. Rigs cost $ 3 each. Your bait and tackle are included, but you will have to pay for at least one rig. Personally I went through 3 rigs. As you bounce your sinker along the bottom, it gets stuck, the line breaks, and you’ll have to pony up another $ 3. If you lose one of the large lures when you’re out there, that will cost $ 5. Remember to bring cash above what you will tip the crew.
6. It costs $ 5 to join the «largest fish pool», and while anyone can win, the regulars with their own equipment have a much better shot. If you see a black dude with braids named «Joe», keep your $ 5 in your wallet, that cat knows how to fish.
7. The bait (sand worms) will bite you, and if you don’t feel like getting bit, make sure you hold them close to the head and put that hook through their mouth.
8. There are a lot of fishing party boats out of Sheepshead Bay, and on a slow night you can get a better deal than what it costs to reserve ahead of time online.

Capt Pelican and 1^st mate Jojoma are the best!

I highly recommend this boat. All of the staff was great and showed a novice like myself how to catch fish since I’ve never done it before. I will definitely do this again.

The crew of the Marilyn Jean is top notch. Rafael is swoonworthy and very helpful. This was only my second time fishing and it was much easier. Not crowded, great fishing spots, inside and outside seating. I had a great time!

We had a fantastic time on this trip. Captain Tony really went out of his way to make sure that a boat full of novice fisherpersons all caught something and had a great time. The staff was very helpful and informative. Nice boat, plenty of seating and good spots to fish. Will definitely come again.