Easy Rider

 BOATING WORLD BOAT OF THE MONTH - June 2003

Whether inshore or offshore play is your game, the Caravelle Sea Hawk 280 delivers a breezy ride and easy handling for hunting any school of fish.

BY:  Alan Jones

     The strike is about as subtle as an angry bull in a china shop. One minute Chad Madson is holding onto a rod and reel loaded with 30-pound test line, and the next, it’s emptier than a gambler’s savings account.  Although the crew is fishing for king mackerel, the massive strike is probably a shark that is precisely the size that you don’t want to see when diving for lobster, like some nearby boaters are doing.  There is a gathering of nearly 100 boats plying the waters just offshore of West Palm Beach, Florida.  Although better known for its more glamorous species like sailfish, marlin and dolphin, the spring migration of kingfish draws plenty of fishermen to “Trump Town” looking for action.  Among the fishing fleet is a 28-footer that might not be as fancy as the 40-something sportfishing boats surrounding it, but the fish don’t seem to care.

     As you cruise through Lake Worth Inlet, the tide is slack and the three-foot sea swells pose no problem for the Caravelle Sea Hawk 280.  As you turn to the north, the driver dials the twin F225 Yamaha 4-strokes up to 3500 rpm, which pushes to a cruise speed of more than 30 mph.  The optional tilt steering allows the driver to adjust the stainless-steel wheel for maximum comfort.  And with a two-tiered footrest, the pilot’s feet have a place to be whether they are standing, leaning or sitting atop the firmly padded leaning post that has an optional seatback, and for thirsty fishermen, a pair of cupholders.  There is no pedestal for the throttles that are mounted flush to the dash, which is fine when standing, but it causes the driver to have to reach when leaning.  The accurate Yamaha gauges are set into a burl wood dash and are easily visible, so the driver can see that at this speed and the pair of F225 engines are burning just 13.8 gallons per hour, which nets 2.23 miles per gallon.

     The center console is huge, giving owners plenty of room behind the locking clear Plexiglas door to install big-screen electronics.  The stylish optional Sunbrella acrylic T-top doesn’t have an electronics box, but considering the amount of room in the console compartment, it isn’t really needed.  A nice feature is the overhead life jacket storage compartment that means you’ll have one within arms reach in an emergency.  The tinted Plexiglas windshield is very tall and provides a high degree of protection from wind, rain and spray.  The large console offers a roomy head compartment that has plenty of room left over for storage.

     As soon as you get near the gaggle of boats, the Sea Hawk is dropped down to idle, which causes the Yamahas to become inaudible, measuring just 61 decibels.  Tommy Gaston from Seagate Marine in nearby Stuart heads to the 25-gallon aerated livewell in the stern and begins to chum with live glass minnows.  Chad first goes to the three-drawer built-in tackle box on the starboard side and retrieves a couple of triple hook rigs that have weights at the front, then goes to work rigging the large Spanish sardines at the bait-prep station next to the livewell in the stern.  The crew has an impressive array of rods that are stowed in the 18 rod holders and rocket launchers.  After rigging four of them, Chad washes off his hands with the standard freshwater transom shower that is fed by a 9-gallon tank, and everyone drops their baits down for the hunt in the 80-foot deep water.

     The first bite comes in less than five minutes, and after a blistering run, the line goes slack - 0-for-1.  You know you’re in the right spot when several commercial boats start circling nearby and sure enough, you get another bite, and this time it stays hooked up.  After a lively battle, the fish comes alongside and Chad gaffs it perfectly on the first attempt.  The 15-pounder looks pretty big until it is dropped into the cavernous five-foot-long and deep insulated fish box, where it seems to shrink.  There are three other fish boxes in the bow that also drain overboard, which most owners will use as dry storage.  Although the compartment lids are heavy, they are not secured by latches, so running hard in heavy seas will probably precipitate some hatch banging. 

      The next two strikes are truly spectacular.  The first one breaks the line after ripping off about 100 yards of line in just a few seconds.  Jason Birdwell notices the line is abraded 10 feet or so above where the hook formerly resided, indicating it was probably a large shark like a hammerhead.  A few minutes later Chad’s bait gets inhaled, and before all the other lines can be cleared and the engines started up to chase down the leviathan, all that is left of the line is the arbor knot tied to the spindle of his Penn reel.  The rod bends to its maximum in the tug of war, and the line fortunately breaks off at the hook, allowing Chad to retrieve the 30-pound test line, albeit stretched out.

     The action slows down and you head to a rocky reef not far off the beach in 60 feet of water.  Re-rigging with jigs, the crew drops baits down in heavy current and catch, strangely enough, three fish in a row that are all bright red, but are all of different species:  a tora, a giant squirrelfish, and a beautiful dinner-sized strawberry grouper.  With its uncluttered design and wide walk-arounds, four anglers can easily fish on this boat, and there is room for at least a couple of more.  At a pause, the boat’s 8-foot-9-inch beam and 5600- pound hull weight combine to give good lateral stability.  The twin Yamahas are mounted on a Stainless Marine bracket that helps to maximize the cockpit because there is no splashwell intrusion, and makes the 280 perform more like a 30-footer.  With the weight of the F225s plus a couple of well-fed anglers, the bracket sits at or below water level when at rest.  Although this eliminates the need for a boarding ladder, you might want to take off your deck shoes before standing out back.  Another annoyance is that the platform isn’t as wide as the stern, and where it meets the hull is a 90-degree corner that chuffs up a spit of water every time it slaps on top of one of the growing waves.

     As is usually the case, the wind picks up in the afternoon and the waves are a choppy three to four feet high as you move to the Lake Worth Inlet outer marker.  Settling into an econo-cruise of 3000 rpm, which nets a speed of 25 mph and yields almost 2 ½ miles per gallon, the 280 Sea Hawk shows what it does best:  ride softly in rough water.  With a 24-degree deadrise, deep-V hull slicing through the chop at a bit of an angle, the ride is luxurious and dry.  The moderate speed keeps you from launching off the waves, but even driving it fast­­--like the warriors on the SKA kingfishing tour do-- the 280 is stable, easy to drive, and doesn’t punish those aboard. 

     The Sea Hawk gets on plane in about four seconds with very little bow rise, and once it is trimmed up to run at an incline of three or four degrees, the driver doesn’t need to do much other than select the speed they want to run.  This isn’t a boat that requires the driver to be constantly trimming or tabbing to run properly, on the several-mile run, the driver blips the standard trim tabs just once.  The 280 turns very well for a large boat and holds its line in all sea conditions.

     The optional stern bench folds down when not in use, and is probably the best seat in the house.  But even at its roughest, Chad and Jason sit on the wide seat in front of the console and report a comfortable ride.  With the optional bow seats that are part of the cruise package, the Caravelle 280 could easily do double duty as an entertainment platform, especially when equipped with the optional CD stereo.

     Heading back in, the inlet is rougher than before but doesn’t test the big center console’s capabilities.  The crew stops at the jetty and casts to a rolling tarpon that is estimated to weigh more than 100 pounds, and Jason fakes everyone out when his rod bows up, but he is just hung on bottom.  Once inside, it is still rough but there is a storm brewing on the horizon, and the driver gives it full throttle.  The 280 Sea Hawk accelerates to a top speed of 54.2 mps, which is a respectable mark considering there are four people aboard and half of the 195-gallon tank is filled.  Yamaha engineers say they were able to hit 57 mph with a crew of two on this same boat.

     The storm seems to be skirting the area, so before hitting the ramp, the crew heads to shallower water and cast jigs at a dock.  Chad and Jason score a pair of nice redfish, one of which is close to 10 pounds.  Inshore or offshore, the 280 is ready for whatever you have in mind.

     Base price for Caravelle’s flagship fisherman with twin 150-hp Yamaha HPDIs is $64,271, although most anglers will opt for either the F225 4-strokes or 250-hp HPDI directed-injected 2-strokes.  Price as tested with numerous options, like the uniquely styled pop-up cleats, T-top and fashionable sea-foam green hull, is $82,471, which represents a solid value for the money.  Caravelle uses premium ingredients like Penske composites and Knytex-knitted fiberglass that is quad-axial for strength. Construction is wood-free, and components like Nida-Core reinforced decks and floors give it strength and rigidity while keeping it light.  There are some boats that cost less, and a bunch of boats that cost more, but there aren’t many that can give you the ride, features and quality that Caravelle delivers.

Caravelle Sea Hawk 280CF

The 280 Center Console is a serious fishing boat for serious fishermen.  When the action hears up, sportsmen will appreciate the thoughtful floor plan designed with them in mind.  The 280CF is loaded with standard features:  full-width transom bracket with platform, walk-through transom door, convenient transom work station with aerated bait well and freshwater shower and sink, raw water wash down system, trim tabs, custom leaning post with four rod holder, four gunwale rod holders, 5- foot fish box with overboard drain, compass, horizontal rod storage, electronics box, tackle box, dual battery switch, remote oil full, bow pulpit with anchor roller, anchor storage and spring cleats.

The 280CF also features Caravelle’s V24 hull.  This 24° deadrise and wide chine design creates an amazingly soft, dry ride even in the roughest conditions.  The fully enclosed stand up head with fiberglass liner and the 195 gallon fuel cell ensure you a long range excursion.

Equipped with a pair of 225s, the 280CF easily meets the demand of the most intense tournament angler who can count on the speed of this “rocket ship” to make it back in time to weigh in.

 Lakeland Boating Magazine