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I don’t doubt that the Crew Shots you send us are snapshots from your better or even best days at sea. Not every day ends with a deckload, calm seas, clear skies, king salmon, toddler-sized sea bass or giant bluefin tuna.

And yet, you keep going after it, day after day, despite challenges that seem to multiply and constant exposure to the elements of the wild. I thank you for taking a moment to send us your photos and for rejuvenating the spirit in these pages. Check out the Crew Shots starting on page 20 and ending with our Last Set. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for Crew Shots posts, and tag your friends!

You can check out this year's Crew Shot selections online. You can also subscribe to NF for digital and print access.

If you have sent us a picture, please look for it in these pages. If by chance yours didn’t make it into this issue, look for more online, in the Crew Shot of the Month (which you’ll find monthly in our Around the Coasts pages for the rest of the year) and in the Last Set of the February issue.

If you haven’t sent a picture, it’s never too late to be included in the running for our monthly Crew Shot. Winners receive a full year’s subscription on us.

We do our best to include one photo from everyone who takes the time to send one in. Without you, NF would cease to be. That’s why seeing your happy faces reminds us that we’re in this together. It is our pleasure to serve you.

This issue also marks the last item on our to-do list before we see some of these same faces at Pacific Marine Expo in Seattle. Expo is the nexus of so many of the best things happening in the industry right now that it also serves to inspire us.

It’s where we talk about what’s working, what’s not and what’s on the horizon of fishery politics, monitoring, gear, boatbuilding, Coast Guard regulations, marketing efforts and so much more. But the best part of the show is talking with all of you about how your year went and what you have planned for the new year. Second only to the people is walking the show floor to find the newest in boats and gear.

Before we shine a light on what’s to come in new gear, we’ll use these pages to look back at the best the year had to offer in new gear and boat designs. On page 34, Boats & Gear Editor Jean Paul Vellotti reviews the best of his section from 2017.

Use it as your end of the year wish list if you’re lucky enough to have fishy folks begging you for Christmas or birthday ideas, especially if you’re looking for new safety gear. Nothing says I love you like a promise to come home.

Maybe you’re looking for a little something to get yourself. If that comes in the shape of a skiff, we may just have some good news for you. Industry insiders Larry Chowning and Bill Linville profile two leaps forward in skiff design — one for the East Coast and one for the West Coast and Alaska. See the full stories starting on page 28.

Nothing rings in the new year like good cheer and new gear. Here’s lookin’ at you!

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Jessica Hathaway is the former editor in chief of National Fisherman.

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