rw wrote:



Pontoon boats have three big advantages over belly boats:

1. You can use the oars to travel much farther distances with much less
effort.

2. You sit up higher, out of the cold water and in a better casting
position.

3. You can carry more stuff (tackle, anchor, lunch, etc.).

The only disadvantage is that they're heavier. You pretty much need road
access to the water.

I use both a pontoon boat for when I have road access and a belly boat
for backcountry fishing.


I'm trying to decide on a possible craft. Like you started with, there
are pluses and minuses for all the self propelled craft:

1. Belly boats
+ easy to transport, good for fishing, control with feet,
- need to wear waders and fins, difficult to go any distance, suck in
the wind, cold because you're sitting in the water, not for
running water

2. Pontoons
+ great for fishing, fair for covering distance, control with feet, some
models good for rivers
- need to wear waders and fins, difficult to transport if kept together
PIA to assemble if you break it down, nor good for long distances

3. Canoes
+ great for carrying gear, great for long trips, good speed and easy of
rowing, good for rivers
- mediocre for fly fishing, have to use paddle to control, fairly
difficult to transport

4. Kayak
+ fastest and easiest to go long distance, good in rivers, best
(only?) in ocean
- mediocre for fishing, fairly difficult to transport, have to use
paddle to control


It seems to me that each has places where it is better than the others.

I couple I've been looking at:

http://www.hobiecat.com/kayaking/models_outback.html

and

http://www.nativewatercraft.com/index.html

Willi