Kayak vs. Canoe vs. Pontoon

"Greg Pavlov" wrote:
They all have their pluses; I prefer pontoons because you can drive them
with your feet while you fish with your hands.

I have two that aren't Hobies, they work just fine with fins; so fine
that I usually leave the oars behind, because they are just something else
to get tangled up in.

Willi:
Kayaks and canoes are better for transportation but I also think that
pontoons and belly boats are better for fishing. You can also cast
forward in them which is a big plus.

Tim J:
Why wouldn't you be able to cast forward in a canoe? I've been doing it,
but
I've been known to do the impossible before.

You can, but if you're truly casting forward from the stern, the first 15 ft
is spent clearing the boat.
I do lots of forward casts from my canoe, but because I've never drift
fished with it, my casts are nearly always to the side.
I have a belly boat, and like it too, but have found I can navigate *much*
shallower water in the canoe.


--
Rusty Hook
Laramie, Wyoming

and can carry more gear for trips.

This is what seals the deal for me with my canoe. If I had but one boat to
choose, it would be the canoe for it's flexibility.

Tim Carter wrote:

If I had but one boat to
choose, it would be the canoe for it's flexibility.

I'd pick a custom bluewater big game sportfishing boat with a flying
bridge. :-)

--
Cut "to the chase" for my email address.

On Fri, 02 Jul 2004 21:37:45 -0600, rw
wrote:

Tim Carter wrote:

If I had but one boat to
choose, it would be the canoe for it's flexibility.

I'd pick a custom bluewater big game sportfishing boat with a flying
bridge. :-)

Well, ok, but you're gonna have one hell of a time at those carry-in boat
launches...

daytripper wrote:
On Fri, 02 Jul 2004 21:37:45 -0600, rw
wrote:


Tim Carter wrote:

If I had but one boat to
choose, it would be the canoe for it's flexibility.

I'd pick a custom bluewater big game sportfishing boat with a flying
bridge. :-)


Well, ok, but you're gonna have one hell of a time at those carry-in boat
launches...

I forgot ... towing a flats skiff. :-)

--
Cut "to the chase" for my email address.

"Tim Apple" wrote in message
...
I was wondering peoples preference between these three types of fishing
vessels. And the plus and minus's of each.

Tim Apple

P.s. If you couldn't guess, I'm shopping for a watercraft


Canoe.

Kayaks are too tippy, and you're too low to the water. I don't know the
details of your back wound, but the particular type of twisting motion that
you'd have to do while in a kayal (regular or SOT) might be a problem. Next
time you're sitting in a bathtub, try to get something off the shelf behind
you without grabbing the sides of the tub to turn. And if you turn over for
some reason in the yak, expect to lose a lot of gear.

Pontoons have a nice advantage of being foot-driven so your hands are free
to fish, but you can also lose a lot of things down between your feet to the
deeps, and they aren't good at all for long trips, or really cold splashy
water or windy days. I think they are best for lakes or for gently moving,
warm rivers. Rocky east coast rivers in the early spring with lots of gear
and a cooler for lunch and a wonderful day out, require a canoe.

I'd even go so far as to suggest a Mad River Explorer 16-footer. If you have
the doremi, get the kevlar hull, otherwise the ABS (Royalex) hull is fine,
and the boat is the most versatile hull shape on the market, IMVEO.

--riverman

BTW: welcome back, thanks, and I wish it hadn't turned out this way.

wanna buy a fourth or fifth share of a carolina classic 28'? we'll keep
it downeast at harkers island and you won't have to worry about the
maintenance... and you will be able to use it whenever you're in town.
g the gulf stream beckons.

jeff

rw wrote:

Tim Carter wrote:


If I had but one boat to
choose, it would be the canoe for it's flexibility.


I'd pick a custom bluewater big game sportfishing boat with a flying
bridge. :-)

I'd even go so far as to suggest a Mad River Explorer 16-footer. If you have
the doremi, get the kevlar hull, otherwise the ABS (Royalex) hull is fine,
and the boat is the most versatile hull shape on the market, IMVEO.

I picked up a fiberglass 15' Novacraft Angler at Canoecopia, and love it for
fishig from. Its stable enough for fairly open water, fairly efficient and
lite enough to walk in with. It is not a good fast water boat.




Nartker @ AOL.com

Nartker

Hi Tim,

I think that anything that will get you out on the water is a good thing.

We like small flat bottom boats (prams), v-boats, pontoon boats, kayaks and
canoes for fly fishing.

With the boats you can stand which allows you to cast greater distances and
see down into the water with Polarized glasses. You can also have a couple
of rods set up and have an ice chest too.

V-boats are compact and allow you to get out on small lakes plus you can
walk in with them.

Pontoons are great for lakes or floating rivers. They are very stable in
rough water.

Kayaks are fast for getting around but not really that great of a
fishing/casting platform.

http://www.paddleandflies.com/

Canoes are real interesting and very popular for fly fishing. You just need
to be using the ones that are wider (~36") and with a flat bottom.

Many famous fly fishers like Chico Fernandez and Flip Pallot use certain
canoes to fly fish especially in the Florida Everglades. They like a
'cottage canoe' or 'tumblehome canoe'. These canoes are around 16' long with
a flat bottom for flat water. They also have a small keel. The use a 12'
pole and when in less that 4' of water the stand and pole rather than
paddle. Chico like the Merrimack 'Souhegan 16' and the Navarro 'Otter 16'

All these water craft have there place and are all a lot of fun.

http://www.kiene.com/BoatDealers.htm


--
Bill Kiene

Kiene's Fly Shop
Sacramento, CA, USA

Web site: www.kiene.com


"Tim Apple" wrote in message
...

I was wondering peoples preference between these three types of fishing
vessels. And the plus and minus's of each.

Tim Apple

P.s. If you couldn't guess, I'm shopping for a watercraft