rubble Posted March 1 Report Share Posted March 1 I know this has been tossed around a bunch but with changes in the market and with new boat technologies & designs, is there a boat out there that can do most things well when looking at inshore/near shore and back country fishing? Obviously one of the major hurdles is stand up (Bay Boat) or sit down (Skiff). Bay Boat gives you a little more flexibility with family and marginal conditions. You can still get to spots when it may be questionable for a skiff but doesn’t get you into some of the desired skinny areas. The Skiff can get you in those areas but must pick and choose the days based on weather unless you have access to spots without hitting open water on sporty days. I’ve run in a Hell’s Bay and HPX. Clearly great boats for the back country and skinny waters. Not so much for gear and sporty runs. Have run in a Master Angler and Egret. Both are great boats for somewhat skinny water and handling moderate chop. Have been in a few different Pathfinders and they seem to get you close to the skinny in most conditions and can do well fishing in some slop near shore. So the question is, if you’re a One Boat house for fishing in/near shore and back country, what are your preferences? Stick with technical skiffs to focus on skinny water? Go with a flats boat to have some options with marginal conditions? Or does the Bay Boat make more sense for it’s versatility? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waterman18 Posted March 1 Report Share Posted March 1 I bought my first boat almost 40 years ago, 17’ flats boat. Since that time I’ve had 2 Mavericks and1 hells bay skiffs and 3 PF 22’s. My opinion is the skiffs we’re great when I was younger but as I got older the transition to the bay boat has been the way to go. The 22 is a great platform for South Fla especially. We’ve caught everything this area offers from 2’ to 2000! The ride is great in a good chop and have had no trouble is 15-20 winds offshore. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bamaskeet Posted March 1 Report Share Posted March 1 I agree with Waterman. I had a 2200V for 15 years. It did everything I wanted, but I’ve been fishing more offshore, so I want to go a little bigger. I bought a 2500 a few years ago and it’s been a perfect combination of inshore/offshore boat. Last week I was 35 miles offshore catching red grouper. Yesterday afternoon, we caught a limit of redfish in 18”-24” of water. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whichwaysup Posted March 1 Report Share Posted March 1 12 hours ago, rubble said: I know this has been tossed around a bunch but with changes in the market and with new boat technologies & designs, is there a boat out there that can do most things well when looking at inshore/near shore and back country fishing? Obviously one of the major hurdles is stand up (Bay Boat) or sit down (Skiff). Bay Boat gives you a little more flexibility with family and marginal conditions. You can still get to spots when it may be questionable for a skiff but doesn’t get you into some of the desired skinny areas. The Skiff can get you in those areas but must pick and choose the days based on weather unless you have access to spots without hitting open water on sporty days. I’ve run in a Hell’s Bay and HPX. Clearly great boats for the back country and skinny waters. Not so much for gear and sporty runs. Have run in a Master Angler and Egret. Both are great boats for somewhat skinny water and handling moderate chop. Have been in a few different Pathfinders and they seem to get you close to the skinny in most conditions and can do well fishing in some slop near shore. So the question is, if you’re a One Boat house for fishing in/near shore and back country, what are your preferences? Stick with technical skiffs to focus on skinny water? Go with a flats boat to have some options with marginal conditions? Or does the Bay Boat make more sense for it’s versatility? Rubble, this same question comes up on Microskiff a lot and tends to get a wider audience/response, so I will share what I have seen there. First, I dont think that technology has really changed anything, nobody has solved for the issue you describe, and until there is a shapeshifting hull, I dont think it will change. The age old rule still applies: If you fish a specialty area, you need a specialty boat, but it will only do that one thing very well and maybe be passable at everything else. If you fish a wide variety of areas, you need a general purpose hull, and it will do many things decently and nothing extremely well. It seems to still come down to the 80% rule, get the hull that does what you do 80% of the time and try to make it work for the other 20% when you have to. Age is a big deal, though. Even if your fishing hasnt changed, you have. I have a buddy facing this now. The skiff doesnt work anymore, even though he fishes the same areas he always has. Physically, its just gotten too hard for him to be “on top” and he needs a boat he can be “in”. Two boats solve the issue but maintaining two boats doubles the aggravation and cost. I have been watching some of the build threads on Microskiff - specifically Chris Morejons designs and thinking that might be a good “2nd” boat idea, 25hp, super light, and relatively inexpensive - except for the blood, sweat, and tears of the 2 yr build. I will say that the East Cape Vantage VHP seems to be a good addition to the general flats boat class, and if I have to replace my Master Angler someday, it would likely be my top consideration. Here are a few pics I took of a buddies and the entire boat impressed me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Seither Posted March 1 Report Share Posted March 1 The hybrid bay boats have a reasonable draft, 12 to 15", seating on the TRS Models is better for family boating. I went with the 2300HPS and have no regrets. I do keep a 18/54 Gator Tail Aluminum for freshwater and duck hunting. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fin-addict Posted March 1 Report Share Posted March 1 Bay boat all the way. My 03 2200v did it all. If stand up is an issue as it was getting to me I was going to change out my leaning post to two chair set up like Blue Wave boats. Best of both worlds. Like two chairs mounted on a lower leaning post style frame with sliders under seats. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jensenjeff Posted March 1 Report Share Posted March 1 20 hours ago, rubble said: I know this has been tossed around a bunch but with changes in the market and with new boat technologies & designs, is there a boat out there that can do most things well when looking at inshore/near shore and back country fishing? Obviously one of the major hurdles is stand up (Bay Boat) or sit down (Skiff). Bay Boat gives you a little more flexibility with family and marginal conditions. You can still get to spots when it may be questionable for a skiff but doesn’t get you into some of the desired skinny areas. The Skiff can get you in those areas but must pick and choose the days based on weather unless you have access to spots without hitting open water on sporty days. I’ve run in a Hell’s Bay and HPX. Clearly great boats for the back country and skinny waters. Not so much for gear and sporty runs. Have run in a Master Angler and Egret. Both are great boats for somewhat skinny water and handling moderate chop. Have been in a few different Pathfinders and they seem to get you close to the skinny in most conditions and can do well fishing in some slop near shore. So the question is, if you’re a One Boat house for fishing in/near shore and back country, what are your preferences? Stick with technical skiffs to focus on skinny water? Go with a flats boat to have some options with marginal conditions? Or does the Bay Boat make more sense for it’s versatility? At my age, 69, my Bay boat is the best option for me 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RacerxV6 Posted March 2 Report Share Posted March 2 Bay Boat!!!! My bay boat is an Avid 21 FS. While I have never had her in a salt water environment, I have had her in some very rough 3-5 waves blowing 20-25 in the lake. You are not going to be running 20-30. I never had water come over the bow and I took it easy. I have had her in as shallow as 10" motor up and Troller in just barely. Now the one difference in my bay boat and every ones else is it's all aluminum...it is a different ride and a little flatter in the mid to stern.....but I am very happy with it. It is built for saltwater inshore and backcountry.....Like everyone though, age makes you make smarter decisions..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Headhunter Posted March 3 Report Share Posted March 3 Great topic and one we just went through. After having both a Maverick and Pathfinder for over 15 years we decided we just really needed one. Wife and I based our decision on age (75 and 73) where we fish and how we fish. We don't do many offshores anymore or money tournaments or travel to fish like we used to. Local from the house a few times a week. We settled on the Maverick because of where we fish and have short runs. We do miss the Pathfinder to go to dinner and fish the beach. I can usually hop an offshore boat when I want. Not ideal but ok. Two is the way to go if you can. Getting old ***! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoneyB Posted March 3 Report Share Posted March 3 I think a bay boat is more versatile. Before I bought my Pathfinder I had a pioneer cape island. I loved the boat as it was very roomy. It was far from a flats boat but was built like one. I wanted to get back to standing console and the ability to run to near shore fishing areas. If I only had one it would be stand up center console. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanjj Posted March 3 Report Share Posted March 3 One boat only question : bay boat for overall usage. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SouthernWake Posted March 4 Report Share Posted March 4 If you fish with a push pole a tech skiff is your only option. if you are on a trolling motor you lose a minimal amount going from a flats boat to a bay boat and gain a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubble Posted March 4 Author Report Share Posted March 4 The age thing makes a lot of sense. When my Dad and I purchased our Pathy, he was really reluctant to run that boat. He would take his old Ranger Basser to Kissimmee and fish it. We had both boats at the fish camp but he never would take the Pathfinder out on his own but loved fishing in it. After spending a few days going over all of the nuances of that boat, he never fished out of the Ranger again. He wasn’t as mobile and he rarely got on the front or rear deck. He felt more comfortable fishing In the boat as several have mentioned. Makes good sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrmojorisan Posted March 13 Report Share Posted March 13 I wish Pathfinder would bring back the fusion but since they are a rare find, the Shearwater X22 fits that bill very well in my opinion as it's a hybrid bay/flats boat. They come equipped with fold down seats instead of a leaning post, but it's a rather "high" seated position depending on your own height. The blazer bay 675 ultimate bay is also a similar design, but I'd give the quality edge on those two to the Shearwater. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockyG Posted March 13 Report Share Posted March 13 Since I fish solo a lot and as I get older (60's) I seem only to want to fish out of my vintage 18' Action Craft flats skiff. The 2200 Pathy is more trouble to hookup, tow, launch, clean up, and put away than the AC. The hull slap on the Pathy is bad too when you are fishing shallow. My son loves the bigger boat for his larger crew and more casual trips. And besides, he who dies with the most boats wins......right? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubble Posted March 13 Author Report Share Posted March 13 1 hour ago, RockyG said: Since I fish solo a lot and as I get older (60's) I seem only to want to fish out of my vintage 18' Action Craft flats skiff. The 2200 Pathy is more trouble to hookup, tow, launch, clean up, and put away than the AC. The hull slap on the Pathy is bad too when you are fishing shallow. My son loves the bigger boat for his larger crew and more casual trips. And besides, he who dies with the most boats wins......right? There's a lot to be said for more boat more problems as well. Love the ease and simplicity of a smaller skiff but the versatility of the larger platform is great. So many Tradeoffs!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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