Pontoon boats

[oasis man]

This is not a flow issue...so I hope someone reads it. Anyone know anything about single man pontoon boats? What are the up and down sides of owning one. Who makes a good one (I'm looking at the Orivs boat that sells for $500. ) What features are important. And who owns what, and why? Many thanks.
My primary motivation for getting one is the fact that you can cover just so much more water with a float boat.

 

[Fly Tier]

Oasis Man,
I have a pontoon boat for about 6 years now. A scadden Cardiac Canyon and an outcast Pack 9000.

Ive tried them all.

Scadden and Outcast are the leaders in the field. Boats are pricey, but for a reason. The difference between the higher end Scadden Cardiac Canyon models and the Outcast Pack 9000 models, compared to the lower end Orvis and other models is night and day.

The higher end boats draft better in shallow water, are easier to control, they are easier to handle in higher water conditions, anchor systems are important, the longer the pontoons, the more area you cover when rowing. It goes on and on.

Even with the Scadden Cardiac Canyon compared to the Outcast Pack 9000, the Scadden boat cuts through the wind better because of the single pontoons. The larger the diameter of the pontoon, the more wind resistance. Scaddens are long, but a smaller diameter.
It is hard to explain unless you try them out and before investing in an orvis boat try them if you can. You may end up spending a few hundred dollars more to get a boat that is so much more stabile and much easier to manuever.

If you are looking to use the boat in a pond or lake only, than the orvis would work, but for big water, get yourself a stabile boat.

 

[Michael M]

Oasis Man

I have an Outcast Pac 800 frame but upgraded the floats to the 9 foot size to get more stability for bigger water. I like my boat and it has handled well on the MS, the only river I have ever used it on.

FT'er hit a very important point indeed when he mentioned the anchor system. The anchor is critical for positioning and when the MS is flowing higher you will need a good anchor system to navigate and hold to your pool.

BTW, keep a good folding knife aboard. I had to abandon an anchor one day, it can be imposible to row a pontoon against a swift current to get above an anchor wedged in rock and have free hands to shake it free before drifting right back below the anchor. Without the knife you'll have to give up the cord and anchor, instead of just the anchor and a few feet of cord. I now carry a spare anchor. Once the anchor is gone the boat is only a taxi to wading spots.

Michael M.

 

[Fly Tier]

Michael M points out a very good point about the knofe. I have gotton myself into trouble a few times with an anchor, one time recently without a knife. The longer pontoons on the larger boats will also make it harder for the current to flip the boat over if you ever get caught up and can not cut the anchor.

Knife is KEY and to save yourself from carrying the weight of an extra anchor, bring along a basketball net. You can fill that up with some weight incase you ever have to cut away and anchor.

 

[Future Fanatic]

If you brought along a second anchor, couldn't you use that one to anchor above the first(stuck) one (given you are able to move upstream), so you could work the stuck one out? Or is all the choreography needed to do that, too much for one person?
John

 

[Fly Tier]

FF,
On a pntoon boat, anchored in fast water, it is not that easy. This is where a bogger boat helps.

I had my anchor stuck in upper buckingham a few weeks back, in a faster current. This anchor was stuck, no matter where I moved, it was not coming out. I tried to row above, to the side, up, down... From my experience on a pontoon boat, anoher anchor in the water may put someone in a worse position than just the one that was stuck. Better to cut it loose and move on. Once you are stuck, and stuck good, the more rop you let out, the worse you are. On a smaller bopat, I could have easily been flipped off. I was having a hard enough time keeping my boat from turning over.

Ive since switched to chain, 30 lbs, have not gotten stuck since.

 

[Michael M]

FT'er

How do you use chain?

I like the netting as aa light weight insurance backup.

I wouldn't try two anchors, too dangerous for me. There is only one anchor pulley track with no set location for a second anchor. Besides,you just don't have enough free hand manuvering you can do.

When fighting the stuck anchor and rowing to all different sides in fast current you quickly realize how urgent it is to just get free. Those boats can tip end over in a second. For example, if you try to pull down on an anchor that WON'T free up your actually lowering your pontoon into the water, assuming you have pulled enough rope in that you are almost just over the anchor. If you have a stern anchor system you quickly are putting your most stern point down into the on flowing current, the bow will go up when the stern goes down. At a point if the water gets too much of the stern end of the pontoon you will immediately launch straight upward and over board. When that anchor won't move and you see you only lower into the water it is time to give it up and cut the rope and move on.

Michael M.

 

[Jeff S]

I had a stuck anchor about two weeks ago on the D (the day I met you FT at Shehawken ramp). Flow was about 4300 and my pontoons were slightly under water. To compound matters I forgot to have my oars downstream so I rotated to the point where my anchorline was under my left pontoon. I tried to rock the boat to no avail and I pulled and pulled till the outside of my pinky fingers were cut up. The anchor would not budge. I was about to cut the rope(good-bye $50 anchor). One more attempt. the anchor line on my 'toon comes out of the frame near my right shin, I lowered my right oar so the handle was close to the rope just coming off the pulley. I then took a wrap of the rope around the oar just below the grip and snubbed it with my thumb. Using both hands and arms I pulled directly up on the oar handle and was eventually able to dislodge the anchor. Without the leverage gained from the oar handle I would not have been able to raise the anchor. I was lucky. The BB net sounds like a good idea.

Jeff Sanders

 

[cingras53]

Jeff,
I urge you to return to wading. That sounds like a near miss to me and I think all you pontooners should extend your fishing life by placing your wading boots on to good old terra firma. Forget about anchors and use your boats to get to good spots, then get out and wade. Just my opinion.

Your fishing buddy,
Chris

 

[oasis man]

Thanks to all who have responded with great info and warnings. FT...I'm now looking at the Outcast line of boats.
And disposable anchors sounds like the way to go.

 

[Fly Tier]

Oasis Man, Definetely look at the Scadden Boats as well. You can do a search on line for the Scaddeen Cardia Canyon and there was a place selling them new at one time for around $900. Dont know if they are still selling them at that price though. It was a steel at $900

As far as a chain anchor, I purchased about 30 feet of heavy duty chain, use a couble of heavy duty climbing snap clips to put some links together in about 16 inch lengths.

I have it a bundle of chain, 25lbs and tgwo 5 lb bundles, I can clip on depending on water flow.

Jeff S. You got lucky. You have to watch if your boat turns and that anchor is now pulling you sideways. to the current. And great to finally meet you!

There are a few places you have to be careful anchoring on the Mainstem.