Conference wahoo::fishing

    Here's a few ideas on belly boats and pontoon boats.Belly boats
    first.I believe the idea of a belly boat is to allow you to fish
    a small pond where it would be very difficult if not impossible
    to launch a small boat.I don't see why you couldn't use one on 
    any size body of water provided you could controll it in any wind,
    current,or chop you might encounter.As for carrying your fishing
    tackle,a flyfishing vest would probably work well as there are 
    many large pockets in one.I have a belly boat that I've used on
    a few small ponds and I think it's great.As for the pontoon boat,
    I've seen a few on the water and they look awfull cramped with two
    guys and thier gear on board.Last spring I bought a Coleman Crawdad
    after looking at some other pontoon boats and johnboats.For the
    money(I paid $275.00 after a $25.00 rebate at Riches.)I don't think
    you can beat it.Well that's my 47 cents worth.Good luck and have
    fun whatever you decide.

    Brian,
    
    For decent low cost boating, consider a canoe or crawdad. A canoe is
    easier to handle than a Crawdad, as far as transportation, but once in
    the water it's the Crawdad that really stands out for stability and
    comfort.
    
    I've never tried a belly boat, but I would be a little nervous about
    the things you mentioned. In fact I wouldn't even use a belly boat
    where water skiers and jet boats might be found. Besides, you can't
    bring anyone else along with you (unless you're *very* close friends!)
    
    I had a canoe first, then went for a Crawdad. The Crawdad can handle up
    to a 5hp motor and is much more stable than a canoe. It also holds a
    *lot* of stuff compared to a canoe.
    
    My guess is that a pontoon boat is no cheaper than a Crawdad, and
    probably more costly. If you can find a used Crawdad, you can be in
    business for even less. That's what I did.
    
    I think you'll find a lot of enthusiasm for the Crawdad in this
    conference. If you can afford one, that seems to be the way to go for
    many.
    
    Ed

    just a quick note here.check out note #1129.it's all about crawdads,
    and where you might find one.

    
    There is a bellyboat note on Dneast::flyfish..you might want to check
    out.
    
      I have a caddis tube and it is great for those small out of the way
    ponds where the occassional hog comes to fly....I have fished larger
    ponds with it (up to 100 acres or so) it basically takes all day
    (6-8Hrs) to cover edges fo a 100 acre pond in a tube....not to effective 
    for covering large waters and you go slow..very slow.....
    
      For trout/bass on small ponds, sloughs and selected known good area's
    on large ponds its the baws. Very relaxing and comfortable to fish
    from. Like a floating easy chair....about any number of tubes are
    available with a wide variety of features and storage options...I 
    greatly prefer "paddle pushers" over fins as the fins drive you
    backwards and the pushers allow you to fish water ahead of you...in
    a big wind the fins win as you can hold position and fish downwind
    rather handily....I sometimes carry both, use the fins for long
    distance transiting (REMOTE ponds) and switch to the pusher for close
    in dryfly work.
    
      Try it..you'll like it, no "canoe backache" either.
    
      Tight lines 
    
    
       Ed
    \
    

    	A few words from someone who has used both.  Float tubes or
    belly-boats are great for small area fishing, sneaking up on the fish
    for close quarter action, and FORCING you to REALLY COVER THE WATER!! 
    They are SLOW!!!  I personally like the fins when you hook into a BIG
    fish.  (However people Pike fishing from tubes need their heads
    examined to find out if there is too much air space between the ears!
    :-)  )  Being pulled forward without the ability to power away from the
    fish causes longer fights, etc.  Don't be afraid of the tubes in chop
    and waves.  I have handled 3 foot waves breaking over my shoulders with
    gusts of 60 MPH.  All that happens is that you get fairly wet.
    	As for fishing with boaters, etc. just tend to stay away from the
    deep water and you don't usually have too many problems.  BUT, people
    being people, you will ALWAYS find the occasional *(&$*%&.  As for
    storage, I used a Flambeau TRI-LEVEL box, fishing vest, and the side
    pockets on the tube.  If you get a bunch of the smaller sectioned
    boxes, you'd be surprised how much you can pack with you in a tube.  A
    pair of NEOPRENE waders is a must for early or late season action. 
    With these type waders, a pair of long underwear, and a pair of jeans,
    I have floated 34 degree water for about 6 hours with no real problem.
    	The MAIN thing for a belly-boat is NOT to try to cover LOTS of
    water in a day.  Covering the edges of a lake of around 100 acres is a
    6-8 hour task.  Also, you better make sure your legs are in fair shape
    BEFORE you hit the water.  Cramps in a wind storm are NOT FUN as well
    as being possibly dangerous.  However, they are a FUN way to stay in
    shape!!!  :-)
    	As for the 1 or 2 man pontoon boats, they are fairly dangerous in
    waves exceeding about 2 feet.  The space is VERY cramped if you are
    over 6 feet tall.  I just was not impressed with them for CXO waters
    due to the sudden winds we get out here.  I want something STABLE under
    me.  Also, larger waters will take a lot longer to get around with the
    pontoon than the Crawdad with a small gas motor.  The other problem
    with the mini-pontoon is the motor mounting.  If trying to use a small
    gas motor in the wind, the prop is OUT of the water half the time. 
    They tend to buck pretty bad in waves.  They are faster than a
    belly-boat, you use a lot less energy to fish (unless you use oars or
    paddles), BUT, they are slower than a Crawdad and MUCH LESS STABLE!!! 
    I felt like I was back rodeoing while riding saddle bronks in the wind.
    	The other GREAT thing about belly-boats is their PORTABILITY!!!! 
    If you buy some strapping material or bungee cords, you can make a
    backpack for the tube.  Then, strap it on your back, hook your tackle
    box to the backpack straps, put your rod in hand, and OFF YOU GO. 
    Getting into out-of-the-way areas this way is GREAT.  
    	Even though I now have a boat, I often take the tube with me.  If I
    get into an area where there is lots of structure in shallow water and
    the fish are spooky, I will hop out of the boat, into the tube, and
    INDIAN the fish.
    
    

    
    I've  had the distinct pleasure of belly-boatin' for the last 3
    years and especially like remote waters at night.  Some tips:
    
    	-Use a wet suit and flippers for safety I wouldn't use waders
    
    	-Use single hooks not gang hooks unless you have a solid b-boat
    
    	-Be prepared for the occassional water snake and more  frequent
    	 snapping turtle to eye you and your fish stringer.
    
    	-Put your catch in a divers bag
    
    	-Mooching with live big shiners is very productive especially
    	 you're motionless just drifting with the wind
    
    	-When I set the hook I coordinate with a thrust of the  flippers
    
    	-Often big ole bucketmouth will think you are cover and shoot
    	 up your leg and around it
    
    
    	-The only downside for me is hauling all the  stuff 2-3 miles
    
    	-One more,  if you get cold change to trolling until you raise
    	 yuour body temperature
    
    
    Some of my best times in nature have been in my b boat.  You feel
    
    more  a part of it, in rhythm with waves, the fish pull you, even
    
    the ducks and geese come by...

    Yo Wayne,
    
    Som ob dese crazy Texyun boaters lak to lasso an troll wit dem!!! Dey
    don ketch anyting wit dem, but wen dey turn dem loose dey don eber git
    out in deep water agin either.
    
    Coonass

    re: -.1

    	As long as they practice CATCH-N-RELEASE, I'm game.  :-)

    re: a few back on wet suit
    	When you buy your waders, GET ONE SIZE LARGER than you really need. 
    Especially if you're tall.  (Ask Spinnerbait Dilsworth if you don't
    believe me. :-)  )  Then, an old pair of suspenders is used to go
    AROUND THE TOP OF THE WADERS to keep water out of the top.
    	As for packing them in being a pain, it is MORE of a pain packing
    one of the pontoon boats!!!!  Also, WATCH THOSE WATER SNAKES!!!  Make
    sure they aren't rattlers or Moccasins.  I REFUSE to share my
    belly-boat with EITHER of those species!!!!!  Another hazard of
    belly-boat fishing is Mr. Toothy.  They tend to try to escape quickly
    by DIVING UNDER THE BOAT.  Cost me 2 pair of waders!!!!  So, have them
    headed AWAY FROM YOU when you take your hands off them!!!!!
    	Another NECESSARY item for a belly-boat is a plug in air pump for
    your cigarette lighter socket.  Using a foot pump or etc. is TOO SLOW
    and I'm just too lazy.  :-)  Besides, you can get ALL the exercise you
    want by TROLLING with a b-b.

    Have any of you belly boaters used a  portable fish finder with them?
    
    Brian

I just ran a program to count all the characters in the notesfile by author.

The winner is:


Wayne Hunter


Congratulations, Wayne, you win a trip to a recycled media plant!


Tim

:-)

    re: -.1  Glad to see that someone out there is AWAKE.  Trivia, Trivia,
    Trivia!!!!!   ;-Q
    
    re: -.2
    	My brother doesn't use a "PORTABLE" unit with his belly-boat. 
    However, he does use his EAGLE Fish-ID with his tube.  He took an old
    empty drywall mud bucket, fixed a mount in the bottom for the
    transducer, puts a couple rechargeable 6 volt batteries in the bucket,
    then mounted the LCD portion to the lid of the bucket.  He uses an old
    innertube from an 8 inch trailer tire around the bucket to make sure it
    stays floating.  Tie the bucket off to one of the D rings and off you
    go.  Works GREAT!!!!                                         

    Slammer
    
    To answer your questions about the deluxe Caddius model.  Its got a
    bigger back rest, a mesh type apron that allows you to change lures and
    hold fish without worrying about dropping it in the drink.  It also has
    two storage pockets and a whole slew of d rings to hang things off of. 
    It has a mesh bag for a creel.
    
    AS far as kickapoo flippers.  These look like snowshoes on backwards
    and have some fins on them.  To go forward you simply walk and the fins
    and the snowshoe part of the flipper pushes the water behind you. 
    Regular frog flippers require you to paddle backward which makes
    positioning a little harder.  Its hard to visualize these things, but
    the writeups I have seen rate them very highly.
    
    I can't wait for spring there two ponds I have only been able to wade a
    small portion of because of the quick dropoffs and they are pretty much
    remote enough to discourage canoes.  I have seen some hellish rises
    just beyond casting so this could be the year of my wall mount.
    
    Brian
    
    

    
    
    RE..Kickapoo flippers....
    
      A alternative vendor for these flippers which allow forward travel
    are "paddle pushers" same principle. Cost is about $15 a pair....
    
    Cheers
    
      E
    

    
    repl .12
    
    Thank You Mr. Ota for those comments.
    
    The reason you got it is to cast to those big swirls just beyond
    your casting distance...
    
    I guess you know that the fishing is always better on the other side
    of the lake. I could have saved you alot of money though. Just put
    the Legend on the side where those big swirls are and... stay were you
    normally fish and you'll be all set.
    
    Goog luck with the Kickapoo's
    
    - Slammer
     

Someone asked in another note (can seem to find it>) about  how paddle pushers
worked and so forth.

There is a ample string of information at DNEAST::FLYFISH note 36.25 thru .25..
including a detail (??) drawing of Paddle pushers and order information.

You might want to take a look over there..if you dare...:*)

e