Boats and boating: Open water fishing season

The open water fishing season is upon us. I’m seeing all kinds of boats being towed out on the highways – outboards, inboards, saltwater boats, and even the occasional inflatable riding on a trailer. For those of you who winterized your boats last fall, I hope you are in the process of dewinterizing your boat to ready it for the upcoming season.

Most of the lakes in the area are open, so getting your boat out for a check run is a good idea, especially those of you planning to run the rivers as they open to boat traffic. In years past, I would jokingly tell people if their motor quit on a river, they may end up in Hawaii as their first landing spot.

Last year, after I finished a couple of minor repairs left over from the building collapse causing damage to my riverboat in 2023, I took it over to Burkeshore Marina in Big Lake to have a professional mechanic go through the engine and drive system and tune up everything. I asked the mechanic to replace several parts that were still functional, but which were getting older. He did.

After the tune-up was finished, I was hoping to go out for some fishing and, maybe, a hunting trip last year, but things never worked out. The last time the boat was running the mechanic was checking it to adjust the engine and make sure it was running properly. When I asked, he told me the engine was running “like a top,” and was in excellent shape.

Since I’m getting older and my health isn’t what it used to be, I reached the decision to sell the boat. It’s just bigger than I can easily deal with anymore. Now, that doesn’t mean I’m giving up boating. I’m looking to downsize to a smaller and lighter boat with an outboard for power. I’m not planning to make any long runs on any rivers soon. I would expect most of my boat fishing will be on stocked lakes or short river runs to specific spots I know.

The fact that I also have surgery scheduled for this upcoming week means I’ll be down for a while this season, healing and regaining muscle strength through physical therapy. That means I won’t be boating anytime soon anyway. I’m also getting a small aluminum trailer repaired and upgraded so I can haul my small inflatable around to fish local lakes near my home. I’ve got a canoe I can use for local trips also.

After the riverboat sells, I’m thinking of looking for a 14- to 16-foot open skiff with a 25- to 50-horsepower outboard as a replacement for my 20-foot Thunderjet riverboat. I know that’s a step down, but I’m additionally thinking in terms of possibly using the smaller boat for waterfowl hunting. To do that, I would definitely need a smaller and lighter boat than the Thunderjet. I would prefer a welded hull, but the small boat I used the most with Fish and Game was a riveted hull Lund-brand 16-footer.

I’ve got a fair amount of experience operating a smaller, open skiff since that is what we mostly used when I worked for Fish and Game. My first boat after I retired was a 16-foot welded tunnel hull powered by a 65-horsepower (at the jet) outboard for running rivers. I don’t really need that much power anymore since I wouldn’t expect to be hauling a moose or some such from way down a river someplace.

If plans go as I outlined, I’m sure I’ll miss the enclosed cabin the Thunderjet has and all the power the engine generates. The biggest initial difference I found when upgrading to the Thunderjet boat was that, now, I had all the power I needed to maneuver the boat with or against currents and winds. The smaller outboard boat usually required that I work with the current or wind to achieve the positioning I was trying to accomplish.

I’ll also miss the weather protection from the cabin and the heater on colder mornings, but those things all add weight to winching and other boat handling situations. On a hunt nearly 20 years ago with the Thunderjet, I grounded on a gravel bar in the middle of the river. We couldn’t push the boat back into deeper water. It required two come-a-longs and some stout line. It wouldn’t be easy with a smaller boat, but I expect I could get the boat back into runnable-depth water more easily.