Large Reservoir Diver Duck Boat

[bigbassin]

Looking for recommendations on what boats to look at for specifically targeting diver ducks on larger reservoirs. Had a 1448 Jon boat with 15 hp outboard on it that was great hunting shallow protected Florida lakes and realized on my first try in big North GA water a few years ago that wasn’t going work.

Decent amount of big water within 2hours of me on the reservoirs formed by the various rivers in TN & AL, and based on what I saw driving around and looking over the past two seasons it looks like lots of divers sitting in more open water. Based on water depths I’d say it’s safe to say I’d need to be hunting out of the boat.

Any 18-20’ fishing boat with a boat blind cut it or would a more specialized duck boat to get the most out of it?

 

[spur60]

Two ways to approach it. Traditional style flat bottom, mod v, or v hull with a blind; or a true open water boat like a Bankes, Great Lakes, etc. Up here in SD, most guys who want to hunt big water also want to hunt shallow prairie lakes so size and draft are a compromise. But there's no shortage of options. I'm slowly transitioning away from mostly field hunting back to mostly water hunting, and I'm seriously considering pulling the trigger on a 1754 with a 50 hp surface drive for next season.

 

[Kurts86]

I feel like the big question becomes if you are going to run a conventional outboard, surface drive or a jet motor. If you don’t need a shallow draft then a fairly conventional fishing boat will work but the surface drive or jet will push you into more specialized hulls.

You will generally want the widest boat beam for a given length for this application. Some large choppy lakes in northern Illinois even had 16’ length 60” minimum beam widths to duck hunt out of.

Picking this type of boat is often hyper specific to a given region. I would go to a ramp and talk to guys about what this best options are. Local conditions and rules dictate a lot.

 

[bigbassin]

Two ways to approach it. Traditional style flat bottom, mod v, or v hull with a blind; or a true open water boat like a Bankes, Great Lakes, etc. Up here in SD, most guys who want to hunt big water also want to hunt shallow prairie lakes so size and draft are a compromise. But there's no shortage of options. I'm slowly transitioning away from mostly field hunting back to mostly water hunting, and I'm seriously considering pulling the trigger on a 1754 with a 50 hp surface drive for next season.

The boat would be a bit of a do it all deal. Hunt, fish, camp, jug lines, just cruise on the lake, etc.

Those Bankes look sweet, but realistically I’d imagine the boat sees at least as much use fishing and island camping in the summer. Maybe more. Probably to specialized for me to justify them, unless I got two boats…

 

[Terrapin]

For big water duck hunting, the Lund Alaskan has always been popular. You can get it in tiller, side console, or full windshield. I’ve always felt they are one of the best all-around boats out there (when shallow water wasn’t an issue).

My buddy just bought a 20 footer, probably a little too big, but I’d trust that boat on just about any water.

I’d probably buy the 18 foot tiller for an all around N Idaho boat (big water/ crappy weather).


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[ORwaterfowler]

No one perfect duck boat as mentioned above. Had a 15ft smokercraft alaskan for a long time, was perfect for backwater, but always had to pick days on the big river with the weather for duck hunting. Now we run 19ft 88" beam semi v open sled, it's perfect for the big, but more of a pain than the smoker for smaller water.

I spent a day salmon fishing in a bankes duck boat with a buddy, great duck boat but not a good fishing platform, not nearly enough of a dance floor. You can put a great conduit frame blind on an deep sided open fishing boat that gets stored in the off-season and have a lot more versatility.