Northwest Fishing Reports

so, i'm looking to pick up a fishing boat this summer before the fall salmon.

I have never owned a boat but gas powdered toys are not new to me.

i'm looking for something around 16ft I can take on the snohomish river and whatever other rivers and lakes might be fun for the family or good fishing.

what do i need to know before buying a boat?
what should i be looking for when looking at used boats and motors?
what HP motor should i be looking for?
what types of boats? i'm thinking something like an aluminum smokercraft is best.. but i don't know?
what extra gear do i need?

i'm a couple months away from buying, but i want to get started with my research and knowledge collection now..

any tips welcome

There is one for sale in a very recent ad in the classified here on WaLakes. Check it out.

START with - what size of lake/river are going to be going on, most of the time, some of the time, once in awhile. Make sure to get a boat that is bigger than you think you want.

How many people are you going to have on the boat- most of the time, now and then, once in awhile.

Salmon only, trout now and then, bass maybe?

read/look:

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my main focus is Salmon on the Snohomish and Sky..
I think a decent boat and motor that can handle those waters will do well in most lakes i would frequent as well. so i'll keep the focus on my home river since that's the important one.

one thing i don't know at all is what size motor as in HP i would need to go up and down river smoothly and quickly when needed.

25hp enough for a 14 or 16 foot or do i need 50hp or 75? i'm totally a noob when it comes to motors. and every boat i end up in on those rivers is usually WAY more than is needed..

Definitely a loaded question. First of all, if you are planning on fishing the sky with your boat, you are going to want a sled or a drift boat. There is a reason you never see anyone on the sky running a prop (except as a kicker while backtrolling): it is not safe. The river gets too shallow, and there are too many hidden obstacles to bust your prop and lower unit on. However, you can run just about any prop boat on the Snohomish, as long as you don't go too far upstream from the the BNSF bridge right past the town of Snohomish.

So assuming you go with a prop boat, there are a number of things to consider. First and foremost, do you want a fiberglass or an aluminum hull? I would recommend aluminum for a number of reasons: they are lighter, cheaper, more durable, and simply better. Just my two cents right there.

As far as a motor is concerned, you have to decide whether you want a two-stroke or a four-stroke motor. Two strokes are lighter, so you can get more HP for the weight. They also accelerate faster. That's right where the two-stroke advantages end, I'm afraid. They are louder, less fuel-efficient, produce more exhaust, and don't perform as well at or near idle as their four-stroke counterparts. If you plan on using your motor to troll, I would certainly shy away from the two stroke option, simply because you will be frustrated by the poor performance on the lower end. Furthermore, regardless of the weight advantage of two stroke motors, most hulls have a max HP rating that should not be exceeded. For example, my Lund WC-14 is rated for a 25 HP motor (max). The 25 HP four stroke Tohatsu that I have on it is comparable in terms of weight to a 30-horse two stroke, however, this would simply be too much power for my little tallywacker of a boat. So for these reasons, I would advise anyone looking to buy a boat to go with a four stroke motor.

So how many horses can a 16 ft. aluminum boat handle? It really depends on the hull. If you plan on purchasing the boat and the motor separately, I would certainly contact the manufacturer of the boat and find out what they recommend before pulling the trigger. As a general rule of thumb, however, I would say you would probably want at least 25 horses on a 16 ft. aluminum boat, and not more than 50. I don't think I know of anyone who makes a four stroke outboard in a 35 or 45 hp model, so we are left with a choice between 25, 30, 40, and 50. Most 16 ft. aluminum boats that I see around are running a 40. For my part, I would definitely go with the 40. Just my two cents, again.

And if you decide to go with a sled or a drift boat, ask someone else, because I am far from qualified to make recommendations in those departments.

a jet sled sounds like the way to go.. it might come down to $$ when i pull the trigger.. i've seen a lot of prop boats launch below snohomish and and do well in those water, i know it gets skinny up past the town and a jet is needed.. i would be launching at high bridge too and coming down past 522 some..

I appreciate your input rcthepirate.. good points..

i might have to start donating some blood too..

For river use, I'd have to reccomend a heavy guage welded aluminum boat, flatish bottom. There seems to be a much better selection on the Portland CL but be careful to make sure the boats have been registered. I've seen a bunch there and the prices seem to be in the $2500 up to $20,000. I think you could get a pretty nice one in the $5000 range.

finally picked up a boat.

14ft Lowe with a 20hp Johnson.
it has a V-nose but mostly flat bottom, i think she'll run the river nicely!

Please don't launch that at high bridge. Not safe! (Are you talking high bridge on the Sky?)

Mike Carey wrote:Please don't launch that at high bridge. Not safe! (Are you talking high bridge on the Sky?)

Can you tell me where the danger spot is? i've launched there in small jon boats and bigger jet boats no issues..
i know there is a couple shallower sections depending on time of season..
i need some details as to why?

High bridge on the snoqualmie. not the sky.

Yeah there's a few spots that you'll be pulling it back up with a bow line unless you want to bang the lower unit hard. Summer flows leave it a bit shallow for non-jets. I see people out there with out jets but a trip can get real expensive fast. An oem prop is going to run 80 to C note for starters. The tough part is tossing the folks in the boat out when you hit something. On the bright side you should be just fine below the 2 bit hole.

PS: With an OB jet you could run that anywhere in the system, all the way to the High Bridge on the Sky. Yes there's one there too. You could get a small jet and be impervious, watch the Portland CL for 30 and 40hp with a pump.

thanks for the input, appreciated, this kinda bums me out.. i know we had no problems cruising down on a 14' jon boat with a 9.9hp short shaft last yr a couple times, no problems.. all other times we launched there in my buddies jet boat.

this is all brand new to me, owning a boat that is and learning..

can i launch at the prison hole on the sky and cruise down to the snoho and 522 area?
what if pulled the motor up and used a trolling motor? only problem there i guess is going against the river huh?

oneshot wrote:High bridge on the snoqualmie. not the sky.

just watch for underwater rocks and pilings, of which they are out there in number.

As Bodo mentioned, tearing out a lower unit would be the end of a good day of fishing and worse.

Back in the day I used to run from the Monroe launch up to Sultan in an 8 ft zodiac with a prop, but I had elevated the transom several inches so the prop was up pretty high. Even so I scrapped a few times. Man that Zodiac would fly!

well shoot.. I would totally support a new launch under 522, since they are rebuilding and all, i bet it could be achieved pretty easily.

thanks for the heads ups. I need to run down again on friends boat and scope it closer. i know i got the lower snoho covered, i just really like fishing in the 522 area and lower.

anyone want to comment on this boat and the duwamish? launching at 1st ave bridge? i have fished a lot of sections down there but never from a boat.

i'll be camping east side of the pass until september and hitting some of those lakes off the i-90.. i haven't fished much over there either. like maybe pot holes??

Under the 1st AVE bridge will be a cake walk. Up and Down the river a long ways.

Bodofish wrote:Under the 1st AVE bridge will be a cake walk. Up and Down the river a long ways.

that's actually closer to home too, i'm 5 min north of downtown, thats 5 minutes south .. i prefer the snoho, but now with a boat i'll get into the duwi some this fall too.

should i be running my motor at home to clean out any salt after running the Duwi?
whats a good practice for running in the salt and then getting rid of salt water yuckies in the motor?

hit flowing lake out by Snohomish yesterday to let'r run..
she runs good!

I hope you were able to catch some of those trips in Flowing. And Yes by all means get out the muffs and run fresh water through it for a good ten minutes. Disconnect the fuel and let her run dry. I would only have fuel in that engine whe you're on the water. Keep her dry and you'll never have to take it in for a carb cleaning.

I would higly recommend taking the WA boating safety course, it is probably required.(depending on your age)

rpm10 wrote:I would higly recommend taking the WA boating safety course, it is probably required.(depending on your age)

required.. done!