J
jmelinte
So I finally took her out for the first time. My girlfriend and I spent the morning/early afternoon at Hagg Lake, with me in my pontoon and her in my inflatable raft. I have to say, I love this thing. It took a while to get used to managing all my gear because I was pretty afraid of dropping anything in the water. After a while, though it was a great experience. It definitely gets moving too. The oars on my raft are basically crap, so I actually had to tow my girlfriend in because she wasn't making much progress against the wind. The one complaint I have so far is that the rubber ring that keeps the oar from going completely through the oar lock slid all the way up one of my oars. It looks like the rings are made of two rubber halves, with screws tightening them together. I'll have to remember to bring a screwdriver with me from now on. I didn't catch anything because I spent more time rowing against the wind than casting. I kept getting blown toward shore, and I had no way to anchor. The anchor that came with the pontoon is the rock bag and rope type. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any sizeable rocks at the lake, so I had to do without. I'll be bringing my own rocks from now on, as funny as that sounds. Another amazing thing that I'd like to point out is that I managed to fit the entire boat in the trunk of my BMW sedan. Granted, I had to put it together when I got there, but it's really not too tough to do, especially with an electric pump. It was an overall great experience, and I can't wait to take it out again now that I've learned a few lessons
First of all...lose the rocks. Get a 10lb pyrimid lead anchor at Fishermans Marine. Provide at least 35' of anchor line if you bait fish and 25' if you fly fish. Stock the pouches. Keep 8, 6, and 4lb leader in there at all times. You'll also need a whistle, PFD, Hemostat, water, and most of all sun screen. Keep other items you think are important in there as well. The key is to set yourself up so you can pack up and leave on a dime. Any time your line is not in the water you are not fishing. Once you are set up, and have adjusted your techniques, such as trolling speed etc, it is possible you will never get skunked trout fishing again from your boat. Pontoons are great! You'll never regret getting one. Enjoy!