A new boat? Or kayak? Nothing?

Palm Coast Observer
Opinion

Every so often, I get the bug to buy a new boat, and preferably something that can get into shallower water than my existing boat.

As I search the Internet for that perfect boat, I've come to one conclusion: There is no one perfect boat, and there is give and take in all of them.

So I'm stuck thinking, should I buy a second boat and have twice the expense? Or go with something in the way of a kayak?

I like the kayak idea, but as I get older, I don't know if I want to do all of that paddling and also not have the ability to stand up to fish.

Well it seems like there are people out there who have the same thoughts as I do because as I search the web, I've come up with some interesting concepts.

As far as a second boat goes, there are three that I have been looking at.

The first is the Ankona Shadowcast 16. The company states that its boat can get into 5 inches of water with two people on board.

Next is the Dragonfly Marsh Hen that will do 3 inches with one person and a little bit more with a second person.

Last is the Shipoke 14 Microskiff. It looks to be a very stable boat for its length and will handle up to three people and get into 5 to 6 inches of water, depending on the load.

When it comes to kayaks, there are some really interesting concepts out there now. One that is made right in Jacksonville is the Solo Skiff. You can get it with or without an outboard engine, and it is also made to fish standing up. Next is the Dragon Fly fly fisher. This kayak is a cross between a kayak and a paddle board. It has a seat in it with a stainless steel leaning post for stand-up fishing. Its most unique feature is that it can be equipped with a 55-pound thrust trolling motor. And last is a pontoon/leaning post device, made to adapt to your kayak. This also gives you lots of stability to stand and fish.

So these are some that won't break the bank when it comes to shallow water fishing.

I've come across a couple of new applications for smart phones, by the way.

“Fish Rules” is a fish ID that will give you the size/bag limits and measurements of any saltwater fish you are fishing for in the state of Florida. Also, there is a freshwater application called “iFishFlorida.”

Just type in the name of the lake that you want to fish, and it will give you all kinds of information.