Advice for a Big River Duck Boat

J

jdenny21

New member
Hello all,
I am new to this forum and wanted to get your opinions on what type of boat / outboard combo would be good for hunting Missouri's big rivers (Mississippi / Missouri / Etc Rivers) safely. I would like to purchase a boat that can comfortable hunt 3 hunters, carry a bunch of decoys, and a dog. I am new to this type of boating, however have been around boats my whole life and realize hunting these big rivers can definitely be dangerous with the strong currents and large size.

I would like to hear what you would recommend as far as size of the boat and power of the motor. I have done some looking around and think an 18 foot jon boat would be sufficient, but again I am not really sure. When it comes to powering the boat, what size outboard would you recommend?

Also, not having a retriever, what would you recommend for retrieving downed birds in deep water? I'm thinking a trolling motor may work well for this depending on the strenght of the current.

Any other tips and suggestions would be appreciated as well.

Thank you in advance for your help.

John
 
On water that big, you may want to think about a semi-v hull, like the Lunds. Even a mod-v jon can pound you to death in a good chop. We have two at work 18 & 19' mod-v jons with center consoles and 90 hp motors. One is a tunnel hull with a jack plate. They are great in calm water, really fly & can get into some shallow stuff. But once it gets choppy, we're wishing we had brought the bay boat instread.

As far as hp, get what it is rated for. When you get in tight spot you will never say "I wish I had less hp" but you damn sure will say "I sure wish we had a little more hp".

For picking up birds in strong current, a trolling motor will probably struggle, just use the main engine.
 
Well the first thing I will say to you in your purchasing decision of a boat and this is the most important..."Know your boat and know the river"...Those two things are going to keep you coming home for dinner...

Don't ever under estimate the need for power to push the boats, don't go overboard and purchase something that will damage your transom only buy the maximum recommended motor...Don't buy something like a 15 hp for something that is recommended for at least a 40 hp to save money, believe me you will need the power...I have hunted the Ohio and some parts of the Mississipi most of my ducking hunting life...Make sure what ever size boat you are going to purchase that the engine can back it up when needed...Don't ever hunt the big water if you have never scouted the area...The Mississippi has break walls that run several hundred feet to several hundred yards where I grew-up...Depending on water conditions these walls could be covered...Rip Rap is only a lower unit shearing away...Sand bars shift, logs are bobbing, and etc...

I hunted with my stepfather for 5 or 6 years in the early 90s out of Grumman Roughneck River Bow before purchasing the boat from him...The length of the boat was around 17 feet with high sides, semi-V, and a 40 Tahatsu...Your boat needs to have at least a slight V-bow...V-bows are excellent if you prefer...Mostly hunted with 5 or so dozen decoys, us two, and a dog...We never hunted an area we didn't know....Keep at least one prop on hand with extra cotter pins and what ever else your lower unit may need to hold the prop, pay the extra hundred for a prop, it a long paddle...

The biggest mistake is not paying attention to waters conditions and extreme changes in temperature on the river...Even the safest boats for the most extreme conditions are no match for mother nature...To me the worst case on any of the big rivers with running at night is foggy conditions...It just isn't worth running when you can only see 20 feet...Even staring at a GPS unit is smart in the manner of following a path through the darkness but it won't show an Oak log floating down the river or any barges that could be anchored...

If you are a lonely hunter going by yourself alot...Nothing on the market will beat the safety of BBSB...I would suggest an Estuary by Dave Clark...Since you may be taking three guys I would not go with anything shorter than 18 feet...If you big river hunt you will need lots of decoys typically...In that case nothing smaller than a 20 footer with three guys...You will only go wrong in a BBSB or what ever you prefer if you didn't listen to the first statement...

I hope you have a Successful bag limit and Safe Hunt..

Kristan
 
Last edited:
I hunt the mighty Miss. up here in Iowa with a 17' Flat bottom with a custum permenent aluminum blind. It had a 50 hp merc on it but I went with a 20 hp go devil. This is the smallests I would run. The way I've seen that Missouri run down that away, I'd run a 20' flat with at least a 90 horse on it.

Lance
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top