I am looking at 2008 24ft seark cc. This boat is jam up, with all service records and includes trolling motor ship to shore radio, bottom finder. It has casting platform and new bimini top, the floor has a diamond tread bottom. It is eight feet wide across top and six feet at floor and the sides are 24inches high. It looks like you could put a volkswagen in it. I will be hunting in large lakes, rivers and coastal areas. I really like the fact that I can safely hunt my kids in a more that sturdy boat. The present owner says with the jack plate he can run in eight inches of water with no problem. My concern is can I hide this monster, if I put a blind on it will I flare every duck in a five mile area. It may seem crazy but I have no experience hunting out of anything longer that sixteen ft. Just give me your opinions, you guys hunt in a lot of different setups and your vast experiences may make me feel better about its size.
Is 24ft to large for duckboat?
- Thread starter lee kent
- Start date
David Robinson
Well-known member
Lee,
With a boat that size, I'd haul all of my hunting gear, dump it at the spot, and hide the boat somewhere else. That's how I usually hunt out of my 16 ft jon boat. A 24' boat would just need more camo or be parked farther away
If you're on big water, no boat is too big, IMHO. Go for it!
With a boat that size, I'd haul all of my hunting gear, dump it at the spot, and hide the boat somewhere else. That's how I usually hunt out of my 16 ft jon boat. A 24' boat would just need more camo or be parked farther away
If you're on big water, no boat is too big, IMHO. Go for it!
Steve Horvath
Member
If it's affordable it would make a great big water boat blind or use for hauling hunters and layouts!
Mike Trudel
Well-known member
Check out the Duckwater Boat site and look at the pics of the Bay series boats. It is unbelievable how well big boats can be camoed.
William Stahl
Active member
What Mr. Horvath said above is what I'm thinking too.
Plus Sea-Arks are pretty solid boats. I have a 16'.
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Plus Sea-Arks are pretty solid boats. I have a 16'.
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I had one about 10 years ago. We used it strictly for a layout tender. I had two Ron Bankes layouts on bunks that layed across the gunwales. You can't find a more roomy boat for 4 guys, 10+ dozen deeks, 2 layouts and everyone's gear....... Now for the negatives: I couldn't keep up with the weld repairs! Almost every time we went out in rougher water, I had to get the tig out when I got home and fix broken welds. The boat slaps like a son-of-a-gun in rough water! If I were to invest that much loot again, I would get an Alaskan or a Duckwater. (I got the Alaskan ;-) )
I have a 23-ft War Eagle that is my river boat. I take everything and kids to the spot, dump them and hide the boat. Works great. Never felt safer on big water when you have a big wind in an upwind reach. I have had a blind on mine and killed lots of ducks and geese. Some flare, but others commit. That's duck hunting.
Trip.
Trip.
Andrew Holley
Well-known member
I have a 26' by 8 1/2' and I would love two more feet in length.
It really depends on how you hunt. I hunt big water with layouts and a lot of gear (at one time had five guys, layouts and decoys in the boat), it works greats. We have also taken it out and just hunted out of the boat and done well. Can I hid the boat, no not really and now WI regs have changed and not sure I can legal hid the boat anymore (too high of sides).
No matter what size of boat you get, you will realize that one boat will not cover every situation and you need a fleet.
It really depends on how you hunt. I hunt big water with layouts and a lot of gear (at one time had five guys, layouts and decoys in the boat), it works greats. We have also taken it out and just hunted out of the boat and done well. Can I hid the boat, no not really and now WI regs have changed and not sure I can legal hid the boat anymore (too high of sides).
No matter what size of boat you get, you will realize that one boat will not cover every situation and you need a fleet.
If you were hunting up against the bank and could hide it well, it would work. But overall, its really big for a duck hunting boat in this part of the country.
You may want to use it for primary transport. Stick a couple of layout boats in the big boat and hunt out of them.
You may want to use it for primary transport. Stick a couple of layout boats in the big boat and hunt out of them.
jehler
Member
I hunt out of a 24' boat with an 8.5' beam, it is built on toons so while the boat is very differnt in construction it is close in size. we built a permanant hardframe blind and cover it with natural vegitation and we do real well. The boat works great in tandom with a layout boat and a small tender. we normally tow a 14 footer behind us to set decoys, chase cripples the dogs can't get and tend the layout. love all the extra room for decoy storage, cooking gear....naps!
cons are it is to big to handle skinny water, takes a good bit of work to get the blind set up (we usually moore it and hunt a lake for 3 or 4 days in a row) and is rough to get set up out of or without a tender (I think the seaark would handle much better)
have never targeted puddle ducks with the boat but have shot plenty out of it, here is a pix
cons are it is to big to handle skinny water, takes a good bit of work to get the blind set up (we usually moore it and hunt a lake for 3 or 4 days in a row) and is rough to get set up out of or without a tender (I think the seaark would handle much better)
have never targeted puddle ducks with the boat but have shot plenty out of it, here is a pix