On Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 72 (How 2 Tuesday #25), I answer a question I get all the time: what is the best boat for what I want to do, and how do I pick one? My short answer is that every boat is a compromise. There is no single boat that does everything well, so the real work is figuring out what you want to do most, how many people you carry, and which water you fish. In this solo episode I walk through skiffs, bay boats, and offshore center consoles so you can match the boat to the way you actually fish.
Listen now: Spotify · Apple Podcasts · or press play in the player above.
Start by deciding exactly what you want to do on the water, because every boat is a compromise of some sort. Figure out how many people you typically take, which species you fish for, and how much time you spend offshore versus inshore. Once you know that, look for the boat that satisfies about seventy percent of what you want to do, then narrow down to a manufacturer and a price range.
A skiff is a small, highly specialized boat built to run in very shallow water and operate quietly, typically fishing one or two anglers with a push pole or trolling motor. A bay boat holds more people, carries more fuel and gear, has live well storage, and can sneak offshore on calm days. An offshore center console is built to handle big water and rough conditions that would be unacceptable in a bay boat and impossible in a skiff.
For pure flats fishing, fly fishing for permit, bonefish, and tarpon, a skiff with a poling platform is the specialized choice. A seventeen foot skiff fishes well with a guide and one or two anglers and excels in very shallow water. If you want to carry more people or run a trolling motor without a fishing partner on the platform, a bay boat covers the same species with more flexibility.
A bay boat is exactly what its name says it is, a boat designed for the bay. On the right days, when the weather is nice, you can run it offshore. You do not want to get caught offshore in a bay boat on a day when you should not be out there, because conditions can turn and put you in trouble. For consistent offshore use, a full offshore boat is the safer choice.
It depends entirely on the type of boat. A seventeen foot skiff fishes best with two or three people total, while a twenty four foot bay boat can comfortably carry four or five along with more fuel, tackle, and gear. The number of passengers you plan to bring is one of the first things that should dictate the kind of boat you buy.
Yes. The same thought process carries straight over to freshwater. Decide whether you want to water ski, barbecue, bass fish, or run rivers, then match the boat to those activities. That might point you to a pontoon boat, a fish and ski, a bass boat, or a specialized river boat like a john boat with oars and a motor for running current.
I walk through each of these with real examples from the boats I run in the episode. Press play in the player above.
The first thing I tell anyone who asks me how to pick a boat is that every single boat is a compromise of some sort. The ultra specialized boats are incredible at one thing and genuinely bad at another. A shallow water skiff or a canoe is perfect for skinny water and useless offshore in a twenty mile an hour wind. The trick is knowing which compromises you can live with for the fishing you actually do. I lay out how I think about those trade offs in the episode, so press play in the player above.
I use my own boats as the example because the differences are easy to feel on the water. The seventeen foot skiff is a three person boat built to slip into very shallow water and stay quiet. The twenty four foot bay boat carries four or five people, more fuel, and live well storage while still reaching skinny water. The thirty six foot offshore boat with twin Mercury Verados handles big seas that the others cannot. I break down where each one shines in the episode, so press play in the player above.
When someone is stuck choosing, I have them answer a few simple questions. How many people are you typically taking? What species are you fishing for? How much live well storage do you want, and how much time will you spend offshore? The answers start pointing toward one style of boat over another, whether that is a skiff for permit, a bay boat for the sandbar with the kids, or a twenty six footer that can run offshore and still sneak inshore. I work through that process out loud in the episode, so press play in the player above.
The day after recording this, the same advice still holds. Do not start with the manufacturer or the color or the price. Start with what you want to do, who you are bringing, and where you are fishing. Find the boat that does about seventy percent of all that, and you will be happy with it for a long time.
Ask a lot of questions of people who have owned boats before, because their experience will save you money and frustration. When you are ready, press play in the player above and walk through the whole process with me.
Florida Keys · flats fishing · permit · bonefish · tarpon · redfish · snook · skiff · bay boat · offshore center console · poling platform · trolling motor · live well storage · Mercury Verado · pontoon boat · fish and ski boat · bass boat · john boat · How 2 Tuesday · Saltwater Experience
How 2 Tuesday is my weekly series where I break down one fishing skill at a time, from knots and casting to gear, tactics, and the habits that make you a better angler. Watch and listen to every How 2 Tuesday episode from Tom Rowland.
I'm Tom Rowland, a professional fishing guide based in the Florida Keys, host of the Tom Rowland Podcast, and the longtime host of the Saltwater Experience television show. On the podcast's How 2 Tuesday series I break down one practical skill or lesson at a time, from boat selection and gear to technique and the mindset that got me into this life, in short, focused episodes you can put to use right away.
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