I'm about a year away from ordering a new boat. What are the pro and cons with a skif. I will be hanging my 23 hd sport off the back of it. All the people up here are running the GD and GT boats and I have never seen a skif in person. I need an all around boat since I hunt some big water (6 mile runs over deep water), rivers (big muddy miss), and skinny backwaters and sloughs.
Just wondering about a skif or should i order a flat front boat. I don't carry big loads, me @ 180# one other guy @180#, dog and decoys.

Thanks
Greg

If ya gotta ask you dont need a skiff. Skiffs are better for the woods and narrow windy sloughs. If you anint used to them skiff can be da devil!

We have alot of windy sloughs that go lake to lake that I run. Some are 5' wide. I love to push back into these hidden spots to get away from the preasure. When they drop the flowadges 8-14 feet in the fall all thats left in most spots are the original creeks that are narrow and windy.

That's why I asked that question

Skiffs are the Devil if you don't know how to drive dem, and even then they still suprise the most experianced sumtimes.

I live up hear on the river as well and not many guys run the skiffs. Imo 2 guys and a dog if your hunting outta the skiff is gunna be tough they don't make them real wide and therefore arent as stable. I hunt alot of the swamps up hear and I have a 18 foot boat and I fly up the sloughs in the fall even with the water down. I dont know about the spots you hunt but when we are hunitng those swamp sloughs their isnt alot of dry land and its nice to have a stable boat you can be comfotable in and not worry about standing up and moving around. I have often thought about a like a 14 foot skiff and a longtail but to be honest I rarely hunt alone and I don't want 2 guys my dog and decoys in a narrow little skiff. I would maybe look into like a 1748 mud boat with and throw a few mods on that 23 to keep the load carrying up on it.

Fowl habit- I lived in Fountain City for 5 years while the wife went to Winona State. Hunted the hell out of the river. I loved hunting Lake Pepin for divers late in the season. I still get back there a couple of times a year in the fall to hunt it.

Thanks for the info. Was just curious about them because I do run some very small waters.

Hell yeah. My wife also went to Winona State then she followed me out to Wyomings so I could guide elk for a few years...you ever hunt up in the big marsh above Fountain City? Even all the guys up their with mud boats the smallest I have seen is a 1644 Go devil boat. I think we all run a bigger rigs up hear because we doin't just hunt the marsh or swamps, Their is too much big water to have such a small boat.

You bet I hunted that. I hunted from Red Wing to Cassville. That river can get nasty when the wind pushed against the current. Haven't been up there in quite awhile, is all that rice still up there past Indian Village? That was my favorite place to hunt. Talk about backwaters along with the Nelson bottoms.

oh yeah that rice is worse then ever the beaver up their are getiin to be a problem we finally got in their this past year and trapped a few. They closed down big lake now up by Nelson last year and they opened all the refuge that was south of big lake and the nelson bottoms. We don't seem to kill the divers as much because of that. They never leave big lake now cause their is no hunting pressure and you cant take a motorized boat in their after Oct 16th. Stiill a good area though

I heard that from my buddy. Those refuges just load up in the fall and boy they don't move unless they have too. That's why we always prayed for early ice up. Had some good days out there when the refuges locked up. When I get that way sometime I'll give you a shout. Would love to see your boat.

Think of driving a skiff in waves like kneeboarding in rough water.

Skiff is like a canoe in my opinion, long and narrow. And I have seen a couple and riden in one there is NO WAY I would run 6 miles in one, the one I was in there were 2 of us 3 mojo's and 2 doz. decks and I was glad when the ride was over!

Some skiffs r long and narrow. Some bateaus/Jonboats are long and narrow. U can get a skiff built like u want. We have skiffs around here 25'x6' with 4 foot sides. A skiff has to be built right. There is a learning curve when driving them that can b unforgiving if u arent experienced wif boating in general.

Fair enough, I was in a gatortrax skiff. I prefer a square end canoe.

with skiffs its all about stick time. Learn how to drive one and they not as bad as everyone says.