Boat Recommendations

[50-50]

Here�s one for you Pro�s

I will be moving to Eagle River and looking for ideas on the best boat set up for fishing the chain and area lakes. I would like to go aluminum. Price range under 20k

I DO HAVE A 19.5 Starcraft Islander with a New 115 E-Tec I used on Lake Michigan, I could keep the motor for another rig but it seems rather big for those lakes.

Keep 115? Y/N
Brand
Length
HP

Thanks
50-50

[admin911]

Here�s one for you Pro�s

I will be moving to Eagle River and looking for ideas on the best boat set up for fishing the chain and area lakes. I would like to go aluminum. Price range under 20k

I DO HAVE A 19.5 Starcraft Islander with a New 115 E-Tec I used on Lake Michigan, I could keep the motor for another rig but it seems rather big for those lakes.

Keep 115? Y/N
Brand
Length
HP

Thanks
50-50

Can any of our eagle river area guides or locals help out with this question?

[Pete Rich]

I guide and fish out of a 18' lund. I have a 90 4 stroke merc and wish I would have gone with the 115. I feel you should always max every thing your boat can handle. I'm on my third trolling motor. I recently put a 101 terova on my boat and couldn't be happier. If you max every thing out you will never be left wishing you had more power when you need it.

As far as aluminum. I regret not going with fiberglass. Don't get me wrong I love my boat but afer running my buddies ranger for a week I realized how much easier boat control is with a glass boat. My next boat will be glass.

Hope that helped a little. Good luck.

[admin911]

I guide and fish out of a 18' lund. I have a 90 4 stroke merc and wish I would have gone with the 115. I feel you should always max every thing your boat can handle. I'm on my third trolling motor. I recently put a 101 terova on my boat and couldn't be happier. If you max every thing out you will never be left wishing you had more power when you need it.

As far as aluminum. I regret not going with fiberglass. Don't get me wrong I love my boat but afer running my buddies ranger for a week I realized how much easier boat control is with a glass boat. My next boat will be glass.

Hope that helped a little. Good luck.

Thanks Pete!

[Captain Doug Kloet]

I guide mostly in S.E. Wisconsin but have spent a lot of time in the Eagle River area. I have a 2000 Ranger 681 Fisherman with a 135hp Mecury Optimax. When I first bought this boat I fished Eagle River most of the time. I know you said that you wanted aluminum but consider this boat if you can find one. The nice thing about this boat is that it is almost 18 feet long and holds well in the wind when trying to hold on a spot vs aluminum that blows around a lot more in the wind. It is also a very stable boat in waves.

[walleyemaxx]

Hi 50-50,

I live in Eagle River but guide over on the Chippewa Flowage. I run a 161/2' Lowe. It is a good size boat but still light weight. It was perfect for the boat landings you will encounter in the Eagle River area. I have a 50 Merc on the boat which is maxx for that boat. Alone I reach 36MPH and with two clients can reach 30 MPH. There is no carpet but rather I have a rubber floor. Easy to keep clean. Just hose it out. very quiet too. Very wide and has two huge lockable rod lockers. Three pedestal seats so there is lots of room. I had a glass boat when I first moved here 22 years ago. Found the glass boats to be too heavy to launch at a lot of boat landings. Thay are smooth and I do like them, but found a lighter weight aluminum that handles excellent and was more practical for the area. Hope this helps you in your decision. If you have any more questions just ask.

Walleyemaxx

[50-50]

Up Date:

1st thanks to all for the info:

Ended up by the Turtle Flambeau Flowage.

New Boat is a 2012 Alumacraft : Competitor 165 CS with a 2012 60hp etec

CU On the Water :)