The Sky is my backyard and I almost exclusively only fish this river just for the fact that it is a two minute drive from my house. I am looking for a small sled. My question is can I run a sled all year around in the Sky even in the summer when the water gets extremely low? If a sled cannot be run year around can one of those Jon Boats with a small pump run year around or would I be better off with a drift boat? I do like the idea of a small motor boat so I can go back upstream if I wish. Do any of you guys with boats have some advice.

Lead thrower,
Your timing could`nt have been better to make this post.

In low water conditions like last summer you'd be hard pressed to run a sled on the Sky. You might be able run a few miles around Sultan but why not just get a drift boat. Talk to Ron Lavigueure at Lavro Boats in Monroe, he is located across the street from the main entrance to the prison. I've got a Lavro and love it. I can launch at Ben Howard and row upstream and fish that upper part all the way down to the Hershey Hole and pull back out at Ben Howard by myself, 1/2 a day's fishing and no shuttle. You can do the same at Tualco, fish all the way to Nordstroms and pull back out at Tualco. Easy.

Beezer

RC
I know, I saw the previous post on the Sky about sleds/jet skis but have been thinking about getting a boat and that post made me wonder, what actually is a good boat for the Sky.

You'll need two boats. Your "winter" boat should be at least 26' inboard sled that seats 12. That Sky can be a dangerous, Class-5 river once it get's above 5,000 cfs! Your summer boat can be any one of the high-performance "personal watercrafts".

More importantly DO NOT get any prior boat training before running your boats!

Finally, DO NOT be considerate when running the Sky. Feel free to cork other drift boats, run over their lines, and create six foot waves on the Sky. Since it floods on the Sky, your boat can't possibley do any more damage by making huge waves. It's also advised to "scrub" the bottom of your sled once in a while. I recommend finding a nice shallow area - you'll know you've found it when you see those salmon "redds" in ther water. Drive your sled slow enough so that you kick up at least 3" of gravel so that it's "scrubs" the bottom of your boat.

Finally, don't forget to brag about your catch at the boat ramp! Proudly show off those 3 "white tipped" chums the three of you caught! Boast that you hooked 6, but only landed 3. Make sure you qualify that "these fish will smoke up just fine!"

This next line is a joke- there seems to be a lot of sensitive guys here. Here go's---

Why get a boat, it seems that a lot of us walk on water.

I tried walking on water several times, good thing I live close and can go home and change those wet close quickly.

Hey Parker

What does cork other drift boats mean, am not up on boating terms.

"to cork somebody " means specifically that if you see Parker in a boat you should row over his lines or if in a 28' sled,swamp him. He really gets a kick out of it....to see that smile on his face.....priceless.

Lead,

I used to run a 14' Jon boat on the Sky with a pump on it. I could fish almost the whole year with the exception being very low water. The drifts that Beezer mentioned could still be ran during low water in it. The Jon could easily run in 3" of water on step without touching bottom. It was my favorite boat (I have a bigger sled now) for rivers around here since one guy could handle put-ins/takeouts and everything else very easily.

The nice part about having a pump is you can cork guys like Parker repeatedly all day and still get in alot of fishing. Throw in some sandbags and you could kick out a pretty hefty wake I bet. Being in a drift boat, he can only throw his old crusty sandshrimp at you for retalliation.

Sorry Saltine, I wouldn't waste the bottom bait even on you! I might toss a few Gammies at you, because we all know, that's the only thing they are good for!

Actually, we did get corked by some kid in a drift boat on Sunday, but since the person was too stupid to realize that he wasn't fishing in the "zone", we just pulled our plugs and went elsewhere.

PS. If you're going to cork us, at least try to PRETEND you know what you're doing!

Parker

Another light-hearted comment, please don't take personally:

I don't see the need to cork Team Vision at all. Just get within 100 yards of them and the overflow of all the fish they catch should be more than adequate to fill anyone's limit. :p

[ 11-20-2001: Message edited by: 4Salt ]

This is what happens on Metro rivers that have 6000000000000 people fishing them who all think there the best and know a secret that no one else knows on that river! Couple that with the easiest drifts on the sound and big room for sleds and you now have every joe blow who lives within an hour of that river fishing it! Rivers like that were made for scenerios like Parkers. If your gonna fish it especially weekends then ya just better get used to it!

Bob D

or just Brag on here---seems to be the place to do it.

Leadslinger, for gods sake dont get a sled. Check out Lavro in monroe.

Hey, might as well chip in on this one on a salesman note. Hey lead, I have a 14' sled for sale. It's not a jon, it's a semi V reinforced sled w/75hp pump. I've run iit on the Noch and Sop on lower flows (NO, I don't run the upper rivers, just near themouths of them). I have it posted in the fr sale cloumn. Ok, I did my plug.

Right on Parker,you read my mind

I went out and bought a 26' sled today that seats 10 just so I can run around and CORK parker.

Anyone know what river he will be on this weekend?

I'm gonna try to find him unless I'm out buyin a new jet ski on the day he's fishin. :p


Was out on the Sky. with a friends Jet ski last weekend what a blast I just gotta have one.

TM (on a mission) :p

EDIT: oh yeah- another reason I bought the sled is because I have Short Man's complex.. :p

[ 11-20-2001: Message edited by: The Reel Timber Man ]

I'll be on the Sky this Friday. Just follow the blood trail in the water back to the boat! You can't miss us. Or just look for the only boat catching fish.

I'll be sure to bring along the digi movie camera. I want to get a couple movies of you doing some bad-ass tricks on that water bike. If anything, I'll get a couple of photos of you with some of them tasty chummers - bragging rights, ya know? I hear they smoke up just fine!

Watch out for ducks!

LMAO!

No water bike this weekend Parker Just my 26' sled...Northerns are headed this way don't want to run into one.

I'm not so sure that the blood in the water will be from your fish. My jet pump is big enough to suck up, chew and spit out humans. :p j/k

Leadthrower, I owned a 16' Wooldridge Alaskan, it is a great boat for shallow water and is great for running the river to get to those tight spots if necessary.
Not too wide and sides are relatively shallow so had to get a bigger boat so my wife would feel a little more secure in the river with me. There are a lot of times I still wish I had that boat. Good luck in your choice.

Doubletake

Just one thing to say, NOTHING beats the peace and non-aggrevation-to-other-fellow-fisherman than my 16' Guide model Willie Drift Boat.
LOVE IT! I'll be at the Sky-Wallace confluence on Fri if you want to catch a glimpse!!

Wow!

Parker,

I don't mean to be disrespectful but please quit while you are ahead. 20+ fish and you are still angry! Relax, take a deep breath.

Angry? No. LMAO? Yes!

In case there haven't been any serious replies to this query, corking someone is putting your gear in the water in front of theirs. Originated in the commercial net fishing industry. See also "low holing".

I haven't seen a serious reply to some of the practical questions you ask, so here's my put.

As to how shallow you can run, I don't think there's that much difference between sleds. I have a 19 ft North River vee bottom that I can take through 4 inches of water if needed. You may be able to get a flat bottom sled through 2 or 3 inches, if needed. Problem is, if the water is that shallow, there is almost certainly at least one rock that sticks up, and you're going to bang it. So I think you're better off with a boat that is designed for some abuse, ie, a real sled, than a Smoker craft with a pump on it. The sleds have more metal on the bottom.

Now, if you're reasonably careful, any more or less flat bottomed boat with a jet unit will work to get you up and down the river, and a Smoker Craft Alaskan with a 20 hp pump might be just right for you. With the bigger boats, you get a nicer platform to fish from, and maybe amenities such as nicer seating, etc. A lot of Alaskan guide outfits do real well with 16 foot Lowes with about a 25 hp jet unit. The Lowes aren't heaviweight boats, but they do they job.

On the Sky up to Sultan, I have never seen the depth finder go below about 2 feet when I'm running, but I know how to read water and see the slot, and I just don't run the powerboat at low water levels, ie, less than about 2300 cfs at Goldbar. That's actually due as much to the conditions at the ramps as anything else, however.

You can run these rivers just fine in the summer with any of these boats. I think the limit is not the river, it's your ability to read water, your familiarity with the water, and the other people on the water. In the summer, the river is smaller, and so there is less room for co-existance with non-powered craft and bankies. I don't run the big boat in summer water on the smaller rivers, because I think it is getting pretty close to being rude to my fellow angler. I think it's a borderline question as to whether the Sky qualifies as a smaller river.

You'll get some folks that will tell you that too big a boat throws too much of a wake. I don't think that size is as much a factor as design, weight, and how the operator uses it. My 19 ft throws less wake than my old 17 ft, despite being 700 lbs heavier and having 100 more HP. I think it's because it gets up on step easier, and keeps on top, rather than plowing through, the water.

If you get a boat, make sure it has enough power for the boat, you, and the number of people you plan on fishing with it. Having a pump doesn't mean squat if you can't get a boat on plane. I had a 17 ft Almar with an 85, and with more than two people, the boat simply wasn't safe in shallow water, as it took about a football field to get up on step. If you find someone selling a boat for a price that seems too good to be real, it may be because the motor is too small for the boat. Insist on taking it out for a spin, and bring buddies, large ones.

So that's my advice. As to whether to get a drift boat or a sled, I actually prefer fishing from a drift boat, as I love to row, but a drift boat requires a shuttle. I like to fish with my kids, they don't have drivers licenses, so the sled works for me. I fish in mid week a lot, so finding partners who can help with the shuttle can be hard. Note, volunteers accepted. It is also nice to be able to put in, motor up to a spot, fish for a bit, and then head back, without having to do the whole drift. I have a couple of spots where I fish where I never fire the big motor up except to get on and off the trailer. I just put in, motor up to a point, anchor and plunk. Being able to sit there, drink coffee under the top and wait for mister steelhead to come, now that's luxury.

Leadthrower,if I could do it over I would probably have a different boat.I've learned that how you fish should be a major consideration when selecting you boat.If you get a boat that doesn't suit your fishing needs because you want to be able to run the upper Sky year round,you may regret it.

There are times when the river is too low for me to run the sled.I generally like to bank fish so that what I do during the dry months.

My next boat will be larger.At least 16 but no more than 18.If I can get a boats that tracks well in the 16-17 foot range thats ideal.

River current and flows can affect you abilty to launch as well as run the river.Buying a boat that runs skinny water is pointless unless you have a setup that allows you to launch during these occaisions.Your towing vehicle is half of your system.

I'd say a 28 ft bentz with dual 460s would do ya good

Good idea Otis I think I'll go trade my 26ftr in and get me one!!