The love for pontoons among boating enthusiasts is rapidly rising. Traditionally, the spaciousness and stability of pontoons have made them associated with fun boat parties and water sports. However, we have lately been seeing a hike in people adopting pontoon boats for fishing. So the question arises: are pontoon boats good for fishing?
Yes, modern pontoon boats are great for fishing. First, the expansive floor plans offer greater storage space for your fishing accessories and fishing parties. The sizable decks also enhance the stability of the pontoon while boating. What is more, recent pontoon designs are increasingly emphasizing speed and maneuverability, making these boats more suitable for fishing.
Are Pontoon Boats Good for Bay Fishing?
Yes, pontoon boats work for bay fishing. Many fishing enthusiasts are leveraging pontoon boats for inland fishing.
Given the size and traction of pontoon boats, they may not perform as excellently at bay fishing as dedicated bay boats.
The latter is a fusion between a deep-draft and shallow-draft vessel. Pontoon boats don’t boast as much cruising ease as bay boats on shallow waters.
But pontoon boats come close when it comes to stability. Pontoon boats are impressive at withstanding chopper waters, which means you can still use them to bay fish.
Also, if you can furnish your pontoon boat with a jack plate, its capacity to explore shallower waters is remarkably enhanced.
Depending on the quantity of gear you have stacked up in the boat and the number of passengers, your pontoon boat can still do well in really shallow waters, some as thin as a depth of 2ft.
Are Pontoon Boats Good for Deep-sea Fishing?
While we have established that pontoon boats are more suited to inland fishing, pontoon boats yet do well in oceans. Many pontoon owners these days use them for fishing in deep-sea areas.
That said, your pontoon’s size and construction would determine the performance of your pontoon in deep-sea fishing. Bear in mind that not all pontoons can tolerate saltwater.
Looking deeper into the construction, a pontoon whose manufacturers prioritized stability should do well at deep fishing.
This is considering their capacity to withstand larger waves. This explains why triple-hull pontoons are commonly used for deep-sea fishing.
Tube size and how thick your pontoon also matter. If you are going into larger water bodies with correspondingly increasing depth, you need a pontoon whose tube diameter is no lesser than 25″. On thickness, a pontoon at least .090″ should do fine on deep-sea fishing.
Before taking your pontoon on deep fishing, you need to ask yourself if your pontoon’s horsepower rating would suffice against the turbulence of waves at sea.
If you are going a sizable distance from shore on your pontoon, you should not be taking a pontoon less than 150hp fishing.
Are Pontoon Boats Good for Crappie Fishing?
The thing about crappie fishing is that it doesn’t require any specialized capacity from your boat. So long your boat can properly float, it should do well for crappie fishing.
And yes, pontoon boats float really well. More than that, the spaciousness they lavish on you gives you ample room to catch as many crappies and keep more fishing accessories.
This means you can take more live bait along when using pontoon for crappie fishing. Some pontoons come with specially adapted livewell outfitted with aeration systems.
This implies that your live bait can stay alive longer on such a pontoon boat in those sunny summer fishing expeditions.
Lastly, a unique attraction of pontoon boats (for crappie fishing) is their affordability. A dedicated crappie fishing boat would shave as much as $50,000 from your net worth.
However, you can get a pontoon boat that would still do pretty well at crappie fishing for around $25,600. Not a bad bargain, is it?
Are Pontoon Boats Good for Bass Fishing?
While we can’t deny the versatility of pontoon boats, we can’t confidently say that these boats would excel at bass fishing.
Yes, pontoon boats would give you more stability when compared to more traditional bass fishing boats. You wouldn’t suffer wobbling on your pontoon boat, making fish-catching easier.
But bass bashing aggressively needs speed and quick maneuverability. A pontoon boat may not always deliver that speed and capacity to change direction while in motion rapidly.
What Are the Best Fishing Pontoon Boats?
We have thoroughly investigated some of the best pontoon boats best suited for fishing. Let us tell you about these pontoon boats.
Ranger Reata 223F
Yes, we fell too easily with this baby. But why shouldn’t we? This is by far the most fishing-adapted pontoon boat we have used. Its cruising ability is quite rare when measured against more conventional pontoon boats.
This pontoon’s material can withstand the harshest salt waters. Its tubes come with powder coating. Compared to raw aluminum pontoon logs, the Reata excels more at corrosion resistance.
You need speed to fish, and this Reata doesn’t disappoint. This pontoon boat is fitted with lifting strakes. Thanks to this facility, this pontoon has lesser drag and maneuverability in hard turns.
This pontoon lovably spoils you with fishing accessories. There is a sizable livewell for keeping the fish you caught and the live bait. This boat’s fishing consoles readily hold your tackle and fishing rods.
What if you want to go fishing at night? This pontoon boat is impressively illuminated. Finding stuff is easier with the storage lights, while the LED navigation lights mean more time on your hook even when night comes. This way, you don’t get to exhaust your battery too quickly.
Sun Tracker Fishin’ Barge 20 DLX
The Sun Tracker makes fishing the fun that it really is. What would you say of a pontoon boat exquisitely furnished with a rod storage galore and three casting chairs?
Wait, the splendor doesn’t end there. This sun tracker comes with double (with excellent aeration) livewells totaling an 18-gallon capacity.
When you add these to this Sun Tracker’s indigenous 9′ QUICKLIFT® Bimini top and RAIL-LOCK® mooring cover mounting system, you get a home on the water in the form of a pontoon boat.
Durability is also in the dish this pontoon boat serves. Its upholstery holds well against the UV-rays abundant in open-air fishing, being of marine grade.
Boasting 24″ high-buoyancy and lush aft fishing positions (not forgetting its three 3 fold-down fishing chairs), this is the pontoon boat to take your fishing squadron angling.
Sylvan Mirage 8520 4Pt
This is another pontoon boat that excels at fishing. For an enjoyable fishing experience, this Sylvan is furnished with two comfy casting chairs. The low-back helm chair impressively slides and swivels.
It has a specialized fishing station in the form of its nestled center situated in its rear deck. This accommodates your fishing accessories, sizing up many tool holders and rod holders.
The live well has a commendable size too. It has diameter tubes of 25″, meaning you can try fishing in deeper waters with this pontoon boat. Its docking light has some stylistic illumination to this pontoon boat.
Cons of Pontoon Boats Fishing
Indeed, we have extensively hit on the advantages of pontoon boats when it comes to fishing. We mentioned their affordability, spaciousness, and stability.
But we must also add that pontoon boat fishing also has its peculiar handicaps. Foremost in this sad category is handling in tight channels.
It is almost inevitable that a pontoon boat big enough to take your fraternity fishing wouldn’t boast such handling ease as more portable and way smaller boats.
A pontoon boat won’t suit you if you are fanatically in love with fishing in coves and other tight channels.
Pontoon boats don’t have the best sharp turning radius there is. A pontoon is big.
Therefore, you can’t turn it as rapidly as, say, a deck boat. So if you are that angler who enjoys sharp swerves, it may be good to look other than a pontoon for your boating expeditions.