afk
4/16/2018 7:47:36 PMSounds like an adventure With cheap entertainment to boot! Thanks for the report. Andy
hewesfisher
4/17/2018 6:46:45 AMAll I could think of was how much mud the guy with the bass boat was running through his water pump and how much his prop was loving the mud bath. Have to agree with Andy, entertainment value provided by others certainly enhanced your trip, not to mention that nice cat Dan caught!
downriggeral
4/17/2018 7:39:27 AMThat's what I was thinking as I watched. A lot of mud must have gone through that Yamaha V Max; too crazy!
SnoKing
4/17/2018 10:03:47 AMAl: I got a kick out of your post...thanks for some morning chuckles! I've been catfishing down there for sometime and have always wondered why on earth they didn't at least put up marker warning boaters of the shallow depth and that it's not a real gradual slope but more like an abrupt "shelf". At one point four or five years ago there were bamboo sticks stuck in the mud that more or less showed a very small channel up the center of the flats but they disappeared and weren't really that reliable. If you swing over to the left right about where the cable warning sign appears and stay 40' from shore, you can go almost up to the end and then head toward the river outlet. It's still shallow and gets down to 18" or so. I use a skiff with a 20 hp motor and I tilt it up about 20 degrees and cruise along about 5 mph. Once you're in the main channel, you're OK but be careful up toward the island.
Jet boats skim right up the center of the flats at 30mph with no problem although I've seen some suck some debris into their pumps and spend the next hour cleaning the impeller. One other comment: I see a pic of someone outside the boat pushing....not advisable! There are some pockets of mud out there that are almost impossible to pull your feet out of...I speak from experience. My first trip out there I leaped out of the boat and promptly stuck myself in up over my knees. Actually it was funny after the fact.
Anyway, thanks for the report! PS Try Jerusalem Crickets or cut up squaw fish for bait....can't miss.
Jet boats skim right up the center of the flats at 30mph with no problem although I've seen some suck some debris into their pumps and spend the next hour cleaning the impeller. One other comment: I see a pic of someone outside the boat pushing....not advisable! There are some pockets of mud out there that are almost impossible to pull your feet out of...I speak from experience. My first trip out there I leaped out of the boat and promptly stuck myself in up over my knees. Actually it was funny after the fact.
Anyway, thanks for the report! PS Try Jerusalem Crickets or cut up squaw fish for bait....can't miss.
SnoKing
4/17/2018 10:15:49 AMI forgot to mention...
Last time we were down there, we were in the process of crossing from the upper left end of the mud flats over to the mouth of the river and came upon a spike moose standing 15' from us. He really wasn't sure what to make of us and obviously not afraid so we stopped and took a few pics. Just as we finished our photo session, he farted loudly and walked over to the bank and trotted off. I laughed so hard I damned near fell out of the boat. I only wish I had taken a video with the sound turned up. It would have been all over the 'net.
Last time we were down there, we were in the process of crossing from the upper left end of the mud flats over to the mouth of the river and came upon a spike moose standing 15' from us. He really wasn't sure what to make of us and obviously not afraid so we stopped and took a few pics. Just as we finished our photo session, he farted loudly and walked over to the bank and trotted off. I laughed so hard I damned near fell out of the boat. I only wish I had taken a video with the sound turned up. It would have been all over the 'net.
downriggeral
4/18/2018 10:27:56 PMThanks SnoKing I figured squaw fish would be good but didn't have time to get any. Jet boats make it look easy....until they plug up??
SnoKing
4/19/2018 6:53:31 PMAl, you can get your Hewes upriver if you go up the left side. Lift your main engine and use your kicker to navigate from the left side over to the mouth of the river. I did it with a 23' Alumaweld with a 150HP Yamaha that was lifted out of the way and I putted along on the 8hp kicker...np. I had my wife along just in case I needed her to pull us out.