We talk a great deal about strategies, techniques, presentations etc., to catch more fish. However, one astute reader of ours posed a great question. That being, “Do all of these strategies work from shore since I don’t have a boat and will they work on small water?”.
After our answer to our reader, we started doin’ a little thinkin’. No, not everybody can afford a boat and all that ownership entails so what are the other alternatives?
Well, there are kayak’s but those can set you back a couple grand by the time you outfit them. There are paddle boards but again, they start at above $500 and go up from there. There are small pond type boats that can run as much as $2k or more. There are float tubes but with those, you have to get waders, fins and other paraphernalia that again will get you up to around $500 if not more and you can’t fish with a friend from these.
Is there a functional alternative for around $100 for the budget minded angler that really is all inclusive? We started there to see what we could find and our efforts pointed us to one class of water craft that we simply hadn’t considered. Inflatables. Yup, sure enough, you can get one of these for just over $100 with everything included in the package. The boat, a pump and oars.
Being that we always like to have first hand knowledge of every product we write about, we ordered one, the Excursion 4 produced by Intex.
A week later, the boat arrived. In the box was the boat, a set of oars, a hand pump, a carry bag, a repair kit with two patches, two inflatable seats, a gear pouch, 2 rod holders and of course the instructions. So far, so good.
What’s It Really Like
The spec’s for the Excursion are that it is a four person boat constructed of heavy duty vinyl that is puncture resistant. Assembled length is 10’ 4”, width is 5’ 5” which is a good ratio for stability. The weight is about 45 pounds and rated to hold 1,050 pounds.
The two aluminum oars are 54” and consist of three sections with two compression fittings. They assemble easily and fit into the oar holders – of which there are 2 sets – with no trouble. They can be used by the person on the bow or stern thanks to the positioning of the holders. The rear of the boat includes built in molded plastic so that a small motor can be added.
The high output hand pump is effective but made entirely of plastic so you’ve got to be a little careful to not put too much stress on the pump when you’re blowing up the boat. We did that and had to take it apart and re-assemble it to continue.
The carry bag is a nice touch although the material is on the light side and doesn’t appear as though it’s gonna hold up for years.
Set Up Time
So off to a small, local lake we go to test our new boat for the first time. When you lay it out there are three valves for the boat itself. You simply start with number 1 which inflates the I-beam floor, move to number 2 which blows up the inner hull then on to number 3 which completes the boat by inflating the outer hull.
Valves 2 and 3 are Boston valves which makes deflation faster but can be a little tricky to work with if you’ve never used them before. However, the learning curve is very short.
From there, we tied on the grab line, inflated the seats (its easier to do this after you put them in the boat and secure them in their place) and assembled the oars. Total time for our initial assembly, 22 minutes flat. Our first deflation to put the Excursion away took 14 minutes.
The second time we used the boat we were able to get it ready to go in 13+ minutes while take down time was shaved to 10 minutes and it has held pretty steady at these times.
Our initial launch was with three passengers, camera equipment, 4 rods and some other goodies that we might need while fishing for a few hours. As soon as we pushed off, one of us just had to see whether or not the floor was stable enough to stand in. Yeah, that was me …
Yes, you can stand in this boat but we wouldn’t recommend it.
Fishin’ Time
Putting the oars in the water, we set off for our first spot. The Excursion is fairly easy to maneuver with little practice. The oars that come in the package do the job of propelling the boat forward adequately. You’re not gonna set any speed records but it’s actually kinda fun to just relax as you’re getting to where you’re going.
Once you get there, we found that the most efficient way for two people to fish from this is to take up positions, one at the bow, one at the stern, sit on the gunwale so that you’re a little higher than in the seats and cast in opposite directions with your lure always on the outside of the boat. You can make repeated casts, change baits, change rods or whatever you need to do in relative comfort. It’s really pretty spacious once you get used to it.
Landing a fish in the Excursion is a little bit different in that you don’t want to either flip the fish aboard or have it right up against the hull, especially if your bait happens to have 2 or 3 trebles. It’s better to either carry a net or to lean over the side, get a firm lip lock or belly grip and then bring him in.
All things considered, the Excursion 4 is a capable, fun little boat that, if for fishing small water on a limited budget. It is a viable option so that you can stop prowling the banks, get on the water and experience what it’s like to fish from in the water instead of by it.
Caution
Yes, there are a couple of things that we want to mention that are less than stellar. One, while the material is puncture resistant – it ain’t puncture proof. Make sure that you keep your lures hanging outside of the boat as opposed to hooked on your rod or reel somewhere. Sharp hooks can and will put a hole in it.
Boat control in the wind is difficult with an inflatable like this. For that matter, it can be difficult in a fully trimmed 21’ glass boat so be aware of that.
For the price and everything that the Excursion 4 is capable of, it’s hard to imagine why folks wouldn’t give this a try.
Small water fishes a lot like big water and if you’ve never had the opportunity to fish it from a boat as opposed to shore and had the chance to try some of those techniques you’ve read about or seen on the tube, getting a boat like this opens up entirely different facets of fishing.
Having the ability to get to the back side of stick-ups, fishing spawning flats shallow to deep, taking advantage of hitting targets from multiple angles, being able to fish drop-offs and depth changes, hitting off-shore structure, humps, depressions, grass, weed beds, staging areas and so many other elements that are closed to the shore bound angler will not only make you a better angler but is just plain fun!
Finally, there are add-ons that can be obtained like a trolling motor, an electric pump that plugs into your car cigarette lighter and some other odds and ends but they are not necessary for getting the boat ready to launch or enjoying the freedom it provides.
| Intex Excursion 4 | |
|---|---|
| Overall Rating |   |
| An incredibly cheap way to get off the banks | |
See ya’ on the water …