Bay Boats Versus Flats Boats
A Choice Or Trend

Bay Boats versus Flats Boats
Article of Comparison
By Capt. Steven Lamp

Five years ago if you would have told me that I would own a bay boat for my charter services here in Key West, I may have looked at you funny and snickered as I walked away surely knowing you were not well informed or even knew a damn thing about the fishing charter business.
I now own two bay boats and have a third on order, bringing the number of bay boats that I own to match the number of flats boats.

Are bay Boats better? Were flats boats a flash in the pan, a fad? Am I saying every one should trade in the push pole and get a bay boat with electric trolling motors and live the dream in a waterman's version of a Pickup truck? Well, yes, and no. Let me explain

Flats Boats are Fantastic fishing tools. For the angler and his buddy who likes to pole a boat. The flats boat is a great way to fish the flats. Shallow, pole-able, stealthy, agile, swift and technical are some of the words you will hear describing a flats boat. What do they mean? The Flats are typically shallow so the boat needs to float in less than 12 inches of water (an industry standard)some even go as shallow as 5 inches. The boat should be quiet as it moves along in shallow waters otherwise you may spook the fish that are being stalked. Agile is describing the ability the boat has to maneuver into position quickly as the guide poles for that awesome shot at a tailing fish. Technical is the nature of fishing from a Flats Boat..

Coming in all shapes and sizes flats boats have many faces from many manufacturers. which one is the best is not the point of this article and certainly not a place I would like to go, as it is reminiscent of speaking about Religion and Politics. Easily stated flats boats by and large are a give and take in qualities, probably more than any other type of boat on the market today. So, I think it is a matter of taste. Me, I like comfort, pole-ability, Speed, less than 10 inch draft and because I am a large person and so are many of my clients stability. I chose the Lake and Bay 20 Ft Boca Grand. In my opinion it is the fastest, driest shallowest, pole-able 2 client "guiding" boat I have ever been in. Oh, and yes, I have been in them all. There are shallower and more pole-able boats out there, however, there are trade offs.

Bay Boats - These to come in all shapes but generally range in size from 19-24 ft. all the same players you see in the flats arena are also making bay boats. Good thing too otherwise their market is very limited. As with flats boats there are descriptions used for a good one. We trade in all those terms we used for a good flats boat for things like; Roomy, Plenty of Storage, Powerful, rides well in the chop, Stereo sounds great, console has lots of Rod holders, Cooler is big, Shallow as heck, these seats are Comfortable. as you can see, it is less about what the boat can do in the environment that it is in than what it can do for the angler with in the boat. As you can see, another world or dimension of fishing boat.

Here is a Chart of Comparison
	Bay Boats	Flats Boats
Flats	Yes	Yes
Bay Fishing	Yes	Yes
Near Shore Fishing	Yes	No
Offshore Fishing	Yes	No
Need a Partner	No	Yes
Family Friendly	Yes	No
Cost	18-80 K	15-60 K
Operation Costs	25.00hr	17.540 hr
Operational Costs Were established based on three different flats boats and three bay boats upon gallons per hour of fuel burned at $3+ per gallon.

Yes we have all heard of the stories of using a flats boat off shore or in extreme locations but not practically speaking with out a flat calm day and a couple guys who just want to try it. In all actuality it's not the safest thing to take a traditional flats boat to your local reef. Although it is fun to see shots like I did last year with Greg Poland of Islamorada holding up a sailfish he caught in 120 ft of water off the reef proudly standing in his Mercury powered Hells Bay Marquesa. Should I put a disclaimer here. (don't try that at home). But seriously. flats boats are made for the flats and light bay fishing with a guy poling and a guy fishing.

Ok, you saw the part where I said Bay Boats can fish the flats. Yes, they can and very well I might add also with more people and I will even go on further to say better, if catching fish is more important that fishing the flats traditionally. If poling down a permit that is tailing, then flats boats are your thing. but if you would like to slide up on him effortlessly with trolling motors and fish with your partner to throw a crab or a fly his way, then you may like to consider a bay boat. Yes, the holy grail of Key West Flats fishing, the tailing permit, you can chase them too with a bay boat in fact, I bet you can even bring more friends to enjoy the experience with you.

Lets look back at the 2006 Key West S.L. A. M. tournament held by the Redbone to catch the cure for Cystic Fibrosis. Capt. Rich Tudor absolutely Hammered the competition by catching a grand slam, a few times, to win Grand Master Champ. In A Bay Boat. yep. I was stunned too. He never touched a push pole. only his trolling motors. I forget the actual numbers but it was a slaughter. Also I bet he was less tired than myself after poling all day. He followed that up with a huge win in the Islamorada version of the same tournament. Then, the Redbone decided to not allow non pole-able skiffs or trolling motors to enter any more Redbone Flats Fishing events. Wow. that says allot for bay boats.

My clients now enjoy the best of both worlds in my charter company. If they wish to fish the flats and fish traditionally then I have my Lake and Bay Boca Grande 20 ft boat. If They care to fish the flats with a possibility of going out to a wreck or the reef OR they wish to carry more than 2 persons OR they want a bathroom for the wife.. Then they Select one of our bay boats built by Yellowfin Yachts or Action Craft Coastal Bay. Either way, we have them covered for backcountry fishing here in Key West.

My personal choice.. I love my flats boats. I enjoy having the worlds fastest working flats boat and showing people a great time poling down an unsuspecting permit or bonefish. I love my flats boats in the Summer when it is calm and we can enjoy the day a flats boat way. No beating, not wet and nice days also I can get in the super shallow water I need to catch the summer bones tailing. The only place I cannot go in my Bay boat..

The Bay Boats are definitely my choice in the winter, hands down. I can do anything with them with 3 persons or 4 and keep them and myself more comfortable. The bay boats run more trips than our flats boats currently due to amenities and the need for folks to fish 3 persons and one has a bathroom.. And truthfully - People like to just catch fish and be comfortable.

If you would like to fish in Key West with Dream Catcher Charters and truly experience Flats Fishing on a flats boat or Backcountry Fishing on a Bay Boat then Call us in our office. 1-888-362-3474 Toll free on-sat 9-5 EST.