Boat advice - launching a 19" lake boat

AlanG

Hi,
Tried this on angling forum and got no help so hopefully some of you can advise.

I am looking at getting a boat for lake fishing. I will not be keeping the boat in the water and will instead have to launch it each time I use it. I mostly do pike fishing but am trying to get into more fly fishing. I was advised to get a 19” sheeling type boat if I want to fly fish however I am a bit worried about how difficult this would be to launch and take out if was on my own. I have a 1.6lt 2 wheel drive car. I was out on a aluminium 14ft at the weekend and obviously that would be great as it is really light and easy to launch however it is not big enough to fly fish with 2 people.
Basically what I need to know is “Is it hard for one person to launch a 19” lake boat?” If anyone has experience I would appreciate it.

I don’t want to end up with a boat I can only use when fishing in company – or one that would be too heavy for my car on the slipway.

ferdi

does the boat have a keel?
if you are operating off a slipway with a nice easy gradient it should be quite doable if you are prepared to get in the water (up to your waist) but not easy. launching will be ok but recovery will be difficult.

if you have no experience with boats i would not advise you to go one the water alone. find a fishing buddy at least.

JamesM

A lot will depend on the combination of the boat, slip and type of trailer. The trailer should certainly have a good winch. If the slip has a good slope then you will get the trailer deep enough to get the boat on without having to get right into the water yourself.
Jim.

AlanG

Thanks for that,
I wont be fishing alone to begin with but I want to buy a boat that I know i will be able to use for many years so I want to get the right one.

JohnCleary

OK presuming you will have a trailer for the boat....

A 19ft lake boat (even if its timber) is not that heavy when it comes to towing terms. I have often pulled out a 19ft lake boat on a single axle trailer with my fathers 1l micra.

Launching on your own will become easier with time. I started off launching lake boats on my own, then RIB's and now sports cruisers.

What I used to do when alone is:

Get Wellies
Drive the trailer back on the slip keeping it as close to the wall/jetty as possible
When you get close to the water, hop out of the car and release the winch
Get your painter (bow line) and tie it to a point on the trailer (10-12ft will be fine)
Then reverse the trailer more. When you notice you are coming to your limit (as far back as you can reverse) SLAM on the brakes. The sudden stoppage will help jerk the boat off the trailer.
Now get out (with your wellies on) and push the boat off the trailer
Loosen the rope and hold it in your hand as you walk back to the jetty, pulling the boat with you

Job done. Tie up the boat and remove the trailer from the water

AlanG

Great advice John, thanks a million. I wil defo go with this type of boat now. Just have to wait for the right deal now.

Thanks.

stifz

The other option is to weld an extra bar the lenght of the trailer under the main exsisting centre beam - supported all the way along.. .On the end of this bold a couple ( trailer hitch) Using holes in the main beam and your additional bar you can use a pin to hold it in place.

When you extend the under bar & hitch out it will give you the distance of the boat trailer again so you double the distance of the trailer into the water from the car..

Sorry this may not be that clear but basically your extending your trailer using a bar with a hitch thats retractable under the trailer when not in use.. It means the trailer = 19ft the bar is roughly 15ft meaning you launch the trailer & boat 34ft into the water before the car touches the water itself..

Once the boat has a winch it's not that difficult to get it back on the trailer.. The best trick is get the trailer as far back into the water as possible so the water itself naturally take the weight as oposed to you breaking your back using the winch..

Do ya get me?

JohnCleary

Unfortunately that idea might not work... I've seen it go wrong before.

A guy with a 5.4m RIB tried that and when he extended it the metal piece just bent, if you get my drift

stifz wrote:

The other option is to weld an extra bar the lenght of the trailer under the main exsisting centre beam - supported all the way along.. .On the end of this bold a couple ( trailer hitch) Using holes in the main beam and your additional bar you can use a pin to hold it in place.

When you extend the under bar & hitch out it will give you the distance of the boat trailer again so you double the distance of the trailer into the water from the car..

Sorry this may not be that clear but basically your extending your trailer using a bar with a hitch thats retractable under the trailer when not in use.. It means the trailer = 19ft the bar is roughly 15ft meaning you launch the trailer & boat 34ft into the water before the car touches the water itself..

Once the boat has a winch it's not that difficult to get it back on the trailer.. The best trick is get the trailer as far back into the water as possible so the water itself naturally take the weight as oposed to you breaking your back using the winch..

Do ya get me?