Colorado Drift Boat Water?

So I've been looking to purchase a boat for a while now and just came across a smoking deal on a drift boat. Up until now, I had mostly been seeking rafts since they are a bit more versatile especially when it comes to higher flows and more technical stretches of river. However, this deal might just be too good to pass up.

The question is... With Denver as a home base, what rivers would be easily rowed in a fiberglass drifty? I know the Colorado and Roaring Fork are solids options at the right flows. And the North Platte in Wyoming is another weekend option.

Am I really missing out on much by not getting a raft? Other than the Blue and Eagle I'm not sure there's many other rivers that are truly raft specific...

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what rivers would be easily rowed in a fiberglass drifty

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None?

Drift boats are obviously the comfy ride. The problem is that they don't work as well as a raft in low water, harder whitewater, access points with no good ramp etc. They are also less forgiving to user error.

Of the top of my head good fly fishing rivers that may be a little rough in a drift boat are Lower Blue, Gunny Gorge, Northgate Canyon, Gate of Lodore, Yampa, Upper C at low or high water low water Roaring Fork etc.

What I see in Colorado is a lot of people that get on the water to fish but realize that they really just love being out of the water. A raft give you a lot more flexibility for paddle boat trips, family adventures, overnighters etc.

There's definitely good drift boat water in the state, but a raft would be way more versatile. I had a drift boat for a while and while I loved that thing so much, even taking it on the upper Colorado when water was low was a bit of a chore to row looking out for every rock. Now I'm in the market for an inflatable because you can take it anywhere. Again, there's nothing better than a great day of fishing out of a hard boat, but you really are limited on options. It's a different story up in Montana. Ideally, you want two boats: a drifty and an inflatable. If you can only go one route, I'd go for the rubber.

I will say a lot of my friends would disagree, but that's been my experience. Also, you can get in serious trouble on the Roaring Fork in a hard boat if you don't know what you are doing.

Two boats sounds great! However, the fact that I've finally convinced the wife to let me get a boat makes me lean towards the drift boat first as I know it would be much more comfortable for her and the mutt. The most easily accessible water for us is the Upper C so it would probably work for 90% of our trips.

What's the main hazards on the Roaring Fork for a drift boat? Just a lot of rocks to avoid or are there some meaty rapids? I've only floated the lower section once (many years ago), but don't remember anything too intense.

Sounds like you've already made up your mind but....I'd consider easy drift boat flows on the Upper to be about 1000-3000cfs. With the new recreational water rights hopefully we'll stay above 1K more. That said, many years the rio stays in the 600-800 range for months after July 4th. Point being that it's a fact the Upper runs at non-drift boat flows a lot. There was a brand new drift boat that sank from hitting the Radium Bridge this spring. A guy can say that it won't happen to him but drift boat wrecks tend to be pretty disastrous.

Did he just slam into the middle piling? If someone were to wreck a drift boat on the Upper C, Radium Bridge isn't where I would expect it to happen.

Decision still isn't made - another factor is that I've already got a sled on a tilt trailer in the garage and having a raft would allow it to pull double duty. Storing another trailer could be a pain.

I'm just having a hard time finding a decently priced used raft. And for the price of a new one, you can get a pretty sweet hard boat setup including a trailer.

I wasn't there but I saw is sank below Radium.

Agreed that most used rafts are over priced. This one could be a decent deal http://denver.craigslist.org/boa/5117474094.html

Price up an RMR with an NRS frame. What would that cost?

It's looking like $2,600 for the 14' raft plus an additional $2,000 or so to spec out a fully loaded frame. Have thought about going the Saturn route since it will be my first boat, which you could make happen at closer to $4,000, but not sure about the quality of those boats.

I've seen that Craigslist listing, but it's hard to commit when there's offers like this out there too: http://rockies.craigslist.org/boa/5168697078.html

Yes a lot of rubber seems to be overpriced, but if you know what you want and are willing to wait for the right deals....easier said than done when you want a boat NOW! I only have a raft and would not want only a drifty for my only Colorado rivers option.....good used section on mountainbuzz.com and NRS has a used section on their website......CTR

I'm going to assume it gets windy on the CO rivers you could take a drift boat down. If so fuck rowing a high side like the one in your link.

The good news is it would also suck on Coloradans home rivers such as the North Platte and the Bighorn.

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Originally Posted by concretejungle

The good news is it would also suck on Coloradans home rivers such as the North Platte and the Bighorn.

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Haha. 2 points for you!

But greenies don't go to Ft. Smith anymore. They can't seem to make it past Alcova.

Well now I'm back to trying to find a raft...

I stalked the FB pages of a couple of local dealers and looks like they all have big sales/swaps around the middle of September. Will probably just wait until then and see if I can't score a 25% off deal or at least something close to that.

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Originally Posted by RonMexico

Well now I'm back to trying to find a raft...

I stalked the FB pages of a couple of local dealers and looks like they all have big sales/swaps around the middle of September. Will probably just wait until then and see if I can't score a 25% off deal or at least something close to that.

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Just saw this come up in an email from Ascent Fly Fishing:


Your Significant Other Called & Said You Could Buy A Boat!

Long time client and Colorado angler, Casey is heading out of the Rockies and is looking for a good home for his Incept 14' Self Bailer raft! It comes with" •Full fly fishing frame
•Will come with straps
•3 Carlisle oars
•drop net
•life jackets (2)
• pins and clips.
•Trailer is 6'x8' with 4 pin flat connector and Trex decking bottom. New tires. New suspension. Axle is rated to 2500lbs.
The raft is almost 15 years old but don't let that worry you! All 4 baffles were recently replaced by a professional at a local whitewater repair shop ($1500 investment). The entire raft frame can break down for transport, and the front and back "hoops" can be removed for just whitewater runs. All in all, this is a fantastic boat for someone looking to get into whitewater rafting or using it as a fly fishing rig.

First $2700 takes the boat home! The raft is located in Denver, CO. If you are interested contact Casey at: logwalker3@icloud.com

^^^Thats a pretty fair deal. Being in Denver, you could take it a few places to get the once over. It's not exactly what I'd be looking for but a good entry level package specially is you can't negotiate without the trailer.

I bought a fiberglass drift boat with trailer off a buddy a few years back for $2,700. It came with oars, jackets, anchors, sage rod and a leak. I learned how to do fiberglass repairs quickly and effectively. It's similar to doing drywall repairs. You can do a quick fix to get back on the water the next day after bashing a hole in the boat. At the end of the season you can take a dremmel, skil saw, orbital sander to it and take all the rotten stuff out. Then spread some resin and let it dry and then sand and paint and it looks pristine. I've run the uppper C from 382cfs to 7500cfs in mine and it's been awesome. The bottom of the boat flexes in the low water and as long as you're keeping the bow down river rocks don't hurt too bad. The chines get beat up the most but it's easy to fix. In high water it's amazing the control you have compared to a raft but if you screw up the consequences are way worse. I've taken handicapped folks that use wheel chairs on my boat and they loved it and felt very safe. I'm selling my boat now to a good friend and looking to get a raft in the spring. I'm tired of rowing so people can fish. I'd like to have more options. The drift is for specifically for fishing. I wanna run bigger water and be out with more people and try different rivers. Maybe, get both?



Disclaimer: My boat is grey and has a Mr. Hanky the Christmas Poo sticker on the bow. So if you've seen it you know it looks a little used.

well not a bad 1st post jong
the poor craftsmen will blame his tools
the emerald mile wasn't a rubber duckies
and them studs didn't fish