Best boat for Powell

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AzTacoma,

I have to admit to some lingering anti Tracker resistance due to a number of heartbreaking stories I read when they were new to the aluminum boat market. I know there were problems with hull leaks on their early models and it seemed they were resistant to taking responsibility. And although I do shop at Bass Pro and have had boat work done there I am also reticent to help Johnny Morris take over the world of fishing. When Bass Pro bought Cabelas the Cabelas service department informed me that although they were still a Ranger Dealer they could in the future service my Ranger boat itself but they would no longer be able to work on my Evinrude Etec. I would have to take the boat to an Evinrude dealer to get the motor serviced.

However, that being said I realize that Tracker has worked very hard to improve quality and service and warranty. So I went to the Tracker website and spent some time looking over the Targee 18 and Targee 19. And without a doubt they are well thought out and that is certainly a lot of boat for the money. It does indeed appear to be an idea boat for running on Lake Powell for a reasonable price. I am impressed.
 
Even though I've had no issues (2 years), I'll be the first to admit Trackers can be hit or miss... although from what I understand they have gotten better and most of the issues tend to be minor. I guess it depends on who was working the line that day. From an economic perspective they are a great value and I was on a pretty tight budget. I've seen plenty of people complaining on the Lund and Crestliner forums, so although they can be quite a bit pricier there are no guarantees. Any of the 18'+ deep Vs are great Powell boats and if I had a lot of extra money I may have went with something other than Tracker.
 
wayne gustaveson said:
I really like the vertical rod holders on my work boat. I put a 2x8 board on the bottom of the metal upright dashboard. Then screwed on 2 inch PVC pipe to hold the rods in place.

View attachment 9236

On my private Glastron boat I removed one of the rear seats. I then put an 8 rod holder that slipped into the same hole the seat came out of. I really like rods standing up and not taking up extra room, and making it really easy to pick up a rod when a boil appears.
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A "work" boat full of fishing rods.....obviously I went into the wrong line of work.
 
Jim Sargent said:
AzTacoma,

I have to admit to some lingering anti Tracker resistance due to a number of heartbreaking stories I read when they were new to the aluminum boat market. I know there were problems with hull leaks on their early models and it seemed they were resistant to taking responsibility. And although I do shop at Bass Pro and have had boat work done there I am also reticent to help Johnny Morris take over the world of fishing. When Bass Pro bought Cabelas the Cabelas service department informed me that although they were still a Ranger Dealer they could in the future service my Ranger boat itself but they would no longer be able to work on my Evinrude Etec. I would have to take the boat to an Evinrude dealer to get the motor serviced.

However, that being said I realize that Tracker has worked very hard to improve quality and service and warranty. So I went to the Tracker website and spent some time looking over the Targee 18 and Targee 19. And without a doubt they are well thought out and that is certainly a lot of boat for the money. It does indeed appear to be an idea boat for running on Lake Powell for a reasonable price. I am impressed.
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I think Tracker boats are much improved over the past five or six years. One of the biggest improvements I've seen is the quality of the trailers. Up until just a few years ago Tracker really skimped on the trailers, but they look very good now. It used to be nearly all of the trailers for aluminum boats, even the biggest deep Vs, had just two bunks. I now see more four bunk trailers from Tracker. It's very hard to load a big deep V on a two bunk trailer. I always scream at people to look at the trailer before buying any boat. If the trailer is crap you'll have a hard time getting two and from and in and out of the lake. Any time you see a couple guys at launch ramp out waist deep in the water trying to align a boat on a trailer, you can bet the trailer is cheap. 😬

Ed Gerdemann
 
I have a Triton 220 Escape fish and ski very similar to the Ranger Reata. Love the windshield and extra seating, much better for camping trips than a bass boat and handles rough water well. The only issue is rod storage, I have an 8 rod seat post holder like Wayne and put the short ultralights and 2 piece rods in the 5.5’ area they call a “rod locker”. I usually sleep on the back deck even on houseboat trips. My advice is to go longer with more horses than you think you need, get a spot lock trolling motor and always carry a Garmin. And always eat the Walleye!
 
P Dub said:
I have a Triton 220 Escape fish and ski very similar to the Ranger Reata. Love the windshield and extra seating, much better for camping trips than a bass boat and handles rough water well. The only issue is rod storage, I have an 8 rod seat post holder like Wayne and put the short ultralights and 2 piece rods in the 5.5’ area they call a “rod locker”. I usually sleep on the back deck even on houseboat trips. My advice is to go longer with more horses than you think you need, get a spot lock trolling motor and always carry a Garmin. And always eat the Walleye!
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Mine is a 220 escape as well.
 
P Dub said:
I thought that looked familiar but 18 rods in the locker! I have a 2012, did they upgrade the storage or are you running 2 piece and short rods?
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My longest rods are 7ft, I know that sounds a little fishy so I just double checked and yes 18 + an extra baitcaster and extra spinning rod just incase. You know when the bite is on you will have to be prepared 😏 😉
 

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Meatwagon said:
My longest rods are 7ft, I know that sounds a little fishy so I just double checked and yes 18 + an extra baitcaster and extra spinning rod just incase. You know when the bite is on you will have to be prepared 😏 😉
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Nothing wrong with 18 rods, I guess I’ll have to doublecheck my locker. Seemed like I could only get 5.5 comfortably and 6 with a bend so I never used it. Maybe they made it longer after 2012? They stopped making the Escape, looks like the new Allure can hold a lot more rods up to 8’.
 
P Dub said:
Nothing wrong with 18 rods, I guess I’ll have to doublecheck my locker. Seemed like I could only get 5.5 comfortably and 6 with a bend so I never used it. Maybe they made it longer after 2012? They stopped making the Escape, looks like the new Allure can hold a lot more rods up to 8’.
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The rod socks made all the difference, broke the tip off 2 7ft. Rods before I used the socks. The 6 rod tubes hold up to 6.5ft. My boat was built in 16.
 
Jim, may god bless you on your loss. My bride and I bought a 28 ft. tritoon, Angler Quest the fishing version.
As we get older we love a quiet smooth ride. No such thing as rough water in this baby. You could sleep on it but we prefer to set up a splendid shore camp. October thru Thanksgiving is wonderful. Fishing is lights out ! Whatever you do be prepared for weather. You never know........
,
 
Hi T.Kidd, I’ve been looking at the Angler qwest tritoon also.of all pontoons that I’ve looked at it seems by far the best.
did you by it from a dealer? If so where?
how many horses do you have hanging on the back? And what kind of speed do they give you?
 
treetop said:
Hi T.Kidd, I’ve been looking at the Angler qwest tritoon also.of all pontoons that I’ve looked at it seems by far the best.
did you by it from a dealer? If so where?
how many horses do you have hanging on the back? And what kind of speed do they give you?
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we bought it at Germain Marine in Apache Junction. Aaron there was great to work with.
we added the 2 foot extension at rear decks a real plus. put a 150 mercy on it, can cruise at 25. if I had it to do again I would get the 200.
it came with 14 rocket launchers on the radar arc [ 1 is for Waynes flag ! ] lots of storage, some waterproof. put a 36 volt Minn Kota on it, no problems. has a cover over most of it. did some mods to canopy for those really windy days.
with all that said, we really like our boat. oh yeah, glad I put a 14 foot O. H. door on the building, won't go through the 12.
 
I have just moved into the 2050 Ranger Reata with 250 E-Tec and a 9.9 kicker. I absolutely love the boat and it provides a dry ride on all but the windiest days. The boat loaded with 2 and fishing gear hits 57 mph & gets 3.2 mpg at that speed. I don' believe that the E-Tec is still available because of Evinrude screwing all their customers :mad: by shutting off their OB production. However Yamaha would have been my 2nd choice.

My previous boat was a 1997 1850 Crestliner Sport fish that I loved for 24 years. This boat had a 150 HP with an 8 HP kicker. I still own this boat and keep it at home for local trips.

However the promise of a DRY smooth ride convinced me to change over to a glass boat. Besides sparkles catch fish (erman) right?
 
I would recommend a 21.5' Ranger Reatta, I have owned for 15 years and it has been a great boat for Powell. I do not have a kicker motor but the 4 stroke Verado motor has not let me down yet. I also troll with this boat. It handles the rough water on Powell very well.
 
Love this type of post -- so many different opinions ----
as many have said -- the boat needs to fit what you want to do -- not the other way around --
for me-- and it appears for many -- the Ranger fish and ski is the way to go at powell -- I use it solely for small / large mouth fishing -- chasing boils when they are happening, and to a much lesser extent, just cruising with the family.
Generally when I am at the lake, I stay in the houseboat in he slip at Bullfrog, so I want a boat that is fast enough to get me to Good Hope, or the Escalante, spend a few hr's fishing, and it is back the houseboat. So that means a boat that will cruise at 40 to 50 without being to close to full throttle -- My 20ft Ranger Reata with a 200hp Yamaha will do 42mph at 4000RPM's. I don't troll , don't jig fish, don't camp, so this boat is what works for me. ---- If I ever start camping, a pontoon boat would get my attention.

Bottom line --- make a list of what you want to do with a boat ( any boat) -- start with 1 and work your way down the list-- then pick a boat type that handles the most important items.

Then start looking for that style of boat.

Last point --- ALWAYS get the largest HP motor rated for that boat.
 
I want to thank everyone for their advice and support on my post requesting your valued opinions on the best boat for Lake Powell. As of tonight I have in my garage a 2020 Crestliner 1850 Fish Hawk powered by a Mercury 200 hp four stroke. On backorder due to the pandemic is a 15 hp kicker. I ordered with a Minn Kota 24 volt spot lock. It has an on board wash out system with a fillet board so I can clean fish on the water and hose off the board. The electronics are two Hummingbird Helix Sevens. I added a marine radio. I went with the walk through windshield. I mounted a five rod vertical rod holder in front of the passenger windshield. Their are two livewells. There are two rod lockers with fifteen rod capacity. It has an alternator charger that charges the trolling motor batteries when the big engine is running. Needless to say I am excited to get it on the water and very grateful for all your input. I tried to attach pics but can't figure it out so that will have to wait. Thanks to all of you for your good wishes.

Jim Sargent
 
Great choice on the deep V Aluminum! As I mentioned above, it's a very versatile boat with good features for Powell. Spot lock is amazing... you can never go back. You'll love the big windshield when you're happily cruising at speed without wind and water making you miserable. And that 200hp should kick butt.

EDIT: A fillet board and hose is awesome. I had some left over brackets I made for the rail system so I randomly trimmed an old cutting board and created a bait board. As you can see it's rather crude and too small for real filleting (although I have used it for that).
 

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