Float season is here...are you ready?
Digging in to raft options at St. Peter's Fly Shop
Welcome to float season! As our float guides hit the water with clients for this eagerly anticipated time of year, we wanted to take a moment to highlight a few of the new watercraft we have in stock featured in our new Boat Room at the St. Peter’s South shop. There is nothing quite like literally being ON the water fishing, and the variety of boats we currently offer can be dialed into the specific types of water and experience you are looking for.
At the moment, it seems all of our favorite floatable water has hit its peak flow for the year, and is slowly falling. What does this mean for the float angler? It means go time! As the water slowly falls, clarity increases, various hatches come into play, and the rivers become more navigable and fishing is at its prime. In this spirit, we will run through the various boats that just arrived in the South shop Boat Room.
Outcast PAC-1400: The Outcast PAC-1400 is THE do it all boat and one that we always keep on hand at the shop as it’s our most popular option. With a comfortable 14’ length, it has plenty of storage to keep angler’s prepared, or enough room to allow for multi-day, overnight float trips. With its 19.5” tubes and self-bailing floor, this boat is ready for big water, or floating high on stillwaters. The raft comes with a sturdy NRS frame which is highly customizable, including seats, leg-locks, anchor system, and casting platforms (oars not included, but we suggest Sawyer 9ft oars). Ideal for two anglers and one rower. At 14’ by 6’ and 240 lbs, this raft is ideally transported on a raft trailer. It’s best suited for bigger water and rivers and it has become our go-to boat for most of our float guide staff, especially because Outcast offers a 10 year no fault warranty. We have one built, on display, and ready for purchase at our South shop Boat Room. We have comped the floor installation fee ($150 value) and being pre-assembled, we save you a day of work so you have an extra day to float! (More specs here) See our Youtube video below on why we choose the PAC-1400 first.
NRS Slipstream 129: New to our lineup this year is a series of smaller rafts from NRS and we couldn’t be more excited to offer these boats to the Northern Colorado anglers and rowers. NRS boasts that their Slipstream and Approach rafts are “purpose built” for anglers, and they aren’t kidding. Every detail of the Slipstream has the angler in mind. From clever storage options, to getting rid of fly line tangling points, to built-in-frame rod holders, these boats are FOR anglers. The Slipstream 129 is 12’ 9” and accommodates two anglers and one rower, or you can easily take a seat out for more gear storage. The Slipstream 129 is self-bailing with a 6” drop-stitched floor (for rigidity), and scaled down with tube widths from 16.5”-18.5”, but can handle most whitewater an experienced rower is comfortable with. At 215 lbs, the 129 is best transported with a trailer, but light enough to manage in make-shift “boat ramp” situations. It comes with a 5 year warranty from NRS and we suggest the 129 Rower’s Package to complete the set up (package contains oars, Tornado anchor, anchor assist pulley and ClampIt drink holder) (More specs here)
NRS Slipstream 106: The Slipstream 106 self-bailing raft has all the basic features of the 129, but sized down even further for sneaky missions and has a 2 person capacity (one angler, one rower). At 10’ 6” long, it only comes in at 145 lbs, making it extremely portable, with or without a trailer. Good comfort, great features, built-in toughness…for you and your favorite fishing buddy. The 106 also has a 5 year warranty and the rowing package is again suggested. (More specs here)
NRS Approach 120: The Approach series of boats from NRS are for the true adventure seekers. The Approach 120 is 12’ long, but more narrow than the Slipstream, making it the perfect boat for smaller and more shallow waters that full sized rafts can’t get through. This self-bailing “mini-raft” will hold its own on whitewater, taking into consideration the ability of the rower. The entire raft is smaller, including the tubes, but we are finding that it makes for a great crossover boat from river to stillwater, because it’s a smaller profile and creates less drag when the wind picks up. Like the Slipstream 106, the Approach 120 is a two person vessel (one angler, one rower). However, it weighs less than 160 lbs and can be transported either on a vehicle’s roof top, or pickup bed. Besides its small but tough size, one of our favorite features is that the seats are mounted on dry boxes. This keeps gear handy, but completely out of the way while fishing. Also featuring a 5 year warranty, we again suggest the Approach 120 Rower’s Package to complete the setup with oars and anchor. The Approach 120 doesn’t need a boat ramp and is ready for any water-based adventure. (More specs here)
As you can see, we have a boat for every situation, and multiple boats that will take care of ALL your floating adventures. All of these rafts are customizable, so add what you want, or take away unnecessary accessories as each new situation presents itself. The St. Peter’s Fly Shop South Boat Room also offers many additional accessories to round out your package, including dry bags, PFDs, and more. Float season is now, so don’t put off the adventures that await!
(Need to learn how to row your new boat? Give us a call at St. Peter’s Fly Shop Old Town (970-498-8968) to inquire about custom rowing instruction)
Float On with
St. Peter's Summer 24 Boat Collection
Featuring rafts from Outcast and NRS