[Labman]

In the past we only hunted marsh's and lakes. We started this year hunting the Missouri river. I have a 16 ft extra wide boat with a pernament blind with a 25 horse outboard. The blind is very heavy. I am considering taking off the pernament blind and putting on a pop up blind. I love my pernament blind, but it makes it hard to see while operating the boat. What kind of boats do you use? Would you keep the pernament or go to a pop up blind?

 

[Dean Downer]

Put a steering wheel and controls so you can run your boat from up front.
Might be cheaper to go with a pop up blind, warmer with a solid blind.
Dean

 

[jrwood1109]

Put a steering wheel and controls so you can run your boat from up front.
Might be cheaper to go with a pop up blind, warmer with a solid blind.
Dean

x2, I have a pop up blind and definitely wouldn't take off a permanent blind, my pop up is nice but more work and harder to hold the heat in, my next boat will be a console steer with a hard blind and a prodrive.

 

[cbducks]

Make sure your outboard is a reliable one. The mighty Mo is no river to piss with. I use an 1860 with a 60 hp efi. Even then I usually will run up river from boat ramp just in case I run into problems. I don't use a permanet blind but rather haul layout blinds to set up on sand bars up stream from wing damns. Put full body decoys above the wing dam and floaters behind. I stow the boat a few hundred yards down stream. Sometimes I just tuck away in the the drift wood. Sure it's cold, but we usually can get a limit quick doing it that way.

Good luck and be careful for you and your dogs as the current on that river can take a dog 100 yards down river retrieving a bird. Hunt above the wing dams and its sandy shallow retrieves.

 

[SNOTS]

That boat should be fine, as long as you are not taking water over the transome going from wot to a stop. The guys you hear that have trouble on the big water are ussually guys that are overloading thier boats!

HP is a huge safety factor in big water too