I'm shopping for a new 20' sled to fish up to
4 people on the Cowlitz, Chehelis, Satsop, and yes, the nooch. Woolridge Alaskan seems
to match up nicely for these and seems reasonably priced. Does anyone have any
suggestions or other options.

Before buying a wool sled look around at koffler, thor-built both these companys make great custom sleds.

will you call me when you take that 20' sled on the Nooch, I want to be there and watch a brand new sled get all tore up, money floating on water.

A buddy of mine is selling his 21.5 alumaweld super vee. a bit bigger than you were loolking. This is a great boat in excelent shape. E-mail if interested and I will get you his Number.There are also a couple of sleds in that range on Willies used boat page. http://www.willieboats.com/usedboats/index.htm He usually has decent prices on his used boats. Good luck

[ 07-20-2001: Message edited by: Firedog ]

I just bought a 22 1/2 open willie predator... its a great boat, beyond my expectations
Jim and Mike were great to work with.. they asked all of the right questions..
I would buy another...
Give them a look!

TH www.thcustomrods.com

Take a look at www.boattraderonline.com They have some good deals on boats. Good luck

Thorbuilt Boats in Toledo Wa makes boats specifically made for those rivers. These are custom boats made to order with some pretty cool options. Check 'em before you buy.

If you are looking for a quality boat then the only two I would even mention are NorthRiver and Willie. Willie would be my first choice. they are "Simply the Best"

dc

I agree with dc, there is no better boat on the market than a north river great quality for a great price

there are alot of better boats on the market than northriver, what a crock...

I will have to agree with D.F., NorthRiver builds a beautiful-detailed boat, but lets see what happens when you run that 20 ft. on the Satsop and the Nooch!! Sure you can run shallow, but lets see you drift that pig!!!
It all matters what you want to do with it!!
Columbia............YES. Satsop,Nooche...........Lets just say Ill be the first one of us to welcome you with the"your #1 salute" if you run that boat there!!! Good luck!!

A few thoughts. I have a 2 yr old 20 ft. sled with the kodiak 350 package. The boat has been run in water less than 4" many times and does great.......at 50 mph or more. If you plan to go onto the smaller rivers do yourself a favor and take a very hard look at a open tiller type boat no more than 16'. I have been very impressed with both koffler and thor built. The willie, thunderjet, ernie duckworth (heliarc I thnk...one off customs...$$$) and boulton are all very good boats. Mine is boulton and I am happy. I view the north river as a "B" line boat but that is only an opinion. As an aside, I can drive my boat well and have a lifetime hull warranty and would NEVER EVER even think about trying to get on the nooch. I'm not sure I would want to in a 16' boat, don't go fishing for perch with a halibut rod. If you are going to have buddies with you most times go with an outboard as the doghouse only takes up space. If you plan on lots of winter fishing (perhaps east of the cascades) spend money on a top and heat. Ride in or test drive every serious contender as they all handle differently. If I didn't have a wife and kids I would trade down to a smaller boat for ease of operation and river size.(and I still wouldn't take it to the nooch!!!!!!!) Feel free to e-mail me if you would like to drive mine or try to fish from it. Another thought.....there is a reason that the guides that pitch bait all have open, tiller type boats.

I've been rowing on these rivers
for ten years and it doesn't seem to matter
which river, what length boat, or make or model, what a sled has meant to me is "reel in and hold on ", I enjoy just being on the water more than some of the greedy "have to be the first one to that hole" jerks I've
been rocked by.

Very good advice from wit45. A 20-footer might be viable for the Satsop below the forks, but above the forks and on the Nooch you'll be the goober everybody's *****ing about on the Bulletin Boards. It's not possible to own a boat that's suitable for all waters, but you can find a reasonable compromise........but taking a 20-footer on the Nooch is not reasonable.