Cartsens Mallard duck boat?

[bmc]

Crusty,

Thanks for the info. How does it work for one hunter, dog, dekes, and such? How easy is it to row/paddle with just one person and have you used a trolling motor on it? I'd say 85% of my hunting in the boat will be by myself. My dad is a hardcore bowhunter and once he retires, we'll see how much he wants to duck hunt. LOL

Brian

[Crusty old Swede]

BMC, for what you describe, a mallard would be just about perfect. After seeing my mallard in use for a season my friend the Crusty old Norwegian bought one to replace his puddler. My usual load is 28 standard decoys in one big bag, 65# lab, 12ga, .50cal ammo can, 5 gal. pail of extras, boat seat & lifejacket, oars & paddle. This all fits comfortably in the cockpit, when I have to haul another person the decoys ride on the stern deck. Rowing this amount (one person)is easy even in winds up to about 15 mph and you'll stay warm if it's windier, paddling this much is not bad for trips less than a mile. Never tried a trolling motor on it. C.O.N. used the factory seat his first season along with a kayak style paddle, with no dog, only decoys, the front end was to far out of the water and made for hard paddling in cross winds. Which reminds me to re-mention the tip about ditching the factory seat. It was located in a poor spot for me to row from, so I rigged up a lower seat that I can move around to just the right spot. The new seat also has a back rest for extra comfort.