So from a fishing standpoint I believe the driftboat is the tool of choice. Easy to get in and out of but also a pretty wet ride. There is very little freeboard: my 16' Maravia has 20" diameter tubes when loaded to the max leave around 15". Self bailing floors are always spitting water up with any wave or chop you hit, especially on those sitting up front. Now that is great in July with a beer and one hand but gets old in October, November, March and April. Often I have run my raft on the Salmon while flyfishing for steelies and you are constantly getting splashed. Something else to consider: even though my intend use for my drift boat is to move from run to run while flyfishing for steelehad and the occasional outing for trout I can do some and be warm and dry. The drift boat is a hot rod, a very tough, rugged hot rod, but not as agreeable to a pin or a flip as a raft is. The drift boat I am building is akin to a Porsche that I'll never bother to own. Here is my analogy: My raft is like my Suburban, I call haul a lot of crap from A to B through most any whitewater and have a ton of fun. It is extremely hard to anchor (except maybe a Maravia Spyder or an Aire Puma/Super Puma) and you will work your butt off trying to position a person attempting to fish. As far as fishing goes forget it: Other than moving from spot to spot to wade the raft/fishing frame combination is less than ideal. You can cary a ton (literally) and have a blast. I'm not trying to be condescending, just trying to answer the question to the best of my ability. For reference, the middle fork salmon is only 27 FPM over it's 100 miles. 50 feet per mile in a kayak is considered boring to kayakers these days. I'm talking about whitewater where the gradient climbs above say 50 feet per mile. This type of water has a low gradient overall and is navigable for driftboats and a skilled operator, although scary. And I'm not talking about Grand Canyon type water where there are minimal rocks and huge staning waves and holes. A skilled kayak paddler can run and disect major rapids that most other craft would be destroyed or flipped in. A class V to a drift boat or raft might only be a class IV at best to a good paddler. Kayaks make river running safer/easier with a skilled paddler. But why would you risk your life and equipment? What I've found is that rapid ratings(Class I to VI) to a whitewater kayak and most other craft are truly different. You could probably run class 5 water in a drift boat if you were fully prepared to crash and burn. A drift boat can navigate some pretty rough water, but not as safely as a kayak.
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