Why are Toons so popular on lakes

PascalG

PascalG

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I confess that I ve always kinda looked down on pontoons. They just don’t appeal to me… I get that they offer a lot of space in a small cheap package.

We re In Tennessee looking for land and rented a ‘toon a couple of days ago to explore Watts Bar Lake on the Tn river which has become our short list of places to build a cabin. The appeal is that whenever we decide to retire, probably not for another few years, we can move up here yet keep our boating lifestyle by simply driving the 53 Hatteras up here through the river system and trailering our 26’ classic sailboat.

The area is beautiful, Watts Bar Lake is big and has dozens of nice anchorages… yet most boats are either toons, houseboats or at the most 40/50 cruisers. We only saw a handful of 60 footers.

What am I missing ? The lake is deep, the river is deep too. With million dollars lake front property there is plenty of money as well. No mid size MYs (60-80) and no center consoles which are the craze down in Florida.

Weird…
 
Center councils seem to be a salt water thing. Almost none by me on Lake Michigan. I think toons become popular on inland lakes because they are stable, can handle a small crowd, easily beached, and basically a party setup.
 
They don’t intimidate the new boater and they keep everyone together. It’s a patio on the lake.
 
Bill D. said:
They don’t intimidate the new boater and they keep everyone together. It’s a patio on the lake.
Click to expand...

I think Bill is dead on...there is a reason they are called party barges...you can invite a bunch of friends and putter around the lake without any real boating skill...
 
PascalG said:
I confess that I ve always kinda looked down on pontoons. They just don’t appeal to me… I get that they offer a lot of space in a small cheap package.

We re In Tennessee looking for land and rented a ‘toon a couple of days ago to explore Watts Bar Lake on the Tn river which has become our short list of places to build a cabin. The appeal is that whenever we decide to retire, probably not for another few years, we can move up here yet keep our boating lifestyle by simply driving the 53 Hatteras up here through the river system and trailering our 26’ classic sailboat.

The area is beautiful, Watts Bar Lake is big and has dozens of nice anchorages… yet most boats are either toons, houseboats or at the most 40/50 cruisers. We only saw a handful of 60 footers.

What am I missing ? The lake is deep, the river is deep too. With million dollars lake front property there is plenty of money as well. No mid size MYs (60-80) and no center consoles which are the craze down in Florida.

Weird…
Click to expand...
I spent many years on the upper Tennessee River and lakes. Back in the late 60’s and through the 70’s I might not see more than a dozen other boats in a day. The river banks were mostly undeveloped. It was a great time and place to have a boat. I’m told these days guys get in fights over a fishing spot. I think my generation had it the best, we really could eas8ly avoid a crowd. We fished placesthat might not have seen another fisherman in weeks. We pitched tents and camped where we just happened to end up. It was similar from Destin west to Gulfport, lots of open beach. I tell people stories from back in those days and most simply can not imagine no crowds and the freedom to move that I enjoyed. Now days it seems to me. A person really has to work at finding anything close to what I took for granted. It really was the best of times…..
 
Not my 'cup o tea', but a year ago, my 43 year old son sold his deep V cuddy cruiser and bought a 25' tri toon with a 275hp Merc on the end. All this kept in a slip and he cruises southern Lake Michigan. Several years ago, I would have been shocked to see a toon on Lake Michigan, but there are several now-a-days. (FWIW--that tri toon can scoot to damn near 50 mph!)
 
sugilbert said:
Not my 'cup o tea', but a year ago, my 43 year old son sold his deep V cuddy cruiser and bought a 25' tri toon with a 275hp Merc on the end. All this kept in a slip and he cruises southern Lake Michigan. Several years ago, I would have been shocked to see a toon on Lake Michigan, but there are several now-a-days. (FWIW--that tri toon can scoot to damn near 50 mph!)
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It may scoot, but 18" of freeboard on a Great Lake wouldn't be my cup o tea!
 
'Toons are inshore/small lake/river boats. They are ( IMHO ) unsuited for "coastal waters", as they are optimized for relatively flat/calm waters.

If you want to play in the surf or heavier seas, you want something that won't swamp or "flush the deck" when you "stuff the bow" ( Indeed not recommended, but "it happens" )

For inshore "cocktail cruising" esp if on a budget, they are fine.

I do wish some of the 'toon boaters would at least glance at the nav rules, however... ( And switch off "the headlights" <sigh> )
 
Most residents on Lake Norman have a pontoon, usually not their only boat. On a calm day (most days on Lake Norman are calm) you just can't beat them as a cocktail cruiser. I personally would not trade my Cobalt for one, but if I lived on the lake I would definitely have one as a second boat. They also are not for the light wallet - you can easily spend $100k on a nice pontoon boat.

They just zig zag all over the place pulling a tube, Mom and Dad just cruising along. You just have to stay out of their way, forget about them understanding any type of navigation rules.
 
The big things about toons is they are easy to handle, very versatile and they are very low maintenance. In addition on a lake you often want to beach the boat to let the kids swim and you can do so with little worry about the hull. I have to admit with bottom paint, washing and waxing and other maintenance chores and expenses on a regular boat, a well built pontoon for lake use is very attractive.

Most my neighbors have traded in their regular hulls for pontoons. I will say center consoles on this lake is gaining popularity but mostly over bass boats. People who both fish and do mild water sports opt for the toon.
 
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PascalG said:
I confess that I ve always kinda looked down on pontoons. They just don’t appeal to me… I get that they offer a lot of space in a small cheap package.

We re In Tennessee looking for land and rented a ‘toon a couple of days ago to explore Watts Bar Lake on the Tn river which has become our short list of places to build a cabin. The appeal is that whenever we decide to retire, probably not for another few years, we can move up here yet keep our boating lifestyle by simply driving the 53 Hatteras up here through the river system and trailering our 26’ classic sailboat.

The area is beautiful, Watts Bar Lake is big and has dozens of nice anchorages… yet most boats are either toons, houseboats or at the most 40/50 cruisers. We only saw a handful of 60 footers.

What am I missing ? The lake is deep, the river is deep too. With million dollars lake front property there is plenty of money as well. No mid size MYs (60-80) and no center consoles which are the craze down in Florida.

Weird…
Click to expand...
Pascal,
We are on Lake Lanier. Pontoons are getting up there in price. My neighbor has one with a Yamaha 450HP on the back and it was about $130k. We also have a few running around with twin 300hp's. YES twins.. Not my cup of tea but the they are getting more luxurious.
 
I get that…. The rental was a beat up Bennington with a fairly new Evinrude which ran… well like an Evinrude. No wonder they went out of business.

The lack of bigger boat surprised me too. Watts Bar is one of largest lakes in the SE with many nice coves and anchorages. A pretty easy run down to Chattanooga as well. The little TN river just off the lake is almost navigable to the great smokies national park. Beautiful area for week end cruising yet very few big boats.
 
Radioactive said:
'Toons are inshore/small lake/river boats. They are ( IMHO ) unsuited for "coastal waters", as they are optimized for relatively flat/calm waters.

If you want to play in the surf or heavier seas, you want something that won't swamp or "flush the deck" when you "stuff the bow" ( Indeed not recommended, but "it happens" )

For inshore "cocktail cruising" esp if on a budget, they are fine.

I do wish some of the 'toon boaters would at least glance at the nav rules, however... ( And switch off "the headlights" <sigh> )
Click to expand...
Yeah ! Stuffing the bow on a 'toon would rip the plywood deck free from the 'toons and would provide a communal baptism!
 
jpowell said:
Yeah ! Stuffing the bow on a 'toon would rip the plywood deck free from the 'toons and would provide a communal baptism!
Click to expand...
It's been many years, but a decent 'toon getting 'stuffed' would cause no more harm than getting your feet pretty wet!
 
sugilbert said:
It's been many years, but a decent 'toon getting 'stuffed' would cause no more harm than getting your feet pretty wet!
Click to expand...
On our houseboat, we learned that wake boats can push water into the cabin when you try to take them at 90 degrees...like I did in every other boat I've owned. Taking them broadside would empty the cupboards and fridge. Oddly, 45 degrees causes barely a ripple.
 
Wake boats are a virus...there's nothing quite like some knuckleheads in a wake boat turning a nice lake into a maelstrom...
 
Brian N said:
Wake boats are a virus...there's nothing quite like some knuckleheads in a wake boat turning a nice lake into a maelstrom...
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It's the knuckleheads that come from behind on your side and are so close that the only thing you can do is turn into their wake, right behind their "surfer". Not safe for either of us.
 
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