Rivers won't freeze up right away due to the current and warm water. Becomes a guessing game when it's time to pull sets. Guess wrong with a prolonged cold snap and you could be screwed.

Deer season is another time I've gone to the propane torch. We camp in the bottoms next to flowing water. Might have an ice shelf adjacent to the bank, but main channel is open for navigation.

All part of the game.

Exactly Muskrat, can go from this:


To this, over night LOL:

Trapset, it took me a second to figure out what the saw blade motor is for all I can say is that’s awesome. I’m assuming you can’t cross open water or real thin ice with that set up

Couple of beautiful pics there Trapset!

Great pics , thanks guys ! Our creeks are very slow moving and freeze up pretty quick once the Mercury drops. You guys have another element of danger with the fast water and the cold temps . Be careful up there !

once the water gets hard a sled and walkings the easiest way ive found. Its those open water periods im trying to gain speed and efficiency. My rivers go from 6' to 6" in a matter of feet

I’ve been planning to do a coon line on our creek this year and we’ve not had but about an inch and a tenth of rain since the first part of July. I’ve run about twenty mile of this creek over the years with a canoe. Throughout most of this 20 mile if its 6’ deep it’s all 6’ deep but this year its been more like a foot or less and 4’ wide. In the last week we’ve had 3,4 and 5 inches of rain depending on who you talk to and the creek is back up to about normal summer levels ( 3’ or so ) and this would let me run a conventional motor. I do not intend to run on the ice with a sled or 4 wheeler but given the fact that our water has been this low before I think it’s only smart to go with the mud motor.
Thanks for all your help guys , I will try and get you some pics once I’ve got it together .

Long tail motors and narrow creeks don't go together very well in my experience. Ya spend a lot of time "splitting kindling" as I call it when the prop hits the willows. lol They also generally require more room to turn to make them a great small creek choice. imo

The creek is only about 3’ deep right now but is at least 30 to 50’ wide all the time. I would think at normal pool it wouldn’t be too tuff to turn around. Before we got the rain it was only about 5 or 6’ wide and a foot deep. I would guess a person would have to use a pole to turn around in this instance. Having said that can say a 12’ boat with a 60” or 70” shaft get turned around in 30’ to 50’ of water , or should I plan to use a pole all the time ?

Long tails suck for turning. Just is.

Surface drives turn on a dime....but are spendy. Just is.

I think a 20 hp honda v- twin would make a nice power house for one. any thoughts?

I keep hearing 12' boat. Minimum length IMO for longtails is 14', and preferably wide.

Turning around isn't that big a deal. You'll develop a pattern with your rig where you slide in at an angle, push down on the handle to lift the prop and skeg out of the water, then allow the boat to rotate 180.

A good trick I have used in the past with 14 foot boats is to place a milk crate upside down in front of the back bench seat on the right side, place a boat cushion on that, and sit on that to zip up and down the river. It transfers your weight a little more forward. For a right-handed person anyway.

Muskrat I honestly don’t know what this old boat measures, I’m guessing 12’to 14’ and about 40” to 48” wide . I know it fit between the wheel wells of my Ford pickup, which means it’s 48” or less .