Flats Boat vs Poling Skiff: What's the Difference? Hewes Redfisher 18 VS Ankona Native 17 Comparison

Flats fishing can be one of the most interactive and exciting forms of fishing out there. Flats fishing is also one of the most affordable types of fishing, making it more accessible to more people. One common question that boat buyers ask is, “what’s the difference between a flats boat and a technical poling skiff?”.

The Ankona was a 2015, 17ft 2 inches and had a 50 hp Yamaha 4 stroke. This boat has a beam of 5 feet 7 inches, making it super easy to push through the water. This boat was super light, easy to trailer, cheap to take out and fun overall. It had its limitations though. This boat had a top end around 32 mph, did not run very well in chop, and couldn’t comfortably take out more than 3 or maybe 4 people. It also lacked storage space, and many other comforts we now have on the hewes. This boat was perfect for the flats, we could take it super shallow and could sneak up on just about any fish we found on the flats. It had a 12-gallon gas tank, which meant it wasn’t great for long runs. We did however still take it out spearfishing when the weather was right, and we always got some looks from the big center console guys out on the reef. We had a ton of fun lobstering and spearfishing out of this boat, but in retrospect it really wasn’t the best idea. Justin and I were caught in a handful of summer storms that taught us that the ocean was nothing to play with, especially in a skiff.

I grew up on a hewes, my dad owned an old 1995 hewes redfisher that we took everywhere. This older “lappy” design is iconic and can be still seen all over south Florida. I currently own a newer 18 hewes red fisher, this design has smooth sides and is known as the CAD hull. This boat is 18 feet 10 inches long, has 3 times the horsepower as the Ankona, and is nearly 8 feet wide. It tops out around 52mph, and still gets 6-7 mpg while cruising around 32 mph, the top end of the Ankona. The hewes has a 31-gallon gas tank, greatly extending the range I had in the Ankona. The hewes has a much deeper V, allowing us to take it out in rougher weather more often. We regularly take this boat out spearfishing and it is a much better platform for it in comparison to the Ankona. It also has more storage space, and many more comfort features. I also have this boat with a trolling motor, which is better for our style of fishing, but I have poled it and its completely doable. It just may not be comfortable to pole it all day long like you can in a skiff.

The differences between a flats boat and a skiff can be summed up in one question. How much poling do you plan on doing? This is the best way to sneak up on tailing fish in inches of water, where a trolling motor may scare them off. If you plan to pole for the majority of your trips, the skiff may be the better option, while if you plan on rarely poling, I would lean towards a flats boat. This is because all the compromises in a skiff are geared towards poling. Skiffs have smaller beams, are made from lighter (more expensive) materials, and have less features to save on weight to make pushing the boat around easier. Flats boats can also pole easily, but are wider, heavier, and have deeper drafts making poling all day a chore. If the idea of a trolling motor sounds better than pushing the boat with a push pole, a flats boat may be the better option.

One thing I found interesting when searching for a boat is how much more expensive a skiff is in comparison to a flats boat! Let’s compare 2 popular boats from the same manufacturer – the maverick 18 HPX and the Hewes redfisher 18. The maverick is similar to the hewes in a lot of ways but is marketed as a skiff while the hewes is marketed as a flats boat. The base price of the maverick with a 115 Yamaha is over 67 thousand dollars while the base price of a hewes 18 redfisher with a 115 is just under 53k. In my opinion, why spend 14 thousand dollars more for a boat that is smaller, has less range, less comforts, and arguably rides worse in chop? The answer is that the maverick is designed for poling, so if you aren’t willing to make those sacrifices and aren’t willing to cough up another 14k – stick with a flats boat. Both models can be found used for less, but often the skiffs are still more expensive, especially when made by high end manufactures like hells bay or maverick. If you want a real budget skiff, check out Ankona boats, they can get you out the door with a brand-new boat for between 20 and 30k - and to be honest there’s not much you can do in hells bay that you can't do in an Ankona.

Overall, I loved both boats, but they are each tailored to a specific type of angler. One step up from the flats boat is the bay boat – an even bigger platform for backcountry fishing. If you’re interested in the differences between a flats boat and a bay boat, consider subscribing as we plan on comparing our Hewes 18 to our 22 pathfinder. Thanks for watching!