House Boating?

[ACP]

My family & another Family want to plan a house boat trip for early next summer. We're assuming that Lake Shasta would probably be the best lake to that on. Can anyone recommend which company to book with? Or if you recommend another lake let me know which one & why.

Thanks,
ACP

[flipit]

Bullards Bar would be my choice. 20lb bags of spots a regular. Shhhhhhh.

[ACRon]

For a basic house boat try Holiday Harbor. Less expensive than the others and good general boats. They are on the McCloud arm. If you want a high end fancy boat try Silverthorn or Jones Valley. Have the plastic card ready they are a bit pricey. All have websites so you can look around and shop.

[TomAtkeson]

A few years back my sister and I did a trip with a few friends. We went with Holiday Harbor and had a great time! House boat was very nice, very clean and everything was in good working order on the house boat. We took it to a creek arm about a 30 min drive away and hardly saw anyone else out there plus I caught a ton of nice spots

[ACP]

[quote="flipit"]Bullards Bar would be my choice. 20lb bags of spots a regular. Shhhhhhh.[/quote]

If it were up to me & we were just going fishing that's where I would go but it will be a summer trip with 2 families & a bunch of very active kids. Bullards is only 60 miles of shoreline when full & Shasta is 370 miles of shoreline. With that said we have a lot more options for different overnight locations & scenery.

[ACRon]

Shasta is an awesome family lake. Great fishing including right off the houseboat for kids. Plenty of water to take boat rides or pull the kids on a tube. Shasta Caverns is a good day trip especially if it is really hot since it is cool in the caverns. Incredible sceneary especially on the McCloud. I try to go at least every other summer for the last 30+ years sometimes more often.

If you need tips on things to do give me a PM.

[Bassinlee]

Dude, what the fellas say about Holiday Harbor is dead on. I've been renting boats there every year, sometimes twice a year for decades. Cheap and clean. We (me and my tacklewhore buddy) usually just rent a Diplomat 6 sleeper for three or four days. Less than a hundred bucks a day each. We tow the Ranger, and use the houseboat as a home base. Lots of room for the two of us, and life just slows down. We eat bad, (no wives) fish sometimes overnight, sleep during part of the day, and sometimes just motor down to the mouth of Little BackBone creek near the dam for TV reception and watch the Niners stinking up the division while fishing off the deck of the houseboat with a cold one in hand. We always wait till the off season, because it's a lot cheaper. But truth be told, the weather's better, the fish start to come up after being bombarded by pleasure boaters all summer, and it's just a heck of a lot quieter. We go in September, October, November, December, January, February, March... doesn't matter. Sometimes there's snow on the ground and on the Ranger. But those stupid spots just keep on biting like they don't know what season it is. In the dead of winter, we're sometimes catching 30 to 40 fish a day. Usually deep...60 feet or so. Sometimes it rains buckets. But, GoreTex jackets, pants and boots takes care of that, and if you don't feel like dealing with rain, just go inside the house boat, crank up the heater, pop a cold one and just kick back! I'll never forget the times when we're fishing at night in the moonlight, all topwater, and casting into the shadows in a cove. Blub blub blub.....KERSPLASH!
Nothing like it. You look across the dark lake, see the 'porchlight' of the houseboat tied up on the opposite shore, and know that you don't have to motor all the way back to a launch ramp, don't have to go get the truck, don't have to back down the ramp, don't have to collect all your stuff off the boat, don't have to tie everything down, and don't have to drive for hours to get home. Just motor back across to the houseboat, clip onto the side cleat next to the bumper board, hop onto the houseboat, go inside, and collapse onto the comfortable couches with a cold one and start talking smack. Maybe an hour later, could be 3 in the morning, you take a rod, and a couple of plastic worms/Senkos, and walk the bank near the houseboat, and catch some more fish.
Did I mention that this is fun?

-Bassinlee

[Gary Ryon]

This is without question my favorite vacation. I have taken the family there on several occasions and each time has been wonderful.

We use Seven Crown Resorts Houseboats in Bridge Bay just off Interstate 5. There is a hotel there if you wish to go up a day early. There's nothing really fancy about these boats. The Summit sleeps ten (eight adults confortably). All have A/C (a must during summer). They appear at boat shows and Fred Hall Shows (if memory serves). At the shows they offer great discounts such as "early board" and discounts of up to $250.00. When I last went, they were the most inexpensive on Lake Shasta.

On the other end of the spectrum, are the two story boats with a flying bridge above which include 50" plasma T.V.'s and jacuzzis. They come complete with concierge service to load and unload the houseboat, (my wife's dream). These boats run approximately $7000 - $9000 for a week. These boats are at another harbor, but I'm sure you can find them on-line.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

[ACP]

Thanks for all the info guys. We're going to try & stay away from the peak time & either go right after the kids get out of school in June or go in late August just before they go back to school.

[Dewayne]

In early June the water temps are usually a little cold for the kids to swim for long. The lake should be full in June which will be great, but I know my kids prefer a little later in the year when they can swim all day. Finding a good tie up spot is also a challenge if you don't know the lake when it is full. On the other hand August is usually so hot you have to spend all day in the lake with a cold beer in hand. Last weekend was perfect though. No crowd, decent water temp, and a pleasant 90 degrees.

[JWittmayer]

You may want to check out Silverthorn Resort. Great central location on lake and the best boats IMO. Especially if you have a large group. I've rented from several resorts on the lake and I like Silverthorn the best.

[Scott L]

We have used Shasta Marina Resort a couple of times and have been very happy with the boats and service. They are just off 5 on the O'Brien cove off the Sac arm. Over the past 10 years they have phased out the older, less expensive boats and now only have the high end or luxury boats. So they will be more expensive then others, but if you can swing it they are a blast. They are family run/owned and have always taken good care of us.
I would highly recommend a slide on whatever boat you rent. It will be hours of fun for the kids and adults during the trip. There are a lot of tips you can search the forum for prior to your trip. If going during the heat of summer, beach the boat on steep east facing coves. This will put the boat in shade by late afternoon vs late evening on the opposite shore. This will help keep the interior cooler and maybe cut down on running the AC all night.

Have fun.

[ACP]

Thanks for all the replies! I've got a lot of good info to run with now. We're going to plan our trip in late August so we shouldn't have to pay the prime time rates.

[jigswimmer]

PACKERS BAY---Hands down one of the most accommodating facilities at Shasta. My family and I have been going up there since 1974. I have been out of Holiday, Silverthorn, and Jones Valley; Packers is my choice. My buddy had a flat on his boat trailer on the way up and while he was out on the houseboat, they took the tire into town and had it repaired so he would have a spare for his drive home. I especially like the peace of mind that my vehicle and trailer is behind a locked gate in their parking lot and their guard checks everyone coming in to be sure they have a reservation. Also, you can launch off of pavement right there until the lake gets down below 115' down. Holiday Harbor in the fall with low water you may have to launch off dirt or if Bailey cove ramp is still in, 50' down, launch there. Packers Bay is not open all year though like Holiday Harbor is. Holiday would be my second choice.

[ACP]

[quote="jigswimmer"]PACKERS BAY---Hands down one of the most accommodating facilities at Shasta.[/quote]
Unfortunately my wife & my friend’s wife got on the internet & looked at all the boats & have narrowed it down to Silverthorn & Jones Valley due to the nicer looking boats. If the women aren't happy the trip will be miserable!