'Tooning Abroad

Pontooning around the world

Published in the July 2014 Issue July 2014 Feature

Pontooning. There is something indelible about the feel of the wind across your skin and the smell of the water, be it freshwater lake or the salty smell of the open sea. The ebb and flow of the water as its laps and splashes against the pontoons are a siren’s call, promising long days and pleasant nights. With a drink in hand, friends and family splayed akimbo across the deck, who can deny the ultimate fulfillment of being on the water, soaking in the sun, enjoying the endless days of comforts?

Travel. New vistas and horizons stretching forward, filled with exotic air and the pungent aromas of other worlds. Simply packing bags and catching a flight to a different country can be exhilarating and life-changing, and now more than ever with pontooning on the rise worldwide, it is possible to enjoy the best leisure activities from home while abroad.

Medellín, Colombia

An airplane leaving Miami, Fla., lands three hours later in Medellín, Colombia. At the northwestern edge of South America, Colombia is the only country in South America to directly border Central America. To the north lie the banks of the Caribbean Sea, to the west the Pacific Ocean. Located in the Andes, the climate is cool and moderately humid, not stiflingly hot nor suffocatingly humid. With an average yearly temperature of 72 degrees Fahrenheit, plus or minus 10 degrees, and a cool 66 percent humidity, Medellín could be paradise.

Not an hour away rests El Embalse Peñol-Guatapé and the impressive Piedra Del Peñol, a giant rock monolith towering over the lake. This impressive landmark demands attention, and while many people crawl up the over 600 stairs to reach the pinnacle, the view from the lake below is also breathtaking…without the climb. Nearby Lago Calima near Santiago de Cali, the Cauca Rio near Ayapel, and Hidroprado near Bogotá are other popular pontoon destinations worth exploring. With a saltwater pontoon or deck boat, San Andres Island in the Caribbean calls from the north.

The local marina, Nautisport Colombia, showcases SunTracker pontoons, Suzuki, Mercury and Evinrude engines. After talking with Federico Londoño, the marina’s operator, it’s apparent that the best pontoons use a 115hp engine, which falls below Colombia’s 16 percent sales tax. And he knows about fishing in the area as well: black bass abound in El Embalse Peñol-Guatapé, and no trip is complete without hooking and frying one after a long day exploring the lake under the watchful guard of El Piedra. Federico also recommends the best hiking, bicycle paths, fishing locations, and rafting areas in the region. He’s a font of local lore and knowledge.

A quick conversation reveals that the pontoons are manufactured in Colombia, rather than shipped. Being oversized, though, this could be a problem. However, Federico knows a workaround that keeps the prices down on pontoons in Medellín, as well as bananas back home in the US through a commensalistic relationship of using the empty returning shipping freights for Nautisport Colombia’s SunTracker pontoons.

Stockholm, Sweden

Back in Miami with skin still golden from days spent lounging in Medellín, the itch to travel starts again. Grab a globe, spin the top, and drop the finger onto Stockholm, Sweden. Eight hours later disembark in Stockholm. Sweden is cooler than Colombia. Located in Northern Europe, it is one of three Scandinavian countries, along with Denmark and Norway. Catching a train west ends at Arboga, and the home of Andreas Rask and his family.

Andreas owns a 2013 SunTracker Party Barge 24 with an 80hp four-stroke Mercury engine, and is the pontooning enthusiast of the area. Pontooning is still growing in Sweden, but the country is ripe for a boating revolution, boasting an impressive 500,000 plus lakes in a country a little more than twice the size of Minnesota. Recalling his pontoon’s first dip in a lake, Andreas mentions that a crowd of people gathered to admire and question the boat. When asked what boat type it was, Andreas’s daughter, 2-and-a-half-year-old Nathalie, proclaimed, “Can’t you see? That is a racing boat!” to the delight of the crowd.

Popular lakes and rivers in Sweden include Vänern, the largest lake in the European Union, and the neighboring Vättern, the second largest lake in Sweden and the sixth largest in Europe. Sports fish include the ever popular salmon, including two species native to the lake and surrounding systems. Trout, zander, and stickleback are the three most common of the lake. A must-hit river is the Torne, which separates Sweden from Finland, and the Lule River, both excellent salmon fishing locations.

Andreas is proud as he mentions that the pontooning industry is taking off with the launch of his new marina, the Scandinavian Tracker Marine Group Dealer. With plans to introduce pontooning to the region, he expects the industry will grow and become part of the water sport norm in his country.

Moscow, Russia

Back in Stockholm, the pull of the spacious European north country is still strong. It’s less than a three-hour flight from Stockholm to Moscow, Russia, one of the most politically contentious places in the world and a vast land of lakes and rivers waiting to be explored, plumbed, and more importantly pontooned. With two of the largest lakes in all of Europe, and impressive rivers, Russia is ripe with waterways to explore. Water sports and leisure activities are still growing in the country, though boating and fishing have been a staple forever.

Russia presents a completely different area and demographically different from most of the world, and similar to the United States, in that it has more areas, different and diverse people, customs, and traditions than either Sweden or Colombia. The sheer size of Russia makes it impossible to fully explore the country and the different water pastimes of the area, but focusing on pontooning and the possibilities blossom.

Much like Sweden, pontoons and pontooning haven’t boomed in Russia. However, arriving in Moscow it’s impossible not to meet with Andrey Gurskiy when looking for information regarding lakes, rivers, and ‘toons. His company, AG GROUP, in Moscow is one of the only pontoon retailers in the entire country. Working together with Apex Marine pontoons, Andrey, in the last half decade or so, has opened pontoons to the Moskva River, the Volga River, Oka, and in Siberia, Caucasus, Tartarstan, the Far East and even in Yakutia, all part of Mother Russia. Talking about sports and game fish, Andrey mentions the abundance of perch, pike and catfish, all popular and populous throughout the region.

Australia

Returning, it’s time to look downward and explore the enchanted world of Australia. Australia is not only a country, but an entire continent. After Russia and the United States, Australia is one of the largest places in the world. With several large waterways and a vibrant coast ready to be explored after a pontoon has undergone a saltwater conversion, pontooning is beginning to catch on and grow. In Queensland, pontooning is championed by Peter Damiris. Peter owns Noosa BOATique, which carries and vends Apex and Bennington pontoons, and he is personally bringing pontooning to the Gold and Sunshine Coast.

Lakes are few and rare in Queensland coastal region, and so Peter specializes in river pontooning. Most pontooners live on waterfront estates and rivers and therefore trailering is a minimal in the region. Popular fish are the marlin, the mackerel, cobia and snapper, all available around the reef after a saltwater conversion of the pontoons themselves. Still, though, pontoons are a growing market in eastern Australia. The market is rife and people are becoming more interested in the boats and the lifestyles.

Roughly 2,700 miles to the west lies Perth, the most remote city on earth. A little south of Perth Mandurah Motor Marine is located. In a pleasant area of the world, boating and pontoons are used the year over with no end to the boating season. Since 2004, Robert Scott has sold more than 350 new and used pontoons in the region, earning the Marina the SunTracker Marine Group ‘International Dealer of the Year’ award four times.

The Mandurah Estuary is twice the size of Sydney harbor and the beautiful Indian Ocean Waters flow to the coast, making it the perfect place for pontoons to thrive.

Another feature unique to the area is the abundance of dolphins and the blue manna crab. Like Eastern Australia, popular fish include samson fish, wahoo, Spanish mackerel, yellowfin tuna, and mahi mahi. Western Australia’s Mediterranean climate brings tourists throughout the year with the mild climate and the abundance of wildlife and marine activities.

Return Trip

Back in the US and the lakes seem a little smaller, the fish a bit bland. There is a large world to explore still. Apex Marine has a dealership in South Africa and the call for new vistas and vacations are fresh. Perhaps it’s time to plan another trip.