The Cayo 180 5 degree is a really cool skiff if your priority is fishing shallow but you still want something that feels like a real boat. It’s definitely more on the technical side of the spectrum than the 10 degree, but it doesn’t feel like some super narrow, tippy poling skiff that you have to baby all day. The biggest advantage of the 5 degree is how well it does in skinny water. It’s easy to pole, doesn’t need much water to get around and is a good setup for fishing marshes, creeks and shallow flats where draft actually matters. At the same time, it has enough beam and stability that two or three people can move around and fish without the boat feeling sketchy. The ride is also pretty impressive considering how little deadrise it has. Obviously it’s still a shallow-water skiff, so you’re not going to run straight into a nasty chop like you would in a deeper V, but the hull does a good job for what it is. Cayo put a lot of thought into the running surface rather than just making a flat-bottom boat and calling it a technical skiff. It’s also a really clean boat. The layout is simple, there’s plenty of deck space and nothing feels like it was added just for the sake of adding it. That’s something I like about Cayo in general. They seem to concentrate more on how the boat fishes and performs than cramming every possible compartment and accessory into an 18-foot hull.

The Cayo 180 5 degree is a really cool skiff if your priority is fishing shallow but you still want something that feels like a real boat. It’s definitely more on the technical side of the spectrum than the 10 degree, but it doesn’t feel like some super narrow, tippy poling skiff that you have to baby all day. The biggest advantage of the 5 degree is how well it does in skinny water. It’s easy to pole, doesn’t need much water to get around and is a good setup for fishing marshes, creeks and shallow flats where draft actually matters. At the same time, it has enough beam and stability that two or three people can move around and fish without the boat feeling sketchy. The ride is also pretty impressive considering how little deadrise it has. Obviously it’s still a shallow-water skiff, so you’re not going to run straight into a nasty chop like you would in a deeper V, but the hull does a good job for what it is. Cayo put a lot of thought into the running surface rather than just making a flat-bottom boat and calling it a technical skiff. It’s also a really clean boat. The layout is simple, there’s plenty of deck space and nothing feels like it was added just for the sake of adding it. That’s something I like about Cayo in general. They seem to concentrate more on how the boat fishes and performs than cramming every possible compartment and accessory into an 18-foot hull.