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YAKIMA -- If you ever wanted to get a flavor for the different types of boats available to people who like to fish, you might want to spend a day or two at Drano Lake or the Wind River in the next couple of weeks.

A predicted large number of spring chinook salmon returning to these Columbia River tributaries has brought people out in droves. And with the people have come an assortment of water vessels that is quite a sight to behold.

This past weekend there were well over 100 boats at Drano, with another 80 or more at the Wind. The boats, like the passengers within, came in all shapes and sizes. There were short ones, tall ones, fat ones and skinny ones. There were old ones and new ones and everything in between. Actually, come to think of it, there were probably more old, short, fat anglers than boats, but that was just a quick observation.

Salmon fishing seems to bring out quite a diversified bunch of anglers, and with them comes quite an eclectic array of water craft.

If you ever were in the market for buying a boat, sitting at one of these fishing hotspots and just looking at the different vessels trolling around would give you a pretty good idea as to what kind of a boat you might like.

It also gives you a brief pictorial history of how fishing boats have evolved. When a 1960s version of a fiberglass boat putts by, its passengers all humped up and cramped together in back-to-back seats, you realize what comforts have been designed into the newest all-aluminum boats of the
21st Century.

Of course, with these comforts comes a price tag.

Some of the newest, most accessorized fishing boats that you will see on the water today can carry a sticker price that is closer to the price of a new home than a new car.

Owning a big, fancy, new jet sled with all of the bells and whistles is not a prerequisite for catching fish. In fact, the size or newness of a boat has no correlation at all to the success of the anglers fishing within.

A person in granddad's old 12-foot car-topper, the one with the leaky floor that has to be bailed with a coffee can every half hour or so, has just as much chance at catching a much-coveted spring salmon as the guy sitting
10 feet off the water in a shiny new, 460 cubic-inch inboard motor-powered 24-foot ship.

It is all a matter of comfort. And, to some people, pride.

What might make a difference in this fishing-boat-owning, trolling-for-salmon equation is the moniker that is attached to the vessel.

For centuries, men have felt the need to name their boats. Remember the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria?

I am sure there is an historical reason for this, like "Don't shoot at the Miss Virginia, she's on our side." But today, since most fishing boats are not involved in skirmishes at sea, names are put on boats for other reasons.

Forrest Gump named his first shrimping boat, the "Miss Jenny," out of love. Some of today's anglers will follow that lead. But most will name their boats for other reasons.

Here are some of the names on boats that I have seen fishing recently.

There is the "Li'l Stinker" and the "Li'l Toot." One might deduce that the captains were having some intestinal problems at the time that they named their boats. Or maybe not.

Then there is the "Gull Feces." Funny name. Funny looking boat. Why it is named that, no one but the captain knows.

You will see a number of different "Aquaholics" as names on boats. And "The Happy Hooker" is another popular moniker for fishing boats. Some might see a name they like and just add a Roman numeral after it -- for instance, "The Happy Hooker II."

Some name their boats based on how they financed the vessel. I've seen "The Settlement" several times, along with "My Retirement."

When fishing buddy Doug Jewett found a boat he just had to have, his wife Nancy wanted him to name the boat "Nancy's Kitchen" because she figured her kitchen remodel was just compromised to make the purchase. Doug never named it that, and I think Nancy got her kitchen remodel despite the boat buy.

The more I think about it, I'm not sure placing a name on a boat has anything to do with the number of fish it catches. If it did, I would have named my boat something clever like "Fish Heaven." You know, like in where all fish go to die. But my little boat remains nameless and it still catches plenty of fish.

Named or not, it is surprising how many fishing boats of all sizes, shapes and vintages there are out there. And it is my guess that just about every one of them will be at Drano Lake or the Wind River again this weekend.

* Rob Phillips is a freelance outdoor writer and partner in the advertising firm of Smith, Phillips & DiPietro. He can be reached at rwphillips@spdadvertising.com.