Canyon Bay 24H, the Hybrid That Put Canyon Bay Boats on the Map

Canyon Bay boats and why the 24H matters

Canyon Bay boats are built around one idea, stated on the builder's current site: why can't the same boat fish the flats and run offshore? The Canyon Bay 24H was the model that made that pitch credible. It is a hybrid bay boat, a design that combines a bay boat's huge casting deck and shallow draft with the freeboard, cockpit depth and deadrise of a small center console.

Florida Sportsman named the 24H a Best Boat in November 2017, filing it in the 17 to 24-foot bay boat class. On the show, the two hosts predicted a run of hybrids the way bay boats had boomed a few years earlier, and one of them said he saw a 24H in his own future. That episode is still on Canyon Bay's YouTube channel.

The 24H was around well before the award: a brokerage listing in 2026 described a 2010 Canyon Bay 24H, and the builder's 2019 website listed the 24H alongside the 24B, 28H and 22B. Today's lineup is the 28H, 24B, 18F and a new 35N, and the 24H is no longer offered.

Kevlar hull, carbon deck and the weight it saves

Florida Sportsman listed the 24H at 23 feet 8 inches overall with an 8-foot 8-inch beam, a 13-inch draft, a dry weight of 2,500 pounds, an 18-degree transom deadrise, an 80-gallon fuel tank and a maximum rating of 300 hp. The hull is Kevlar and the deck carbon fiber, and the hosts said the builder credited that construction with saving about 600 pounds.

Canyon Bay still builds that way. Its current boats use hand-laid Kevlar below the waterline, carbon fiber from the sheer up, vinyl ester epoxy resin, fiberglass stringers molded to the hull and no wood anywhere. Hulls are laid up by Perry Composite Manufacturing in Perry, Florida, by builder Mr. Fournier, who learned composites from his father Bob Fournier, a 40-year veteran of Lazzara Marine and Merritt's Boat and Engine Works, according to Canyon Bay.

• LOA 23 ft 8 in, beam 8 ft 8 in, draft 13 in
• Dry weight 2,500 lb, deadrise 18 degrees
• 80 gallons of fuel, single outboard to 300 hp
• Kevlar hull, carbon fiber deck, wood-free structure

Sixty-five square feet forward, sixty aft

The 24H's casting deck covers 65 square feet, large enough that the Florida Sportsman hosts said three anglers could legitimately fish from it. It houses an anchor locker pre-wired for a trolling motor, a 15-gallon livewell with a clear lid, and a 60-gallon insulated cooler or fish box. A step down to the cockpit doubles as seating.

Behind it, the cockpit measures about 60 square feet with 22 inches of freeboard, so anglers stand inside the boat with their legs against padded coaming bolsters rather than balancing on a flush deck. Rod lockers on both sides take rods up to 8 feet, with a 35-gallon insulated box between them. The leaning post carries a 50-gallon livewell, which Florida Sportsman praised for keeping baits within reach without bending over.

Three consoles, three towers, semi-custom by design

Canyon Bay sold the 24H as a semi-custom boat. Buyers picked one of three consoles: a standard console, a head console with room inside for a portable toilet, or a deluxe console with a cooler seat and a lot of storage but no head. On top, owners chose a hardtop, a half tower or a full tower, and every Canyon Bay came with power steering.

The result is that used 24Hs vary widely. The 2010 boat listed in 2026, for example, carried a Marlin folding tower with upper controls, Garmin displays at both helms, a 36-volt Minn Kota Terrova trolling motor and both fresh and raw-water washdowns. When comparing boats, list the console, tower and electronics first and the hull year second.

Jack plate, shallow water and fuel economy

A Porter hydraulic jack plate is central to the 24H's personality. Canyon Bay said it can raise the engine up to 24 inches, while the Florida Sportsman hosts mentioned 19 inches of lift; either way it lets the boat creep into very shallow water and lets the owner tune engine height for speed and economy.

The builder claimed an average cruise in the mid-30s of miles per hour and about 3.5 miles per gallon. We have not found an independent instrumented test, so we are not listing a cruise or top speed in the specs. The newer 24B, which shares the 24H's length, beam, draft, dry weight and deadrise, is quoted by Canyon Bay at 53 to more than 60 mph with 250 to 300 hp.

From 24H to 24B: what replaced it

Canyon Bay's current 24B measures exactly what the 24H did, 23 feet 8 inches by 8 feet 8 inches, with a 13-inch draft, 2,500 pounds dry and 18 degrees of deadrise, and it also has a 65-square-foot casting deck, a 15-gallon bow well and a 55-gallon leaning post well. The differences on paper are a 69-gallon aluminum fuel tank instead of 80 gallons, a power rating raised to 400 hp, CZone switching and the current Kevlar and carbon construction spec. Canyon Bay describes the 24B as a Florida Sportsman Best Boat winner.

For shoppers, that makes the 24B the natural new alternative to a used 24H, and it means the 24H's design has proved durable enough that the builder kept its key dimensions.

Owning a used 24H

Running costs are modest for a 24-foot offshore-capable boat: one outboard, a light hull and good economy. We estimate $6,000 to $12,000 a year for fuel, engine service, insurance and trailer storage, more if the boat lives in a wet slip or carries a full tower and a large trolling motor system.

The main risks on older boats are engine age and repowers. The 2010 boat listed in 2026 had a 350 hp Verado, above the 300 hp maximum Florida Sportsman reported for the 24H, so check the capacity plate, ask how the repower was approved and confirm your insurer is comfortable before you buy any boat powered beyond its rating.