Boat Use

This is the first year that we have not gone out every single month - the weather was just too bad (no cracks about the Tropical Tip of Texas there please!) - rain, wind, snow, did I mention a windstorm with 8 days power outage, a historic flood, a couple of snow storms? Looking forward to a little more settled weather, although we are NOT getting a break here on the Poulsbo CBTG...
 
Jim, ditto. Different kind of folks on C-Dorys, they know them well and all systems (sometimes out of necessity), can handle weather situations better than the average bloke, and are generally out on the water into the 'zen' of boating. I like your words better...!
 
Howdy Gang,
Just want to chime in here on this topic. When the wife and I purchase a boat – very likely a C-Dory – it WILL be left alone for many weeks and/or months at a time (we have NO plans to have a 40+/- foot boat). True, we will have to keep it clean and maintained and we are prepared for this. We love the PNW and have spent much time there and vacation in Seattle and the San Juan Islands every year. We cannot afford a townhouse in downtown Seattle, a water front home on Orcas and a pleasure boat to be docked in a marina on the East side of the Sound so we can hop in it and avoid the ferries to Orcas. But those are the places we like to visit. A C-Dory is the perfect fit for us. It’s a (very) small home to island hop, and we can put-in at Bell Harbor Marina to shop in downtown Seattle and eat at some favorite restaurants for a few days. Is this an expensive indulgence? When we go on vacation it is to relax and unwind. We do not stay at Econolodge or Motel 6. A typical nightly rate in the Seattle area is $300.00+ (Inn at the Market, water view). If we want to occasionally cook our own food, a suite with a kitchenette is closer to $500.00 per night. $5,000.00 disappears rather quickly over a 10 day span. To have a 22 or a 25 foot C-Dory with a galley allows us the comfort of our own space and we can go where we want, when we want. It is a bonus that these boats are trailerable though we do not plan upon taking advantage of that option. Just some thoughts. We hope to meet a few of you at the CBGT in Bellingham in July (Chrysalis Inn, King Water View, $300.00+ per night with taxes included).
 
Big Bad Ben,
You may find that your perspective changes after you buy the boat. When we got our first sailboat, I was thinking "this will be fun for an occasional weekend." Wrong. It changed our lives. Discovered my "inner island boy". I began to scheme ways to work less and be on the water more. Pretty soon, I couldn't afford those $300/night hotels, but that was OK, 'cause we spent the time on the boat instead. Ah, it is a slippery slope. The fancy restaurants will give way to meals made on the Wallas. Oh sure, it starts innocently enough... "let's just look at some boats." :wink:
Get out on the water more, and your friends may start calling you Big Mellow Ben! :wink

Best wishes,
Jim B.
 
I grew up in the Lafayette River (actually it's a tidal basin) in Va. and always had a runabout. I still do, just a bigger one. Lately I have found myself using the camper canvas and taking longer trips. Heheh with a 21 gal fuel tank it's a "task". Recently I went to a boat show where Mobile East Marine from NC had a number of these pilot house boats (C-Dorys). Well after my wife and I toured them, I was hooked. I remember telling one of the Mobile East ladies that I knew I was getting old when pilot house boats looked good to me. I came home and started researching C-Dorys on the internet, found this site, read about the exploits of Halcyon, and told my wife "see we could trailer this boat anywhere!" :idea The ability to trailer a cruiser is the key.

It's just a matter of time now. I am not sure which model, but in a perfect world (you know, the one where I win the lottery :mrgreen: ) I would get a TC 255 or a CD-25, and set it up with the Furuno electronics like the Shirley Mae http://www.c-brats.com/modules.php?set_ ... _album.php ; and since I am an old 2 stroke geek (properly maintained, a 2 stroke ob can last 25 - 40 years), using a pair of Evinrude E-Tecs :wink:
 
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