Re: How many time per month do you use your boat?
My idea of "using" the boat might be a bit different than some.
We live about 45 minutes from our boat and drive there every weekend in season (May - Sept). In addition, I try to visit every Tuesday evening from early April thru Novenber.
Having a full cabin boat allows us to stay onboard with comfort all weekend- and longer. There's a lot of weekends where we don't even leave the dock with the big boat, using it as a homebase and running around with the fishing boat and/or the SeaDoo. With the price of gas, it only makes sense because we're a LONG way from wealthy!
On the other hand, when the weather cooperates we like to take her out for a run, usually anchoring within 5 - 10 miles of the marina. The kids often follow us with the SeaDoo, for exploring and tubing (it's a 3 seater). For the past 2 years we've been able to enjoy the big boat without breaking the bank- only filling up the tanks first thing in the spring (a hefty 300 gallons!). By layup time we're just about empty, which is fine by me.
Next weekend wil be our last run of the year- heading for the winter haulout. It's been another good one.
I'm already looking forward to spring!