Am I weird?

[JillyP]

So last spring I dragged my spouse into the world of boating by buying a 16.5 ft '95 Stingray. The spouse, who's not big on change or being told we will have fun, even if it kills us, has fallen in love with the boat & says we'll never get rid of her. Now I am thinking I'd like a 'cabin on the water,' somewhere I can hang out and oh yeah, occasionally untie and motor around a little. So now I'm thinking a cheaper Cuddy (27 ft or less, nothing new or fancy). My question is this- am I crazy to want a boat for a getaway and would it be weird to keep the runabout? Perhaps I am falling into MBS? Talk to me-- oh, and what kind should I get? (don't say a SeaRay; there are too many around here.):joyous:

 

[jenn_8675309]

Re: Am I weird?

Not weird at all! We have a 32' Sun Runner that we will be mooring at a marina with all of the amenities, and walking distance from some great restaurants. So, if we have a few too many cocktails we can crash on the boat I plan to take a packed a bag to work most Fridays and head straight to the boat for the weekend. It's a staycation!

 

[nwcove]

Re: Am I weird?

please dont take me wrong......but a boat that spends more time tied to a dock than running is nothing more than an expensive camper. enjoy boating !!! go to the sheltered coves and drop anchor with the crowd. jmo

 

[foodfisher]

Re: Am I weird?

Not weird just high maintenance.

 

[roscoe]

Re: Am I weird?

please dont take me wrong......but a boat that spends more time tied to a dock than running is nothing more than an expensive camper. enjoy boating !!! go to the sheltered coves and drop anchor with the crowd. jmo

So sitting at anchor in a cove with a crowd is somehow different from being slipped at the marina?

I think a boat should be moving the majority of the time it is being used.

Sitting in a marina and anchoring in a cove or on a sandbar are pretty much the same to me, boring.

JillyP, by all means, keep the Stingray.
It is portable and will cost you almost nothing to hang onto.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Am I weird?

Well....... My wife loves boating but absolutely hated our cuddy cabin. They are too big to launch, to much to hold at the dock..... big heavy hard to board. The smaller boat might keep here happy and maybe you can rent a bigger boat before you invest.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Am I weird?

If there is one thing I have learned, the bigger the boat the less you'll use it.

If you want a water front cottage, buy a water front cottage and put a lift out front for the runabout. It will be cheaper in the long run.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Am I weird?

two very different aspects of the hobby.... If you have a lively marina the "cabin on the water" as you put it can be awesome... marina people can often be some of the friendliest people you'll meet.... The few times I've slipped my boat (for a week or a month at a time) I always end up wondering what's wrong the rest of the people I come across elsewhere in life.

Personally I really enjoy being able to cruise around a bit through the day and have a safe place to tie up with electricity and running water so I can break out the blender and grill and then sleep it off in A/C.

I would say tho that you need to be looking for a 28' cruiser or small houseboat if this is what you want as the cabin on a cuddy is more of a makeshift shelter than a "cabin on the lake"

If you click on the link in my sig there are quite a few interior pics of my 28' wellcraft tho you'll have to sift through a few pages to find em.

 

[crabby captain john]

Re: Am I weird?

No longer into cruisers as I primarily fish. Never will be without a cuddy again though.

 

[jestor68]

Re: Am I weird?

So last spring I dragged my spouse into the world of boating by buying a 16.5 ft '95 Stingray. The spouse, who's not big on change or being told we will have fun, even if it kills us, has fallen in love with the boat & says we'll never get rid of her. Now I am thinking I'd like a 'cabin on the water,' somewhere I can hang out and oh yeah, occasionally untie and motor around a little. So now I'm thinking a cheaper Cuddy (27 ft or less, nothing new or fancy). My question is this- am I crazy to want a boat for a getaway and would it be weird to keep the runabout? Perhaps I am falling into MBS? Talk to me-- oh, and what kind should I get? (don't say a SeaRay; there are too many around here.):joyous:

I think you need to listen to your wife.

 

[airdvr1227]

Re: Am I weird?

Are there any marinas near you with a mobile home park as part of it? we hit the same wall a couple of seasons ago when sleeping in the cuddy was no longer fun. Instead of a bigger boat we found an old mobile home for sale and fixed it up at the marina. Nice to have a bathroom, shower, and a bed.

 

[hivoltg]

Re: Am I weird?

I have a 20ft cuddy and I think I have the best of both worlds. Its a weekender cuddy. No fancy amenities other than a sink, storage and a bed/couch. Its still light enough to trailer and fast enough to ski behind. If a kid gets tired they go down below, get out of the sun, and lie down. I really like it. Its great to bring along the flushable portopotty also have a place to use the bathroom with some privacy when the time arises. I don't feel like I have lost any space since people seem to love getting up on the front of the boat to sunbath.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Am I weird?

I think you need to listen to your wife. It's a well known fact that they are smarter than us and less prone to dumb impulses.

You think Jilly should listen to her wife?

 

[matt167]

Re: Am I weird?

21'/22' Starcraft Chieftan in an original configuration. That gives a counter top that an alcohol stove could be placed. with storage and an ice box below. Fresh water sink with a pump ( nothing fancy. I don't remember if they have a grey water tank or just drained overboard, but IIRC the fresh water tank is below the sink. When my dad had his, he ripped the sink out.. The Chiefs are nice because like many older cuddies, the cabin top is above the hull..

Easy to trailer, economical for a boat, and being light, they are not hard to load as long as the marina/ launch is in a cove or without current. Anything with a current, is a different story.

 

[paultjohnson]

Re: Am I weird?

yes

 

[Natesms]

Re: Am I weird?

Why get rid of the runabout and just have the best of both worlds

I have a cruiser and a runabout and really enjoy the both of them. My only real complaint (aside from more maintenance) is that the lake the cruiser is on is to rough on weekends to take the runabout out. However that lake is 3 hours away so on the few weekends I don't make it down there I have the runabout for the lakes closer to home. I'd really like to have both docked side by side if I could.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Am I weird?

A couple of thoughts:
overnighting in a small cabin is like camping in a small tent. some like that; some don't.

keep a cabin boat in the water or you won't use it

when you compare different size boats, each one's advantage over the other is also a limitation. You can't sleep on the 16' you can't ski and fish from the cruiser. That's why you keep both. I believe that variety of activities is what keeps boating interesting and fun.

I don't know much about Minnesota but I think you have a short boating season. But boat payments and maintenance/storage is not seasonal. IOW you lock up a lot of dollars from the "recreation/vacation" line on the budget on something you can't use much.

OTOH a cabin allows you to extend the season. Look into how to protect the boat from a 30* night so you can use it the next day when it's 50*.

 

[25thmustang]

Re: Am I weird?

We've gone up on boat size and use the flybridge boat more. It's a cottage we take to raft ups, beaches or even long trips. I think it's a ton of fun dropping anchor, using the inflatable on the now to poke around some islands and then BBQ, swim, relax.

However we are looking for a smaller performance boat to add to the fleet. A 21-23' liberator, formula, etc... Smaller boats are cheaper and easier to use, but the big boat is like a beach front cottage we can move.

 

[jkust]

Re: Am I weird?

Only because with a large boat by MN standards, you are stuck boating rivers, Minnetonka and a few other large lakes. Even more so if you slip it. There are a lot of small Sea Rays because people fall prey to their marketing and lack of research to see that they are inferior compared to other boats of similar prices when new.

 

[JillyP]

Re: Am I weird?

I think you need to listen to your wife.

jestor68: I AM the wife. haha. It's not just men that like to buy boats.