I have been brooding over this for a long time, please offer your opinion: This is what I want a boat for-I want to head out to the Gulf (Cedar key Fla. to be specific), i want to go out with my mate a few miles, park, spend 2-3 days, fish & relax. It looks to me like a 22-26' sail boat would be ideal for this activity, although I know minimal/very little about sailing (but have been on a 40' catamaran for weeks at a time in the past). Problem is, sailing sounds OK, but that's not the most important thing, and i'd have to learn how to do it as well which appears to be a chore. I just want to get out there and be comfortable for a few days, maybe travel from spot to spot but not all up and down the coast to different places necessarily. Cost is extremely important-my question is, what powerboat would compare in living features to say a used Macgregor 26 or a Catalina 22 and is there a big cost difference? I realize gas, engine maintenance for a power boat are a minus, but I'm basically looking to get out there a few miles and back. it just looks like there are a lot of weekend cruiser sailboats out there for very reasonable prices...?..opinions?
