Hello everyone! I'm the new guy on the block and I hope to learn much on this forum! I live in the Pacific Northwest about 3/4 mile from the Columbia River and have been boating on "The Mighty Columbia" since I was 12 years old! (building rafts out of pallets and polling through lowlands when the Columbia would flood in the spring). I have owned boats from 14' to 25' and currently own a brand new 15' Smokercraft Alaskan with a 20hp Tohatsu 4-stoke motor.
No, I don't fish! When I tell people what I own, they always ask "Do you fish for salmon?" My log-in name says it all. I just love to be "on the river". I spend most of my time just "messing about" on the Columbia exploring islands and sloughs and looking for anything valuable or useful floating down the river or along it's shores.
My favorite boat was a 25' Macgregor sailboat which I sold about 15 years ago because of problems with my shoulders. It was difficult for me to sail so I purchased a 23' Crusiers Inc cabin crusier.Sold that about 8 years ago when gas prices started getting out of hand. Since then I have had a couple of smaller boats until I bought the Smokercraft which I intend to keep forever!
One reason I came to this froum is because I would like to also have a bigger boat for overnight excursions, ( I don't like sleeping on the ground at my age!).I am an avid fan of SMALL CRAFT ADVISOR magazine and in issue # 80 they had an article by a gentleman who converted a small sailboat into a displacement power cruiser and I'm thinking that might be a great way to accomplish my desire for an inexpensive to run overnighter. If anyone on the forum has done that, I would love any advice that they may have on mods, etc.I'm thinking that a 20' to 25' shallow draft, trailerable boat would make an ideal cruiser.
