Andre Venter wrote:

I don't think that there is a "best dinghy" for the simple reason that we
all have different ideas about cruising. I like small and spartan, you might
like big & fancy. My perfect dinghy is a simple 9 ft pram with a 3hp motor
small, easy to row and ugly enough not to be a thiefs first choice.

I forget whether I got "in" on this conversation, so apologize if I'm
repeating, but I'm a real fan of the PortaBote. Folds up to the size of
a 8, 10 or 12' surf board, folds out to 5' wide and rows and powers
almost as well as a proper hard dink. A 4 HP engine drives it at 12-15
knots with 200 or so pounds onboard, an indication of how easily it's
driven. Handles 5 full sized adults in comfort and they don't get wet at
speed, so it's usually the raftup's taxi of choice. Our 12.5 patiently
sits on the side of the foredeck for whenever we need it, but
essentially takes no space (except the seats, which we can comfortably
stow well out of the way in the engine compartment).

--
Jere Lull
Xan-a-Deux ('73 Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD)
Xan's Pages: http://members.dca.net/jerelull/X-Main.html
Our BVI FAQs (290+ pics) http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/