porta-bote or inflatable?
In article , James Johnson says...
I have an Avon Redcrest inflatable. A portaboat has some attraction but on my
26 footer there is no acceptable place to put it.
The cabin top? On my boat the cabin top isn't big enough, an the link to some
pictures showed one stowed on the cabin top but it also obstructed the
handrails, which I won't do for safety reasons. I might need to be able to grab
that handrail one day.
The lifelines? If I put it there it fouls the sheet leading the jib track and
also would be an unacceptable obstruction to going forward on the side decks.
YMMV, and larger boats would not have the same issues.
I used one of the older double ended Porta-Botes on a 23 footer with good
results. In my case the companioway hatch was large enough that it was a simple
matter to stow the hull laying down on the quarterberth. In the evening we
would put the hull on deck alongside the cabin house. It would have been in the
way there during the day, but it was no problem in port.
On many boats the galley or something else might be in the way to get the hull
into the quarterberth, but if you have a straight shot this was a great way to
carry an 8' Porta-Bote.
Steve Christensen
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