Yeah, what he said! or a cat yawl. COnsider a sharpie too!
You're in an area which historically used shoal draft round to
flat bottomed schooners too! Learn the joys of depthsounding with
a centreboard (or bilgeboards). Don't even think of
daggerboards.

N1EE wrote:

You need a catamarran or a Cat boat

There are three pretty catboats in the
local marina. One of them needs work, and
I've been toying with the idea of getting
one--just what I need another boat. I found
one that is being offered for free--Hmmm!

They have a wide beam, a centerboard. Most
use an outboard. I've seen one with an
inboard diesel.

For shoal draft, you can't beat a centerboard.

Bart

"katysails" wrote

Sheesh...over 750 posts while I was gone..

Well, here's the news...we won't find out until the end of the week about
the job situation, but it looks very good. The bad thing: very very
shallow....if we did take Chanteuse down, we'd be sitting on her keel half
the time and half to sail 15 miles offshore to find water deep enough for a
good sail...The good thing: lots of sailing in the area, just need a much
shallower deaft boat...the Fort Myers area isn't nearly as built up as I
thought it would be...not anywhere near as "throbbing" as St. Pete/Tampa
area...lots of hummocks and estuaries, etc to explore. We stayed on Estero
Island (yourist trap...) which is just south of Sanibel (bigger tourist
trap) A lady was wading in a canal on Sanibel and offered herself for lunch
to a 15 ft alligator who ended up being euthanized for his efforts (heck, if
she was dumb enough to wade in a crick...)Went to 3 different nature
preserves, rescued a whelk and a sea urchin ( very tricky, sea
urchins...trying not to get stung, that is...) watched a pair of dolphins
fishing and playing about 30 feet offshore in low tide...really having a
grand time of it....found a poor little manta that must have been clobbered
by a gas hog...saw the biggest red ant I've ever seen in my life and hope to
gravy I never get bit by one....found a cute black snake about 2 ft long
with a pretty head (not a pit viper configuration...going to have to look
him up in a book...) ate grouper almost every day. Didn't get sunburned
until the last day, when I listened to Mr Sails who said: You could stand a
bit more sun...Was a big shocker getting off the plane in Grand Rapids at
midnight...40F from 87F and cold rain...was ready to het right back on the
plane...and then I had to be up at 6am for work this morning! But I had a
great time!

--
Flying Tadpole

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