On Sep 30, 11:02 am, MatthewK wrote:
Hi,

I need a small sailboat that can handle lake erie fishing weather; which
is a bit more than most recreational boaters like. My childhood memories
of fishing with my dad invovled leaving early in the morning with 2-3 ft
waves, by lunch those waves were 4+, and on returning home 6 or more
wasn't all that rare. This weather was always taken in a 22-26 ft
powerboat(bayliner). This is basically my standard of what a boat should
handle although it may never see it. The prospect of going 20 miles out
for walleye in a sail/rowing craft is rather daunting.

Lake Erie is shallow and known for rough conditions. Are you sure you
want a light displacment sailboat for recreational fishing? When
fishing was done from small sailboats the boats were heavy and slow to
stand up to rough weather. A search of the Internet should turn up
some info. Also, coastal fishermen relied on tides to get them in and
out as much as wind. Winds are fickle. You may not want to be a few
miles out when the wind drops. I lived in Toronto where Lake Ontario
never got warm enough for recreational swimmings. There are small boat
sailing clubs on the lakeshore and I wonder how long people can
survive in the water when capsized. There would seem to be some
special design considerations for anyone who wants to use a sallboat
for Great Lakes sport fishing.