Here's the scoop, we're moving to Plum Island and the house comes
with docking rights. The "dock" which is located on a river inlet just
before the ocean doesn't appear to be more than a strip of dirt where
people just run up their canoes.

I'd love to have something fairly inexpensive that I could leave out
all the time until winter comes along that I really don't have to
worry about taking care of that will get me around the river.
I was thinking along the lines of a Zodiac. Would something
like this work for my needs? Does it stay inflated for weeks
at a time? Would it be easy to chain and lock up with a bike
type lock?

Thanks for any ideas.

On Mon, 20 Jun 2005 02:12:59 GMT, "RobR" wrote:

Here's the scoop, we're moving to Plum Island and the house comes
with docking rights. The "dock" which is located on a river inlet just
before the ocean doesn't appear to be more than a strip of dirt where
people just run up their canoes.

I'd love to have something fairly inexpensive that I could leave out
all the time until winter comes along that I really don't have to
worry about taking care of that will get me around the river.
I was thinking along the lines of a Zodiac. Would something
like this work for my needs? Does it stay inflated for weeks
at a time? Would it be easy to chain and lock up with a bike
type lock?

Thanks for any ideas.

Plum Island where?

In my opinion you'd be better off with a aluminum boat.

Later,

Tom

I agree with the recommendations of not hauling an inflatable up onto a
sand beach unless there are enough people available to lift it
completely off the sand while you move it. There are a couple of other
alternatives however.

You could use a small Danforth type anchor to create a shallow water
mooring system where you could wade out to the boat, unclip it from the
anchor and go. Use a small float to keep the clip from falling to the
bottom when the boat is not attached.

You could also use an anchor to create a "haulout" system using a
pulley (block) and a continuous loop of line similar to an old
fashioned clothes line. This allows you to stand on the beach and
retrieve the boat into shallower water when you want to use it. Use a
stake on the beach to tie up the free end of the ine.

Both setups are widely used and the choice depends on slope of the
bottom and tide range, if any.

" wrote in
message oups.com...
I agree with the recommendations of not hauling an inflatable up onto a
sand beach unless there are enough people available to lift it
completely off the sand while you move it. There are a couple of other
alternatives however.

You could use a small Danforth type anchor to create a shallow water
mooring system where you could wade out to the boat, unclip it from the
anchor and go. Use a small float to keep the clip from falling to the
bottom when the boat is not attached.

You could also use an anchor to create a "haulout" system using a
pulley (block) and a continuous loop of line similar to an old
fashioned clothes line. This allows you to stand on the beach and
retrieve the boat into shallower water when you want to use it. Use a
stake on the beach to tie up the free end of the ine.

Both setups are widely used and the choice depends on slope of the
bottom and tide range, if any.

There are also flip up beach wheel systems for inflatables as well as
aluminum boats.

"Bill McKee" wrote in message
k.net...

" wrote
in message
oups.com...
I agree with the recommendations of not hauling an inflatable up onto a
sand beach unless there are enough people available to lift it
completely off the sand while you move it. There are a couple of
other
alternatives however.

You could use a small Danforth type anchor to create a shallow water
mooring system where you could wade out to the boat, unclip it from
the
anchor and go. Use a small float to keep the clip from falling to the
bottom when the boat is not attached.

You could also use an anchor to create a "haulout" system using a
pulley (block) and a continuous loop of line similar to an old
fashioned clothes line. This allows you to stand on the beach and
retrieve the boat into shallower water when you want to use it. Use a
stake on the beach to tie up the free end of the ine.

Both setups are widely used and the choice depends on slope of the
bottom and tide range, if any.

There are also flip up beach wheel systems for inflatables as well as
aluminum boats.
How many people do you need to carry? My suggestion would be an
aluminium jon boat of appropriate size, maybe 14 feet. One guy can drag
it, it runs pretty well with a 15hp, a motor that can be carried by an
individual, and it will go fast enough.

del cecchi