new guy

[stink]

Hi All-
I'm new to the group but am seriously considering a c-dory. I am hoping to get some feedback on my situation from your experience before I purchase. I live on the Hood Canal in Washington and keep my boat on a buoy in front of the house most of the summer. I am torn between the 16', 19' and 22' C-Dory's so I am coming to you for help. Here are my parameters:
-Most of my time will be spent fishing for salmon, crabbing, and shrimping right around the house -My closest launch is a gravel lot that I can launch or pull out at about a 7' tide -I am tired of freezing my butt off on my Livingston Warrior-exposed; I want a hard top -I live on a steep and windy drive so if it is a 19 or 22 I need electric (not surge) brakes on the trailer for my 1500 Dodge or the weight will jackknife me right off the road -I have a wife that says she can live with a porta potty but would prefer an enclosed head -She also would like to be able to go to the San Juans and camp- probably twice a year
-My Questions:
-Do these boats have a self-bailing deck?
-Can you get a 19' angler with an Alaskan bulkhead?
-Is the 22' with everything I want easy to trailer and easily launched/pulled?
-Should I just get the 16' or 19' and pull it to where I need and forget overnighting w/ the 22'?

[cemiii]

Welcome to the group. The smaller cd's are not self bailing but with one or two small auto bilges and a couple batteries (redundancy) I doubt you would have trouble at your buoy.

They're all light and easily trailered with anything in the 1/2 ton class range.

If I had a standing promise from a wife to go "boat camping" twice a year, I'd be darn sure to get the most cozy and comfortable one I could to be sure to increase the odds that it carries over to the second year!

Chris

[hardee]

Bret,

Welcome, and enjoy the site. There are ton's of photos, (click on the boat name just to the left of the thread posts here) and you can see the album pictures. Look up "R-Matey" to see a 19 with a very cool custom "Alaska Bulkhead". They don't come with one stock. Joe and Ruthie did a pretty good job on that one. The links to the manufactures home page is on the bottom left corner of this site home page. The C-Dorys are being built in Bellingham, WA now, by Sea Sport and they are building quality boats. There are hundreds of pages of info here, and most subjects have been discussed more than once. (Try the search function, top center of the forum page.) The C-Dory is warm and dry, with the Wallas running, (speaking of a 22 now), and the porta-pottie works when needed. Sorry, have to go up to the 25 for the head and shower.

Have a great time here, hope that's good for a start.

Harvey
SleepyC

[thataway]

A number of folks have purchased the 19 and then "upgraded" very soon to the 22. There is very little difference in trailering between the 19 or 22. You should be fine with a 22, and a Dodge 1/2 ton truck; lots of us have towed the 22 with a much lighter and less powerful vehicle.

Although if you are doing a lot of mountian driving, the electric over hyraulic may be best for the Tom Cat (weight well over twice that of the 22)--I doubt that it would be of much help in the C Dory 22, especially on short hauls. I doubt that the 22 would jack knife your truck--especially if you get a tandem axel trailer.

Go for the bigger boat. Self bailing is really not necessary in these boat. They have so much lift and reserve bouyancy. They are taken out in rough water often. We have crossed from the San Juans to Sequim in our 22 when it was blowing 25 to 35, with some significant seas and felt very safe.

[Salty]

[Alyssa Jean]

Salty, are you the Salty 22 at AYC??

[jennykatz]

The 16-22 are not self bailing but with bilge pumps and batteries no need . Also whatever boat you decide put up canvas to keep water out of the cockpit . The 19and 22 are the same boat except for 3 feet taken out which give's you a smaller cockpit for fishing or whatever . the 19 weighs 1600-1700 dry where the 22 is about 2000lb . the 22 has room for a sink and stove and table so if camping is in your mix buy the 22 cruiser . If fishing is more important buy the 19-22 angler no table or sink .

the 16angler is not really a camping boat although you could if your under 6ft tall with the 16 cruiser. Good luck happy hunting Go and drive each model you will then make a better decision . The Dodge will handle any of the 16-22 easily .

[ddenver]

Hey Bret.... Welcome to the group! Nice to have another fairly close neighbor on the site.

We live just north of you off Dabob Bay. We pulled into Dewatto Bay this past year while cruising the Hood Canal on our way to Alderbrook for the weekend (B-day present for the wife). Dewatto Bay is real pretty and offers a bit of protection from the prevailing southern winds which sometimes scream up the canal as well as an incredible view of the Olympics.

We have a Venture 23' which is obviously even heavier then the 22' or smaller boats and we pull it w/ a Ford F-150 PU w/ no problem.

As mentioned by others you will find an incredible wealth of knowledge, experience, and real nice folks on this website.

An additional option that comes with ALL C-Dory's is the chance to meet other C-Dory owners who have similar interests in boating. Attending one of the many nearby CBGT's (C-Brat Get Togethers) is a great way to see the boats available up front and personal and talk to the many devoted owners. You are welcome to come to a gathering even if you do not own a boat yet too.

The next local CBGT will be during the upcoming SBS (Seattle Boat Show). The SBS CBGT is the only C-Dory gathering which folks do not attend by boat (land locked and not optimal weather obviously) but will still offer you a chance to talk to other C-Dory owners as well as check out the boats at the show.

Consider coming over to the SBS Gathering .... it would likely help you sell whatever boat you decide on to your wife since she would likely meet many others in a similar situation as her self.

Check out the calendar at the top of the home page to view past gatherings. The timing of many of the upcoming 2010 gatherings is still being formulated but you will still get a good idea of the locations.

The nearest gathering is likely to be the yearly Sequim Bay gathering (at Sequim Bay State Park) which takes place in early September.

The gatherings - and the chance to meet many really great people - have far and away been the most positive and rewarding aspect of owning a C-Dory for us.

Good luck in your search and do not hesitate to ask additional questions.

Take care,
Dan

[Cutty Sark]

Hey neighbor... I have a cabin just around the big bend in Tahuya, right on the water, it's been in my wife's family for 50+ years. We use it alot and I fish out there quite a bit. I think any of the boats will work, for what your doing. The 22 has the added comfort of heat and a cabin door for those cold days which is nice. A couple things to keep in mind, launching in the area can be tough.Most of the ramps aren't very steep(on my side at least) I had a bunk trailer on my 22 and at times I just had to wait to put in or take out. Roller trailer would have helped immensly. Also these boats with the pilot house and shallow draft are very affected by the wind, so make sure you have a bomb proof mooring. One year in a bad wind storm my 22 pulled a 5 gallon bucket of concrete that was completly buried up and started to drag. I was watching and it was daytime, but lesson learned. Plus it seems like right when I come around bald point it is often windy. I just bought a sixteen and the first thing I said to my wife was this is the pefect canal boat(for us) Since I have to tow it there and back alot, the lauches I use are marginal, and generally I fish there mostly in the summer. So the smaller size has a real conveinance factor for me. Heck the best thing to do is just get out on one.

Good luck in your search!

Sark

[bmacpiper]

Hey Stink,
Many good responses so far.

I had a 16 cruiser until this summer (now have a 19 angler), and I do the same things as you--fishing, crabbing, and shrimping. I can say with certainty that you will want the larger cockpit of the 19 or 22 for all of these, though we managed to make it work. The "canoe rolling" of the 16 is almost gone in the 19 as well.

To clarify an earlier post, the 22 cruiser and the 19 angler have almost identical cockpits--but the 22 angler has a larger/longer cockpit for fishing. If you want to camp, you'll want the 22 cruiser, so you won't have the larger fishing cockpit.

The 19 has an open cabin, with drop curtains if you like, where the 22s have hard bulkheads with locking doors. Since I fish alone a lot, and for sturgeon, I didn't want the hard bulkhead--I like to turn the seats backwards and stretch out. I also wanted to get the boat in the garage, which wouldn't have been possible with the 22. If space were no issue, I would have done the 22 cruiser without a second thought, and lived with the bulkhead.

I trailer my 19 with a 2005 Honda Odyssey minivan (towing capacity is 3,500#), and it has always handled the load with no problems (EZ Loader with surge drum brakes--wish I had discs). I towed my 16 to Winter Harbor B.C. last year, which is about 480 miles each way, including 55 miles of shot-rock logging road. I seriously doubt a 19 or 22 will jack knife you off the road, but you know your conditions better than we do.

I'm over on Bainbridge if you would like to get out on a 19 one of these days.

bmc

[stink]

Thanks all- I'm a little overwhelmed with the dedication of you all on the website; how better to get information on an investment like this! Wife and I have had several discussions on this since I posted the first message and discussed all the input. Because I would rather stay married, I'd rather buy a boat that she will want to use frequently the first time. The thought of having an enclosed head/shower is topping her list (surprise) so I think I'll be looking at a 25' cruiser knowing that with the shallow draft I can still get in/out at the launch by my house at an 8'+. I feel that at least a 3/4 ton truck is needed for my steep/windy drive so I think I'll start there; waiting and looking for the rare used 25' to come for sale around here. One listed for about $65K in Port Orchard this week but I need the truck first... Any thoughts?
thanks again

[thataway]

Don't wait for the truck--you can always borrow one for the first times. Good used trucks are easy to find--C Dory 25's are less frequently available.

[Salty]

Have you considered keeping the boat in the water? You can pay lots of slip rent for the price of a truck and related upkeep. Les at EQ has service trailers to haul a boat for maintenance so you can save the price of your own trailer too. You will use your boat more if it is in the water and ready to go. Just some thoughts to consider.