Looking For Advice On What Would Be A Good Small Inshore Fishing Boat

So many things to consider:) At this stage I'm a bit concerned that if I get something which is to big for me to handle on my own it might end up being an ornament. What are thoughts on something like the Orkney Coastliner or Westport Pilot3?
 
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When you say too big to handle by yourself it really all comes down to slipway and quality of trailer. Any boat that you are looking at will be too heavy to lift and push on a bunked trailer. So look for something like a roller coaster trailer. The angle of the slipway and how deep you have to get the trailer in is another factor to consider as are cross currents and tides. But all being well if you can get the bow of the boat on the trailer and keep it there, there are a host of accessories that will assist you starting with
electric winch with remote : e.g. 11000LBS Boat Electric Winch Portable Wireless Remote Control Trailer Winch 12V | eBay
Trailer guides: e.g. flotem poles are one type Floatem Poles Boat trailer guide pole docking arms with Orange cushions | eBay
Trailer dolly for parking up electric or manual: e.g Metal Caravan Trailer Dolly - Black - 150KG Load Capacity - £41.99 : Oypla - Stocking the very best in Toys, Electrical, Furniture, Homeware, Garden, Gifts and much more!

And then of course if you really struggle launching and retrieving there's "rope a boat". Not tried it myself and I suspect the ramp incline is critical to do a complete retrieval but even half a retrieval would make life super simple : Rope a Boat | qualitymarkinc

here in action:
 
Some of the best fishing is in The Strait
Plus one of the best slipways on the Island is at Menai Bridge
You can launch almost 24/7 and there is good shelter to be had most days
 
BrumBrum said:
Thanks again for the advice

This is local to me.

Realistically could I launch and recover this on my own?
Click to expand...

Yes, you'd probably want to add docking arms to the trailer (especially if beach launched) but that's not a big deal really. With practice, it's certainly do-able unless you're launching into or recovering from a beach with swell

As Kawasaki, we've had an Alaska 500 (see profile pic), an Orkney Coastliner 14, Orkney Day Angler 21 and 23. They were all good - for boats of their size they are very capable.

Seahog Hunter or Sealord both good too.
 
I am far from Anglesey but we have very similar conditions down here in Cornwall, especially on the Fal - 2-3 foot of short chop is very common. As per the others, stay away from the dorys, wet, they slam and not a huge freeboard. I too, like the Alaska and the Orkneys, great sea boats and a cuddy - vital in my book, to keep the wind and spray off.
The more recent 2 strokes are good engines, my nephew has a Yamaha 25 on his 16ft aluminium boat and she flies - very reliable too.
Finally on boats, the Seastrike is a great boat. I have the 12ft semi V with a 15hp 4 stroke Honda, it's my mess about boat that my daughters use too. It's light, tough as nails, very stable and very good sea keeping for its size. Even with the 15 it will clip along at 15-20kts happily with 2 people, with four you are down to displacement. Much better built than my nephew's Quiksilver too. I love the aluminium boats, it's all you see in Oz and NZ. If you go down that route get a 15-16ft one, our little "Dina", short for Sardina (we reckon the feminine version of the can), is great but a bit more size would be good.
Lastly, a 12v winch is an absolute gamechanger, especially with a remote that you can be at the tail of the trailer with the boat and still be working the winch on your own. To keep it simple you could mount the winch on the trailer with a dedicated 12v battery mounted on the drawbar. Have it that the battery is easily removeable and take it in to be charger after use and it also stops it being nicked. You can leave it in the car whilst out on the water or just put it in a lockable box. Mount the electric winch so that you still have the hand winch available should it go wrong.

Anyhow, hope that there might be something useful for you in my ramblings.
 
Good advice here but worth looking on fishing forums, world sea fishing, offshore outlaws. Somewhere on those will be a link to a free book about fishing boats, can't remember the title or author though!
 
Thanks guys for the info and ramblings (Farmer Piles). Interesting stuff and getting me to think about things I've never even considered.

What should I expect to pay for storage and launch/recovery fees if I went that route? I drive a Skoda Octavia probably not the best vehicle but could it be suitable to use to launch/recover?

Cheers

Simon
 
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