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Old 08-07-2015, 10:37 PM   #3
ssobol
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City: Southwest MI
Vessel Name: Sobelle
Vessel Model: C-Dory 22 Cruiser
Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 1,229
You will have to list your priorities and find a boat that meets as many of them as possible. However, having a boat that is trailerable will limit a lot of the things you mention. Depending on what your towing limits are you are looking at something likely under 30'. A Ranger 27 or 25 would be a good choice, but might be above your towing ability. They are nice, but a bit pricey. The amount of outside space might be more limited than you want, but carrying kayaks would be pretty easy. A Nordic 26 might also work.

The problem with trawlers is that to be efficient, they need to go slow. This may limit your cruising if you are pressed for time (i.e. have a real job).

I live in No. VA and have a 22 C-Dory cruiser. This does not have a proper head, but makes a reasonable cruiser for several days at a time. It is easy to trailer, good on gas, and can go pretty fast when you need/want to. You can still go slow to get max efficiency out of it if you like. We cruise on the Potomac, the bay, area lakes, and the Great Lakes. Being on a trailer makes it easy to try different cruising places, you can tow it from one end of the bay to the other a lot faster than you can cruise the same distance. The trailer makes maintenance easier (I can park it in front of my house when I need to work on it). The C-Dory 25 does have a head with a shower and is a bit bigger all around. The 25 is also quite towable.

Recently we've overnighted at St. Michaels and Tilghman Island.

The C-Dory line has a more utilitarian interior finish than fancier trawlers. Some people may not care for that. However, it makes maintenance soooo much easier.
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