I seem to have contracted a case of beam-centric 1 foot-itus.
Working on my interior layout I keep thinking how nice the extra beam of the Kodiak would be. The main advantages I see are being able to have a much more comfortable dinette and the extra room/storage capacity in the cockpit. Having the extra buoyancy and elbow room in general would be great. I am fighting to keep this light but I am building this as a long-term cruiser so I know it is going to be pretty full of gear for our anticipated 2-3 month trips.
If the boat was going to stay in the water it would be an easy decision for me. The issue is that this is going to sit on a trailer and I am really wrestling with the pros and cons of going with the Kodiak.
I would be keeping this at home (Portland, OR) and trailering it to the Columbia/Willamette locally. I have an 11'8" wide area between a wall and a fence where I would be storing it with a straight shot in. Would be a little tight but doable.
We plan on trips to the Puget Sound area and hope to do the inside passage one day. I would love to take this out east to do the Keys/Bahamas, ICW, the NE, Canada and more. Doing the great loop would be amazing too, either in one shot or segments. So the plan is to really pull this thing all over the place, hopefully.
I know once I am on the water I would be very happy to have the extra room but I have never towed anything over 8'6" before. I have towed plenty of goosenecks and dump trailers (some across states), but I just don't know if towing a 9'6" boat these kinds of distances would end up being something I regretted. I am not concerned about dealing with the permits, etc, it is more just the reality of towing something that wide over multiple days. Then I think of the time we would spend towing vs. time on the water and I lean towards building as big as I can. Asking myself, what is another 6" on either side?
If I stuck with the GA, I know I would have a much easier time hauling it around (not that it is small). No permits to deal with and we would not be stuck on the interstates if we wanted to explore some lakes/rivers off the beaten path.
The GA would for sure have some other advantages, cheaper to build, more fuel efficient, easier to store, etc.
Appreciate any perspectives from y'all on this.
Howie
