Best First Boat If You Have Trawler Aspirations?

Several points above to address… We live in Louisville on the Ohio River. Trailering won’t be an issue as we are currently touring the country via Airstream so I already have the vehicle to tow. I personally don’t have a great desire to ski / tube but I just know at home (at least starting out) that’s how I would wind up / justify being on the water more often than not. Like airplanes, I imagine taking the boat out just to tool around with no mission gets old very quickly. I am honestly after the most practical experience that will help decide whether we want to tackle the Loop and beyond. There is also a possibility that we will wind up in FL eventually as both of our parents are there… It would be nice to be able to liveaboard down there for stints at a time if we already had a big comfortable boat.

The issue is trailerable vs live aboard. Beam is everything as the saying goes. A trailerable boat is not going to have a 12' beam and that makes cramped conditions. THe difference between a 11 or 12' beam and a 8'6" is substantial. And if you are going to the loop, stability as anchorages will be significantly different between the two classes of beams.

Honestly, you are a bit all over the map. From a practical perspective, any boat with basic living accomodations would give you the base platform to decide if you like the lifestyle. I of course have no idea how basic you (and spouse? family?) can tolerate. There are a lot of 25-foot fishing boats with cuddy cabins that might be bearable for an overnight. A lot depends on climate and your personal tastes.

I did the Baja Ha Ha this past year - a run from San Diego to La Paz MX of almost 1000 nms. There was an older couple on a 33-ish foot Grady White who did the run. They had a great time.

Not intentionally all over the map. As stated, I am looking for a first boat that will set me up for success in trawlers later. Asked if one platform was better to learn on than another or if I should just focus on getting experience on the water. Buying a 40’+ trawler as a first boat has not crossed my mind.

Current plan is to get something that is useful at home (that I will actually use) and work my way up from there. I don’t think there are any small twin screws that are trailerable where skills would transfer directly to a trawler. Sounds like either a runabout or a small cruiser would be best starting point, though I guess I could stretch to the Rosborough / Ranger / other displacement hull if the offering made sense. I am browsing the listing sites accordingly and doing my research on any models that catch my attention.

Starting on the river system is a good thing...study up/read about operating bigger private vessels on the rivers where locking and passing barge trains is common. The Ocean and ICW have their own idiosyncrasies, but come easy if you know basics which rivers and lakes will provide too.

There are boats like the 24 foot Sea Ray Sundancer with small cabins (only get the outboard version) that can provide the early steps of learning to cruise. Sure they are cramped, but going slow up the learning ladder and gaining experience as you expand your horizons is what many have done before they take big steps and put money into bigger boats. Considering how many never go on to bigger and better boating, going slow is not a bad concept.

Has anybody mentioned that you should pursue some boating education courses? There are a couple of good sources like the USCG Auxiliary and America's Boating Club.

Your question is a reasonable one. I think the answer is to buy whatever boat suits your short-medium term use case and budget.

I’m planning on finding a safety course when we get home. I’m about half way through Chapman now so trying to get a head start.

I'll pipe in and echo the earlier poster who recommended looking at a Ranger Tug or Cutwater (same hulls, same company, different layout and superstructure). The smaller ones (under 30 feet) are great pocket cruisers, are trailerable, hold their value well, and have options for outboard motors if you want to go that route. They also have planing hulls, so they can get you where you want to go quickly.

A Grand Banks 36 would be a great first Trawler.

Operate your current boat at 8-10 knots for a few hours to get the feel of trawler speed.

So many good suggestions above! The C-dory and Rosborough ideas are appealing. I went through the selection process after some lake boats and sailboats going back to the 70s, saw a Camano at a boat show years ago and was drawn to that, buying one in 2017. I'm very pleased with the Camano, as it "fits" my cruising area. Bought it in Bristol, RI, and with good weather forecasts, brought it down the east coast to home port in Chcowinity NC. Single diesel, full keel with enclosed prop, large v-berth (I tell my wife it's a "stateroom"), fabulous visibility, efficient at hull speed and 2 kt. more, thirsty at full speed 12.5 kt, very thirsty doesn't track well at flank speed (15.1 kt max). Common description is that it entertains 6, feeds 4, and sleeps 2. It can sleep more than 2, but I am unlikely do that other than with grandkids or my kids. Not great for trolling, as cabin draft often picks up exhaust. Several on the west coast for sale now, different ages and prices. I'm delighted with how my 2005 has held value, run well, and fits our utilization.

Selection process: Read Passagemaker for years, followed Yachtworld, evaluated the alternatives. I went to Trawlerfest in 2016, and one of Steve Zimmerman's classes helped me a lot. He had some forms with questions about how participants would use their boat - number of people, distances, how long a typical cruise would be in days (endurance - fuel, food, laundry and other considerations), inshore/offshore, etc. Another form converted answers from those questions into suggestions on size, power, and more. That told me I was looking at the right kind of boat for us, cruising to local colonial towns in eastern NC - fantastic places with affordable dockage, meals ashore, history venues, and so much more, but was clearly capable of the delivery trip from RI to NC with a good weather eye, flexible schedule for ducking into a protected river or bay if conditions were challenging.

From experience: Whatever you buy, have it checked out well, and strongly consider having all fuel filters changed after a fuel polishing before the delivery cruise. I didn't, and had the primary RACOR clog just off Cape May. Flipped to the back up filter, replaced the clogged one the next day. That and attending Trawlerfest, and walking docks in and near my home port to see that configurations are utilized locally are the best ideas I can offer. Have fun looking, and have a rock solid surveyor check Everything.

Best wishes!

NCheaven
(because eastern NC - Albemarle Sound and Pamlico Sound and the many bays and rivers, colonial towns, etc., really is small trawler heaven! Check the maps!)

So many great observations and suggestions from TF members above! Rosborough certainly has numerous advantages by being trailerable, and carries a long standing great reputation. Cape Dory is also an attractive option in various sizes. I found reading PassageMaker, and attending Trawlerfest in 2016 helped me choose. Steve Zimmerman in one class passed out a list of questions about how many guests a boater would include most often, inshore/offshore use frequency, speeds intended, duration of trips, and much more. From that the answers lead to certain suggestions on sizes of boats, hull types, etc. Awesome to look at choosing a boat objectively, somewhat quantitatively. Of course, we all want a good looking boat, too. For our NC Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds and related river systems, easy access to the Chesapeake and south to the ditch, 2 people most of the time, and "taking vacations from retirement" being our scheduling priority, the Camano 31, purchased in 2017, has worked out well. Great visibility, no exterior wood, ability to run at over double hull speed if looking for protected water, delightful flybridge, and full keel and skeg-protected prop are advantages. Bringing it from Bristol RI to NC was a fantastic experience, too - NJ offshore and strong stern wind and waves on Delaware Bay being surmountable challenges. Take a look at one, check in with the TF's Camano/Helmsman forum, check the selection on Yachtworld. Lots of good choices out there, especially if you consider how you will use the boat before you create your short list.
Have fun boat shopping!

NCheaven

OK - I had no intention to double post! Looked up site last night to see if my first one posted, and it didn't! Looked again this morning - no post! So, I wrote another version hurriedly late this morning, checked to see if it posted, and found both had posted. Surely, I did something wrong - they tell us that computers don't make mistakes.......do they?

Thanks for double checking and providing great input! We spent some time in Ocracoke and visited Hatteras back in the fall (via the trailer). I would love to spend some real time there moored out in Silver Lake and the surrounding areas. Having traveled a great deal of the loop areas by land, I think that’s the sweet spot for me that I’m really looking forward to. Will definitely research the Camano. Thanks!

Don has probably given you the best advise. ANY trailerable boat will consume time to launch and load up at the end of the day (trip). Have a slip dramatically improves the usability of any boat, especially if that slip is behind your house. If your not on the water, have you considered moving onto the water?
While more expensive waterfront tends to hold better value and for boaters is a monumental better opportunity to spend time boating and not launching. Second best is a good marina. I have my boat (43ft trawler) behind my house and think nothing of taking it to lunch, or to the islands (but I don't beach it), or just a hour sunset run. So, I'm taking the boat out 3 or 4 times a week. My kid has her boat on a trailer an is lucky to get it out 2x a month. Just food for thought for gaining time on the boat.

And, yes a Roseborough or any of the trailerable boats mention will work fine for your quary run (assume that's the local hangout spot), or a restaurant or where every. They will do anything that a run about will, but you have the option of spending the night on it and making a week long trip.

You don't say where in Kentucky, but if you are on the Ohio River or Cumberland you could easily to parts of the loop, go thru locks, anchor out on Kentucky lakes or tie up at any one of several nice marinas there.