mudflat

In NY and Pa the widest load you can trailer legally without a permit is 8'6". With a permit you are restricted to daylight hours and no weekends. A lot of guys just take the chance and go without a permit and usually have no problems, unless you're involved in an accident. It's hard to find a boat larger than 26' that doesn't have a beam width over 8'6". I was in the same place you're at several years ago, had a 21' center console that I trailered up every time. Worked fine for 2-3 people but 3 footers were the max and there were many days we didn't go out. Plus there was the extra fuel and time pulling the boat 4 hours and a few flat tires. It was nice to bring everything home each time so you knew where it was and could use it at other places. Main reasons for wanting a bigger boat were room for 4+, safety on LO just in case, ability to handle 3-4 footers, protection from the weather and leaving it up there. Still wanted the option of trailering to different ports and to bring her home for the winter so I ended up with a 25' Penn Yan 255 Intruder. Because my schedule doesn't allow me to go every weekend I decided to dry dock her at a marina for now and just launch when I get there but I think about just getting a slip every year. So far this has worked out great other than my wife thinking I'm nuts to have 2 boats. I did gain some points with her when we got caught in a squall offshore which would have been real nasty in my 21 footer. Financially it is probably the worst decision I've ever made in my life but I still think it's a good investment for many reasons. The costs go up considerably when you make the next step up to a 28+ footer.

I've never had that happen, yet. I don't see where it would be any different than any other I/O or OB boat? It's up to the rod man not to bring in the fish too green so he can control it while being netted. Actually with the currents we deal with on Lake Ontario I'm more concerned about the possibility of the rigger cable getting tangled in the kicker prop, that's why I put a prop guard on.

I'm running a Yamaha T9.9 on my Penn Yan 255 Intruder and it gets the job done most of the time but I also have a TR-1 Gold Auto Pilot on it and I think it helps the kicker by being so quick to react. There are times when the wind, waves and/or currents are too strong for the kicker to maintain boat control and speed, usually in 4 footer type conditions. I can then either head in (usually my wife's choice) or run with the waves/current. I can also drop in a couple trolling bags, start up the main at an idle and use the kicker with the TR-1 to steer and fine tune my speed. This actually works quite well with the bags also helping to smooth out the ride a little. I thought about going with a larger kicker but the "high thrust" model makes the 8-9.9 hp kickers work ok and because it is so light weight it doesn't affect the boat's handling. I have used mine to get back in when my main motor had problems, I felt like a blow boater going 4-5 mph but it was better than a tow. Mine is a 25" shaft mounted on an Adventure Marine solid bracket, I think a 20" shaft would work as long as you mounted it low enough so the prop stayed in the water.

$/lb for salmon? "Salmon prices surge as parasites plague fish farms" http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/salmon-prices-surge-as-parasites-plague-fish-farms/ar-AAmduQv?OCID=DELLDHP Wild Coho is up to $49/lb, That's probably still less than it costs me but maybe I can convince my wife that all the money I've spent has actually been a good investment and we're starting to make money? I knew that there were issues in the Pacific Northwest with salmon disease and parasites but didn't realize how widespread the problems have become.

The Cisco cradles are well built and solid while still being able to adjust the rod angle Only thing I didn't like was the rod butt sticking into the boat but that might not be a problem on your boat depending on your setup I prefer the Cisco tube holders, you can adjust them to any angle and still pull them straight up to remove the rod if needed plus there are no springs or other parts to wear out.

Works for me, same transducer as yours