Boat vs. RV/Camper?

[fccy]

I would go MH - can't drown falling off of it

I thought you said towable in a previous post - if that is the case, I would go with Jayco, and should be able to find one reasonable. If you had said MH and not towable, I could be of much more help.

Have you made the trip to Rochester (Universal Marine and RV)?

[tazclone]

So you back up your truck and drive the boat on the trailer both? I probably should have went that route.

Yep. We have everything in the boat so I back it up, get out , climb in the boat, start it up, unhook it from the trailer(roller trailer so I can't do this earlier) and my wife pulls the trailer out and parks.
When we get out of the water, I dock the boat (usually where it won't affect others and go get the trailer then jump in and trailer it. If it is a busy ramp/dock and there is no room to dock, I get dropped off at the dock and get the trailer. Then climb back once the trailer is in the water and the boat is close. My wife gets in the car while I am trailering the boat.

But again, where we boat, I rarely have to wait at a ramp. Even in Okoboji, I know 2-3 ramps that I have never had to wait at and the worst wait was 5 minutes at Emerson Bay on a Sunday afternoon.

If I let my wife back it up, I would still be waiting from the first time we went boating(two years).

[BKLYNCyclone]

Easy choice for me... Boat as I prefer tent camping.

[SmokinH2O]

Yep. We have everything in the boat so I back it up, get out , climb in the boat, start it up, unhook it from the trailer(roller trailer so I can't do this earlier) and my wife pulls the trailer out and parks.
When we get out of the water, I dock the boat (usually where it won't affect others and go get the trailer then jump in and trailer it. If it is a busy ramp/dock and there is no room to dock, I get dropped off at the dock and get the trailer. Then climb back once the trailer is in the water and the boat is close. My wife gets in the car while I am trailering the boat.

But again, where we boat, I rarely have to wait at a ramp. Even in Okoboji, I know 2-3 ramps that I have never had to wait at and the worst wait was 5 minutes at Emerson Bay on a Sunday afternoon.

If I let my wife back it up, I would still be waiting from the first time we went boating(two years).

Man am I lucky!!!! My wife, all 5' and 95lbs of her, can back a 29' boat in with a Chevy 2500 diesel crew cab like it was nothing . I just climb in the boat and point which direction we need to go. When we trailer it's even easier. I drop her off, she gets the truck and trailer and I pull'er on. Slick!

When we have our boat on a lift it's a lot less hassle. Drop the lift back out, raise the lift so it's buoyant and off we go. When we get back my wife drops the lift and I pull on and raise it up. That's the best way to go IMO.

[shawn_200m]

I've owned 6 boats now, from a '77 Monark bass boat to a 2008 Crestliner Fish Hawk, and I can't imagine not owning a boat. We are on the Mississippi every weekend in the summer and are going up to Canada next week for our annual trip. When we camp we use the boat to find a sand bar on the 'sippi or an island on a lake up north and tent camp in privacy away from everyone.
You can find really decent boats for dirt cheap on Ebay or Craigslist. My current boat, a 19 ft Smokercraft Fazer deep V with a 115 hp Evinrude loaded only cost me $4000 from a guy in Omaha.
If you are interested in doing some fishing and more sporty stuff like wakeboarding or tubing, I would suggest a Sport/Fish model. They have a ton of versatility and are great boats...Crestliner makes a great Sport/Fish.

[Domyag]

Personally I would go with a boat for reasons already mentioned. You can camp without a trailer, and even if tents arent your thing you can buy a small pop up travel trailer fairly cheap.

I have owned about a half dozen boats as an adult or as a child and beings you are in MN I would recommend getting an outboard for nothing other than they are a hell of a lot easier to maintain in cold weather climates. With an inboard you have to get them winterized (unless stored in a heated garage) which means you can really only use them May-September. If you run earlier/later than that you run the risk of them freezing if you get a late spring/early fall cold snap. If you get an outboard they are self draining and all you have to do is run the water out of them and you are good to go. It's nice to be able to get out on that rare 80 day in October or even April.

If you have a family I would seriously steer you in the direction of a Pontoon. They are crazy roomy and unless you are a serious wakeboarder provided you get enough ponies they can easily handle ski and tube pulling. Plus depending on the size you can actually camp on the boat!

I know others have mentioned buying boats online but my personal belief is you are better off spending a bit more (although I'd imagine you wouldn't have to) and getting something used from a reputable dealer in your local area. If you were in the middle of Iowa with only one or two choices you can end up paying a bit more for a boat, but in MN there is enough supply to choose from you are going to get a good price. Plus while their are no guarantees buying a used boat most dealers don't knowingly put POS inventory on thier lots, it's bad for their reputation. Their are a myriad of things to check out when buying a boat and it's very easy for someone to sell you a 10k boat that needs 5k worth of work especially if they don't care if you are satisfied.

Make sure you check out the condition of the wood decking and seats/cushions before you buy. It's one thing many people overlook and it can cost you 1k or more if you buy something that needs rebuilt.

Late summer is a GREAT time to buy a used boat. As the summer wears on many dealers get overstocked in used boats from trade ins and they absolutely want to sell them before summer ends. Most marinas offer storage and the more used boats they have for sale taking up space the less storage they can sell and they know that if it's still for sale at the end of July there's a good chance they will get stuck with it until the following spring.

[RayShimley]

Personally I would go with a boat for reasons already mentioned. You can camp without a trailer, and even if tents arent your thing you can buy a small pop up travel trailer fairly cheap.

I have owned about a half dozen boats as an adult or as a child and beings you are in MN I would recommend getting an outboard for nothing other than they are a hell of a lot easier to maintain in cold weather climates. With an inboard you have to get them winterized (unless stored in a heated garage) which means you can really only use them May-September. If you run earlier/later than that you run the risk of them freezing if you get a late spring/early fall cold snap. If you get an outboard they are self draining and all you have to do is run the water out of them and you are good to go. It's nice to be able to get out on that rare 80 day in October or even April.

If you have a family I would seriously steer you in the direction of a Pontoon. They are crazy roomy and unless you are a serious wakeboarder provided you get enough ponies they can easily handle ski and tube pulling. Plus depending on the size you can actually camp on the boat!

I know others have mentioned buying boats online but my personal belief is you are better off spending a bit more (although I'd imagine you wouldn't have to) and getting something used from a reputable dealer in your local area. If you were in the middle of Iowa with only one or two choices you can end up paying a bit more for a boat, but in MN there is enough supply to choose from you are going to get a good price. Plus while their are no guarantees buying a used boat most dealers don't knowingly put POS inventory on thier lots, it's bad for their reputation. Their are a myriad of things to check out when buying a boat and it's very easy for someone to sell you a 10k boat that needs 5k worth of work especially if they don't care if you are satisfied.

Make sure you check out the condition of the wood decking and seats/cushions before you buy. It's one thing many people overlook and it can cost you 1k or more if you buy something that needs rebuilt.

Late summer is a GREAT time to buy a used boat. As the summer wears on many dealers get overstocked in used boats from trade ins and they absolutely want to sell them before summer ends. Most marinas offer storage and the more used boats they have for sale taking up space the less storage they can sell and they know that if it's still for sale at the end of July there's a good chance they will get stuck with it until the following spring.

I agree with everything this poster said, especially about finding deals late in the Summer. Only downside of a pontoon is they aren't as simple to drop in and pull out if you aren't looking at also investing in a dock/slip lease on a particular lake in your area.

[Jonecy]

Personally I would go with a boat for reasons already mentioned. You can camp without a trailer, and even if tents arent your thing you can buy a small pop up travel trailer fairly cheap.

I have owned about a half dozen boats as an adult or as a child and beings you are in MN I would recommend getting an outboard for nothing other than they are a hell of a lot easier to maintain in cold weather climates. With an inboard you have to get them winterized (unless stored in a heated garage) which means you can really only use them May-September. If you run earlier/later than that you run the risk of them freezing if you get a late spring/early fall cold snap. If you get an outboard they are self draining and all you have to do is run the water out of them and you are good to go. It's nice to be able to get out on that rare 80 day in October or even April.

If you have a family I would seriously steer you in the direction of a Pontoon. They are crazy roomy and unless you are a serious wakeboarder provided you get enough ponies they can easily handle ski and tube pulling. Plus depending on the size you can actually camp on the boat!

I know others have mentioned buying boats online but my personal belief is you are better off spending a bit more (although I'd imagine you wouldn't have to) and getting something used from a reputable dealer in your local area. If you were in the middle of Iowa with only one or two choices you can end up paying a bit more for a boat, but in MN there is enough supply to choose from you are going to get a good price. Plus while their are no guarantees buying a used boat most dealers don't knowingly put POS inventory on thier lots, it's bad for their reputation. Their are a myriad of things to check out when buying a boat and it's very easy for someone to sell you a 10k boat that needs 5k worth of work especially if they don't care if you are satisfied.

Make sure you check out the condition of the wood decking and seats/cushions before you buy. It's one thing many people overlook and it can cost you 1k or more if you buy something that needs rebuilt.

Late summer is a GREAT time to buy a used boat. As the summer wears on many dealers get overstocked in used boats from trade ins and they absolutely want to sell them before summer ends. Most marinas offer storage and the more used boats they have for sale taking up space the less storage they can sell and they know that if it's still for sale at the end of July there's a good chance they will get stuck with it until the following spring.

Thanks for the info Domyag - I tried to give you some rep, but apparently I've given too much in the last 24 hours.

[Jonecy]

Well, the wife and I have decided to go with a boat and not an RV, but I think it will be awhile until we find one we like that fits our budget.

I also wanted to post a great website I've been using that's full of good information and references for anyone that's new to boating or thinking about buying a boat. There's a lot to plan & think about before buying a boat and this site about covers it all and is very easy to navigate.

Discover Boating - Information, Destinations, Boat Finder & More

Thanks again for everyone's input and happy boating to those of you lucky enough to be out on the water. I can't wait until that first launch!!!

[Cyvilian]

Lots of boat love on here...

One comment on the RV side. If it has sleeping quarters, kitchen, and bathroom, you can write your loan interest off on your taxes as a second home.
I would assume you could do the same with a similarly equipped boat, although I'm no expert on the details of tax law. But, I have done, and know plenty who have written off RV loan interest.

[gordonjj]

BTW-I'm also in the mood for a boat to go with my rv rentals. It's only taken me about 10 years to forget how big of pain they are to own.

From buying to maintaining I cannot explain till now whether it's anger, pain or impatience. It brings in all these mixed feelings.