Row, row, row your dinghy...

One of the things that I would have liked to have room for has been a dinghy. It would be nice to be able to anchor out and be able to go ashore. The problem has been twofold. One: storage. Where to put the thing? The liferaft is already in the way, and the last thing I need it more shit to step over when squeezing through the narrow cabin. The inflatable ones are expensive, and really don't get small enough when deflated to be tucked out of the way. Problem Two: price. They want gobs of money for a Zodiac. Think four digits.

So I've just been going without. No longer. West Marine now has a thing called a "Mini Dinghy" that I bought online with some repidation, figuring at $200 it was going to be a total piece of junk. For once I was suprised in a positive way. This thing kicks ass. It inflates to 6'7" and holds 360 lbs, rows easily, and kept me nice and dry while doing laps at the marina last night. It's made by Sevylor, and made to last. With aluminum paddles and carrying bag (small) the thing weighs only 22 lbs!

Of course, me being a lazy bastard, now that I've found that the boat actually does work, I have a 12v motor+battery on the way. Who wants to row?