Are you in the market for an inshore skiff or an offshore boat?  Well, as most of us know, we live in a give and take world.  No one skiff or boat can do everything perfect. 

One of the first questions you should ask your self is what are you going to want to use the skiff or boat for and what are your priorities.  Do you want performance in super skinny water or do you want a comfortable ride in rough seas.  Are you going to be fishing, cruising or scuba diving?  Are you going to be fishing by yourself or are you going to have one, two, three or more people fishing with you on a regular basis.  How important is fuel efficiency to you?  Cruising, fast or slow?  You want a day boat or a sleep aboard?
 
Here are some basics to keep in mind which apply to both inshore skiffs and offshore boats.  The deeper the "V" or hull design coupled with a narrow beam the deeper the draft and the better the ride.  Wide beam boats tend to ride high on the water column and yes on top of the waves giving you a rough ride.  The faster the wide beam boat travels the rougher the ride tends to become, in contrast the faster the narrower hull travels the better the ride becomes.  The draw back on the narrower beam hulls, especially for the inshore skiffs, is that they do tend to draft deeper because of the less water displacement characteristic.  Some hulls with high tech designs compensate for this narrow beam and deeper draft by building the hulls longer offering better displacement.  These higher tech hulls also use some very light but strong building materials and high tech procedures to keep the hulls light.  Long, narrow and light hulls usually results in shallow draft, good ride and good fuel efficiency.  Yes, the heavier hulls will give you a better ride inshore and or offshore, but fuel efficiency and draft will suffer.  Remember what I said at the beginning of this article, "it's a give and take world" and skiffs and boats are not exempt.

Other factors to keep in mind is how wet or dry is the hull, does it splash you as the boat runs?  Poor bow design and heavy bow riding boats tend to be “wet” riding boats.  How quiet is the hull while not being propelled forward with the engine?  This is particularly important for the inshore skiffs while stalking bonefish and other inshore game fish.  Does the boat tend to rock and/or roll very much when drift fishing?  The narrower hull designs tend to rock and/or roll with the waves (offshore) when a sea anchor is not being used.  How high are the gunnels?  If the gunnels are too low, especially for the offshore boats, it makes fishing difficult and safety may also become an issue.  Is the boat powered correctly?  Both cinereous of being under powered or over powered usually cause less than favorable performance(s).  When the boat is under powered it tends to consume more fuel because the engine tends to works very hard all the time.  When it’s over powered it may also be over weighted.  Too much weight at the stern of the boat causes many problems including possible safety concerns.

If you have any questions about fishing, skiffs or boats feel free contacting me direct for more information, Capt. Pier Milito.