Whatever floats your boat

I fought through nasty wind chills on Sunday to attend the Boat Show at River Centre in St. Paul. I was on a mission to upgrade my fishing rig, either by making improvements to my existing boat or buying another.

It didn't take long to experience sticker shock at the price of new boats. I saw many in the $15,000 range and one fully-decked Ranger was listed for $55,000. That's more than double what I paid for the three vehicles I own!

Needless to say, some serious discipline was needed to curb my interest in these high-priced rigs. Applying a substantial dose of moderation, I made my final stop at a display of much more moderately-priced boats. I found something that will fill the bill for less than $5,000 and is substantially bigger than my current 14-foot aluminum boat. But, the price doesn't include the motor.

I'm still debating what to do here. Because I fish the Minneapolis city lakes -- Calhoun, Lake of the Isles and Cedar -- where no outboard motors are allowed, I may not need an outboard. I could get by with a good electric motor, which costs far less than an outboard. I like the idea of saving money and also "going green" by using an electric motor over a gas-powered one. Besides, my brother has an outboard motor that he's not using and I may be able to borrow it when I need to. So, I have options.