Bob...you must ask your self these questions. What type of fishing do I think I will be doing most of , will I be using this boat for day trips or will I stay overnight , Is my wife going to be on the boat all the time or just once in a blue moon. Granted eventually you will get caught in the rain , but would you leave the dock if it was allready raining , do you want to run the rivers or just fish the ocean. These answers will ultimately help you make the descision, what I would do may not be the best for you. I have no use for a cabin in that size boat I fish for shark and tuna either by myself or with a crew , I overnight in the canyons of the NE in sept and oct and it really doesn't bother me . I use my boats for fishing exclusively , no sunset cruises or bar hopping to various ports of call however I do move ports to fish at times .My fishing styles include live and dead bait as well as trolling . When it gets rough the last place she is gonna want to be is in the bow of any boat when it gets cold will she be still going with you or will she opt for the shopping mall? Not knowing either of you it is hard for anyone here to tell you what is the best boat for you. I have owned as many as 3 boats at the same time 1 of them was always a centerconsole. Best advise I could give you is pick 2 boats of each style that you like the best and go see them in person , walk on them ride on them on not such a nice day( they all ride great when its calm out)open the hatches , play with the knobs, check the fit and finish , see if it has enough room for the electronics you want to put on it, make sure it has enough fuel for the traveling you will be doing, make sure there is enough storage for the crap that you will collect and want to leave on the boat like tackle ,PFD's, some clothes, raingear , flare kit , firstaid kit , drinking water. Make sure with all you stuff on board that you still have ample floor space to move around in rough water safley.See if you could get a referance list of some owners of that boat and talk to them and see what the like and dislike about that brand of boat or what they would have done differently . The two place you are talking about operating the boat are worlds apart in the weather synopsis that is another thing make it a bit difficult to get a grip on what the best boat is for you.
