07-24-2018, 03:25 AM
As much as I respect the other members of this forum, and my comments are not meant as disrespect to them, my advice would be to not rely on ad hoc advice from this or any forum for making decisions on boating off the east side of the Big Island. Your best course of action, I think, would be to enroll in a (Hilo based) Coast Guard boating class before you make any decisions on what boat to buy and where to deploy it. The waters around these islands are, unless you are from Alaska, likely different from anything you have experienced before. I've been out with highly experienced boaters from the mainland, and they were way out of their depth here (pardon the pun) - and very nearly didn't survive one such outing. Even experienced mariners get themselves into trouble out here.