forgone the evil outboard
I'll raise a small contrary opinion here. It's true that outboards can often be a PITA, and I have (once again) sworn never to own a 2-stroke engine again, but the right one can be moderately acceptable. I think that you mentioned the Nissan/Tohatsu 2.5 HP and many of them seem to do well. But... If my friend's dink motor is typical of them it is also unpleasant to share a boat with it because of noise, vibration and smell. On the other hand, there have been quite a few times when I've used Umiaq as a small (slow) power boat and enjoyed poking around harbors, rivers and even the Port of Fort Lauderdale while pushed by my Honda 5HP. Yes, it's too big, powerful and heavy for an M-15 but it's also quiet, smooth and easy to live with. The 2HP is a fine motor, but it isn't as undemanding except for when you're carrying it! It's not that I have anything against human power, and I spent a delightful morning exploring shallow water around a Smithsonian Institution research center in a deflatable powered by a silent trolling motor, but outboards really have got a lot better since British Seagulls were trying to remove our fingers. Having said all that... I'm beginning to wonder how it would work if there were a pair of rowlocks mounted on the cockpit coaming to allow rowing by pushing forward on the oars -- I seem to remember some traditional craft somewhere are rowed this way. Giles Morris