What kind of boat to buy

I'm looking to buy a small boat for the purpose of fishing on lakes. Nothing fancy but it has to be easy to use, maintain, and can "troll" slowly like many fishermen here described. Something below $3k also.

Another question is whether I should buy a boat at all since I don't know much about fishing. All the jigs and lures baffle me. I have been fishing many times over the years but haven't done any big game fishing or any fishing where you have to be on a boat. The biggest fish I ever caught were the shads down in Bonneville dam. They're aren't that good to eat so I ended up giving them away but they sure know how to put up a fight.

Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated. Btw, this is not some sort of phase I'm going through.

Thank you,

Brian

Sounds like a smaller Deep V type of boat would work for you. Something like this: http://www.loweboats.com/Page.aspx/p...gler-165T.aspx You should be able to find a something close to this (but older of course) used for under $3K easy. You'd want to have a trolling (electric) motor on the bow that is foot controlled as well. If you are going to fish any of the larger lakes you'll want to have at least a 16' boat or you could get in some trouble when the wind kicks up and the jetskiers come out to play.

You might be able to find a used bass boat in that range if you look hard. Mines was only $2600. She is not pretty but she gets me to were the fish are and back home safe everytime. There are deals out there that might be worth a look: http://seattle.craigslist.org/sno/boa/700035513.html

Check out Stevens. They are in OR but they carry good boats. http://www.stevensmarine.com/used-boats.php Craigslist might be the best way to go though.