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Dave,

It is easy with a heavy rain for the boat to flood the decks. It happpened once with my 22 while at the dock. I left the plugs in and there was no bilge pump at the time. After about an hour storm where the rain was like a Monsoon the boat flooded to the point of the top of transom was an inch above the water line. I just dropped a pool drain pump in the boat's splashwell and gave it 15 minutes.

When I pulled the rear sump drain on the 22 it only filled up to the point where the notches or ledges are that go into the trapezoidal shape of the splashwell.

While moored where the waves ever crashing over the bow? I had that happen once with our Montauk. Story goes (posted it before so sorry if you have already heard it), I had 4 people and gear in the boat and I had a bit of no wake to get through to get to the open water. If the plug would have been pulled during that time there would have been a lot of in the cockpit. In fact we never ran that boat with the plug out. I still leave the plug in when my Newport is in the water. Running out the the landing area to water was fairly calm and we got to the destination, anchored in a cove out of the wind and waves, unloaded, and hiked around the island. now it was time for me to head back and leave the others there. Wind had shifted and now the once protected cove was getting large rollers coming head on into it. There were a few waves that were rolling over the bow into the cockpit. So I pulled the plug and began to motor out. The boat was very unstable and I had to keep the boat going into the waves. On the way out I took two more waves that rolled into the cockpit and now it was really flooded. To the point that when I tried to power on to plane all of the water rushed to the stern and some even went over the transom. The bow went straight up in the air and the motor started to go under. I backed down and kept pumping overboard while still taking on water every once and a while. Fortunately the bilge was able to help dewater quicker than it was coming in. I know the thru hull alone would have not been able to dewater as fast. Once most of the water was out I was able to turn between the wave crests and run with the waves home. I have never been that afraid in a boat as that day. It was also the day that truly sold me on the safety of Whalers. While most boats would have just sank the Whaler kept going. It took a lot of work to keep it going into the waves and keep it right side up but, it did it.

Looking back maybe I should have just left it anchored and tried to dewater it there....maybe. But, the waves were building and they were rooling over the bow at a faster frequency. Hey, I was a 21 year guy who thought it's a Whaler it is not going to sink so why not try to put it on plane without the plug and bilge on. I was totally blind sided with the unstability I encountered. You live, you learn.