Just to throw another log on the fire, you might consider the DB4e from Antennas Direct
http://www.antennasdirect.com/cmss_f...y/DB4E-TDS.pdf
Substantial gain in a small package, and it has a fat beam (see the link). The one wrinkle is the single VHF station, but the DB4e will act like a VHF antenna off the boresight (not guaranteed to work here, but it's working for me). Even if it doesn't, you can add a dipole add-on for $20 that should suffice.
You can get the DB4e delivered from SolidSignal for $50.