BoatU.S. - August/September 2011

Practical Projects doityourself

Let Your Lines Do The Work

Sturdy hooks attach to any piling to keep lines dry and accessible.

By David and Zora Aiken

Experienced cruisers share their line on
slipping a boat into its berth with stress-free grace

ocking a boat isn’t as easy as parking a car, something novice boat owners learn quickly; the helmsperson simply can’t steer to a stopping point and hit the brakes. Traction is not a factor and there are outside influences the car driver never needs to consider, such as how the wind or current (or both) will alter speed or the intended direction of steering and what can be done to counteract those potentially contrary effects. Even constant repetition is no guarantee of success, as conditions are as varied as the weather.

While there’s no substitute for good boat-handling techniques, there are ways to give the captain an assist. The boat owner who rents a marina slip on an annual basis can use several medium- and low-tech ideas that offer a distinct home port advantage, making it easier and safer to leave and return to the slip and taking some of the worry out of leaving the boat

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to fend for itself when you’re gone.

For permanent marina tenants, dock lines are left in place to drop and pick up when departing and returning. Some slips have a full-length dock (catwalk) along one side or both, perpendicular to the main dock. Floating piers almost always are configured to provide finger piers. These are the easiest slips to enter, leaving the fewest opportunities for mishaps. More common where pilings and docks are fixed is the slip with only a short, narrow — sometimes shaped like a piece of pie — finger pier leading from the main dock on one side.

Another slip may have no finger pier at all. Boarding must then be done directly at the bow or stern, and there is almost no chance for crew to jump off in time for a tie-up assist. Guiding a boat into a slip requires some expertise and the procedure differs depending on whether the captain chooses to dock the boat with bow or stern to the main dock. Once positioned in

During storms, tidal changes, or heavy boat traffic, TideMinders, above, protect lines from fouling and chafing. Left, run a line the full length of the slip to help guide the boat in on days when wind and current do not allow a smooth entry.

the slip, lines must be tied in such a way that the boat is convenient to the dock for boarding at the usual location, but not so close that it risks bumping the dock.

When leaving the boat unattended, most boat owners adjust all dock lines for the purpose of keeping the boat as close to mid-slip as possible through all the tide and wind changes that occur when the boat is at rest. Here are some tips for less stressful close-quarters maneuvers.