Dumb Question? 'Beaching' vs 'Running Aground'

[boatman61]

No such thing as a dumb question.. maybe dumb answers..
Certain important things to remember when beaching/careening a boat...
Ground her 1 hour before high water..
Only do it on approaching spring tides so each tide is that bit higher than the previous one...
Get it wrong side of the 'Springs' and you'll spend near a fortnight waiting to get her off again..
Its been practised all over Europe where decent tidal ranges exist for centuries and was used regularly by me when based in the UK.. works well down here in Portugal as well..

[Freddy_Vagner]

Originally Posted by Jimbo485

We found even a pair of socks does ok for a few hours.

Yes you are right; especially if you put them in a plastic bag before stuffing them into the hole. If you don't have any carrots then try a potato...

[Hudson Force]

Remaining upright when careening is far less convenient for cleaning and painting than the angle with the side of the hull presented for work on a full keel vessel. One tide cycle allows for work on each side of the boat.

We used to careen frequently back in the 70's & 80's, but now we hual out at a boat yard and simply run aground now and then when we are poking into shallow anchorages....

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by tomfl

I tend to think paying a yard to have a boat hauled is worth the money to me. Most yards have things like power washing, power outlets for tools, and fresh water hoses. While I try to carry a good supply of tools on my boat I do have access to more specialized tools in a yard.

YMMV

In this part of the world (with enough tidal range to permit drying out) what you find is that there are places to dry out alongside harbour walls (fin keelers simply lean against the wall - with good fendering!) that also have power and / or water in reach. Not everywhere of course, but seek and ye shall find . Being able to avoid the cost of a haulout (and being able to work around own timetable and not a yard's) makes life easier - as long as you are happy to do the work for self.

[charliehows]

used to beach my 30' trimaran all the time, just run her up on the beach and hop off the front with the anchor and drop it up in the dry sand. Even did it in the dark occasionally although i learned a lesson doing it one night on waiheke island at the top of the tide expecting to float off in the morning - water didnt even reach the hull, had to wait all day til it floated off on the evening tide. know your tide times. Careening is different really - more about monohulls and fixing/cleaning the hull - most of the western world has pretty much outlawed careening to clean/antifoul because of pollution.

[boatman61]

Good job Europe's in the Eastern World..

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by charliehows

most of the western world has pretty much outlawed careening to clean/antifoul because of pollution.

news to me....

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by charliehows

................ Careening is different really - more about monohulls and fixing/cleaning the hull - most of the western world has pretty much outlawed careening to clean/antifoul because of pollution.

I agree that some tasks performed during careening could be pollutive, but the act of careening presents no harm. I've never heard of any law prohibiting careening in my part of the western world.

[Strait Shooter]

I'm helping a friend careen a Dreadnaught later this week. He's made some "legs" for her to stand on that are attached to the boat.

This is a first for me and I'm looking forward to it BUT I would have thought that here in Puget Sound the environmentalist or someone would complain about crushing a crab or something.

I'll make sure to take some pics to share.

John

[Strait Shooter]

I still see tidal grids around the Sound alongside old docks and wonder why they aren't used anymore. I understand the bottom cleaning pollution aspect, but what about repairs and inspections? It really seems like a lot less hassle to tie up alongside and wait for the tide to roll out.

[mottseng]

[charliehows]

hmm...poorly expressed by me as usual...obviously theres nothing illegal about beaching/careening per se, but cleaning off old antifoul on the beach is likely to attract unwanted attention and certainly here in Australia there are some draconian laws that the authorities can hit you with if they choose - maybe 'the western world' was a bit loose as a category...

[hpeer]

When we bought the Pape she had two fittings on each side, about midship.

It turns out the fittings were for legs. You screw them out from inside and hook the legs onto them.

Unfortunately, we got no legs!

I kind of doubt they were ever used.

BTW, an English Boat.

[estarzinger]

Originally Posted by Nicholson58

Pardeys had a custom boat designed with a fully retractable keel & rudder

mmmmm . . . sorry but NO . . . both their boats have had fixed full keels. Nothing 'retractable'. They were 'beachable' but by leaning them over.



Back to the thread . . . retractable keel yachts have been used extensively in the arctic and antarctic because they allow you to get in water that it too shallow for big icebergs (remember 9/10 under water). But they also allow you to get in water shallow enough that a mistake is very easy - quite a few rudders damaged on these sorts of designs.

[Adelie]

Originally Posted by planetluvver

....I was told that the Pardey's are crazy.

People think the Parey's are crazy for having made choices that they would have found unimaginable, to wit
A). building their own sailboat
B). Out of wood
C). And foregoing an motor of any sort
D). And then sailing it offshore
E). While foregoing a life raft.

While I would not make some of these decisions I have read enough of their writings to understand the practical reasons and value judgements for their decisions.