Med mooring side-wind tips

[Johan99]

Consider coming into a typical Mediterranean marina in the sense that you moor stern to the dock using your bow anchor.

On a calm evening it’s a cakewalk, but what if you have 25 knots or so of side wind and no bow thruster? I would really appreciate to hear tips on how-to-do-it from sailors that successfully have learnt to master such situations.

[Hydra]

I am no expert in Med marina mooring but here is some advice from my experience:
- In 25kts of crosswind, I would have everything ready and wait for a lull.
- I would select a berth where the propeller walk pulls the stern against the wind and with another yacht already moored on the lee side (still better if there is another yacht on the wind side, to provide some shelter).
- I would rig all available fenders on my lee side and request permission of the other yacht to come alongside.
- I would drop the anchor slightly upwind and back really fast in the berth, with plenty of slack in the rode, to maintain steerageway as long as possible, killing sternway at the last moment with a burst of ahead power, coming softly alongside the yacht on my lee side.
- Then, there is plenty of time to set and adjust mooring lines, then set the anchor.
IMO, it is better to deliberately come alongside the yacht on the lee side, rather than trying to avoid it and failing in a gust.

Alain

[bobnlesley]

Originally Posted by Johan99

...Mediterranean marina in the sense that you moor stern to the dock using your bow anchor.

...what if you have 25 knots or so of side wind and no bow thruster? .

Easy enough to deal with: You anchor off and/or go elsewhere, then return tomorrow morning when the wind's down and the quay's emptier.

[Johan99]

Originally Posted by Hydra

I am no expert in Med marina mooring but here is some advice from my experience:
- In 25kts of crosswind, I would have everything ready and wait for a lull.
- I would select a berth where the propeller walk pulls the stern against the wind and with another yacht already moored on the lee side (still better if there is another yacht on the wind side, to provide some shelter).
- I would rig all available fenders on my lee side and request permission of the other yacht to come alongside.
- I would drop the anchor slightly upwind and back really fast in the berth, with plenty of slack in the rode, to maintain steerageway as long as possible, killing sternway at the last moment with a burst of ahead power, coming softly alongside the yacht on my lee side.
- Then, there is plenty of time to set and adjust mooring lines, then set the anchor.
IMO, it is better to deliberately come alongside the yacht on the lee side, rather than trying to avoid it and failing in a gust.

Alain

Many thanks Alain.

As I see it, without a bow thruster, the main challenge is to keep the bow and boat 90 degrees to the (side-) wind such that you can back straight into a berth (possibly between two boats), i.e. without ”losing” the bow down wind.

What about backing into the berth with a lot of chain out while at the same time keeping the chain pretty stretched such that the weight and stretch of the chain help keeping the bow fixed such that you can back straight into the berth? Would that be a possible method?

[Hydra]

Unfortunately, the tension in the chain will not prevent the yacht from falling downwind but it will prevent it from backing quickly, so losing the lift from the keel. If the anchor is dropped much upwind of the berth, it will foul the rode of the upwind yacht.


Alain

[goboatingnow]

Originally Posted by Johan99

Consider coming into a typical Mediterranean marina in the sense that you moor stern to the dock using your bow anchor.



On a calm evening it’s a cakewalk, but what if you have 25 knots or so of side wind and no bow thruster? I would really appreciate to hear tips on how-to-do-it from sailors that successfully have learnt to master such situations.

I Med moor all the time

Seriously nobody tries this on in a 25 knot cross wind. It’s a recipe for damage .

Anchor off and wait.


If you try and anchor upwind you’ll cross innumerable other anchors and cause a spectacular mess

If it’s a desperate situation find a stern to with more favourable wind direction

Otherwise (a) you’ll be reversing at a reasonable high speed (b) if it goes wrong you have an anchor grabbing the bottom at the exact wrong time. (C) you WILL make contact with the downwind boat ( usually at a spot the fender misses) and (d) you risk injuring someone on your crew as they fend off

Maybe you get to pull it off , maybe you don’t
Valour suggests you avoid it.

( even with a bow thruster it would be very difficult as bow thrusters are very ineffective if the yacht is moving )

[Johan99]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

I Med moor all the time

Seriously nobody tries this on in a 25 knot cross wind. It’s a recipe for damage .

Anchor off and wait.


If you try and anchor upwind you’ll cross innumerable other anchors and cause a spectacular mess

If it’s a desperate situation find a stern to with more favourable wind direction

Otherwise (a) you’ll be reversing at a reasonable high speed (b) if it goes wrong you have an anchor grabbing the bottom at the exact wrong time. (C) you WILL make contact with the downwind boat ( usually at a spot the fender misses) and (d) you risk injuring someone on your crew as they fend off

Maybe you get to pull it off , maybe you don’t
Valour suggests you avoid it.

( even with a bow thruster it would be very difficult as bow thrusters are very ineffective if the yacht is moving )

Many thanks! Nothing beats actual experience .

[meirriba]

As to bow thrusters -
They do help, but:
In my experience, they are usually too weak to fight cross winds over ~15kn. In stronger wind you need to mix your back sailing direction with the BT help, you cannot rely on the BT itself.
It is unhealthy for the thruster to be under load for longish times. Usually you are supposed to push it for few seconds and release.

Most/all above comments are correct. I can only add that it may be worthwhile to practice med-mooring on a free quay to learn the idiosyncrasies of the particular boat you sail, and do it in different wind situations. You will learn how well it keeps direction, what is the prop side kick and how the thruster influences the direction.
The stronger wind you practice in, the more knowledge will be gained.