Boarding a Dinghy from the Water.

[rigpigpaul]

Hi All, just bought a 3.4m RIb and i intend doing some snorkelling with it. I need to know how you board the dinghy from the water. I am assuming some sort of ladder. Myself and my wife are not as nimble as we used to be so something solid, not a rope ladder would be preferred. All tips and advice appreciated. RPP

[deckofficer]

From your post I see you just bought your dinghy. I too am not as nimble and I'm considering a catamaran dinghy for that reason and ease of planing with the smallest of outboards.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVL7s83XXBw

[JPA Cate]

G'day rigpigpaul,

I'm pretty old, and here's how I do it: it is important that you are wearing fins for this method.

1) Quickly submerge self while holding onto the line that runs across the top of the tubes.
2) Make one great huge scissor kick when you're about stopped going down, to force yourself up as fast as possible, pull up, too, grab/push down on the tube, and get your belly up on it. You are aiming for maximum momentum.

[At that point, Jim would have his arm on the tube for a wedge, but I am not as strong as he]. From there, wiggle like a giant snake, till you can get your feet in. Remove fins, sit up. Pretend it was graceful.

After practicing a bit, you'll get the timing worked out. So I'd suggest your first attempts be near shore, so you can get a rest between attempts. Some of the people are strong enough to shoot out of the water and instantly attain the desired sitting on the top of the tube form; but anything that works will do. One rarely sees dinghy boarding ladders.

Ann

[colemj]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

G'day rigpigpaul,

I'm pretty old, and here's how I do it: it is important that you are wearing fins for this method.

1) Quickly submerge self while holding onto the line that runs across the top of the tubes.
2) Make one great huge scissor kick when you're about stopped going down, to force yourself up as fast as possible, pull up, too, grab/push down on the tube, and get your belly up on it. You are aiming for maximum momentum.


One rarely sees dinghy boarding ladders.

That is how younger people do it also.

While not common on dinghies, we see enough dinghy boarding ladders to make them not uncommon. They do look convenient.

Mark

[tomfl]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

SNIP

From there, wiggle like a giant snake,

SNIP

The way it was explained to me you wiggle like a seal. In fact I have seen it described as the seal entry.

What I did was found some 1 1/4 inch line that had been discarded and pulled it through the hand straps on top of the inflatable with one big loop between two of the hand straps long enough to go a couple of feet under the water. I use that as a foot hold and use a modified seal entry to spring my belly up on one of the tubes and then slide my feet over and into the boat. The 1 1/4 inch line also acts as a chafe guard when I put the inflatable on the davits and it touches the bottom of the seat under the arches. The 1 1/4 inch line also is not nearly as hot to sit on as the inflatable tube in the middle of the day with a hot sun. The 1 1/4 line also helps to prevent dinghy butt when there is dew or spray on the tubes.

I suspect any decent size hawser would work but I just happened to find 1 1/4 inch.

[BandB]

I'd get a ladder. There are a lot of dinghy boarding ladders. Up n out is a nice one. St. Croix. Armstrong makes several. Scandia, Dixon. Windline makes diver ladders which are center rail so you can climb with fins. Rib ladders start under $100, but go to several hundred. Some cost as much as the dinghy.

Here's my reason for suggesting. 95% of the time it may be easy. But there is that other time you don't quite get up and over and you try again, then end up exhausted and in the water. Most don't have a PFD on either. Just a combination I find a bit worrisome.

I've seen several used but have no personal experience using any of the above as our rib is jet and so has a ladder from the rear platform.

[fstbttms]

Skip ahead to the 9:00 minute mark. I climb into my inflatable from the water 6 or 8 times a day. Wearing fins is the key.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgPmXg1-o5g

[Cotemar]

Maybe this will help.

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ml#post1184807

[Amapola]

We have a St. Croix stainless dink ladder. It is very easy to use and folds for storage.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

G'day rigpigpaul,

I'm pretty old, and here's how I do it: it is important that you are wearing fins for this method.

1) Quickly submerge self while holding onto the line that runs across the top of the tubes.
2) Make one great huge scissor kick when you're about stopped going down, to force yourself up as fast as possible, pull up, too, grab/push down on the tube, and get your belly up on it. You are aiming for maximum momentum.

[At that point, Jim would have his arm on the tube for a wedge, but I am not as strong as he]. From there, wiggle like a giant snake, till you can get your feet in. Remove fins, sit up. Pretend it was graceful.

After practicing a bit, you'll get the timing worked out. So I'd suggest your first attempts be near shore, so you can get a rest between attempts. Some of the people are strong enough to shoot out of the water and instantly attain the desired sitting on the top of the tube form; but anything that works will do. One rarely sees dinghy boarding ladders.

Ann

Yeah, on a soft inflatable, this isn't too hard at all. Unless you have room on the transom for a deep rigid ladder, I think a ladder may actually be more work...

[Oliver L.]

RPP,

I get in between the outboard and the tube protruding at the rear. The outboard has a "fin" above the prop that I can get a foot on. Then I grab the top of the outboard and of the tube with one arm each and lift myself up. The only thing to watch out for is that you don't slide off your "step".

Oliver

[thinwater]

Like boarding a kayak from the water, it's important to remember that style does not count. If you can't get high, you can almost certainly get the hips high enough to squrim up. Don't fuss over what it looks like. Seals don't.

It helps if the floor is un-cluttered, so that you can slide into the bottom if needed.

[Pau Hana Daz]

Originally Posted by Amapola

We have a St. Croix stainless dink ladder. It is very easy to use and folds for storage.

Same here. Works great and stows nicely. They're a little on the pricey side though. Ours came with the dink. If it hadn't I'd probably go with the C-Level Sea Steps. BOAT US testers gave them good reviews.
link with picture and info on the St. Croix

link with picture and info on the C-Level

[plottie]

hi there, i see from the original it asks about rigid options (not rope). We do not have the transom for this and thought I'd add for anyone in a similar situation that I would not be without our collapsible dingy ladder. The seal manoeuvres described are darn difficult without fins, not at all elegant and leave me black and blue especially if I catch an oar lock on the way...
I took a pic, this step & rope ladder or versions of it are easy to use, just takes a little getting used to for the first rung. We weight the end with chain for extra stability.

Collapsible Dingy Ladder - Cruisers & Sailing Photo Gallery

[HopCar]

Garelick makes a ladder for inflatable boats that goes over the side.

Garelick Inflatable Boat Ladder Mfg# 13003

Mounting instructions: http://www.garelick.com/files/12.197.pdf

On a RIB you could also attach it to an eye installed in the hull or floor of the boat.