Boating when alone

[Bentwings]

John, you hit on another issue not often taken seriously. Cold water.

I’m going to go off track here just a moment, it’s winter so there is some arm chair time here.LOL

I was on the swim team throu Jr HS, HS, and college. I was no star being of football and hockey build. I did all the exercises and competed as hard as I could every time.

In college I became military with ROTC. My dream was to fly. Since I was swimming the commander recommended that I take cold water training as Oct was beginning of Artic clothing for flying. So I did. I now hate cold water but it wasn’t over. For us guys swimming, an easy Grade point adder was to to take advanced swimming classes. Well, the instructor happened to be a former Olympic competitor and female. She didn’t like that the swim guys were taking her classes for GPA boost. So we got singled out for her special brand of swimming. Life saving with cold water testing. There is plenty of it here.
Life saving was a half mile swim to a struggling victim....her. Distance was easy for us but she put a time limit on it. Then we had to rescue her. She was like a Nija shark. I got more bruises from her than I ever did playing hockey or football. We had to drag her back to the shallow end of the pool. She didn’t say we had to put her up on the deck. So she failed me. I wasn’t happy so I said let’s do it again. And we did. She did the Ninja shark thing again but this time got hold of her solidly, I boosted her to the deck and jumped out. I said I’d do CPR but you are breathing ok. She said no thanks to you. She gave me an A. Then said tomorrow is cold water, meet at the lake.

There is a good video on cold water training on YouTube. It’s a real issue that people brush off at the marina. It good that you have noted it. I’m deeply concerned as the Big River is very cold in the spring and again after mis September. As you noted reboarding in fast current isn’t going to happen even if you are a good swimmer. Part of our training both military and college was swimming fully clothed. It’s not easy. I’ve already stopped by the SCUBA shop to see if there is some wet suit that I could wear all day. There is. It would protect you well enough to paddle to shore in the marina. I have a change of clothes and a towel in the car and I leave the keys in it.

Last fall I heard that a kid fell in one pier down while we were retrieving a loose house boat. Apparently they got him out as I didn’t hear anymore.

I worry about falling in at night as I’m a night owl. I’ve already been out on the water at night and it’s very lonely out there especially after Sept 1st. Having a locator, good PFD, water proof VHF, and wet suit could save your life.

I’m 77 so a bit of rarity. Most of my friends are younger and have more titanium in them than a Steath bomber. Nevertheless I’m going to test the cold water this year but with a line and a couple helpers. There is a fire department about 2 miles from the marina so it’s some comfort. I hope I don’t become a statistic.

At advanced age it sure would not hurt to join the local health club that has a pool. Go just once a week and paddle a few laps. Just hang in the deep end and tread water for 15 minutes. We used to have a pool side clock. Time goes really slow when you are watching the clock, treading water fully clothed. But it can give you an inside to being in the water.

Sorry for drifting off, so back to single handling.

It’s nice to have all the kind words and help. I’m hoping I can contribute more as the season goes.

Byron

[Bentwings]

Tillsbury notes backing in. I surely will try it. It would make boarding much simpler for my dog as well as me. Just a short ramp would work for my dog.

I’d be backing against a 4-5 mph current plus prevailing wind. More than likely I’d have to do the side slip only in reverse. Since the current will hit the rudders there may be some effect there. I haven’t done that except the first lock issue on one motor.

Once I get nose in down to only a couple try’s I’ll try single engine either side. Then we’ll try backing in. I’ll practice out in the channel first.

I tried the prop walk before I brought the boat home. I honestly could not get it to work out in the channel. I may get a better chance once I start using the fuel dock as the current will be perpendicular to the boat. The choice is either dock up stream or down stream. I only got to see one boat last summer there and it would be best forgotten. It was bang and grind, not gentle at all. A good share of the boats here are slip queens. If they get out once a month to the pump out they are doing good. Lots of the smaller boats go out but the house boats and big pontoons are slip bound. There are plenty of big boats up on the hard so we’ll see what happens in the spring. I’ll probably be in the first day as I was the last out last fall.

[Lepke]

I dock an 83' boat solo about 80% of the time. The key is planning and preparation. Have your fenders out and lines ready long before your approach. My first line is always a spring from near the bow running aft. I have an eye on the dock end and the line tied off at the expected length needed. Approach dead slow, hover over the cleat I want for the spring, step out and drop the eye on the cleat.

Idle ahead on one engine until the spring is tight, rudder hard over to bring the stern to the dock and then it's just sending over the other lines while the engine and spring hold the boat in position.

You have to recognize sometimes you have to wait for the wind or currents to be favorable.

[Cheechako]

So, "on the downstream side of the pier" You are motoring into the current I guess...? That's a benefit.

I would probably tie a big loop in the dockline and "lasso" a cleat on the dock, kick out of gear, and tie the line to a cleat on the boat.

[ranger58sb]

Another thought, if someone hasn't mentioned it already: some home slips lend themselves toward pre-set dock lines, that you can just grab from the boat. Might or might not work in your situation, Byron, or if it sorta works it might only work for some lines and maybe not all of them... but you might give that some thought.

Argues for two sets of dock lines for many, one for home and one for traveling.

-Chris

[Bentwings]

Ranger. Yes that’s the plan now.

Cheechako, that’s my situation. I have fixed lines and one long line for lassoing.
There are others too but that’s the current layout.

Lepke, with an 83 footer I feel like a micro organism with my pocket yacht. Planning ahead is what I do. Plan A,B,C and when all else fails do something even if it’s wrong. But yes I’m really a rank newbie and I’m soaking everything up here. Currently I have to lean over the stern to loop the stern line. If I can get it tied off I’m ok as the slip is only about 18” per side wider than my boat. Even if I get cocked in the slip with only the stern line I can muscle the boat over and secure the other lines.

So the problem is to get in the slip first, then snag a cleat, most likely the stern one. They are arranged to allow for the boats to pull back rather than straight out. In fact there are two cleats one about a foot from the end of the slip and one about 8 feet forward. Then the bow and spring line cleats.

I’m going to see if I can alter the canvas so I can reach out from the helm. I have an industrial sewing machine so it shouldn’t be hard to do.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Bentwings

John, you hit on another issue not often taken seriously. Cold water.

I’m going to go off track here just a moment, it’s winter so there is some arm chair time here.LOL

You are probably aware that a local sailing instructor has been missing since last spring. His boat was found with the engine running, in gear. I posted links here at the time. He was last seen 20 miles downstream of your slip.


I wear a wetsuit for my early spring adventures.

[Bentwings]

Jammer, I’m sure glad I’m not alone on cold water saftey.

Byron

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by Bentwings

If I can get it tied off I’m ok as the slip is only about 18” per side wider than my boat. Even if I get cocked in the slip with only the stern line I can muscle the boat over and secure the other lines.

Do you have a finger pier on each side of you when you're in the slip? Or a finger pier on one side and another boat on the other? Or...?

-Chris

[Bentwings]

That’s the word I was looking for. Yes, it’s a finger pier with walkway on both sides. They are no more than 4’ wide. It’s a floating pier, it goes up and down with the river level.

I didn’t know about the missing sailor. That’s sad. The Mighty Miss. is not friendly. You absolutely have to have a PFD on as soon as you hit the ramp on the pier. I’m the only one that does and I’d bet I can swim better with my clothes on than any of them.

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by Bentwings

That’s the word I was looking for. Yes, it’s a finger pier with walkway on both sides. They are no more than 4’ wide. It’s a floating pier, it goes up and down with the river level.

Sounds like that could at least make things slightly easier... not having to worry so much about bashing a boat just next to you.

As I think I understand it, your current is always pushing you straight out of the slip? So you can power directly into the slip, either forward or reverse?

Or do I have that wrong, there's a 90° turn involved?

Or...?

-Chris

[Bentwings]

It’s not quite that easy. Yes the current does push straight out of the slip. However there is only about 60-70 feet between finger of the neighboring piers. I can turn the boat 360 in about it’s own length, but with the strong current that takes more skill than I have.

The mgr gave me a free lesson that was very simple. I only had the port motor running so the turn would be to the right, so on the surface it sounds easy. Not so.
Anyway he just pulled the boat out into the channel and guided it parallel to the current and held it in fixed position about centered in the clearance. He then gentle steered left a little and let the current push the boat sideways down the clearance way. The boat hardly wavered up or down stream. He did gently tickle the throttle. When we got centered on the slip he just tickled the throttle and steered just a little then drove right in without even bumping a bumper.

He said just do the same thing with both motors. Just pop it in and out of gear if you are making headway. Just use a tiny bit of rudder to keep the bow into the current. He said don’t rush, be patient.
He said it’s just too narrow and the current is too strong to try and hold the boat perpendicular to the current then turn the boat. There are over a hundred boats that he moves in and out of the water every year so I guess he knows what he is doing.

I watched others doing the same thing. Most rush and get tangled up. I did it once late in the year when nobody was around. I discovered trying to grab a cleat then too. So I need more practice. My boat is the longest and nearly the widest of boats on the pier so I kinda stand out.

Byron

[ranger58sb]

I think I understand. If so, that whole plan of "crabbing sideways" further into the fairway while you steer upstream and the current does some sideways work for you sounds decent to me. I think that speaks to the "bow in" orientation, too.

Probably even much easier when both engines are running.

-Chris

[Bentwings]

That’s for sure!
The boats on the other side generally back in using the same principle. Although the guy directly opposite me does either way. Most of those boats are less than 30 feet too.

Hopefully I can get some pictures in the spring.

[Jammer]

I see.


With the current on your nose like that, you would really want to get a spring line on first. I would leave a lines on the dock for that, one on each side, from a dock cleat forward back to somewhere you can reach it with a boat hook. If the marina will allow it you could put a lightweight post with a hook on it on each finger, so that the rope is right there hanging where you can reach it easily.


Anyway, you would then take each of those lines to an amidships or aft cleat on your boat, and shut down the engine. The lines would hold the boat more or less in place while you put on whatever else you usually use.