How to Dock a Boat Correctly

[OldDan1943]

When in high school a good friend taught me to never, Never, NEVER use your hands to fend your boat off. He sported a cast, having tried to fend off a 70' fish boat that he had spent the summer (truncated by the broken wrist) working on.

Your docking spot, side tying on the side to which your prop walk will pull, requires walking the boat out of its slip far enough that you can spring yourself off the dock. Yours is pointy at both ends, so you might have as much success going fwd as aft to get away from the dock. Once away far enough to turn around, backing and filling, off you go.

The video emphasizes going slow. It also emphasizes watching where your momentum is taking you. Use your boat. Learn where its momentum takes you when you set your rudders and apply fwd or reverse. Every boat will teach you what to do as long as you let it. Did I mention Go Slow?

I concur with spring line. How far away are you from the sea wall. Too bad you cant get a spring on the starboard side.
I also concur with back a fill. Once you back out of the slip, back and fill to put your cockpit where ever you want it.
How wide is the fairway?
Instead of backing straight out of the slip, how does your boat back with the rudder centered? Keep an eye on the bow and the sea wall.

 

[markpierce]

Engaging the engine to control direction (water flow passing the rudder) can be undesirable. Going slow works. A bow thruster on a single-engined boat is handy because one can steer without engaging the engine.

 

[Chrisaensing]

Aren't there a lot of differences in docking techniques for inboard vs outboard engines? It would seem that having the ability to turn the propellers in the direction you need would offer much better maneuverability than simply directing water flow past the rudders.

Yes but...usually an inboard has much larger props set farther apart & you get a little better control.

 

[Art]

I came across this little video. Might help someone out there in TF land.


https://youtu.be/Mx0LEAWsE_k

What they say is true. However, the rather small boats [many with multiple outboard engines] seem relatively incongruent as compared to most boat types on TF.

 

[Peter B]

Here's a boat handling/docking question for the hive. I can get into my slip blindfolded. At slip #6 I go hard over to starboard and I go in perfectly. Getting out of my slip is tricky. First of all, based on #6, consider how poor my turning radius is. Then consider wind direction. So, how would you get out of this slip? I will explain how the previous owner suggested after hearing a few... suggestions

Not sure about anyone else, but your sketch has me confused. Are you the berth/boat you've labelled #6, (sort of top left of diagram), or are you the boat in the bottom right berth where your (me) arrow suggests that's you.

Depending on which you are referring to, as you keep referring to #6, the technique of getting in and out is very different. If in the one you numbered #6, (top left) it would be relatively easy. Basically what I had with my berth in fact. Just reverse out slow, once you have decent 'slow' way on, then put rudder hard to port, gear into forward, and when well clear of the dock, but before you get too close to the opposite boats, give a burst of forward revs. The combined effect of the rear momentum, suddenly countered by forward thrust with port rudder results in a hefty lateral shift of the stern to the right. A tactic I found the most singularly useful thing for manoeuvring my 11 tone single engined, no thruster CHB34. You would then be good to proceed down the fairway.

If you are talking about the bottom right situation, where the boat is slap against the dock as you back out, then that is more tricky, for sure. I would think unless the wind was very strong from the starboard side, in which case maybe don't go - then slow reverse...if necessary fending off dock with boathook, (need crew here), with rudder hard to starboard for some rightward movement of the stern as you back out in a somewhat diagonal direction to the right. Then once well clear of the other boat to your right, do similar to what I suggested above, with a burst of forward throttle with rudder now hard to port, giving your stern a better shove in the direction of clear water, (away from the dock, in other words), where you would finally be able to reverse to an area where you could put her hard over to starboard again and slow forward and rotate more or less in your own length to proceed down the fairway.

Again, talking the bottom right situation you label me, but is not #6 in my book, if the wind is a bit strong, you could use the tactic always useful in getting off a downwind dock without thrusters, by placing a large bow fender at dock edge level, reversing slowly back alongside the dock until well out, then pass a line around a bollard or dock cleat that can be easily retrieved, (again you'd need experienced help here unless it's right outside your pilot door), then in slow forward, rudder hard to port, 'lean' her bow on the dock fender, and it will swing the stern out as far as you like. Then slow reverse, rudder midships, release and retrieve dock-line as you move away, and from there it would be managed as for the above once you have room to about turn. How does that sound..?

 

[rsn48]

Aren't there a lot of differences in docking techniques for inboard vs outboard engines? It would seem that having the ability to turn the propellers in the direction you need would offer much better maneuverability than simply directing water flow past the rudders.

My friend has a Back Cove 34 and it is, crap I forget the proper term, but engine in the center of the boat with a fixed prop and shaft and water over the rudder. His reverse performance is not nearly as good as my I/O stern drive boat with the propeller pulling the boat around, not relying on flow of current over a rudder in reverse.

I haven't tried it out yet but I'm curious if I put my bow thruster over to port and turn the stern drive as though I was turning to port in forward gear, but reversed it instead while applying bow thruster to port, would it pull the boat side ways or pretty much so?

 

[BrianG]

Not sure about anyone else, but your sketch has me confused. Are you the berth/boat you've labelled #6, (sort of top left of diagram), or are you the boat in the bottom right berth where your (me) arrow suggests that's you.

Depending on which you are referring to, as you keep referring to #6, the technique of getting in and out is very different. If in the one you numbered #6, (top left) it would be relatively easy. Basically what I had with my berth in fact. Just reverse out slow, once you have decent 'slow' way on, then put rudder hard to port, gear into forward, and when well clear of the dock, but before you get too close to the opposite boats, give a burst of forward revs. The combined effect of the rear momentum, suddenly countered by forward thrust with port rudder results in a hefty lateral shift of the stern to the right. A tactic I found the most singularly useful thing for manoeuvring my 11 tone single engined, no thruster CHB34. You would then be good to proceed down the fairway.

If you are talking about the bottom right situation, where the boat is slap against the dock as you back out, then that is more tricky, for sure. I would think unless the wind was very strong from the starboard side, in which case maybe don't go - then slow reverse...if necessary fending off dock with boathook, (need crew here), with rudder hard to starboard for some rightward movement of the stern as you back out in a somewhat diagonal direction to the right. Then once well clear of the other boat to your right, do similar to what I suggested above, with a burst of forward throttle with rudder now hard to port, giving your stern a better shove in the direction of clear water, (away from the dock, in other words), where you would finally be able to reverse to an area where you could put her hard over to starboard again and slow forward and rotate more or less in your own length to proceed down the fairway.

Again, talking the bottom right situation you label me, but is not #6 in my book, if the wind is a bit strong, you could use the tactic always useful in getting off a downwind dock without thrusters, by placing a large bow fender at dock edge level, reversing slowly back alongside the dock until well out, then pass a line around a bollard or dock cleat that can be easily retrieved, (again you'd need experienced help here unless it's right outside your pilot door), then in slow forward, rudder hard to port, 'lean' her bow on the dock fender, and it will swing the stern out as far as you like. Then slow reverse, rudder midships, release and retrieve dock-line as you move away, and from there it would be managed as for the above once you have room to about turn. How does that sound..?

I am slipped where it says "Me", the #6 boat is where I go hard over to starboard to get into the slip. So the #6 boat is a landmark only.

 

[BrianG]

So the way the previous owner instructed me to leave the slip requires two people minimum. In Neutral, engine warm, I grab the bow line, partner grabs the stern line. We walk the boat along the dock until my boat is stern to stern with boat #1. Then I push the bow for all I'm worth away from the dock and climb aboard and grab the steering. The prevailing wind wants to push the bow back toward the dock at this point. Then I direct my partner to push the stern away from the dock to clear the prop and step aboard (being cautious to not foul the prop). Last thing is shift to forward, hard over to starboard and goose the engine to move the stern laterally to straighten the bow. It's worked so far, but in a stiff wind I am reluctant to take her out. Not yet anyway.

 

[BrianG]

I'm definitely not great at docking .but if I tried to back my single in and swing the bow up wind like in the first example it would end horribly. I have to do the opposite.

Yes, I didn't love that idea either.

 

[BruceK]

So the way the previous owner instructed me to leave the slip requires two people minimum. In Neutral, engine warm, I grab the bow line, partner grabs the stern line. We walk the boat along the dock until my boat is stern to stern with boat #1. Then I push the bow for all I'm worth away from the dock and climb aboard and grab the steering. The prevailing wind wants to push the bow back toward the dock at this point. Then I direct my partner to push the stern away from the dock to clear the prop and step aboard (being cautious to not foul the prop). Last thing is shift to forward, hard over to starboard and goose the engine to move the stern laterally to straighten the bow. It's worked so far, but in a stiff wind I am reluctant to take her out. Not yet anyway.

Very understandable. Boating is meant to be fun. Perhaps you got that slip as the newest member of the marina with a boat that would fit. Maybe a letter to the Marina Manager asking to be in the running when the next more accommodating slip comes vacant.

 

[BrianG]

Very understandable. Boating is meant to be fun. Perhaps you got that slip as the newest member of the marina with a boat that would fit. Maybe a letter to the Marina Manager asking to be in the running when the next more accommodating slip comes vacant.

I actually love the slip.

 

[Peter B]

I actually love the slip.

In that case, I suggest you digest and mentally go over the process I outlined for that berth in my last two scenarios, now we have established that the boat in #6 was just a turning point. I think what I have suggested might look and feel a bit more elegant than walking the boat along, then invoking massive shoves that would take a lot of effort to move even your quite modest vessel, to get it away from the dock. Especially the second tactic, leaning the bow against a dock level fender, while tethered to a dock cleat or bollard, and swinging the stern out under slow forward power with the rudder hard to port. Works a dream when pinned by wind, and looks quite impressive to onlookers.

In light weather just slow reverse out, then several blips of forward thrust with the rudder hard to port to kick the stern around enough to back out to where you can turn around and head out would also look good, and be less taxing physically that pushing off, and could well be done without help if necessary.

 

[psneeld]

If I had your slip and had a single, no thruster boat that prop walked to port....

I wouldn't care how much I loved that slip....in more than 12 knits or so of wind (if always from that direction), getting out will akways be a struggle....no matter who you are or what you do.

Too many things against you. If most of the time the winds aren't exactly from that direction or are lighter than 12 knots or so....different story..... and after bow spring on your port side after out of the slip, then back down the fairway.

One other possibility...if deep enough and my rudder cleared underneath the long floating dock....I would back into my slip, then use a forward after spring on my starboard side when clear of the slip and back against it to get my bow into the wind and forward out the fairway.

 

[Hippocampus]

Would add the following after cruising as a mom and pop. We usually go into slip in a place we’ve never been to before as we been cruising from country to country.
Have hand signals worked out and never vary them.
Teach our crew to pay absolutely no attention to anyone else even if it’s the Dockmaster. Only listen to the captain. Talk through the plan before coming in. “ throw them the port bow line first, then the stern” or Give them a midship line ...I’ll back down on that to swing in” whatever you think best.
Use lines. In strong currents have had her lasso the first cleat on the dock and used the engine with helm to straighten the boat out. Or used a spring and the curvature of the hull to pivot the boat. In other words using temporarily secured lines to position or move the boat can be very helpful.
Slow is pro. Slow is pro. Slow is pro.
Boat weighs as much as a house. You don’t push on a house and expect to move it.
Never jump from the boat on to a dock. Miss and you can be crushed to death. Learn to lasso cleats. Get off the boat when secured and then rearrange things.
Once in put the loop on the dock. Cleat line at your end. Then in case of fire or other mishap you can leave without having to get on the dock except to disconnect power cord.
Do your fenders (both sides) and lines (both sides)before entering. Now have more options sometimes you think you’re going in bow first and end up stern first. Sometimes you will bump into the boat next door.

 

[rslifkin]

Boat weighs as much as a house. You don’t push on a house and expect to move it.
Never jump from the boat on to a dock. Miss and you can be crushed to death. Learn to lasso cleats. Get off the boat when secured and then rearrange things.
Put the loop on the dock. Cleat line at your end. Then in case of fire or other mishap you can leave without having to get on the dock except to disconnect power cord.

It always shocks me how many dock hands think they can just take a line and drag a boat into a slip. I've had to explain to a few that the technique that works with a small boat doesn't work so well when you're trying to move 26,000 lbs. It's just a risk of getting hurt.

On my boat, general SOP is for a person to stand at the aft rail opening with a spring line in hand. If a person is on the dock and competent, hand off the spring line and get it cleated. Otherwise, I'll slide the stern up to the dock to allow them to step off. Generally, at least with this boat, I can give a person an opportunity to step off safely (without jumping) more reliably than most of us can lasso a cleat. Once that aft spring is cleated, I can pin the boat nicely against the dock with the engines as long as needed to take care of the rest of the lines.

Departure process for us varies depending on wind and the dock layout. Sometimes it's pin the boat against the dock with the aft spring, release all other lines, then go to neutral, untie the spring, step aboard and go. Other times, we'll transfer a bow line to just looped around a cleat and then in hand on the boat and that'll be the last line off, released from the boat end. How we tie and how we end up releasing depends a bit on the slip layout as well as the cleat types and positions.

 

[Art]

There are a lot of reasons why I love twin screws!

One BIG one is maneuverability atvery slow speeds, especially docking!

The wider the props are to each side... the easier it is to be in control of a boat's position and altered moves at very slow speed [basically in idle rpm].

 

[Hippocampus]

Twins are great but you may still need thrusters. Ever try to dock a cat in a crosswind and you rapidly see the limitations. Have very experienced friend with 53’ cf cat. Engines are 22’ apart. Try as he might couldn’t get the cat into a 75’ space on a fuel dock. Every time he had it parallel to the dock it just blew away from the dock. Tried to just get the bow close enough to be able to throw a line figuring to back down on that line to swing in. Even that didn’t work. Finally gave up and left to anchor out. Waited until wind abated and then got fuel.

 

[Art]

Twins are great but you may still need thrusters. Ever try to dock a cat in a crosswind and you rapidly see the limitations. Have very experienced friend with 53’ cf cat. Engines are 22’ apart. Try as he might couldn’t get the cat into a 75’ space on a fuel dock. Every time he had it parallel to the dock it just blew away from the dock. Tried to just get the bow close enough to be able to throw a line figuring to back down on that line to swing in. Even that didn’t work. Finally gave up and left to anchor out. Waited until wind abated and then got fuel.

1st mistake - having a cat.

1st good move - waiting.

Just kidding - sort of!!

 

[psneeld]

My friend with a big Moorings, I think has sail drives aft of the rudders. Not as good at maneuvering despite wide apart engines....but I never handled one to say what really works.

In a good current, pivoting was weird.

 

[Alaskan Sea-Duction]

Wow what a great conversation and practice problems too!

DUMP ALL THE ABOVE

This is only one answer to docking a boat. What is that say you?


APPROACH THE DOCK AS FAST AS YOU WANT TO HIT IT!!

Done...

 

[psneeld]

Going slow works most of the tme,not all the time.

 

[rslifkin]

Going slow works most of the tme,not all the time.

Yup. My mantra is "as slow as possible, but as fast as necessary". Approaching a face dock with the wind blowing you off and no thrusters often requires a decent bit of speed to avoid getting blown off before you can get close enough.

 

[MurrayM]

We rarely get people visiting or fuelling up here, because it's about 50 miles up channel from the Inside Passage. There are a couple factors newcomers get confused with...I know, because it took me a while to figure them out.

Wind is like water in the way it flows. Our marina is tucked up beside a small mountain, so even though the wind might be due south in the main channel, it follows the contour of the mountain and will be due east in the marina. The change occurs abruptly a couple hundred feet from shore.

There is a bay just north of the marina with a narrow entrance. With a falling tide it sets up a back eddy, so inside the marina currents can be opposite of currents in the channel. At low slack, the back eddy breaks up and there can be back eddies inside back eddies.

I saw one transient boat come into our fuel dock and the captain got confused by the boat not doing what he expected. He got swung sideways and was probably going to back out and try again, but his mate (looked to be in his mid 60's) decided to jump heroically from the bow to the cement fuel dock with line in hand.

He did not land with the grace of a leopard jumping from a tree branch.

 

[OldDan1943]

A brief suggestion.
You steer from the stern
Know where you bow is
Put a couple of line handlers on the seawall then see how far you can get without the aid of the line handlers.
Back and fill, repeat as necessary
Practice, practice, practice.
After 10 or 12 times you might discover you do not need those line handlers. SMILE

Warning: I had a fender to hang up on a piling and almost ruined my day and the boat next to me too. Generally, I will pull in the fenders but keep them at the ready.
I also have 2 fair size round fenders. To date, they do not hang up, watch the lines to the fenders.

Observe the wind. If you do not have an apparent wind indicator, watch your forward pendant (or pendent). Watch the onshore flags and or the smoke from nearby smoke stacks.

Sure would be nice if you had a piling or two, separating the two slips.

How wide is the fairway?

 

[Hippocampus]

Was in St.Barts for race week. Totally bumper cars watching the 60 footers plus try to Med moor in a wind parallel to the docks and just small auxiliaries with folding props. Even with dinghies helping out could hear the crushes from the waterfront bar.
Sometimes best choice is to anchor out. But they were holding festivities and sponsors wanted the boats there for the promo value. Just crazy as spreaders got locked together.

 

[BrianG]

It's a little tricky getting her out of the slip, getting her back in to the slip is inversely proportional to the difficulty of getting her out. So here's an idea. Okay so I loathe outboards. I want to put a small electric trolling motor on my dinghy. How about if I improvised a removable bow thruster with such an electric motor to get the bow headed up the fairway? Anyone seen a setup like this?

 

[rslifkin]

A trolling motor on the bow could certainly help, the question is how much wind it would be effective in.

 

[OldDan1943]

I seem to recall they make an electric motor for that purpose but, they are for sail boats.

If you are going to all that trouble, why not get a real bow thruster. When someone recommends a size, based upon my experience with my N46 and its puny bow thruster, get the next size up. Do it right the first time and never worry again.

 

[BrianG]

I seem to recall they make an electric motor for that purpose but, they are for sail boats.

If you are going to all that trouble, why not get a real bow thruster. When someone recommends a size, based upon my experience with my N46 and its puny bow thruster, get the next size up. Do it right the first time and never worry again.

it'd be very expensive. it's not an expensive boat and I wouldn't want to cut into the hull. I was planning to get an electric motor anyway so I will give it a try. Boat only weighs 11,000 lbs. Might be a fun project and i want an ectric anyway for the dinghy.

 

[Beaverlake]

As has been stated, slow is good - but as slow as necessary. Sometimes with a crosswind slow doesn’t cut it. Use fenders and lines! I was given some advice that should have been intuitive - when arriving or leaving a side tie (sort of the situation in the OPs post), have a crew member “mobile” on the foredeck with an extra fender that he or she can move as needed to prevent damage. Why? Because sometimes the only way to get off a dock is to drive/twist into the dock and swing your stern out. Actually, same advice if a strong wind is blowing you off the dock and you have to get the bow in tight to lasso a cleat. (Again, side tie).

Finally, and this has been mentioned a few times, “he who docks but turns away shall love to dock another day”. Do NOT let your ego get in the way of better judgement. My personal record in our home slip when we had strong south winds blowing 90 degrees across our slip was five attempts before making a successful sixth. That was getting in just far enough to get a spring line on the second cleat from the end of the dock so I could hold the boat in place. No damage, no yelling, no stress.