Can a boat have too many mooring lines?

[Sandy]

That's not how it works. The marina staff patrol the pontoons every day checking which boats are in, occupied, and out. Anything tied up like a cats cradle or too close to the dock is re-tied, so all the unattended boats are always properly moored. During storms it is just a monitoring exercise in case anything comes adrift ... and they are there at all hours. I've arrived at 2am before and 2 of the staff turned up to find out what I was doing before I got down the companionway steps. The entrance has a barrier with 24hr security and cameras on every pontoon - so all the years I have been there nothing has gone wrong.

That's never been my experience, perhaps I visit the wrong marinas.

 

[johnalison]

A few years ago we had to sit out a gale in Brighton. We were lucky to be on the lee side of the pontoon. As the boat on the left, we appear to have put out six lines. As the breast lines were short they had to have snubbers to allow us to sleep, and they had to be doubled with plain lines just so that we could haul ourselves bear enough to get on and off the boat. You have to be prepared for whatever comes at you. The red boat had a rough time of it.

 

[geem]

We are in Ponta Delgada marina. Its not well protected. The harbour has ships off loading containers, warships visiting, tugs, fishing boats coming and going, etc.
We get quite a bit of wash. At the moment it's blowing 22kts on our beam. We are being blown off the pontoon. We have double springs set. Centre clear to pontoon cleats for and aft and centre pontoon cleat to our cleats for and aft. One set is heavier duty than the other so it takes the load first. Both of the bow lines are doubled with the lighter line taking load first. We swapped the stern line for a 1" line with heavy duty s/s spring to deal with the wash. We are stern out to the harbour. We have 9 lines rigged, all doing a job.

 

[prologica]

Do I have too many mooring lines? The boat is currently moored with two breast ropes and two springs. Only one of these is a line I use in my home marina. So I have three more in the cockpit locker. In addition I have at least six more ropes varying in length from six to 65 meters, some of them with an eye splice. Most of these came with the boat when I bought her 13 years ago, and a number have never been used in my ownership. I did have a clear out in the spring and took three or four more ropes home, intending to throw them away, but they are still in the shed.
I have always heard a boat can’t have too many ropes, but now I am in doubt.
What do the learned folk on this forum think?

As always, it depends. If you have to raft up, you might need longer lines or to join two lines for the length. If expecting heavy weather you might want to double up on lines so that if one chafes through, the second will hopefully hold. If unsure of whether a pontoon berth is port or starboard side to, you might choose to rig lines in readiness on both sides, or as we do have a short line or each side on the midships cleats, and bow and stern lines ready to quickly run through the port or starboard fairleads.

 

[johnalison]

As always, it depends. If you have to raft up, you might need longer lines or to join two lines for the length. If expecting heavy weather you might want to double up on lines so that if one chafes through, the second will hopefully hold. If unsure of whether a pontoon berth is port or starboard side to, you might choose to rig lines in readiness on both sides, or as we do have a short line or each side on the midships cleats, and bow and stern lines ready to quickly run through the port or starboard fairleads.

Or you might find yourself approaching a Baltic box such as the ones at the late British Kiel Yacht Club without realising that the boxes are twice as long as they appear to be, and halfway in you suddenly find you need extra line to add to the ones you have already put out.

 

[capnsensible]

They use those a lot in the few West Indies marinas. Have seen them in Marina Sotogrande, Costa Del Sol.

 

[westhinder]

Or you might find yourself approaching a Baltic box such as the ones at the late British Kiel Yacht Club without realising that the boxes are twice as long as they appear to be, and halfway in you suddenly find you need extra line to add to the ones you have already put out.

Exactly, or, like we had in Nynäshamn in Sweden, the stern mooring buoy is twice as far from the pontoon as you had estimated. Makes for interesting manoeuvres. Buoys that are too close to the pontoon are not much easier, as we found today.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

Exactly, or, like we had in Nynäshamn in Sweden, the stern mooring buoy is twice as far from the pontoon as you had estimated. Makes for interesting manoeuvres. Buoys that are too close to the pontoon are not much easier, as we found today.

The advantage of having an eye at one end of each rope is that you can easily join two together very quickly and securely by threading the plain end of each rope through the eye on the other. If the eye spliced are tapered and served, there shouldn't be too much chance of them snagging.

 

[DeBangis]

O’rly?View attachment 179474

Nice!

 

[RupertW]

I think differently
I normally put eye splices in the ends of spare ropes so that they are ready to flip over cleats . Some have eyes spliced both ends & one was used last weekend as a towing bridle for a friend who lost engine power. made it easy just to hook each cleat & cast off one end when required

Any line that can’t be released at either end under load is beyond mad

 

[Gustywinds]

Any line that can’t be released at either end under load is beyond mad

Thats why you carry a knife

 

[dunedin]

Any line that can’t be released at either end under load is beyond mad

Oh goody, we are back at post #8 - so loop back and read from there
PS. Quick summary - there are different views, and many have used loops on ends very successfully for decades

 

[capnsensible]

Thats why you carry a knife

Yeah, there must be loadsa people slipping lines in a marina with a knife ready in one hand......

Or those that use good seamanship and don't have spliced loops or bowlines.

Still, people do all sorts of odd things and are happy.

 

[Daydream believer]

Thats why you carry a knife

In 60 plus years I cannot recall cutting a line under load.
I wonder if any ever do.

 

[capnsensible]

In 60 plus years I cannot recall cutting a line under load.
I wonder if any ever do.

Yup. Lines getting caught around prop. Especially med style lazy lines. Especially when marina staff get too enthusiastic in trying to help.....

 

[AntarcticPilot]

In 60 plus years I cannot recall cutting a line under load.
I wonder if any ever do.

Once, when riding out a severe gale in Dunbar harbour. We were moored to two barge anchors at the bow, with two shore lines at the stern. The gale and the surge in the harbour started to drag the anchors (each well over a hundredweight each!) and we needed to motor to the safety of the inner harbour. While my father released the bow lines, I had to release the stern lines - and there was no way I could release them safely by getting them off a cleat; they were slackening and tightening too erratically. I cut them using my trusty sheath knife, and was glad that I had a sharp knife to hand!

I also had to cut a line from round the propeller of the same boat off the east coast of Scotland. As a result I have a healthy fear of hypothermia; I know from personal experience what immersion in cold water can do.

 

[capnsensible]

Getting caught on a pot marker involves cutting a line under load too.....

 

[RupertW]

Thats why you carry a knife

You are right, that is so much better than just releasing it quickly.

 

[johnalison]

Getting caught on a pot marker involves cutting a line under load too.....

True, but the question, I think, was about how many people have had to cut a mooring line. Some, no doubt, but not many, and not enough for me to want to forgo the convenience of having an eye in my lines.

 

[johnalison]

Duplicate deleted.