Highest wind you'd stay on swing mooring

catlotion

catlotion

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Off to boat at weekend and forecast is dire. Gusting 59kts.

Out of interest what's the highest wind speeds do people stay on their swing mooring?

I've been on it with gusts to 40kts and it's pretty uncomfortable with it swinging about all over the place...
 
I got caught out and had to anchor in a small bay . There were many 50+mpg gusts up there.. a very uncomfortable night. With worry the anchor would hold.
If I was on a normal swinging mooring , I'd not be worried, but it might be uncomfortable bouncing around.
 
I’ve been at anchor in around 60 knots for an hour or so, as recorded by the local lifeboat station. I might have had a problem trying to sleep if the occasion arose.
 
Off the boat it stays (at least has to date) on its mooring whatever the weather; maybe to 70 knots or so so far. It is 'designed' to hold in a 100mph wind, ie around 85 knots.

But aboard, not if poss. If the wind is expected to get that high I'll go someplace more sheltered before it arrives. 50 knots on the mooring is loud - no sleep - and the propinquity of the other moored boats only adds to the worry. So an anchorage with swinging room and substantial trees up wind is better.

As an example, once on a mooring in Castle Bay (Barra) we heard the 1755 shipping forecast advertising Southerly F11 soon, so we left and sailed to Tobermory; we had an uneventful passage and a relatively peaceful night. Whereas a man came and shouted at us from his yacht as we were leaving Castle Bay "Do you no ken there's a storm coming? To which I shouted back "yes, that's why we're leaving'...

So in response to the OP, go provided there's somewhere else you can go with better shelter - you'll enjoy it. But if there's nowhere more sheltered, or you can't get there before the foul weather arrives then stay at home - redecorate the loo or something...
 
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I've never faced it, but would leave the boat on its mooring, but wouldn't want to be on it.

I might want to reassure myself my insurance was still in date!

If time allowed I'd go aboard in advance. If the forecast direction was particularly unhelpful in terms of distance of fetch of waves and there was somewhere more sheltered I could put it I'd do so. Regardless of that, I'd want to take off the boat any removal windage - roller-reefed genoa, in my case cockpit canopy, etc. and check the two separate lines to the mooring buoy (the main one and a spare in case the first failed) I used when the boat was left unattended, both with a round-turn around the mooring ring, not simply looped through.

Some years ago my boat was moored in a swinging mooring about halfway down a straight section of the River Deben, Suffolk, just downstream of Ramsholt Quay, that is aligned north/south. A gale or more struck that, unusually, happened to align with that section of the river. I was not aboard at the time. The mooring was for a much bigger boat than my then 23 footer, so it had never worried me that the mooring would drag or part in strong winds (but it did mean the mooring was right in the middle of the river, exposed from all points, not near the shore and any shelter, as had been all my previous moorings).

When I next went to the boat it was in its usual position and undamaged apart from wear to the mooring rope to the buoy where it left the boat. When I opened the hatch, though, the inside of the boat was a terrible mess, and I couldn't immediately step onto the cabin sole because it was full of things that had been thrown from the lockers and the top of the stove, a berth cushion, etc. I had been out at sea in some very rough conditions, when things had been thrown from the lockers, but never had this much come out of them. The boat must have been laid pretty much on its side, or hit hard by big waves while it was heeled to a lesser extent. I'm glad I wasn't aboard at the time!

Old George, the former Ramsholt Harbourmaster who'd been there donkeys' years, said there hadn't been a gale that bad and aligned with that stretch of the river for 20 years. Just above the quay, slightly round the bend from my mooring, a boat (or was it two?) dragged its mooring, but fortunately had come to rest against the muddy shore and was undamaged.

I hope your boat (and you!) are OK at the weekend.
 
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You'll be ok but don't expect to sleep.

After Storm Floris last year I learnt a lot about what to prepare for extreme winds - next time I will drop my furling jib to reduce windage and tie anything that can move down securely. I heeled over more sheering around in gusts than I have achieved sailing! Agree with Little Sister - stuff flew around in the cabin. On a swinging mooring you might sheer less but have some tugs from the shorter rode.
 
Yes get the jib off and the canopy etc removed. A swing mooring should be strong enough to handle the loads. However if it is worn chain shackles etc might fail.
Also be wary of attachments on deck. I use 3 different attachments for 3 mooring ropes to buoy. A good mooring mass if it it dragged should maintain some holding power especially if dragged towards shallows.
One concern in a mooring area is if other boats come adrift. They are likely to press on your boats bow where mooring lines are susceptible to chafe damage.
If you have strong winds forecast then I would get off the boat. Leave it to it's own chances. ol'will
 
catlotion said:
Off to boat at weekend and forecast is dire. Gusting 59kts.

Out of interest what's the highest wind speeds do people stay on their swing mooring?

I've been on it with gusts to 40kts and it's pretty uncomfortable with it swinging about all over the place...
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Gusting to 59 knots is a normal summer thunderstorm.

IF the boat is swinging, that's a problem with the boat's balance. I've sat through over 60 knots on a mooring before, and it was more or less, relaxing. It was protected from significant waves ( 1/2 mile fetch).
 
catlotion said:
Off to boat at weekend and forecast is dire. Gusting 59kts.

Out of interest what's the highest wind speeds do people stay on their swing mooring?

I've been on it with gusts to 40kts and it's pretty uncomfortable with it swinging about all over the place...
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A forecast of gusting to 59 knots should not impact yachts on a swing mooring, swing moorings should be in sheltered waters. Swing moorings are not designed for comfort they are simply to secure a yacht.

But gusts to 59 knots (a strange number, not 60 but 59knots) implies average winds around 40 knots - really not that extraordinary. It would seem most unlikely that the forecast is for your mooring field (which as I say should be sheltered).
 
It's for the OP to judge, but there is quite a difference between us retired folk who have boats well adapted to living aboard and are very experienced and someone who only gets the odd week-end aboard - and may very well be accompanied by a partner and/or kids who may be slightly less enamoured of sailing!

Below is the EMCWF forecast for Easter morning for the northern UK. And it will be unrelenting rain, and a temperature between 2 and 6°C.
p1.png
 
Our club pontoon is well sheltered from the SW, where the strongest winds tend to come from so, as long as I can tuck in close to the shore, I'd probably move for F9. I did that some years ago (100+kts at the Needles), and stayed on board, thinking I'd be able to keep an eye on the other boats on the pontoon. When it all kicked off, the pontoon further out was leaping around, and it was obvious that I'd be taking my life in my hands.

If I didn't have access to a sheltered pontoon, I'd just stay home and let the boat take her chances, though I would beef up the pennant, and spread mooring loads across several cleats.
 
Depends on the mooring, how recently inspected, how robust.

But in almost all cases, I would prefer to be on my own anchor in good shelter and anchored in seabed with known good holding.

And, I'd prefer that to being tied to a pontoon also.
 
At 60kts I’d just plan to do something else with my time; the boat will be grand on the mooring provided maintained.

The predominant issue would be rowing to & fro the shore being difficult and risky.
 
jdc said:
It's for the OP to judge, but there is quite a difference between us retired folk who have boats well adapted to living aboard and are very experienced and someone who only gets the odd week-end aboard - and may very well be accompanied by a partner and/or kids who may be slightly less enamoured of sailing!

Below is the EMCWF forecast for Easter morning for the northern UK. And it will be unrelenting rain, and a temperature between 2 and 6°C.
View attachment 208590
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Sorry. That’s my fault. I’d booked that weekend with the family to be away to do the antifouling and polish the hull. You’ll undoubtedly get a good weather window when I go back to work on Tuesday
 
Dockhead said:
Depends on the mooring, how recently inspected, how robust.

But in almost all cases, I would prefer to be on my own anchor in good shelter and anchored in seabed with known good holding.

And, I'd prefer that to being tied to a pontoon also.
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I trust my mooring, but I laid it myself using fish farm gear.
Not long after I'd laid it, we had a 70kt blow come through. I got a call to say that the lifeboat had been tasked because an onlooker thought my boat was dragging. I just laughed, and called up to cancel the shout. I knew that there was no way that mooring could possibly drag. A shackle could fail, but in that case the boat would be on the shore before the end of the phonecall.

I can't get insurance that covers my mooring, so the only thing I can do is to attempt to make it completely bombproof. A 500kg grid anchor, 40mm ground chain, 19mm riser, and a 32mm strop with chafe protection helps me sleep at night.
 
Sea Change said:
I trust my mooring, but I laid it myself using fish farm gear.
Not long after I'd laid it, we had a 70kt blow come through. I got a call to say that the lifeboat had been tasked because an onlooker thought my boat was dragging. I just laughed, and called up to cancel the shout. I knew that there was no way that mooring could possibly drag. A shackle could fail, but in that case the boat would be on the shore before the end of the phonecall.

I can't get insurance that covers my mooring, so the only thing I can do is to attempt to make it completely bombproof. A 500kg grid anchor, 40mm ground chain, 19mm riser, and a 32mm strop with chafe protection helps me sleep at night.
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That is surely the 99-percentile mooring. (y)
 
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