Kayak left on mooring

[Tintin]

What would you do?

In a packed Helford this afternoon, with yachts already rafting, there was one visitor mooring unoccupied with a kayak tied to it. No note.

With me was a bunch of boisterous loud kids on board that I didn't wish to inflict on someone moored up for a quiet night.

So we moored onto the empty buoy.

Forward 2 hours and a large Targa motorist turns up, blue ensign flying.

"Are you going?" They asked.

"No, here for the night" said I

"But that's our kayak" they parried

" Would you like to raft up" I say, as aforementioned kids like heads out of hatches.

So off they went, found an empty locals buoy, and moored up. A while later they came for their kayak.

No rancour, no harsh words. Very gentlemanly.

But I wonder briefly if I should have not taken the buoy.

 

[Concerto]

I think you did the right thing. I would guess the Targa was trying to reserve a visitor buoy for their return. Not acceptable behaviour, especially with a blue duster.

 

[JumbleDuck]

I think you did the right thing. I would guess the Targa was trying to reserve a visitor buoy for their return. Not acceptable behaviour, especially with a blue duster.

Why should the ensign colour make any difference?

 

[LittleSister]

Why should the ensign colour make any difference?

If ensign colour didn't make a difference, why wouldn't everyone have the same colour?

 

[sailaboutvic]

If ensign colour didn't make a difference, why wouldn't everyone have the same colour?

I think that's a very good point .
We met someone just the other day who said they join the CA just to get a blue one ,
I didn't know the CA give them out to their members .
Maybe worth joining for the flag , Na maybe not ,
I Like my red duster.

 

[Stemar]

Deckchairs and German towels spring to mind. Not acceptable behaviour by the mobo, IMO

 

[[70521]]

Is this the equivalent of a towel reserving a sun lounger.

Like many above have said the colour of the ensign is a red herring.

 

[hisw]

I don’t see a problem with it. He might have paid for a weeks mooring and gone to Falmouth for the day.

 

[BelleSerene]

Like many above have said the colour of the ensign is a red herring.

Too bad it's not a blue herring. That would really have triggered the OP's inverted snobbery.

 

[mjcoon]

Why should the ensign colour make any difference?

Blue ensign suggests to me someone who should know about etiquette...

Mike.

 

[RichardS]

I don’t see a problem with it. He might have paid for a weeks mooring and gone to Falmouth for the day.

Can you pay for mooring buoys in advance, assuming that these are buoys that have to be paid for in the first instance?

When we were in Croatia a few weeks ago we anchored near a buoy field, which means that you have to pay anyway, but decided that it was a nice spot so we would stay for three nights. When the fee collector came around I said that we would stay for three nights so how about a free third might if we paid for two upfront now. He said that was not possible and we would have to pay each evening when we came around.

When he came around on the third evening he pulled alongside, smiled, and said "No charge".

Richard

 

[Giblets]

I don’t see a problem with it. He might have paid for a weeks mooring and gone to Falmouth for the day.

I would think that based on the Targa's demeanor he was trying it on by leaving the kayak on the buoy. If he had paid for it then he probably would have kicked off.

 

[JumbleDuck]

If ensign colour didn't make a difference, why wouldn't everyone have the same colour?

The British class system, I suppose. I've heard all sorts of reasons for blue ensigns, but never anything about baggsing visitor moorings.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Blue ensign suggests to me someone who should know about etiquette...

I think motorboats just have them to match the fenders, judging by the lack of burgees. That said, would knowledge of flag etiquette automatically imply knowledge of mooring etiquette?

 

[lw395]

I'd guess the Mobo was in for a couple of nights, but went for a pootle around the bay in the middle of the day.
So he might have paid for the mooring, so why not leave his kayak on it?

Of course, what he hasn't bought is the exclusive right to the mooring.

The answer is to speak to the HM staff at first opportunity. If they tell you it's OK to raft to the kayak, it is.
If they suggest rafting elsewhere, fair enough.

I'd have had no hesitation in picking up the mooring with the kayak while waiting to speak to harbour staff.

 

[Malish]

I am sure they would have mentioned that they had pre-paid if that were the case...

 

[prv]

Can you pay for mooring buoys in advance, assuming that these are buoys that have to be paid for in the first instance?

Depends entirely on the place. I think you can pre-book a mooring at Falmouth, but otherwise it would be rare. The Helford ones are the standard "tie up in the afternoon/evening, expect a man in a launch at some point to take the money".

It's normal to raft on the Helford ones, so even if you could pay for two days when the man first comes round, and the motorboat had done so, the OP would still be within his rights to "raft up" to the motorboat's slot, as it were.

Pete

 

[Heckler]

I suspect he was trying to paint a picture but all he did was expose his inbuilt prejudices!

 

[Nick Costen]

We've certainly hired one of the Helford moorings for a week while visiting, and left the dinghy on it while out sailing. The one we were on might have counted as "resident" though - on the Helford side, right next to the ferry. I agree that our line of argument would have been "we've taken it for a week", not "that's our dinghy" if faced with an interloper. Their response does sound rather like "its a fair cop, guv..."

Nick

 

[[2574]]

What would you do?

.

Anchor in the river; as I always would do.

I dont understand why people pay a decent sum of money to be triple rafted when there are excellent anchorages both sides of the river to seaward. Also above the viz buoys but there is always the consternation about the "no anchoring" signs to the west of the pool.