leaving marina berth - help please

[Dockhead]

In nit-picking mode, I would question this. I was out every weekend of October and November (as I will be this year) for the Hamble Winter series. As far as I recall it was only over 30kts consistently twice during the Winter series last year. One they cancelled, and one we raced, max wind speed (in the central solent) of 37kts. If anyone has a bunch of time on their hands, the records will be available on bramblemet.

Regardless, it's quite clear that a Moody 54 (very, very nice boat btw) is a lot more stable under power than an AWB. That 30" prop, and 24 tonnes of weight certainly isn't going to add up to a boat that's easily blown off course. However, you still seem to be saying that it is easier to get the bow through the wind whilst going astern than it is going ahead. That would make the Moody 54 unique I believe!

Hmm, maybe my memory is somewhat faded, but I remember it was blowing a gale continuously in October and November (December already better) and everybody was talking about it as the windiest months in years. I do clearly remember the first weekend of December, around 08:00 on Sunday morning, they recorded 52 knots at the Yarmouth harbourmaster's office. It was still blowing 40+ when we ventured out of Yarmouth (a tight maneuver by the way) and during the whole (short) trip home. I have a video showing 35 knots of apparent wind and 12 knots of boat speed, on a dead run, from that trip, what a ride, just a little scrap of headsail out. There was another weekend in early October when it was really blowing like hell, also touching 50 knots, I remember well. It's all in my log somewhere but I'm not on the boat.

As to getting bows through the wind -- I would have thought that it is easier on all boats to turn through the wind in astern, at least from a standing start. Definitely it is the case on my boat. That would be because in ahead you are fighting the wind to gain steerage. In astern, on the contrary, the wind is pushing you along. In my boat, that moment where you are accelerating through the phase where you have no steerage is much shortened, in astern -- you "snap" through it. The rudder bites and the wind pushes you down on the rudder, snapping you around. As you come around, the windcocking effect dies off and suddenly you are in complete control.

In ahead, by contrast, especially in a strong wind, the resistance from the wind is delaying and working against your acceleration through that dead point. So there is no "snap"; you have to power through it. It is that moment when you are accelerating but still have no steerage that is dangerous -- you are at the wind's mercy. That moment is much prolonged when you are accelerating through a head wind. On our boat this is less pronounced because even without steerage we have some rudder authority from the propeller wash on the rudder -- shaft drive, large prop close to a large rudder, 100 horsepower. A saildrive like that Bav has almost none of this effect because the prop is very far away from the rudder (and it's got a high aspect spade rudder, too).

Obviously in all cases the power of your main engine and the bite of your propeller are key factors. A lightweight boat with a lot of windage and a weak engine and a small fixed-blade propeller is going to have far greater problems, than others. You can get stalled -- like being caught in irons -- and blown off, rather than powering through that moment. That happened to me in a chartered Beneteau 411 one time, in the Aegean, during the Meltemi, years ago -- scared the s*it out of me. It was my rude introduction to boats' weathercocking.

Anyway, that's our experience. I would be most interested in yours.

 

[westernman]

As to getting bows through the wind -- I would have thought that it is easier on all boats to turn through the wind in astern, at least from a standing start.

You need to explain your starting point.

Your are pointing in which direction? Moving at what speed?
(Relative to wind).

Some how, I doubt this works in my boat. I need at least 150 yards in flat calm water to get steerage going astern and I need to be going at a good lick as well.

It does not make much difference if I do that at continuous full power, or in bursts. (Once I have got stearage, short bursts are much better to maintain it.)

By the way, I always back into my berth using a warp to hold the bows in the right place (crew member hooks bow line warp over upwind post at the end of pontoon from the stern) and prop wash to push the stern around.
This always attracts a lot of spectators in a strong wind.

 

[Dockhead]

You need to explain your starting point.

Your are pointing in which direction? Moving at what speed?
(Relative to wind).

Some how, I doubt this works in my boat. I need at least 150 yards in flat calm water to get steerage going astern and I need to be going at a good lick as well.

It does not make much difference if I do that at continuous full power, or in bursts. (Once I have got stearage, short bursts are much better to maintain it.)

By the way, I always back into my berth using a warp to hold the bows in the right place (crew member hooks bow line warp over upwind post at the end of pontoon from the stern) and prop wash to push the stern around.
This always attracts a lot of spectators in a strong wind.

Fair enough. I am thinking about leaving a marina berth, specifically my own. Let's say the wind is on your starboard beam and you need to get out of your slip, and head upwind through your aisle into the river.

Steerage astern only after 150 yards is a long ways -- terrifying!! Is your boat a long-keeler? My previous boat didn't really have steerage astern at any speed or in any distance.

My boat has slight steerage astern already in about a third of a boat length. I would never use full power astern (as was suggested by someone in our hypothetical case) if I were trying to back out straight out of some where. That's because in my boat I'll get a much stronger kick to port from a high power setting, and the boat will spin around more before the rudder bites. I start out slow astern in such a case, so that the kick is minimized, and in about a third of a boat length I can already steer a little. So I can come out of a marina berth almost straight going astern. I can usually counteract the kick by angling the boat a little as I start backing out.

I would love to back into my berth as you do but I have these blo*dy great hideous davits hanging over the transom installed by the previous owner (I'm itching to take them off). Would not do to have them overhanging the pontoon.

 

[jimi]

I would never use full power astern (as was suggested by someone in our hypothetical case) if I were trying to back out straight out of some where. That's because in my boat I'll get a much stronger kick to port from a high power setting, and the boat will spin around more before the rudder bites.

Actually in this "hypothetical" case , trying to get the boat turning before the rudder bit, was precisely what we were trying to achieve...

Whilst your precision manoeuvres in your remarkably agile craft may interest you enormously, they are of little relevance to the craft of the OP.. or indeed to many helms.. as your craft appears to have many remarkable and unique characteristics. I feel pleased for you,

 

[Dockhead]

Whilst your precision manoeuvres in your remarkably agile craft may interest you enormously, they are of little relevance to the craft of the OP.. or indeed to many helms.. as your craft appears to have many remarkable and unique characteristics. I feel pleased for you,

Yes, I have introduced a little thread drift, for which I apologize to the OP and to anyone else who may have been bored by the diversion.

My boat is not "agile" at all, quite the opposite, which is the main challenge of maneuvering her. She is powerful and stable, but not agile; using the former to overcome the latter is the main job at the helm in close quarters. I would also not describe my often clumsy maneuvers as "precision", nor can it be said that my craft has any "unique" or "remarkable" characteristics. Her characteristics are similar to those of other heavy cruising boats I have sailed. These characteristics are different, it is true, in many ways, from light fin keel boats like in the hypothetical case, more different than I would have thought, the understanding of which has improved my knowledge, for which I am indebted to this interesting thread.

 

[jimi]

Fair Winds , Dockhead, and may all your bumps be fendered.

Seriously though, it does show there is no one size fits all and experience with one type of boat may, in fact, be a liability with another type.

Interestingly , though, something like a Tradewind 35 blows off a lot faster than my boat and has even less chance of getting its bow through the wind cos of its weight and inertia... and it won't go predictably backwards.. so different options in that scenario!

 

[Dockhead]

Fair Winds , Dockhead, and may all your bumps be fendered.

Thank you! From your lips to God's ears! Same to you.

 

[Blue5]

Thank you! From your lips to God's ears! Same to you.

Well done Dockhead and Jimi, nice to see you both shake hands.........

A very interesting thread, my boat is in the category of "will not go through the wind in reverse unless doing 6kts".... but it is interesting to read all the variations here.

I watched with a certain amount of envy a 50+ ft boat reverse out of a berth and then push through the wind from stationary (probably 20kts) with bow thruster, certainly looked like it made life a lot easier

 

[derekm32]

An old thread... but the problem still exists... the solution is to "spring on" in reverse. This is a stern line running forwards and the engine in reverse.
A slip bow line and slip stern spring use the engine to tension the stern spring and keep the stern in. The bow line keeps the boat parallel to the finger . By shifting te lines you eventually end up with the stern line attached the end of the finger . The boat can now reverse out beyond the end of the finger and further until midships is at the end of the finger. NOW by easing the bow line on the next to end of finger cleat, the boat turns in to the aisle and the bow comes close to the wind. By balancing the throttle astern you can hold the boat stationary while the bow line is released. A burst of more power against the stern sring puts the bow through the wind. Then motor forward and release the stern slip. All without fuss and always in control.

 

[Barnacle Bill]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Manoeuvring-Close-Quarters-Under-Power/dp/1408132117

Useful book.

 

[Simondjuk]

When leaving a finger pontoon which we're being blown off toward the neighbouring boat, we adopt the reverse of our arrival method which is to use a midships spring. If the wind is really strong, we'll take the boat back until she's half out of the berth to reduce the overlap, set the spring to slip on the outermost cleat at the end of the finger, and pin the boat against the finger using the engine and the wheel turned away from the pontoon to stop to the bow pivoting into the pontoon around the beam. If the spring is hooked only over the outward facing horn of the cleat, you don't even need to slip it, just make sure it doesn't hook the inward facing horn as it goes slack.

Once you're ready to go, put the bow where you want it laterally by varying the rudder angle, then go as quickly from ahead to astern as is possible without punishing the gearbox, give it the beans to get the boat moving, and you're away. We're 40 feet, and setting for departure like this leaves only about a 25 foot overlap onto a neighbouring boat of similar size, which is little enough for a quick and decisive departure to prevent the bow getting blown anything like far enough downwind to get near it.

Depending on which way the exit is after leaving the berth, I'll either continue all the way out in astern with the stern into the wind (remembering that if trying to turn the stern against the propwalk, getting the boat moving well then closing the throttle while making the turn will speed it up dramatically) or stop in the fairway and let the wind turn the bow downwind to motor out ahead with the wind from behind.

Motoring astern with the wind on the bow is best avoided, especially if the wind is on 'dangerous bow' - that is the bow on the same side as the direction the stern propwalks to - as this can make for difficulty in getting the boat moving astern without the combination of wind and propwalk turning the boat quite a long way, quite quickly.

Berthing and unberthing is very controlled and easy even in strong conditions if you use the elements and boat characteristics to help you rather than trying to fight against them, and it always surprises me how often you see people struggling in conflict with everything going, presumably because that's 'how they always do it'.

 

[martyn78]

Is it possible to be different to the norm and reverse in, you then have the speed to control direction when berthing then use your power liberally to exit forward.
I await shooting down!!

 

[maby]

.....and pin the boat against the finger using the engine and the wheel turned away from the pontoon to stop to the bow pivoting into the pontoon around the beam.

....

Worth noting that this does not work for boats with twin rudders - which includes a high proportion of modern boats over 40 foot. If we are stationary, I can put the helm hard over, open the throttle wide, and the boat will not turn at all. With a sail drive mounted deep and relatively far forward, there is not even any propwalk.

 

[jimi]

Is it possible to be different to the norm and reverse in, you then have the speed to control direction when berthing then use your power liberally to exit forward.
I await shooting down!!

Depends on wind and tide direction. I prefer to go stern to as it makes it easier getting the dogs on and off the boat. However it the wind is forward of the beam it can make it tricky if the bow blows off. LIkewise leaving going forward can be tricky in a narrow aisle if the wind is aft the beam. Key is to do the easiest thing the elements are indicating ;-)

 

[flaming]

Key is to do the easiest thing the elements are indicating ;-)

THIS!!!

Work out what your boat would do if left to it's own devices in the prevailing conditions, and then try and come up with a plan that uses that, rather than fighting it.

 

[Simondjuk]

Worth noting that this does not work for boats with twin rudders - which includes a high proportion of modern boats over 40 foot. If we are stationary, I can put the helm hard over, open the throttle wide, and the boat will not turn at all. With a sail drive mounted deep and relatively far forward, there is not even any propwalk.

That's true, although with a little jiggery-pokery with line length and line and fender positions, you can generally get a boat with twin rudders to sit against the pontoon at something like an acceptable angle for departure, if not actually adjust that angle with the rudder angle. The slab sided form of such boats tends to help reduce the amount they roll bows in against the pontoon around their beam too. Tried and tested to work with a little forethought and planning when short crewed on a various twin rudder boats in the 60 to 70 foot region.

 

[Simondjuk]

THIS!!!

Work out what your boat would do if left to it's own devices in the prevailing conditions, and then try and come up with a plan that uses that, rather than fighting it.

Yet so many don't seem to do so.

Case in point, we gave lying to the anchor in Concarneau best when we woke to the sound of the snubber protesting and went out to find the horizontal rain painful on the face and it blowing so hard that I'm fairly sure the chain beyond the snubber was like a bar all the way to the anchor. The forecast confirming that getting back up through the Raz was out for a couple of days cemented the decision to move and find some bars that didn't.

On entering the marina, Cap de la Foret?, the instructions shouted by the chap in the marina launch, who was busy collecting boats and bits of boats that had been blown all over the place, were less than clear. Partly because of my poor French, but mostly because it was impossible to hear him for the wind. We knew the fairway he'd pointed us towards and that we were to go into the only space we'd find there, but not which side to we were going to be going or if the berth was on the upwind or downwind side of the fairway. We set lines an fenders on both sides, took a peek and realised just how narrow the fairway was. This prompted me to take a proper look before committing. So we went down astern to enable a stress free direction change once we identified the berth.

And glad we looked we were. The berth was almost right at the end of the fairway, to port as we'd gone down astern, on the windward side, with a too big for the berth boat sporting massive davits which seemed to span across half the fairway just before it but on by the other side of the very narrow finger, and a very new, very shiny big J in the adjoining berth beyond our space.

Two second thought process: Get the bow up into a full gale or more with the starboard propwalk I'd have had to have created by going astern to avoid ramming the main pontoon at several knots coming into play halfway through what would have had to have been a break neck speed manoeuvre to have any chance of making it all all slowing the turn down in the overhanging-davit-reduced width of an already narrow fairway without either taking our rig down by testing the overhanging davits with our starboard cap shroud or t-boning the J? Not a chance!

So we elected to buck French convention and go stern to. By now however, the combination of our arriving in such conditions (in actual fact from all of only about a mile away), the necessarily shouted conversation with the marina staff member, and our apparently aborted first attempt that was in fact a recce making us look like a good bet for an entertaining spectacle, there were a lot of heads poking out of companionways and figures huddled under spray hood looking on. No pressure.

So, a quick rejig of the fender heights to suit the J on the starboard side and the finger on the port side and we were set. Ok, so a fender did get dropped in the drink at this point. "Blown out of my hand!" she said, but I swear I never saw it get above 60 degrees from the vertical in the wind before she let go. This minor faux pas, of course, only served to heighten the increasing expectations of ensuing pandemonium held by the onlookers.

Fenders set, me driving, her (cool as a cucumber, if still looking slightly miffed at my "FFS!" about the fender which carried up wind better than I imagined) stood on the sugar scoop with the tail of a mooring line that was made off to the port aft cleat in hand. Off down the fairway ahead taking note of the craning heads all around, raining too hard for them to break shelter and catch lines I guess, hard port helm when a tad short of the berth, good dollop of astern propulsion to stop the boat and drag the stern to starboard as the wind pushes the bow to port increasing rate of turn to 'on the spot', watch the bow on the boats opposite, watch our backstay on the mothers of all davits behind, nicely parallel to berth and perpendicular to fairway now but wow this fairway really is narrow when you knock those mega-dinghy-danglers off its width, no drama though as we could say here all day doing this, overlapping the crane boat and finger slightly with our port side still just as planned as overshooting would have left only do or die exit options, alternate astern then neutral keeps boat stationary fore and aft due to the gale from behind but slides it slowly to starboard due to the propwalk which the bow follows due to the wind, nearly there, me happy, onlookers still not sure we have a clue, a tad early to allow for the increase in propwalk toward the J go firmly astern, slide into berth not touching a fender either side (perhaps we'd have touched the one she so wisely threw overboard had we still had it), she steps calmly onto pontoon and makes line to what was probably an infernal ring or staple, line fast?, yep, aft running spring on, boat's secure, rest of lines on engine off, wind straight down the companionway so best find a bar, walk to bar past significantly more windswept and wet but less entertained than expected onlookers, spend 2 days eating and drinking far too well while gales abate, motor the first half of the way home in a flat calm, sail the last half in cracking winds made all the more exciting by being tracked by a seemingly endless thunderstorm full of fork lightning.

Even apparently difficult parks are easy if you just take a moment to think about how to use whatever you have going for you. If anything, it's the easy ones I end up bailing out of for a second go.

Oh, and we got the fender back from the rocks at the back of the marina. I just saw it whilst I was looking at the IMOCA 60 Macif from an incredibly painstaking number of angles and positions until I just happened to spot it tucked where it was, honest!

 

[Vega1447]

Yet so many don't seem to do so.

Case in point, we gave lying to the anchor in Concarneau best when we woke to the sound of the snubber protesting and went out to find the horizontal rain painful on the face and it blowing so hard that I'm fairly sure the chain beyond the snubber was like a bar all the way to the anchor. The forecast confirming that getting back up through the Raz was out for a couple of days cemented the decision to move and find some bars that didn't.

On entering the marina, Cap de la Foret?, the instructions shouted by the chap in the marina launch, who was busy collecting boats and bits of boats that had been blown all over the place, were less than clear. Partly because of my poor French, but mostly because it was impossible to hear him for the wind. We knew the fairway he'd pointed us towards and that we were to go into the only space we'd find there, but not which side to we were going to be going or if the berth was on the upwind or downwind side of the fairway. We set lines an fenders on both sides, took a peek and realised just how narrow the fairway was. This prompted me to take a proper look before committing. So we went down astern to enable a stress free direction change once we identified the berth.

And glad we looked we were. The berth was almost right at the end of the fairway, to port as we'd gone down astern, on the windward side, with a too big for the berth boat sporting massive davits which seemed to span across half the fairway just before it but on by the other side of the very narrow finger, and a very new, very shiny big J in the adjoining berth beyond our space.

Two second thought process: Get the bow up into a full gale or more with the starboard propwalk I'd have had to have created by going astern to avoid ramming the main pontoon at several knots coming into play halfway through what would have had to have been a break neck speed manoeuvre to have any chance of making it all all slowing the turn down in the overhanging-davit-reduced width of an already narrow fairway without either taking our rig down by testing the overhanging davits with our starboard cap shroud or t-boning the J? Not a chance!

So we elected to buck French convention and go stern to. By now however, the combination of our arriving in such conditions (in actual fact from all of only about a mile away), the necessarily shouted conversation with the marina staff member, and our apparently aborted first attempt that was in fact a recce making us look like a good bet for an entertaining spectacle, there were a lot of heads poking out of companionways and figures huddled under spray hood looking on. No pressure.

So, a quick rejig of the fender heights to suit the J on the starboard side and the finger on the port side and we were set. Ok, so a fender did get dropped in the drink at this point. "Blown out of my hand!" she said, but I swear I never saw it get above 60 degrees from the vertical in the wind before she let go. This minor faux pas, of course, only served to heighten the increasing expectations of ensuing pandemonium held by the onlookers.

Fenders set, me driving, her (cool as a cucumber, if still looking slightly miffed at my "FFS!" about the fender which carried up wind better than I imagined) stood on the sugar scoop with the tail of a mooring line that was made off to the port aft cleat in hand. Off down the fairway ahead taking note of the craning heads all around, raining too hard for them to break shelter and catch lines I guess, hard port helm when a tad short of the berth, good dollop of astern propulsion to stop the boat and drag the stern to starboard as the wind pushes the bow to port increasing rate of turn to 'on the spot', watch the bow on the boats opposite, watch our backstay on the mothers of all davits behind, nicely parallel to berth and perpendicular to fairway now but wow this fairway really is narrow when you knock those mega-dinghy-danglers off its width, no drama though as we could say here all day doing this, overlapping the crane boat and finger slightly with our port side still just as planned as overshooting would have left only do or die exit options, alternate astern then neutral keeps boat stationary fore and aft due to the gale from behind but slides it slowly to starboard due to the propwalk which the bow follows due to the wind, nearly there, me happy, onlookers still not sure we have a clue, a tad early to allow for the increase in propwalk toward the J go firmly astern, slide into berth not touching a fender either side (perhaps we'd have touched the one she so wisely threw overboard had we still had it), she steps calmly onto pontoon and makes line to what was probably an infernal ring or staple, line fast?, yep, aft running spring on, boat's secure, rest of lines on engine off, wind straight down the companionway so best find a bar, walk to bar past significantly more windswept and wet but less entertained than expected onlookers, spend 2 days eating and drinking far too well while gales abate, motor the first half of the way home in a flat calm, sail the last half in cracking winds made all the more exciting by being tracked by a seemingly endless thunderstorm full of fork lightning.

Even apparently difficult parks are easy if you just take a moment to think about how to use whatever you have going for you. If anything, it's the easy ones I end up bailing out of for a second go.

Oh, and we got the fender back from the rocks at the back of the marina. I just saw it whilst I was looking at the IMOCA 60 Macif from an incredibly painstaking number of angles and positions until I just happened to spot it tucked where it was, honest!

A vivid description! Very well told.

 

[jimi]

Yet so many don't seem to do so.

Case in point, we gave lying to the anchor in Concarneau best when we woke to the sound of the snubber protesting and went out to find the horizontal rain painful on the face and it blowing so hard that I'm fairly sure the chain beyond the snubber was like a bar all the way to the anchor. The forecast confirming that getting back up through the Raz was out for a couple of days cemented the decision to move and find some bars that didn't.

On entering the marina, Cap de la Foret?, the instructions shouted by the chap in the marina launch, who was busy collecting boats and bits of boats that had been blown all over the place, were less than clear. Partly because of my poor French, but mostly because it was impossible to hear him for the wind. We knew the fairway he'd pointed us towards and that we were to go into the only space we'd find there, but not which side to we were going to be going or if the berth was on the upwind or downwind side of the fairway. We set lines an fenders on both sides, took a peek and realised just how narrow the fairway was. This prompted me to take a proper look before committing. So we went down astern to enable a stress free direction change once we identified the berth.

And glad we looked we were. The berth was almost right at the end of the fairway, to port as we'd gone down astern, on the windward side, with a too big for the berth boat sporting massive davits which seemed to span across half the fairway just before it but on by the other side of the very narrow finger, and a very new, very shiny big J in the adjoining berth beyond our space.

Two second thought process: Get the bow up into a full gale or more with the starboard propwalk I'd have had to have created by going astern to avoid ramming the main pontoon at several knots coming into play halfway through what would have had to have been a break neck speed manoeuvre to have any chance of making it all all slowing the turn down in the overhanging-davit-reduced width of an already narrow fairway without either taking our rig down by testing the overhanging davits with our starboard cap shroud or t-boning the J? Not a chance!

So we elected to buck French convention and go stern to. By now however, the combination of our arriving in such conditions (in actual fact from all of only about a mile away), the necessarily shouted conversation with the marina staff member, and our apparently aborted first attempt that was in fact a recce making us look like a good bet for an entertaining spectacle, there were a lot of heads poking out of companionways and figures huddled under spray hood looking on. No pressure.

So, a quick rejig of the fender heights to suit the J on the starboard side and the finger on the port side and we were set. Ok, so a fender did get dropped in the drink at this point. "Blown out of my hand!" she said, but I swear I never saw it get above 60 degrees from the vertical in the wind before she let go. This minor faux pas, of course, only served to heighten the increasing expectations of ensuing pandemonium held by the onlookers.

Fenders set, me driving, her (cool as a cucumber, if still looking slightly miffed at my "FFS!" about the fender which carried up wind better than I imagined) stood on the sugar scoop with the tail of a mooring line that was made off to the port aft cleat in hand. Off down the fairway ahead taking note of the craning heads all around, raining too hard for them to break shelter and catch lines I guess, hard port helm when a tad short of the berth, good dollop of astern propulsion to stop the boat and drag the stern to starboard as the wind pushes the bow to port increasing rate of turn to 'on the spot', watch the bow on the boats opposite, watch our backstay on the mothers of all davits behind, nicely parallel to berth and perpendicular to fairway now but wow this fairway really is narrow when you knock those mega-dinghy-danglers off its width, no drama though as we could say here all day doing this, overlapping the crane boat and finger slightly with our port side still just as planned as overshooting would have left only do or die exit options, alternate astern then neutral keeps boat stationary fore and aft due to the gale from behind but slides it slowly to starboard due to the propwalk which the bow follows due to the wind, nearly there, me happy, onlookers still not sure we have a clue, a tad early to allow for the increase in propwalk toward the J go firmly astern, slide into berth not touching a fender either side (perhaps we'd have touched the one she so wisely threw overboard had we still had it), she steps calmly onto pontoon and makes line to what was probably an infernal ring or staple, line fast?, yep, aft running spring on, boat's secure, rest of lines on engine off, wind straight down the companionway so best find a bar, walk to bar past significantly more windswept and wet but less entertained than expected onlookers, spend 2 days eating and drinking far too well while gales abate, motor the first half of the way home in a flat calm, sail the last half in cracking winds made all the more exciting by being tracked by a seemingly endless thunderstorm full of fork lightning.

Even apparently difficult parks are easy if you just take a moment to think about how to use whatever you have going for you. If anything, it's the easy ones I end up bailing out of for a second go.

Oh, and we got the fender back from the rocks at the back of the marina. I just saw it whilst I was looking at the IMOCA 60 Macif from an incredibly painstaking number of angles and positions until I just happened to spot it tucked where it was, honest!

how did you get out again ? ;-) recall once getting into a berth assigned over VHF thinking it was a bit tight. Went up to office and mentioned it was a squeeze, guy said "There should be plenty of room for a 31", I replied "We're 38" ;-) He'd misheard Moody 38 as Moody 31, took 4 people to get us back out as the clearance was 2 inches cos another boat had moved into an empty berth in the aisle, no word of a lie! ;-)

 

[Simondjuk]

how did you get out again ? ;-) recall once getting into a berth assigned over VHF thinking it was a bit tight. Went up to office and mentioned it was a squeeze, guy said "There should be plenty of room for a 31", I replied "We're 38" ;-) He'd misheard Moody 38 as Moody 31, took 4 people to get us back out as the clearance was 2 inches cos another boat had moved into an empty berth in the aisle, no word of a lie! ;-)

It doesn't matter what you hit on the way out if you leave fast enough and go far enough.