Marina Visit

[srm]

Long keel boats where never designed for marina's.

No they were designed to sail well and be sea kindly. Other than a couple of catamarans all my boats since before marinas were common have had longish keels supporting the rudder.

However, that does not mean they can not be safely handled in a marina environment - it just takes practice, knowledge of your boat, and an awareness of how wind and current will effect it. Judicious use of a headsail can help turning. You can only learn how a boat handles by maneuvering it close to fixed points for reference. I always checked the burgee for wind, especially when there was none at deck level. Have also, for various reasons, entered or left harbour and marina berths without use of the engine, though a crew helps with these antics.

After nine years of sailing 1000 miles plus every season for nine years in a 42ft boat of 1950's design, often single handed, I made a right hash of the simple task of motoring on to a one sided cradle in order to be hauled out on a marine railway. The reason - there was a bit of cross wind and the mast had been lifted out the day before. I was intuitively compensating for something that was not there and ended up grounding on the cradle at the top of the tide but too far from the side supports. Either that or the fact it really was Friday the 13th.

 

[Irish Rover]

I've visited this thread many times today hoping I might accidentally but one more poster on ignore.

 

[GEM43]

Apropos annoying shower time limited push buttons - take cocktail stick in to the shower and jam it atwixt button and button outer fitting. Pull out stick when finished. Works for me.

 

[Petertheking1982]

At marinas I worked at the water company demanded we remove the hoses due to worries about back syphoning sea water into the mains supply (a lot of things would have to fail for this to happen). No one at the company wanted it as it caused a lot of complaints.

 

[srm]

At marinas I worked at the water company demanded we remove the hoses due to worries about back syphoning sea water into the mains supply (a lot of things would have to fail for this to happen). No one at the company wanted it as it caused a lot of complaints.

Yes, fixed marina hoses are a nice convenient way to potentially contaminate your fresh water tanks far more easily than the mains supply.

 

[onesea]

No they were designed to sail well and be sea kindly.

Yup and that's part of the reason I bought this one.
I grew up with long keel boats, she's not the first I have handled.
She is not the most predictable backwards. Some days I can see why others, yeah I haven't worked out yet.

On this occasion with a current through the marina in half light, a shifting wind and cleats held on by bolts that where likely to snag any slipped lines, it was just easier. On the way back from walking dog to ask the man in the office to pop down and give me a push at the right moment to initiate the desired swing.

As for the short berth 9m boat 7m pontoon that's nearly 1/4 of the boat. I had to nosey real close at the bow to make it good access for my dog (gap in safety line for doggy boarding).

 

[srm]

As for the short berth 9m boat 7m pontoon that's nearly 1/4 of the boat. I had to nosey real close at the bow to make it good access for my dog (gap in safety line for doggy boarding).

Yes, I agree, far from ideal but also far from unusual. We were spoilt in Stromness with 12m fingers, I could spring my boat into the berth, stern first, off the end of the finger. An unusual maneouvre that has had people rushing to help thinking something was wrong. Where she is now is far more typical, 10.6m boat plus platform bowsprit and wind vane steering gear. I have not measured the length of the finger but it does not reach the forward end of the cockpit with the bowsprit over part of the pontoon so probably 7 or 8 m. Fingers are all the same length with some bigger boats using them.

We visited another marina where the visitor berths had the luxury of probably 10 m fingers, but subject to swell. That night the swell increased so we were running extra mooring ropes to hold the boat off the finger. My crew stepped on to the finger and was bounced straight into the sea between boat and finger. Fortunately a couple of security guys were checking boats and helped lift him on to the pontoon. They gave him free use of the showers, which were guite good, but would not give him a lift, dripping sea water, in their van. It was quite a long walk.

 

[doug748]

Apropos annoying shower time limited push buttons - take cocktail stick in to the shower and jam it atwixt button and button outer fitting. Pull out stick when finished. Works for me.

Great something useful

 

[capnsensible]

Great something useful

You can also use a cocktail stick as an emergency splint if you find a seagull with a broken leg.