Offer help: Yes, but it isn't help if you blindly ignore skipper's instruction/request, as per the character in OP's post. There's no harm in shouting "Hey, Skipper, need any help?" If the answer is 'no' then the politique thing to do is to pretend not to notice them making a hash of it until they change their minds and call upon your assistance.
Difficult situation. Don’t beat yourself up.It's always nice to catch lines and help people berth their boat, but how do you react if the assistant on the shore causes you to get in to difficulty? I think it depends perhaps on what unfolds.
Here is a scenario which I am sure many are familiar with!!
Recently I was aiming the boat for a linear berth at the end of a walkway which had finger berths attached. A yacht was berthed on the last finger so I was aiming to berth on the walkway beside it. My good lady was holding the midships line ready to lasso a suitable pontoon cleat. Our long bow line was ready and brought back towards the aft gate, along with a shorter stern line ready for me to step off the boat and tie off. It is a well practiced and repeatable berthing method we have used for years. On this occasion there was a light but significant breeze blowing the boat off the pontoon as we made our approach.
So the story goes that I made a good approach and had the boat touching the pontoon, but had to act quickly due to the breeze. I was just about to step off with the stern line and a helpful chap on the pontoon came to assist, which immediately distracted me from my strategy. Spotting the potential problem of blowing off, I asked him to grab the stern line as the boat was indeed starting to blow off. For whatever reason, he decided to head towards the bow, grabbed the bow line and secured it to the pontoon. I really did not want that as the bowthruster would deal with that end of the boat. Now the stern was blowing off and as he had secured the bow I was starting to get in a bit of a pickle as the boat was heading for a 90 degree orientation to the pontoon. I had a yacht berthed on a finger behind and a stone wall about 30 feet in front. Immediately I thought "oh sh1t this is a problem", whilst I was trying frantically to think of a way of helming the boat out of the situation, given the restricted area and the fact the bow was tied off.
He then clearly felt that I didn't know what I was doing and started to coach me and give instructions to my wife, who was now getting different instructions from both me and him at the same time! My wife started to slightly panic and understandably got a bit confused on what to do. Of course as you might expect, she starts to ignore me as the other guy must know best. She is probably quite right. I have only being doing this boating malarky for over 30 years and still a total novice!. The reality is that she is nice and polite, especially to strangers offering help. Anyway, I had to get a bit assertive and managed to get him to remove the bowline and chuck it back on board, so I could then get some control back into the situation.
That's the gist of that episode. We got berthed but my good lady wasn't too happy with my assertive manner towards the chap who was only trying to help. A fair comment from her, but under pressure and someone causing me all sorts of problems I am afraid I can't help getting a bit agitated. As we all know, bad things can happen very quickly when a boat starts to go out of control and someone has secured the wrong part of the boat to the pontoon on a long line. His actions although well meaning nearly resulted in a bump with the boat behind whilst I was being "instructed" to go astern by our new shore instructor, which fortunately I spotted at the last second and took avoiding action. Nevertheless the chap caused me all sorts of difficulty controlling the boat. I also had to endure a few frosty hours from SWMBO as I was apparently a cheeky pig and I should have been a lot nicer towards the man who came to help us. For the record, I didn't say anything too outrageous or very cheeky and thanked him for his "help"!
By contrast, the day before I was going astern into a marina pontoon in a stronger wind which was more tricky. On that occasion a guy came to assist and knew exactly what to do. Without any words from me, grabbed the lines, tied them instinctively to the pontoon perfectly to secure the boat safely. The pontoon was about 32ft and our boat is 45ft, so securing the boat takes a bit of experience, but there was no drama and the whole process took around 30 seconds or so. i thanked him and he went back to his boat as if nothing had happened.
If anyone thinks i handled the situation badly please do not hesitate to tell me, as I am not too sure what else I could have done as events unfolded. What do you do if you detect that the person helping is starting to make things difficult for you? Fortunately in our experience this episode was unusual and for 99% of the time we really welcome assistance and always offer help to others. Having said that I make a point of not tying off a line to a cleat unless it's berthed and obviously safe and sound. I regard the person on the helm as the boss and will always listen and follow any instructions from him/her.
In my years of experience with large yachts and even larger barges, the only initial line needed is a spring line from the bow to the shore.It's always nice to catch lines and help people berth their boat, but how do you react if the assistant on the shore causes you to get in to difficulty? I think it depends perhaps on what unfolds.
Here is a scenario which I am sure many are familiar with!!
Recently I was aiming the boat for a linear berth at the end of a walkway which had finger berths attached. A yacht was berthed on the last finger so I was aiming to berth on the walkway beside it. My good lady was holding the midships line ready to lasso a suitable pontoon cleat. Our long bow line was ready and brought back towards the aft gate, along with a shorter stern line ready for me to step off the boat and tie off. It is a well practiced and repeatable berthing method we have used for years. On this occasion there was a light but significant breeze blowing the boat off the pontoon as we made our approach.
So the story goes that I made a good approach and had the boat touching the pontoon, but had to act quickly due to the breeze. I was just about to step off with the stern line and a helpful chap on the pontoon came to assist, which immediately distracted me from my strategy. Spotting the potential problem of blowing off, I asked him to grab the stern line as the boat was indeed starting to blow off. For whatever reason, he decided to head towards the bow, grabbed the bow line and secured it to the pontoon. I really did not want that as the bowthruster would deal with that end of the boat. Now the stern was blowing off and as he had secured the bow I was starting to get in a bit of a pickle as the boat was heading for a 90 degree orientation to the pontoon. I had a yacht berthed on a finger behind and a stone wall about 30 feet in front. Immediately I thought "oh sh1t this is a problem", whilst I was trying frantically to think of a way of helming the boat out of the situation, given the restricted area and the fact the bow was tied off.
He then clearly felt that I didn't know what I was doing and started to coach me and give instructions to my wife, who was now getting different instructions from both me and him at the same time! My wife started to slightly panic and understandably got a bit confused on what to do. Of course as you might expect, she starts to ignore me as the other guy must know best. She is probably quite right. I have only being doing this boating malarky for over 30 years and still a total novice!
That's the gist of that episode. We got berthed but my good lady wasn't too happy with my assertive manner towards the chap who was only trying to help. A fair comment from her, but under pressure and someone causing me all sorts of problems I am afraid I can't help getting a bit agitated. As we all know, bad things can happen very quickly when a boat starts to go out of control and someone has secured the wrong part of the boat to the pontoon on a long line. His actions although well meaning nearly resulted in a bump with the boat behind whilst I was being "instructed" to go astern by our new shore instructor, which fortunately I spotted at the last second and took avoiding action. Nevertheless the chap caused me all sorts of difficulty controlling the boat. I also had to endure a few frosty hours from SWMBO as I was apparently a cheeky pig and I should have been a lot nicer towards the man who came to help us. For the record, I didn't say anything too outrageous or very cheeky and thanked him for his "help"!
By contrast, the day before I was going astern into a marina pontoon in a stronger wind which was more tricky. On that occasion a guy came to assist and knew exactly what to do. Without any words from me, grabbed the lines, tied them instinctively to the pontoon perfectly to secure the boat safely. The pontoon was about 32ft and our boat is 45ft, so securing the boat takes a bit of experience, but there was no drama and the whole process took around 30 seconds or so. i thanked him and he went back to his boat as if nothing had happened.
If anyone thinks i handled the situation badly please do not hesitate to tell me, as I am not too sure what else I could have done as events unfolded. What do you do if you detect that the person helping is starting to make things difficult for you? Fortunately in our experience this episode was unusual and for 99% of the time we really welcome assistance and always offer help to others. Having said that I make a point of not tying off a line to a cleat unless it's berthed and obviously safe and sound. I regard the person on the helm as the boss and will always listen and follow any instructions from him/her.
The traditional response is "Awa' an' bile yer heid, ya numptie" which translates, loosely, as "Oh well, if that's the way you want it."
They don't normally say much which makes me feel they didnt really want to help in the first place...........to which the warmhearted soul on the pontoon normally replies??
Fine if you've got enough space on the pontoon, less so in a tight spot where a midships line works better.
I prefer to step ashore in preference to lassoing cleats, which are not always convenient anyway. My boat has moderate freeboard and, apart from places such as the Kiel Canal locks, stepping off is simple enough. I would hope to bring the boat to a halt when coming in or alongside, though this practice is clearly not universal. I don't take kindly to people who expect my fenders to provide sufficient friction to stop their boat when rafting up.
Fair enough and stepping ashore when under control in the situation as you describe is very different to the leap and wrangle approach that still seems to be an affection of quite a few sailors.
Agreed. My aim - not always realised, of course - is to come to a dead stop alongside the pontoon and 2" away so my crew and I can step ashore and do stuff with rope. I amazed at how many people come belting in at a speed which relies on a rope to avert disaster.
Eek. My old berth at Kirkcudbright could have 5 kts of tide + current, but luckily that was along the pontoon and not across it.
I use that technique for getting off my berth. I have a couple of pontoon fenders as well as a bow fender. I put the engine in to tickkover, or a bit higher if I’m being blown off by a strong wind, ease the stern and spring lines, steer away from the pontoon and she’ll happily sit there all day while I get all the lines in and do my final checks. The last thing is a safety line on the stern that is on the genoa winch and looped back.