Pile Moorings (at Yarmouth)

[newtosailing]

As my username suggests I am relatively new to this game. It may seem a stupid question but I am hoping that someone could help with the following question. I was in Yarmouth this weekend and on entering the harbour I was slightly concerned the harbour master was going to direct me to a pile mooring (having read that a number of the moorings in yarmouth are on pile moorings). My concern was that this weekend was my first time out as Skipper (having only done the Day Skipper practical a month or so ago) and my experience as a crew member over the last 2/3 yrs has not included mooring on fore and aft pile moorings. I was relieved to be directed to a mooring rafting alongside another yacht on a floating pontoon. However, I noticed that most of the pile moorings had 3 (sometimes 4) boats moored to them - I can see how the first could moor with relative ease - but how do you moor if you are say the 3rd to arrive and are some 15 ft aside of the parallel that goes between the two poles ?

I would be grateful for any response

Thanks

 

[BlueChip]

You would moor alongside some one already there and then ask the HM nicely to take your lines to the piles, ask a passing youngster in a dinghy, or blow up your own dinghy and do it yourself. Usually, though not always, the other yachts in the raft will then adjust their pile lines so the load is shared evenly between all the yachts and the raft is centered between the piles.
On many of the piles there is a resident vessel that rarely moves.

 

[john_morris_uk]

Go alongside one of the boats already there and moor up as if you are on a pontoon, ie bow and stern lines, fore and aft springs. Then get your dinghy out and run a bow and stern line to the ring on the sliding bar on the piles.

A couple of tips. If you use a loop of line round the 'pile ring' don't just loop it through the ring - put a 'turn on' - it saves loads of wear and chafe on your line. By the way the ring is supposed to be on a line so that you can pull it up from underwater when the tide is in! Sometimes this line is missing.

If you need to leave a boat on piles, I always double up the lines, and never leave loops through the rings, even with a turn on. Also I suggest you use a round turn and two half hitches rather than bowlines. You can always undo the former under load.

If you ever have to be the first between the posts, ignore the rings - just get a line through the upright bar or round the post - once you are moored in between you can pull yourself forwards and backwards to sort out the proper knots and places to tie them.

 

[iangrant]

Welcome aboard as they say..
Stooge about and plan carefully, tie up to the boat you are directed too (careful of the tide direction which can run fairly strong) and wind direction.
Mostly in Yarmouth the HM will take lines to the piles for you.

I went into Yarmouth on HW springs once and was directed to an empty pair of piles by the HM. All set, stern line ready slipped through the ring and motor slowly bow toward the pile in front, asking SHMBO to go forward and slip the rope through that pile ring. Copybook manouver then she stood there and waited, and waited, rope in hand, Oi get on with it - errr can reach that far down, Doh me stoopid.. nice lad in a dinghy spared my blushes and took the line for us.

Good luck - most people will help if you struggle..

Ian

 

[newtosailing]

Thanks for the responses (I suspect this will be the first of many questions!)

Thanks again

 

[tome]

Just to add a couple of comments. The trickiest time to moor on piles is when they are empty. If there's already a boat there it's easy to come alongside and secure, then run the bow and stern lines at your leisure.

The technique for empty piles is to head into tide close on the leeward side of the piles with the stern line taken forward to the bow. As the bow comes past the pile the crew puts the line through and then back to the boat, handing the free end to the helm. The helm then steers to windward of the 2nd pile whilst paying out stern line and keeping it clear of the prop. As the bow reaches the 2nd pile and way is taken off, the bow will pay off towards the pile and the bow line can be secured. Finally, adjust the lines to centre yourself between the piles. Goes without saying that the stern line needs to be long enough to allow this. Agree about not bothering with the rings- this can be done later.

 

[DJE]

Don't know the size of your boat but if 30' or less you will invariably be directed to the small boat pontoon at the top of the harbour where we are often to be found. You will still need the pile moring skills if you go to Bucklers Hard though.

 

[SteveB_Sigma33]

Completely agree with tome for the first boat between the piles.

Sadly piles are becoming fewer and fewer but there are still some around on which to practice. One place is up the Itchen off of Southampton water past the bridge and near St. Marys Division one football club.