Piles (the mooring kind)

[BlueSkyNick]

Recently taken up a pile mooring for the first time, sharing with another boat. The previous occupant sold me a load of warps, shackles, buoys etc. - all a bit complicated.

Add on the cross winds, tides, and voyeurs, it has the potential for being messy.

I have been provided with two warps fore and aft, both to be shackled on to the pile ring. There is pick up line which floats between the two piles, helped by an old fender and a pick up buoy. Coming down from the buoy is another line with a shackle on the bottom. The warps each have a karibiner (sp?) sewn into their ends which is used to attach them to the shackle. The theory is that the warps sink out of the way, and are pulled up by hand when returning to the mooring. By unclipping each one, they can be made fast to the boat in turn.

Talking to the neighbour this morning, he suggests just one warp fore and aft, joined by a light pick up line supported by a pick up buoy. So there should be minimal amount of rope within in prop catching distance. He then fits a second warp to the pile ring only when leaving the boat for a while or in anticipation of bad weather.

The final conundrum is how to moor the tender (an old Mirror dinghy) and be able to return to the mooring withut crushing it between the two boats.

Any other suggestions or comments? (Polite and relevant, please!)

 

[fireball]

You could always open the bung and sink it whilst you're away ... don't forget to attach an air line so you can pump the water back out when you're back! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[FullCircle]

Cant comment on the warp arrangement , but put mini fenders all around the mirror and nudge it out of the way when required. Put it on a slider so it can move with the tide, on the line between the piles.

 

[jhr]

The existing arrangement does sound needlessly complex and a recipe for potential prop embuggerment. My old man normally kept his succession of boats on pile moorings and I can never recall anything more complex than a warp each end and a pick-up line with a fender in the middle. I don't want to depress you, but we still had to venture over the side with a knife once or twice......

So far as the dinghy is concerned, I don't have a miracle solution, but I would be inclined to leave it attached fore and aft, with one end on a short line to the ring on the pile and the other attached to the pick-up line. This should keep the dinghy behind your neighbour, but away from her, and hence not in the firing line when you come back. You might be able to do this by having a looped line on pulleys, attached to the pile and the pick up line, and using this to pull the dinghy to and fro. This is, of course, reintroducing the complexity that you are currently trying to get rid of, but that's sailing for you /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif.

 

[Georgio]

I go for the KISS principle in my pile moorning. One heavy for and aft line onto the Piles that sink when I'm not using it. Fore and aft line attached to each other by a thinner (8mm ish) line with a pickup buoy in the middle. When leaving the tender I tie the painter to the pickup bouy.

On return to the mooring you have to do a bit of nudging of the dingy but as long as you go slowly you shouldn't have a problem.

It can still be a bugger at high water with a strong cross wind but it's quarter the price of a marina so I'm happy to put up with it

I have tried a number of different methods and this seems to work best.

hope this helps.

G

 

[Twister_Ken]

Nick.

I'm in the same situation. My recipe which has so far worked (one exception - very embarrassing to wrap your own mooring line around your prop, but it certainly moors you very effectively,) is...

One line from each pile, not long enough to meet in the middle, no sinkers attached

One pick up buoy, centered on a piece of lighter line, which is tied between the two pick up lines when we leave

Leaving, with neighbour there, drape our mooring lines and pick up buoy over his guard rails. Spring off him to get our bow or stern clear of the pile.

Leaving, without neighbour, dump everything in the water

Arriving, with neighbour, come alongside him, hang on to his shrouds while we get our uptide mooring line off of his rails. Make that fast, then sort out downtide line and springs at leisure.

Arriving, without neighbour, run boat in slowly to boathook our pick-up buoy, and quickly get uptide mooring line made fast, downtide follows at leisure

Dinghy, on leaving, if neighbour there, made fast to his shrouds on the side away from us, on a short painter (we have his agreement)

Dinghy, on leaving, if neighbour not there, made fast on short painter to our pick up buoy so that it floats bow-to-tide between piles.

On returning without neighbour, dinghy nudges out of way, and can be sorted at leisure

If neighbour returns first, he makes our dinghy fast to his 'far' side shrouds on a short painter.

Only complication so far comes on leaving without neighbour, because the tide tries to set us towards the bank (mooring is on outside of a slight bend) across our, and his, lines as we leave. In that case we move all lines across to our mid-stream side, so that we can exit gracefully on the shore side.

 

[BlueSkyNick]

thanks for all the help.

I am inclined to moor the dinghy fore and aft so its not floating too freely and bashing the neighbour's boat. Also may make it easier to catch than a small buoy on returning to the mooring. (EDIT: close to one pile or the other so its out of the way)

Time will tell ...

 

[capt_courageous]

Hi Nick
If this is a long term mooring have a word with they other mooring holder about fitting a small pontoon between the piles - if it is allowed. They cost a few bob but well worth it and you should get your money back if you give the mooring up.

 

[BlueSkyNick]

Hadnt thought of the pontoon, thre are no others on the river though.

Another thing the neighbour has requested is breast ropes between the two boats to keep them parallel. I hadnt realised this was a requirement, not that's a problem, just yet more string to play with.

 

[Twister_Ken]

Yes - we run bow and stern lines as well as springs between us and neighbour. Apart from anything else, if one mooring line breaks (quite a few did on the Hamble in the winter gales) you've a chance of staying put. Also (OK sucking eggs) don't park with masts adjacent.