Boat to Dock - Low Tide

Don S/V ILLusion · Apr 25, 2016

My wife suffers the same affliction. We have a 6 ft fender board used primarily for its designed purpose but occasionally is put into service as a ladder having some small wood strips fixed on the inside.

Anonymous 121765 · Apr 25, 2016

PK,

I am only 5'-6 1/2" on a good day, so I feel your pain.
I assume you have a 5 ft. draft+/- correct?

Here are some options that I see.
1. move to a deeper slip or,
2. If approved, a double motored powerboat being tightly tied in your slip
may be able under load with good props, to hog out your slip & deepen the approach.
This of course will depend on a lack of tidal flow @ your slip.

I have done this before for others but, feel that if tidal height is a problem, find what works best for you.
You may have to make an adjustment or relocate but if you think about it,
it's your money.......how do you wish to spend it pal?

You want a slip that allows you to come & go at will otherwise, it's not the right slip right?

CR

Joe · Apr 25, 2016

Ron........ how is making the slip deeper going to raise the water level so short people exit the boat.

deltaten · Apr 25, 2016

when looking g for new dockage, try to find a floater. Doesn't matter what tide is. I,m always 22" dock to toe rail.....except unusual lows with wind f:rom NW. then I need a rope ladder, as she's on her side . lol

BudGates · Apr 25, 2016

A rope ladder hung over a deck cleat could help.

Anonymous 121765 · Apr 25, 2016

Joe,

PK's slip does not have enough side-to-side lateral depth to get from the boat to the dock, which suggests to me that his slip is shallow & probably shoals from between mid-slip to his dock. If his slip was flushed out, his boat may get closer to step on & off from his dock. It's probably worse for him during a new moon as his low tides are lower then usual.

Unless it all rock bottom, flushing a slip may work.

CR

DAVA390 · Apr 25, 2016

I thought it sounded like a climbing problem, not a distance one.

agprice22 · Apr 25, 2016

He said vertically challenged. I assume he cannot climb up at low tide.
I would mount some horn cleats on the dock and tie a ladder with treads. You can remove it when you are done. If they wont allow cleats, I would use hooks that can be hooked over the dock then removed.

Bill Roosa · Apr 25, 2016

Ron
"side to side lateral depth"?????? Clearly you went to collage in the 60 and they where good years.
i believe the height of the dock in respect to the height of the boat deck (at the location of the aforementioned dock) is the problem. As a general rule short folks have short legs and negotiating a 3' difference between deck and dock is difficult. From the OP the deck is lower than the dock (ladder needed) so how do you raise the deck level is the real question?

Newport Bob · Apr 25, 2016

Don't have your problem (floating dock at home slip and also 6'+) but understand with places we have been with fixed short arrow head docks and decent tides - climbing over bow pulpit to dock.
One thought is this, if there is a cleat on th dock that you can reach, this ladder in car when arriving and on board when sailing;
http://www.defender.com/product3.jsp?path=-1|7504|2290202|2290206&id=1343784

OR, a short regular ladder that you can stow aboard, lean from cockpit to dock, attach line to stow in cockpit for retrieval upon return for boarding. (Don's fender board mod is also a great idea for a "short ladder")

Ron20324 · Apr 25, 2016

Can you step from the cabin top to the dock?

Ken Cross · Apr 25, 2016

Wow, I never considered anyone would use a fixed height dock where there are tides.
Our tides are often over 12 feet and I'd hate to have to wait on the tide to get on or off the boat. All the docks on Puget Sound float. Problem solved.

Ken

Benny17441 · Apr 25, 2016

The problem seems to be with the marina that has fixed docks but will not allow ladders; never heard of such a stupid concept. I do not accept your excuse as being short, what are the other people in the marina doing to get on and off their boats? Eight to ten inches difference in height is not going to make a difference in a 3-4 ft. tidal drop. Post a picture of your boat at the dock showing the whole slip and we will sure get back to you with a solution.

Stu Jackson · Apr 25, 2016

Benny17441 said:
Post a picture of your boat at the dock showing the whole slip and we will sure get back to you with a solution.

And let us know the name of the marina, we'll set them straight!!!

SFS · Apr 26, 2016

I may not be much help on this one, as we have the opposite problem (low fixed dock, high freeboard at bow, which is the only place the PO had gates in the lifelines). However, the question about cabin top height made me think: can you fashion some sort of lightweight passerelle?

Joe · Apr 26, 2016

captnron said:
Joe,

PK's slip does not have enough side-to-side lateral depth to get from the boat to the dock, which suggests to me that his slip is shallow & probably shoals from between mid-slip to his dock. If his slip was flushed out, his boat may get closer to step on & off from his dock. It's probably worse for him during a new moon as his low tides are lower then usual.

Unless it all rock bottom, flushing a slip may work.

CR

I suggest you take a moment to re read PK's post. Your scenario suggest that his boat is touching bottom with keel at low tide and can't get close enough to the dock. Actually, if he did touch bottom at low tide his boat wouldn't go any lower, which may help.

pateco · Apr 26, 2016

My wife also has issues getting on and off our boat at low tide. They are caused by both our fixed height dock, and shallow water not allowing us to bring the boat as close to the dock as she would like at low tide.

To resolve this, I bought a 10 foot 2X12 board at Home Depot that I bridge from the dock to our cabin top. I put it next to the shrouds so there is something to grab onto at the halfway point. It takes a little balance to walk it, but much easier than the leap needed otherwise. I just lay it along the seawall at the back of the dock when not in use. I have recently caught my dock neighbor using it for his boat as well LOL. Since I rent my dock space from him, I think I'm OK with that.

Skipper · Apr 26, 2016

We had the same problem in Annapolis during extreme winter tides. -only me actually; wife didn't come out to the boat during winter. However, it was only extreme a couple of times, where it was difficult to get in and out, especially with ice and snow around the boat and dock.
I'm 5'11", and it was a challenge. Just had to climb. Used winches and rails as steps. Not safe. Luckily only a couple times.
Then we moved back to Dana Point. Woohoo floating docks (pics).
Sorry no real answer, only a story

Benny17441 · Apr 26, 2016

Have you tried this method with a halyard?

Boat to Dock - Low Tide

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