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Boating Basics Line Handling while Docking
Docking made easy with bow and stern and forward and after spring lines
No matter what size boat you have, sooner or later you will have to approach a dock or slip and tie her up. Of course, this does not have to be a traumatic experience, because with a little practice, you can maneuver in and around docks and in close quarters like an old salt.
Like other parts of your boat, lines have names and they perform specific functions. For most boats under 30 feet, the four basic mooring lines are all you need. As a general rule, your bow, stern, and forward and after spring lines should be at least as long as your boat and have an eye splice at one end. Nylon braid or laid line is the preferred material.
On boats under 20 feet, it is probably best to secure the end of a mooring line to the cleat on your boat and adjust the line from the dock. On larger boats where it is easier to walk on the foredeck to tend the line, it is better to secure the end of the line to the dock and adjust the line at cleats on board. This allows you to adjust the lines without having to get off your boat, which is more convenient if you have to make a line adjustment late at night.
Before beginning an approach to a dock or slip, decide whether you want the looped end of lines going ashore to be secured to the dock or secured around the deck cleat on board. To secure the line to the cleat, wrap the end of the line around the base of the cleat one full turn and then bring the line up over the cleat, crossing over its top and under the other horn. Pull the line up over the other side of the horn, leading it over the top of the cleat and under the other horn to form a figure 8. Before you pull the line tight, put the end under the crossing line to form a half hitch. Give a tug on the end of the line to snug everything up. Placing more turns on the cleat will not increase its holding power, it will just take you longer to cast off the line.
Bow and stern lines are used to hold a boat parallel to the dock. The bow line leads from a cleat on the bow of a boat to a post or cleat on the dock. The stern line leads from a cleat on the stern of a boat to a post or cleat on the dock. At times, especially in tidal waters, you will find it's better to lead the stern line from the outboard stern cleat of your boat to the dock, because it forms a longer run and a better angle off the boat.
Spring lines prevent a boat from moving forward or aft. The forward spring line prevents the boat from moving forward and is led from a cleat on the bow back to a post or cleat on the dock located about midship of the boat. The after spring line keeps the boat from moving backward and leads from the stern cleats to the same cleat that the forward spring is secured to. If there is no cleat or post amidships, lead these lines to the cleats or posts that the bow and stern lines are secured to. (That's why it is a good idea to have lines at least as long as your boat.)
If a boat has a cleat located amidships, rig both forward and after spring lines from it forward and aft to the same dockside cleats or posts that the bow and stern lines are secured to.
Under calm conditions with no wind and current, you can tie up to a dock with just a bow and stern line. Secure the bow and stern lines to dock cleats or posts well ahead and astern of the boat so they can also function as spring lines.
In tidal waters, where a boat moves up and down with the rise and fall of the tide, be sure to lead lines from, the boat to the dock at an angle. You might find it's better to lead the stern line from the outboard stern cleat to the dock so there's a longer run between the boat and dock. This is also true for spring lines. If your boating waters have a tide of several feet, you may want to secure long spring lines to posts or cleats closer to the bow or stern instead of amidships.
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