MEDITERRANEAN
MOORING
©
1991 Tor Pinney - All Rights Reserved
Mediterranean mooring, docking a boat "end-on" to a quay as
opposed to tying up alongside, is common practice in many parts
of the world. Any skipper setting sail for foreign (particularly
Mediterranean) ports will find that this method of docking is
often mandatory. The technique can be useful in home waters as
well. It saves space at the dock, protects the boat from wake
damage and, where water depth and tidal range permit, can be
convenient for stepping ashore in remote anchorages. Certainly
it can be a welcomed alternative to dockside raft-ups, with
strange crews tramping across your decks at all hours. Yet many
yachtsmen have little idea of how to dock stern-to or bow-to
correctly. Here are some hints to help make this simple maneuver
go smoothly, even for the short-handed or single-handed skipper.
Whether you
choose to moor stern-to or bow-to is largely a matter of
personal preference, although boat design, protruding equipment,
and water depth may dictate one or the other. For example, boats
with narrow bowsprits or high pulpits are often easier to board
from astern, via a boarding ramp. A boat with a windvane or
davits mounted aft would probably be safest moored bow-to, which
is also the wisest alternative when the shoreline water is
shallow. In any case, the basic maneuver is the same.
Preparation
is the key. First, check out the dock or landing site through
binoculars to select a space with convenient cleats, rings, or
pilings (or rocks and trees on a natural shoreline) for securing
lines. Also, check for underwater obstructions close to the
dock, such as shoal water or a protruding foot. Such
obstructions may suggest mooring bow-to rather than presenting
the deeper, vulnerable rudder to the shore.
Read the
water depths where you intend to drop the anchor in order to
estimate how much scope is required. As with normal anchoring, a
scope of 7:1 is good practice. It's especially important that
the anchor doesn't drag when your hull is so close to land. Make
the anchor ready to deploy and be sure the chain or rode won't
snag when it runs out. Be certain, too, that you have enough
rode attached to let the boat reach the dock (you'd be surprised
how often skippers don't, especially with stern anchors), and
make fast the bitter end. If the harbor bottom is suspected of
having debris, ledges or mooring chains, then attach a buoyed
trip line to the anchor. Observe the angle of anchor lines
running from boats already docked and maneuver to drop yours
clear of them. Otherwise, either you may foul their anchor or
they may dislodge yours when they leave.
Hang fenders
along the port and starboard sides. Even if you're not coming in
close to another boat, it's a good idea to leave these down
while dockside, to cushion new arrivals. Also for hull
protection, hang a fender over the stern to protect the transom,
or over the bow if going bow-to.
Make fast
two long dock lines to cleats port and starboard at the landward
end of your vessel, neatly coiled and ready to use. These should
be lead so that when they're passed to the dock they run clear
of pulpits and stanchions. If the shore fittings call for them,
put loops in the dock lines' ends ahead of time.
Now you're
ready to proceed with docking. As with any docking maneuver, the
key is to do it slowly, maintaining complete control of the
boat, with all crewmembers briefed on the procedure. But
remember that a strong cross current or cross wind can make
Mediterranean mooring difficult, at times even foolhardy. In
severe conditions, warping the boat in may be the most prudent
approach. This simply means that after you've set the anchor,
you use the dinghy to run lines ashore, and then crank the boat
into the slip with the ship's winches.
To dock
stern-to in normal conditions, round up to your chosen anchor
setting with the vessel's stern facing the dock. Reverse the
engine. When the boat's forward motion stops or she just begins
to make sternway, lower the anchor. As with normal anchoring,
set the hook with intermittent light tension on the rode as it
pays out. Fin-keeled vessels with balanced spade rudders are
easier to steer in reverse than are fuller-keeled boats. Most
vessels will "pull" to either port or starboard in reverse,
especially before they're making enough way for the rudder to
effect steerage. Ascertain which way your boat tends and steer
to compensate. If the bow begins to fall off to leeward, signal
the anchor handler to put a little tension on the running rode.
If the whole boat slips sideways off course, try correcting it
by using short, strong bursts of forward power with the helm
aimed first to windward, then to leeward to straighten the boat
out. Experience is the only way to improve these boat-handling
skills.
As the boat
nears the dock, the anchor handler should take tight control of
the anchor rode by passing it under a cleat horn, so that he can
maintain tension on it without straining himself, and brake the
boat if necessary. By now he should be certain the anchor has
set well by intentionally slowing the boat with the anchor line.
(A single-hander can set a bow anchor while he's at the helm if
his vessel is equipped with a reversing electric windlass with
remote control.)
When the
boat is close enough, signal your most agile crewmember to step
(not leap!) onto the dock with the windward quarter dock line
first. Once this is made fast to a windward dock fitting and the
slack is quickly taken up aboard ship, then the second line can
be tossed and secured. If the dock lines are long enough, pass
them once around the shore fitting and then back to the boat, so
that both ends wind up fastened on board. (This makes departure
easier since no one has to go ashore to cast off - you simply
release one end of the line and haul it in.) Set the dock lines
at a wide angle to prevent the boat from falling off in wind
shifts, and to allow for tide. This may be more easily
accomplished by crossing the lines. Always take up the lines'
slack on the boat's deck cleats, not on the dock fittings, so
that adjusting can be done from on board the boat.
If you're
staying for any length of time, it's a good idea to switch to a
length of chain on the shore fittings in place of your lines.
The chain saves wear and tear on the lines which, in worst
cases, could chafe through and part. Rather than dedicating long
lengths of chain-ended line, make up a couple of chain-with-rope
"tails". Eye-splice a thimble into one end of a 6-foot length of
line. Through this eye passes a 3- to 5-foot length of hefty
galvanized chain. A shackle, or more conveniently a caribiner
clip, makes the chain into a loop to secure the boat to the
dock's fittings. The rope tail ties to your regular dock line
with a sheet bend (not a square knot!), and the dock line is
then taken up and made fast aboard. Thus, the chain takes the
abrasion of concrete piers and coarse objects. If the tail ever
chafes, it's a relatively small length of line to replace.
Many boats
use a combination chain-and-line anchor rode, rather than all
chain. There's a danger that passing boats may run over, foul
and sever your rode, especially considering that you have to put
out adequate scope, thus creating a shallow angle of submersion
of the line. One solution is to hang a 20-lb. lead weight from
the rode, attached by a shackle, which slides along the rode.
This can be fed out from the deck by a hand-line, to whatever
depth it seems to do the most good. It will not only force the
rode deeper beneath the water's surface, but will enhance the
anchor's holding power by lowering the angle of the rode's pull,
and by acting as a shock absorber if the rode comes under sudden
stress.
Once docked,
many yachtsmen employ a boarding ramp for stepping ashore. This
ramp can be as simple as a broad wood plank, or as fancy as a
cruise ship's carpeted gangway. There are numerous manufactured
ramps made of lightweight aluminum. Of course, whatever you use
must be strong and have a non-skid surface. The ramp may be
lashed or hinged to the boat, but ideally it is secured to the
boat by a single, central pinnel on a hinged cross bar beneath
one plank end. The pinnel slips into a gudgeon mounted at the
top of the transom. This arrangement not only allows the ramp to
be raised and lowered, but also to be angled to the dock if a
cleat or bollard happens to be dead center in your path of
entry. This set up necessitates guy lines being led from each
dockside corner of the ramp to the corresponding stern quarter
cleats, to hold the ramp in place. Also to these outer corners
of the ramp, a long yoke of line is secured whose apex, about
8-ft. above the plank, is shackled to a halyard. This controls
the plank's height, and the support gives you the option of not
quite resting the plank on the dock. It's also a nighttime
security device, used to raise the plank nearly vertical, like a
drawbridge, to discourage uninvited guests. A spreader bar in
this yoke, about 7-feet above the plank, makes it easier to walk
through.
Beneath the
dockside end of the plank should be a roller or set of coaster
wheels to eliminate the annoying scraping of the ramp on the
dock when there's a surge or wake. By mounting a pair of
stanchion bases along each side, guardrails can be quickly set
in place to make “walking the plank” safer.
Beware! A
strong offshore breeze can lift a boarding ramp, flipping it
onto the boat. Hanging a weight from the ramp, just off the
dock, prevents this happening. A bucket-full of water will do
the trick.
Docking
bow-to is much the same maneuver as stern-to, but it has several
advantages: It's easier to steer forward into a slip, and once
docked it affords more privacy in the cockpit and cabin. Most
notably, it's easier for the short-handed or single-handed
skipper to feed out and control a stern anchor line with one
hand while steering with the other. Once the bow is close to the
dock, the single-hander can make fast the stern-anchor rode,
leave the engine in idle forward, and walk forward to handle
dock lines. In a crosswind, the helm can be aimed to windward to
hold the boat up while the skipper goes forward. With a little
practice this technique is very effective.
On too many
boats, a stern anchor is an after-thought, if indeed it is there
at all. Be sure yours is carried in such a way that it can be
easily deployed. Ideally, stow the rode and chain in a proper
chain-locker aft. If that's not possible, build a deck box or
assign a sturdy bucket to contain the rode and chain. A
stern-mounted anchor roller is as helpful aft as is its
counterpart forward.
A stern
anchor is often led from one quarter of the vessel or the other,
rather than from amidships. When this is the case, the moored
boat will sag to leeward when the wind blows from the same side
as that on which the anchor rode is cleated. To correct this,
run a spring line aft from the opposite stern quarter cleat and
secure it to the stern-anchor rode with a roving hitch, about
10-feet from the transom. This can be done by first slacking the
dock lines, or handled from a dinghy after all lines are
adjusted and secured. The spring line forms a yoke that allows
you to adjust the angle of pull from the anchor. Running both
the stern-anchor rode and this spring line to your main sheet
winches gives you the muscle you need to tighten up one line or
the other in a blow.
Mediterranean mooring isn't limited to the Med. As marinas
become more crowded we may see this method of docking become
more common in home waters as well. Meanwhile, for the cruising
sailor going abroad, and for the convenience of stepping
directly ashore closer to home, be prepared to use this simple
and safe alternative to docking alongside.
~
End ~
Back
to List of Tor's Tips
