Sailing Lessons, Sailboat Docking and Anchoring

The trickiest part of a voyage or cruise may turn out to be the short leg between any harbor entrance and dock, both on the way in and the way out. -- Carleton Mitchell

Maneuvering in the Marina

Pivot Turn ( Back and Fill ): Pivot turn is a technique for turning a boat 180 degrees in a narrow channel. The turn has to be done in the direction of the propeller's prop walk* when the boat is in reverse gear. Thus, in a sailboat with a right-hand prop, the maneuver is done in a clockwise direction (forward to starboard and reverse to port). In a sailboat with a left-hand prop, the maneuver is performed in a counterclockwise direction.     Pivot Turn Animated GIF. Click On Picture To View Animation.

View Video - Pivot Turn ( Back and Fill Maneuver )


In a sailboat with a right-hand prop, the ship's wheel is turned and kept to starboard (or tiller to port). Forward thrust will turn the boat starboard as reverse prop walk will turn the stern to port. The boat rotates clockwise.

Steps in Pivot Turn - Right Hand Prop:

Turn and keep the wheel to starboard (or tiller to port).
#1. Short burst of forward thrust - Turns bow to starboard.
#2. Place in neutral for a short pause.
#3. Reverse thrust to generate prop-walk - Turns stern to port.
#4. Once backward motion is felt, place in neutral for a short pause.
Repeat Steps #1 though #4.

* Prop walk: The lateral thrust created by a spinning propeller. Looking at the stern of the boat, a right-hand prop will spin clockwise in forward gear. A left-hand prop will spin counter- clockwise. Some sailboats cannot back in the direction opposite of the prop walk. Prop walk is much more pronounced in reverse gear than forward gear.

Docking

One of the most difficult aspects of sailing a large keelboat is docking. Sailboats are often heavy and have significant inertia. Reverse gear often does little to slow the boat and will usually swing the stern to one side or another due to prop-walk. One should become familiar with the rotation point of the boat (usually where the keel is ), the turning radius and the glide zone. The glide zone is the distance it takes the boat to stop when the forward thrust is turned off while advancing at the minimum speed to maintain steerage. Approach the dock with a speed no greater than to maintain steerage, usually around one knot, and with fenders in placed and lines manned.

Never place your hands or legs between the boat and the docking platform. A damaged hull can be easily repaired to be as good as new, as a crushed limb often can not.

Dipping the eye: If two boats have their dock lines around the same piling, and the boat owner of the lower line wants to remove his to cast off. He must either first remove the line on top or perform the maneuver called "dipping the eye". The problem created by removing the line on top is that the person who last placed the line on the piling is responsible for the line and any damages which may result from its use or failure to secure the boat. (For example: The line is too short and the tide goes out and the boat's hull scrapes the dock.)

Docking to a Pier:   In a low wind situation it is often easier to dock to a pier on the port side if your sailboat has a right-hand prop and to the starboard side if your sailboat has a left-hand prop. When reverse is applied, this will allow the prop walk to swing the stern of the boat toward the pier . (Note: In sailing ships of long ago, the right side of the sailboat had a steering board instead of a rudder. This side came to be called starboard. The left side was always used to approach the port and thus came to be called port. )

Crosswind blowing away from the pier: In a strong crosswind blowing away from the pier, the sailboat should approach the pier at a 45 degree angle. Once near the pier several maneuvers can be performed.

1) In light winds a quick turn is made and the boat is brought alongside the pier. A crew member may have to quickly step on the pier and secure the dock lines to the pier's cleats or the boat may be blown away from the dock.


2) An aft line can be used from a mid-ship horn cleat. In this maneuver the boat approaches at a 45 degree angle and a spring line from a mid-ship horn cleat is placed over a piling or around a deck cleat. The ship continues to turn along side the dock with forward thrust. The vector of force produced by the spring line will pull the boat along side the dock. It should be noted that only about 50% of sailboats above 30 feet are equipped with a mid-ship horn cleat (more commonly found on the larger the sailboat).   If your sailboat does not have a midship horn cleat, you may use a chain plate (attaches the shroud to the boat), a hole in the toe rail or the jib's fairlead.   It is not advisable to use a stanchion. Midship Spring line Animated GIF. Click On Picture To View Animation.

3) In heavier winds which will quickly blow the boat off the pier, a bow line may be used to aid in docking. The bow of the boat is brought up to the dock.   A bow line is secured to the bow's horn cleat and thrown to a dockhand who secures it to a cleat on the dock.   The wheel is turned away from the pier ( or tiller turned toward the pier ) and a small amount of forward thrust is applied which will bring the stern alongside the pier. The stern docking line is then secured.   Bow Line Animated GIF. Click On Picture To View Animation.       ( Previous Page )


Crosswind blowing towards the dock: In a light wind approaching a pier can be an easy docking maneuver. Just let the wind gently blow the boat into the pier.   However, in a heavy wind you may need to use reverse thrust to keep the boat from approaching too fast.   One may even have to use an bow line, with light forward thrust and the wheel turned toward the dock, as described above, to prevent too fast of an approach.

Wind parallel to the dock, In this situation it is easiest to dock approaching the wind. Thus, you will want to dock with the wind forward rather than aft.   Wind Forward Animated GIF. Click On Picture to View Animation.

Leaving a Pier:     ( Previous Page )

Getting underway and safely leaving a crowded pier can be difficult. The use of spring lines greatly aid in this maneuver. Spring lines are also useful in leaving a pier when the sailboat is blown against the pier by wind. A spring line is named by the direction it takes from the boat. Thus, a forward spring line runs from the stern of the boat forward to the pier. For greatest leverage, the spring line should be secured to the bow (aft spring line) or stern (forward spring line) cleat and wrapped around a horn pier cleat which is at least midship. The line is then brought back to the bow or stern, if necessary placed around one of the cleat's horns, and held by a crew member. The use of a forward spring line will swing the bow out and allow for an easier departure. However, one must be careful in retrieving the line to not foul the prop (wrap the line around a spinning propeller).   One may also use the rudder to vary the direction of boat thrust, to aid in holding the boat to or in swinging the boat away from the pier.   Thus, with an aft spring line (running backwards from the bow of the boat to the pier), the wheel is initially turned away from the pier (tiller towards the pier) to hold the boat against the pier. To pull away from the pier, turn the wheel towards the pier (tiller away from the pier) and give a small amount of forward power.

View Video
Forward Spring Line

Forward Spring Line Animated Gif. Click to View Animation

View Video
Aft Spring Line

Aft Spring Line Animated Gif. Click to View Animation

Docking in a Slip

Wind Forward : This is one of the easier docking situations. The wind can be used as the ship's brake and will not cause prop-walk. Using forward intermittent thrust, at minimum speed to maintain steerage, slowly enter the slip. Instead of using reverse, place the transmission in neutral and the wind will blow boat back. Secure the bow dock line first, since the stern line will not prevent the backward drifting of the sailboat.

Wind Aft : This is one of the hardest situations to dock a heavy sailboat. Reverse must often be used to prevent the boat from approaching the slip to fast. This will cause prop-walk. It is best to have the docking platform on the side that the prop-walk will push your boat. It is always better to drift into the docking platform than another boat. If the wind is strong you may wish to approach the end of the docking platform, and use two spring lines to swing your boat into the slip.

Cross Wind: If the wind is light and the docking platform is downwind this can be an easy approach. In heaver winds or if another boat is downwind, you may wish to approach the end of the docking platform and use two spring lines to swing your boat into the slip (see above GIF ).

Leaving a Slip When backing out of a slip one must always compensate for prop-walk and the momentum of the sailboat. Unlike driving a car, a sailboat does not instantly change direction when the gears are shifted from reverse to forward. Thus, the wheel or tiller is adjusted according to the direction of movement and not the direction of the engine's thrust. Intermittent thrust and minimum speed should be used when leaving a dock. One crew member should be on deck with a pole and a fender to help prevent damage in the event of an inadvertent collision.

The timing of when to turn depends upon a number of factors. The three most important are the wind, current and the width of the channel you are backing into. Some marinas with expensive real estate have the slips tightly packed with narrow channels. In this instance you may need to turn the boat before the bow has fully cleared the slip.   If the wind is blowing (or current flowing) against the boat as it leaves the slip, you will want to enter the channel and turn the boat on the far side. If the wind is blowing (or current flowing) with the boat as it leaves the slip, you will want to stay on the near side of the channel.   In this case, you need to be careful when turning the boat since the wind can catch and quickly swing the bow. If there is a large channel, fully back out of the slip before turning the boat. This will prevent inadvertently hitting the docking platform or boat next to you.

In sailboats with a right-hand prop, it is easier to dock to port and back out to port.   In sailboats with a left-hand prop, it is easier to dock to starboard and back out to starboard. Thus, it helps to select a slip in which your boat's prop-walk will help rather than hinder your maneuverability.

Anchoring

The basics of anchoring are covered in the US SAILING online keelboat course at http://www.sailingusa.info/anchors_and_docking.htm Below are two advanced anchoring techniques which are not covered in the keelboat course.

Using Two Anchors: Anchoring with two anchors is a difficult maneuver and is performed to reduce the swing radius of the sailboat or to increase the holding power in heavy weather. In setting the anchors, one may maneuver the boat with sails or engine or even place the second anchor with a dinghy. If one uses an engine, care must be taken not to foul the prop with the first anchor's rode while you are setting the second anchor. To prevent this from happening, the first anchor's rode should always be close to the beam or forward while you are setting the second anchor. To the right is an animated gif showing a method of setting two bow anchors under engine power which minimizes the chances of fouling the prop.

The tension on the anchor rodes is important especially when one is swinging up to set the second anchor. Too much tension may cause the first anchor to break loose, too little tension on the rode may cause it to go astern and foul your prop.

Setting Two Anchor Animated GIF. Click On Picture To View Animation.

Mediterranean Mooring: This type of docking is commonly found in Europe, South and Central America.. It maximizes the number of boats which can be docked to a pier.

Each boat is docked with its stern to the pier with a rode and anchor going forward, away from the pier. Boats are then docked next to each other. During the maneuver the anchor is set and the boat is backed into position. Prop-walk can create difficulty staying on course. While backing towards the slip, one must be careful not to put too much tension on the rode to straighten the boat or the anchor may break loose.

Mediterranean Mooring Animated GIF. Click On Picture To View Animation.

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