docking searay 185 with a strong current

[bloodshoti1978]

so with one year boating under my belt ive learnt a lot in last year...

lauching and recovery from my shore directly behind my house is no longer an issue... however docking is without doubt the most stressful activity.

while docking in slow flowing water is ok as I can control the speed of my approach along side floating jetties using reverse etc. theres one marina which I had hoped to use mainly but I find myself avoiding it now as ive had some scary docking attempts... its where a large lough(lake) narrows to river so the current is very strong... depending on the available spaces docking with the strong current is often the only option... ive tried using reverse to slow my approach but I end up all over the place and end up aborting.

anyone got any tips they could share to make docking with a strong current less stressful?

 

[dburne]

I think about all you can do is practice, practice.
Once you get used to the flow and how it moves your boat, you can then compensate for it during your approach.
It might take a few times but eventually you should get used to the angle and speed of the approach and be able to slide her in there.

Of course I say this and where we boat I don't really have that issue, have loaded the boat on some other lakes where there was more of a current and had to adjust my approach for it.

 

[Mike Blake]

practice Practice practice. But then you always could buy a bigger boat W/ twins in it.

 

[northern]

A friend put an eclectic trolling motor on the front of his boat to dock in difficult areas. He said it pulls him into his spot. If you fish it is a bonus. If not it may be too much.

 

[blaster]

Might add a set of guides to the trailer to hold your stern better in current.

I read your post again. Are there good cleats at the dock. You could throw a line and quickly tie off for leverage while maintaining power to control your position. Or call out for a hand on the dock if someone is willing.

 

[Gofirstclass]

BS, welcome to CSR.

You didn't give much of a description of what you're docking against and which direction the current is going, but I'll give you some suggestions from my experience.

The wind and current can either be your enemy or your friend. How you view them and approach them determines which they're going to be. I always back into my slip so if the wind is howling, I back upwind and keep the stern pointed into the wind until I'm almost into the slip, then bring the bow around.

With your boat you're probably going bow in. Make your approach against the current until you get the bow up against the dock or into the slip. Then, turn the wheel, bump it into gear and spin the bow in.

A description of what your docking situation is would be a help for us to give better instruction ideas.

 

[bloodshoti1978]

cheers for all the suggestion so far...

I like the suggestion of a bigger boat... if only ... wanna avoid a divorce so best not suggest that one.

sorry if it wasn't clear its a floating jetty and i normally try to dock against the current but this isnt always possible as those positions are usually taken first so docking with the current is the only option.

I guess practice will be the key but I was hoping for some pointers to avoid an expensive repair job.

 

[WDCboater]

As others have mentioned practice practice practice.

One other idea, find an experienced boater who may come on board with you and give you some lessons. When I bought my first boat my dealer spent a good day on the water working on docking.