Beached dinghy etiquette

S

smckean (Tosca)

New member
I'm looking for opinions. Hopefully some of you have experience with the dilemma I find myself in.

I launch at a private ramp (small) on a private beach (owned by a subdivision association). The beach is loaded with dinghies. Most just sit there year-round except the opening of crab season etc. A few are used often. Even fewer are used, as I do, as a method to get to/from the beach to my boat which is hanging on my mooring buoy.

Here's my question: What's the proper etiquette for the management of dinghy space on such a beach?

Over the years I have noticed almost all, if not all, the dinghies stay in the same exact spot. If I take my dinghy and leave it on the mooring buoy while I take a 3 day cruise, that empty spot on the beach in a row of perhaps 20 dinghies has always remained open for me to use......until recently. In the last month someone has been taking my traditional dinghy space almost every time I go out. When I return, I have nowhere to put my dinghy.

It has always been the same dinghy that "takes" my spot, and I didn't know who owned it.....until yesterday. It turned out to be someone I know who just got a new dinghy who, like me, uses his dinghy a lot (altho he uses the dinghy to crab, not as a "ferry" to a moored boat). We had a confrontation on the beach about this. To my way of thinking, a dinghy that has occupied the same space for 10+ years, has a "right" to expect that others will respect that space, and that a new owner must find an unused space for their dinghy, To his way of thinking, all spaces are up for grabs at all times for anyone to use. (note all the land space around there is under common ownership.) And BTW, 90% of the time my dinghy is missing, it is easily seen hanging on the buoy some 150 yards from shore.

What say you??
 
I say you are right. I would get an engraved sign, giving your name, boat name, and a contact #. Reserved for XXXXXX dinghy. "The dinghy is on the mooring and will be returning shortly. Please leave this space open for XXX. Any questions call xxx xxx xxxx."

I don't know the legal implications, but you certainly have seniority and "possession/use rights. You also may have an emergency upon landing or some urgent affair, and it is proper that you have your customary spot.

This is basically how it is handled at yacht clubs and marinas. There are specifically designated spots.

Certainly sounds like an issue for the next homeowner's meeting. It may boil down to some making "racks" to put the dinghies on, if there is not enough space. If the HOA took the proper steps to assign spaces, then the issue would be moot.
 
IMO, unless there are designated spots (e.g. numbered parking spaces) then the beach is first come, first served.

Even if you have happened to become accustomed to "your" spot, there is no rule, policy, or procedure (from the information you supplied) that confirms that once you "claim" a spot it is your's forever.

I think that the only reason you kept your spot for so long is that the other dinghies appear to have been rarely used (again from your report) and thus no one ever got around to move their dinghy to "your" spot while your dinghy was away (until recently).

If as you say that when you come back "I have nowhere to put my dinghy", this seems to mean that there are more dinghies than available storage space. In that I case I would approach the subdivision association (provided I was a member and had legitimate rights to use the beach) to verify that all the dinghies were properly registered and still had resident owners (perhaps some of the dinghy owners moved away and abandoned their property). I would check that all the dinghies had current state registrations (if applicable in your state). If any are expired I would contact the subdivision association about either contacting the owners or removing the expired boats.

If not already done. I would have the association require that all boats using their beach be registered with the association and institute a policy to remove any unregistered boats with reasonable notice (much the same way they removed unregistered cars from the parking spaces they control, usually pretty aggressively). Also, any boats that are in obvious unservicable condition should be removed (again, the same way these places deal with obviously disabled cars).

Requiring dinghy owner's to register/re-register their boat on regular basis would separate some of the unused boats from the beach. Perhaps some sort of annual "beaching fee" would also help and could generate revenue for upkeep of the beach area (e.g. pay someone to polish the "parking" space signs).

Perhaps the association also needs a beach "manager". Any volunteers?
 
First come first serve, common areas are just that common. Is this a higher quality dinghy spot ? or just the one you are used too? Seems that there are other things in the world to worry about. Wish I had a mooring buoy on the beach and the home to go with it. If you think I am making fun of you a little, well yeah a little. You have made it in life. House in a beach community, boat on a mooring and a dinghy to row out to it. sounds too nice to worry about assigned parking.
 
House in a beach community....
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That is not the situation. This is an association with a couple of hundred homes in it, only some of which are on the water (all high bank). This "beach" is really just a boat ramp located in a small rocky cove with ZERO houses on it. Personally I live about 1/2 mile from the water, and my CD25 lives most of its life in a trailer in a covered space on my property. I imagine most CD25s are stored as mine is (on a trailer that is). I do have 2 advantages: 1. my drive is short; 2. I do have a "pass me down" buoy to use so I don't have to retrieve the boat to the trailer every time I use the boat.
 
In our vacation community it's first come, first served with respect to dingy spaces, parking spaces, etc. We have some common sense rules in place, and just as many rule breakers. My most successful approach has been to change how I think about common use and just "go with the flow". A dock or buoy confrontation can quickly take the fun out of one's day. Best, Mike
 
I am Realtor and have sold homes on Camano Island. If you have a beach and a ramp its a "beach community" No matter where your home sits. West ward is right ,go with the flow is a great way to live sometimes.
 
Thanks everyone for your replies.

It seems the C-Brats group are also pretty much equally divided on whether "traditional" rights should apply, or that "up for grabs at all times" should apply. Clearly there is no "right" answer to my question.

Personally, I can see valid arguments for both sides. I certainly approve of the "live and let live" approach; OTOH, there are times when conflicts need to be resolved.
 
If you have a pair of waders, and the approach to the beach and your agility allow it, a "practical" solution could be leaving the dinghy on the beach, instead of on the buoy. That is: take the dinghy out to the boat; use the boat to tow the dinghy in; take the dinghy (and a bow line!) to shore; use the waders to get back in the boat. Reverse procedure upon return. That way your dinghy spot is exposed to predation for very short periods. (With a bullhorn and a slingshot, you should be able to "reserve" it while you're in process. :lol:)

It may not be possible to do this, and it certainly would be less convenient, more work and more time consuming - but in an imperfect world . . .

Good luck with resolving the issue. And happy boating.
 
If you store your dinghy on property you do not own and "Dinghy Storage Rules"
are not posted by the property owner for you and others to follow, then I would
follow my Grandpa's advice.

Grandpa used to say, "It's a jungle out there. Every man for himself!"

Or, if you belong to the Association that owns the property, approach them with
your concerns perhaps suggesting they draft and post ''rules" to minimize
mayhem among you and your fellow trespassers.

Alternately, if only 1 or 2 other dinghy owners are bothersome for you, what's
worked for me is to do the following in this specific order:

1. Politely state your position and request to those involved
2. Use subtle then overt intimidation
3. Be boisterously and personally threatening
4. Engage in midnight destructive raids on their dingy(s) until you obtain
your desired effect
5. Find another place to store your dinghy

Aye.
 
.....take the dinghy out to the boat; use the boat to tow the dinghy in; take the dinghy (and a bow line!) to shore; use the waders to get back in the boat...
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Interesting idea, but one I'm not likely to try :lol:

In this cove there can be strong currents and wind. I usually single-hand. I can't imagine having this 8000 pound boat, unmanned, floating in the water with nothing but a "leach".

Once, while single-handing, I had the boat unexpectedly roll down the trailer into the water before I could board the boat (I had recently sprayed the trailer rollers with silicone). I watched the boat as it slowly drifted away while I stood on shore like a dummy. I never want to see that image again :wink:. But that's a whole other story!
 
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