Mooring on a buoy
- Thread starter RobMcClain
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colbysmith
Active member
Martin, no way the buoy could touch us. We each have a line wrapped around it, brought back to the boat's bow cleat. The only way the buoy could touch either of the boats, is if the other line became loose! 
Colby
Colbycolbysmith":2w19yjd0 said:Martin, no way the buoy could touch us. We each have a line wrapped around it, brought back to the boat's bow cleat. The only way the buoy could touch either of the boats, is if the other line became loose!
Great pix Colby. Thanks. Assuming typical fendering, are you tying cleats together at midship and stern? The straightest portion of the 22 is from stern to midship, so that is where I concentrate my fenders and raft lines. Just wondering if you do anything different.
Harvey
SleepyC :moon
colbysmith
Active member
Blue Days is a 25, my Midnight Flyer is a 22. I place my regular fenders stern, midship (back of the cabin) and bow (just under the front of the side window). Blue Days had their fenders, which were a bit larger than mine, at about the same places, relative to his boat. Actually, in the midship and bow I use the red round floats. So they, along with Blue Days fenders, did a great job fendering between us. We rafted together with my lines, one aft and the other cleated just below the front of the port side window. So there is probably a good 5 or 6 feet distance between the bows where we tied off to the mooring buoy. At first Blue Days tied to the buoy as normal, and then I rafted off of him. But as the case I've had in the past, the buoy started banging against Blue Days hull with the winds. He tried tightening the line, but that did no good. I suggested we try tying it between our bows. We kept our lines tight that we each tied to the buoy, locating it centered between us. Worked like a charm. 
Colby
Colbycolbysmith":3bb6ab7t said:Blue Days is a 25, my Midnight Flyer is a 22. I place my regular fenders stern, midship (back of the cabin) and bow (just under the front of the side window). Blue Days had their fenders, which were a bit larger than mine, at about the same places, relative to his boat. Actually, in the midship and bow I use the red round floats. So they, along with Blue Days fenders, did a great job fendering between us. We rafted together with my lines, one aft and the other cleated just below the front of the port side window. So there is probably a good 5 or 6 feet distance between the bows where we tied off to the mooring buoy. At first Blue Days tied to the buoy as normal, and then I rafted off of him. But as the case I've had in the past, the buoy started banging against Blue Days hull with the winds. He tried tightening the line, but that did no good. I suggested we try tying it between our bows. We kept our lines tight that we each tied to the buoy, locating it centered between us. Worked like a charm.
:thup Purrrrfect :thup
Thnx Colby. Hope you are enjoying this trip.
Harvey
SleepyC :moon
colbysmith
Active member
Having a grand time Harvey! It is definitely the trip of a lifetime. But I've had a few trips like that. They all add up! Life is short. Have to enjoy it when we can! And it's been great traveling with Bill and Becky on Blue Days. Wish I could blog like Pandion, but never figured that blogging stuff out. I'm posting most everything photo wise on my Facebook page, but realize not everyone has access to that. But several others have left good summary's of their trips on C-Brats, so I'll just say, ditto those! Haven't run into Osprey along our separate cruises, but looks like he is taking a little bit different routing than we did. Colby
MikeR":1zry8f5l said:
I stand corrected. Cruising the South Sound this weekend and checked a few state park buoys. So far every park buoy has said "45' max, 1 boat only". Not sure when this change occurred, but good to know I can now tell all my cruising friends "sorry" when they ask to raft up, even in the 16. At what size is a dinghy big enough to be considered rafting? Silly rules. :lol:
RobMcClain
Member
Mary and I just returned from several weeks of cruising the beautiful waters around the San Juan and Gulf Islands. Those of you who have routine access to these waters are so fortunate!
While up there we tried the pool noodle mooring system described in a previous post I made in this string (~1/2 way down on page 1) and it actually worked pretty well. While boats in the mooring field periodically had their buoys resting next to and against their hulls, our buoy never got close - no rubbing or banging! It was quick and easy to both attach and detach. I’ve tried to post a couple of photos of how it worked and looked. Unfortunately I can’t seem to get them to upload but will keep trying...
Rob
While up there we tried the pool noodle mooring system described in a previous post I made in this string (~1/2 way down on page 1) and it actually worked pretty well. While boats in the mooring field periodically had their buoys resting next to and against their hulls, our buoy never got close - no rubbing or banging! It was quick and easy to both attach and detach. I’ve tried to post a couple of photos of how it worked and looked. Unfortunately I can’t seem to get them to upload but will keep trying...
Rob
RobMcClain
Member
Couldn’t get the 3 photos to post here but I was able to upload them to my “Projects” photo album. If interested they are at the bottom of page 2 of that sub album.
Rob
Rob
RobMcClain":3su6jy5v said:
See below:
Each noodle has an equal length of thin PVC gardening pipe in it to add some stiffening to the noodle
The system looks a bit peculiar but I’ll take that for a quiet night’s sleep. Plus it’s kind of fun when folks tootle past in their dinghy looking at it.
I have a latch connecting to the mooring ring. The latch came from a winch strap that I had replaced on the trailer. If so desired I can simply loop the latch thru the ring and attach it back on the noodle lines (depending on the nature of the mooring attachment).
Salmon Fisher
Member
Rob,
Great idea and glad it worked out well.
Could you describe your rigging for the finished product?
I see the photos and it looks like you tied the latching hook to the end of the lines that run through the noodles with pvc.
-How did you attach to buoy?
-Did you attach from cockpit and walk up side with buoy attached?
-How did you store your rigging and did you keep it in one piece ready to go?
Thanks,
Patrick
Great idea and glad it worked out well.
Could you describe your rigging for the finished product?
I see the photos and it looks like you tied the latching hook to the end of the lines that run through the noodles with pvc.
-How did you attach to buoy?
-Did you attach from cockpit and walk up side with buoy attached?
-How did you store your rigging and did you keep it in one piece ready to go?
Thanks,
Patrick
RobMcClain
Member
Patrick, Thanks for asking. I’ll try my best to describe it but zooming in on the photos may be your best option. Not sure my way was/is the best but no doubt others will find good tweaks to improve it.
With that said, I took a spare ~25’ line and routed one end thru the pvc/noodle, then thru the heavy duty hook (previously used on the trailer winch), and then routed the line thru the other noodle. I made both ends roughly equal with the hook in the middle between the noodles. I then made a knot just above the hook, thus keeping both the hook and noodles in a fixed position. The lose lines at the other end of the noodles were then long enough to route thru the bow chocks on each side of the deck and tie off on the center cleat. When we approached the mooring buoy I connected the hook to the mooring ring from the cockpit, then easily walked the noodles up to the bow to tie them off. If the hook had not fit the ring on the buoy I would have easily run the hook thru the ring and then clipped it back on the line instead.
As for storing this little system, that was a piece of cake. Pool noodles are long but with the small diameter they take up very little actual space. I stored them by laying them across the beam in the back of the cockpit. Because of the material they are made out of they are very resilient if something like a chair slides into them, and they make no noise and cause no damage. And if you’re barefoot and kick or step on them no problem.
I like to putter when I’m home and the boat is in storage... This is a silly system but it worked well for us and cost next to nothing to make. And when most of the other boats had their buoys against their hulls, ours was still held off just fine. Made for a very nice night’s sleep too!!
Rob
With that said, I took a spare ~25’ line and routed one end thru the pvc/noodle, then thru the heavy duty hook (previously used on the trailer winch), and then routed the line thru the other noodle. I made both ends roughly equal with the hook in the middle between the noodles. I then made a knot just above the hook, thus keeping both the hook and noodles in a fixed position. The lose lines at the other end of the noodles were then long enough to route thru the bow chocks on each side of the deck and tie off on the center cleat. When we approached the mooring buoy I connected the hook to the mooring ring from the cockpit, then easily walked the noodles up to the bow to tie them off. If the hook had not fit the ring on the buoy I would have easily run the hook thru the ring and then clipped it back on the line instead.
As for storing this little system, that was a piece of cake. Pool noodles are long but with the small diameter they take up very little actual space. I stored them by laying them across the beam in the back of the cockpit. Because of the material they are made out of they are very resilient if something like a chair slides into them, and they make no noise and cause no damage. And if you’re barefoot and kick or step on them no problem.
I like to putter when I’m home and the boat is in storage... This is a silly system but it worked well for us and cost next to nothing to make. And when most of the other boats had their buoys against their hulls, ours was still held off just fine. Made for a very nice night’s sleep too!!
Rob
RobMcClain
Member
Forgot to answer your last question Patrick... we rarely encounter mooring buoys so I keep the “system” in the garage, standing in a corner unless I suspect we might have the need. Because it stays fully rigged/intact, as described, to take it only involves putting it in the cockpit and cruising to wherever!
Rob
Rob