Single point mooring advice

[John Perry]

The plan for this season is to moor my BRe on a single-point mooring in a (protected) estuary (or bay). Findhorn Bay is known for its strong tides, but I hope to be out of the strongest currents. The mooring will not dry-out.

The marina and my first thought is to use the D-ring on the bow as the primary line, but I am not sure how practical connecting and disconnecting this really is. I would also like a second attachment (just in case), but am I being overly worried? Lastly, it would be best if I can leave and pickup the mooring single-handed. Any tricks to this? Has anyone worked-out a system to pick the mooring up and deploy it over the bow without going on to the foredeck? At least temporarily whilst you 'sort things out'!

Is it advisable to leave it with the ballast tanks full? I am presuming rudder and centreboard are 'up' rather than 'down'.

If there is any experience or advice using a mooring with the BRe (or similar), I would be very glad to hear of it. I am just trying to think through the process of pick-up, mooring and sailing-away before being faced with the harsh reality.

Many thanks!

[Graham W]

John,

I don't know if this helps but since no BRe owner has replied, here is what I have done with my BR20. On a single point mooring in 10m of water in a Corfu bay (no current), I attached my BR20 to both the deck cleat (through a fairlead on the bow) and then down to the towing eye as well. You can't be too cautious in even normally benign conditions.

I used a specially made-up mooring line which comprised the following, in order (from the seabed up to the boat):
Two 7kg anchors attached to their own chains and bedded in fairly far apart from each other
After about 10m, the two chains attached to a single chain using a large shackle and then a big swivel
The single chain having a stout mooring line spliced into the links after about 10m
The mooring line (about 10m long) covered in PVC tubing anywhere where it was likely to be subject to chafe in contact with the boat
A shackle and carabiner attached near the bottom of this tubing, for clicking on to the boat towing eye
A large loop spliced into the end of the mooring line
A mooring pick-up buoy on about 3m of nylon line loop-spliced through the mooring line loop

After absorbing all that, it may be easier just to look at the first photo attached, which shows the boat end of the very similar arrangement that I had for my previous boat, moored in Dover Harbour.

The procedure to pick up the mooring when solo was as follows:
Approach the pick-up buoy upwind very slowly, under sail if feeling flash, and grab it over the side by its handle.  Bring the buoy and its line aboard and temporarily put the main mooring loop over the forward horn cleat while I sort out the sails etc
When sorted, attach the mooring loop more securely to the horn cleat
Then go forward with the mooring line and feed it (with its PVC tube cover) through the bow fairlead on the same side of the boat as the horn cleat being used
Finish putting the boat to bed and then dive over the side (in Scotland get into the dinghy)
From the water, clip the carabiner near the bottom of the PVC tubing to the boat's towing eye.  I did this to stop the mooring line interfering with my bowsprit bobstay.  If you don't have a bowsprit (and bobstay), this might not be necessary, although it can't do any harm.

For extra security, some people use a bridle with two loops (one for the horn cleat and bow fairlead on each side), spliced onto a single mooring line.  It's still a good idea to protect it all from chafe with a PVC tubing covering.  You'd be surprised how quickly a big wind can saw through even heavy duty mooring lines.

If you search on "bridle" and "chafe" in the forum, you should find other threads on the subject.

Attached a photo of Turaco lying peacefully on its mooring, which you can hardly see because it is clipped to the towing eye.

[Julian Swindell]

Hi John
I have a Baycruiser 20, so my experiences are going to be somewhat different to yours. The main difference is that it is relatively easy to move from the cockpit to the foredeck on a BC20.

I keep her on a single point mooring in Poole Harbour for six months in the summer. The marina provide a heavy duty mooring, consisting of a heavy chain formed into a loop at the top, attached to a light line with a pick up buoy. I pick it up single handed nearly all the time. Motor into the wind slowly up to the buoy. Try to judge the right moment when the buoy is just on the starboard bow to knock the motor into neutral and run forward with a long boathook. I try to hook the buoy from in front of the forestay, haul it up and hang onto it. All being well, the boat slows and starts to drop back, so I can move forward to the foredeck. Then I haul up the heavy chain loop and drop it over the samson post on the foredeck (another difference with the BRe, you don't know what you are missing.)  The crucial rule is that if anything seems to be going wrong, you abandon the manoeuvre, go back to the engine and try to avoid pranging any other boats before you go round and try again. I usually get it first go, but sometimes it takes three or four attempts.

If conditions are really dire, or you just can't hook the buoy, abandon all dignity and motor backwards up to the buoy in reverse. You can pick it up easily and secure it to the stern whilst you get your nerve back. If conditions aren't too bad, you can then walk the mooring round to the bow. Otherwise you can put a bow rope through the mooring loop, and work it up the rope to the bow, taking as long as you need. It looks a fairly ridiculous process, but is a very sane, seamanlike action when you are single handed.

I always leave her fully ballasted with the boards up. Boats are far safer on a single strong mooring than tied to a pontoon. They just swing to point into the wind and bounce up and down. Clipping onto the bow loop sounds like a recipe for disaster to me. Sooner or later you will fall in, and the risk of failing to clip on when you are dangling over the bows doesn't bare thinking about. I would also much prefer a single chain or strong rope over the bow (I have a bow roller) to a double bridle. With that the boat can hunt from side to side and it there is the slightest movement in the bridle, it can chafe through before you have left the car park.

I think with the BRe, getting to the fore deck is not that easy, so it may be best to adopt the reverse approach as standard , and have a rope prepared that let's you then work the mooring forward. You can't just tie a bow rope to the mooring as you will swing far too far and crash into other moored boats. You have to getting the mooring loop to the bow somehow or other.

[John Perry]

Thanks for the two replies. Certainly some wisdom contained in them. I am hoping to get Moireach on the mooring this Easter holidays, so I'll let you know how it all goes! I had not thought of reversing upwind to pick the mooring up, mmm… Also, I had presumed that if you temporarily attach the pickup buoy/line to one of the forward horned cleats it would slew too much off wind or current and become unmanageable. Time to practice, practice, practice (and provide good entertainment for the boat yard café, no doubt)

Thanks again for the advise and sharing of your experiences.

[Rob Johnstone]

On the occasions that I've moored Vagabond to buoy, I have found that the easiest way to pick it up is from the forward end of the cockpit as you drift downwind onto the buoy. Secure a line to the king post and lead if aft to the cockpit (outside everything!) beforehand. Drift down wind on the buoy.  lean over the side, grab the buoy and thread your line through something on it. Knock the engine out of gear and keep hold of the end of the line as you scramble forward to the foredeck (passing the line outside of everything as you go). Hang on to the shrouds though, or you might be pulled into the drink! Once there you can reel in the buoy and secure it over the bow roller. On bigger yachts I was taught to put a bight of the line round the ring (or whatever) on the buoy and lead both ends of the line to the same fitting on the boat. For some reason, this is meant to prevent the line from chafing? Seems agin logic to me but does work!

[martin scott]

Hi John,
Just getting back into sailing mode so rather late in picking up this thread. I have a BRe on a drying swinging mooring. There's no easy arrangement for mooring up. After trial and error over the past 3 years I finished up last year with a 4.5m strop shackeld to the towing eye and a snap shackle on the other end. This is long enough to reach back to the cockpit. the mooring buoy is on a 4m rope fixed the the mooring chain. When mooring up (nearly always under motor put into neutral when near enough to the buoy) pick up the buoy work down the rope and chain for about 7m  which is marked by a cable tie and shackle to the chain. Then take the buoy on board and tie it to the mast or some other point. Leaving the mooring (usually under sail but with the motor idling in case of problems) is pretty straightforward. Untie the buoy, pull in the rope and chain until you reach the snap shackle, wait until the boat has moved onto the right tack and let go, taking care not to sail over the buoy / rope and get it tangled round the centreboard or rudder and taking care to keep the snap shackle in the cockipt and not trailing in the water. The length of rope and chain being handled from the cockpit makes the hands and spray hood pretty mucky so this year I'll try a shorter strop that will reach the forward cleat and just about be manageable from the cockpit, shorten the rope to the buoy, fix the snap shackle to the end of the chain and leave the buoy in the water when moored. Another line will be needed from the snap shackle back to the cockpit to enable the chain to be pulled in and cast off. Hope this makes sense.