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Boat Landing Etiquette


muskiechaser

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Cold One,

That didn't happen to be a lake just south of webster did it? That's where it happened to the guy i helped out.

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  • cold one sd

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Its amazing how this thread gets rehashed every year

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As a general rule of thumb, especially around greater population centers. The amount of courtesy someones will show is directly proportional to the difference in price between your truck/boat and theirs.

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Lots of good opinions givin here,,,but its almost a moot point on this site since most of us are genuine sportspersons and are typicaly not the ones who are less then courtious at boat landings ,,,chances are the ones who only put the boat in the water a handfull of times are going to be the "THOUGHTLESS" at the landings. Just act friendly ,ask how fishing was, and help out if you can ,,I have helped several others and have even gone as far as suggesting they watch me load ,,kind of a lead by example type thing

Organization is the key and well not every one is organized and chances are they dont frequent this site

Randoid

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I do "power load" but like mentioned earlier I do not have to do much more then idle onto the trailer. The key to doing this successfully for me is to make sure the trailer is alligned properly and backed in to the right level. My trailer is a bunk trailer and I make sure that I fully submerge the bunks before I pull out to the right level to load. The boat will glide on the bunks much easier if they are wet. I have found that offering help to others also works better then grunting and sign language. We all did not start out as good boat loaders. Good Fishing!!

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I bought my first boat last summer and was a bit nervous when it came to unloading/loading it. It doesn't help when the prevalent attitude seems to be, "GET OUT OF THE WAY!" It seems to me that the more you rush a person, the more they are likely to make a mistake.

That being said, this thread and its predecessor last year has/had some great tips that made life easier for me. Whenever possible I:

1. Scout out the landing so I have an idea the layout and what to expect. I like to get a feel for where to stage, where I can tie off the boat (I usually fish alone), where to park, etc.

2. Practice backing up with your trailer. Go to a large, empty parking lot and practice! Put your hand at the bottom of the wheel and then turn the wheel in the direction you want the back of the trailer to go.

3. When I arrive at the launch, I pull off to the side, take off the transom saver and tie downs, unplug the wiring harness, hook up the rope for tying off the boat, put the keys in the boat, make sure the plug is in, get the life jackets out, and put the poles in the boat.

4. When launching, don't feel like you have rush. I know when I first started, I'd rush because "someone might come" or "what will that guy think?" I have found that if I back down too quickly, I am more likely to jackknife the trailer. I don't crawl down the ramp, but I don't floor it either.

5. As soon as my boat is free, I tie it off to the opposite side of the dock. Then I park, jog to the boat, and get out of the way for the next guy.

6. When it is my turn to load, I again park on the opposite side of the dock, get my truck, and load up. I originally had a lot of trouble getting the boat to center on the bunk trailer. At my dad's suggestion, I finally built C or U shaped spacers out of 2x4s. I just slide that over the back part of the bunk and it keeps the waves from sliding the boat to one of the sides.

I don't power load my boat...it is just as fast for me to swing it around and winch it on since I am by myself and the boat is already turned off and tied to the dock.

Just a thought for those "experts" out there. You were new once too. Offer to help instead of acting better than everyone else. Teaching someone some of the stuff you've learned will help them load/unload faster in the future. That helps both of you out.

If you are new, practice when the ramps aren't too busy. While you are waiting your turn, think of ways to do things better the next time. Make a checklist of things you need to do before you launch.

Remember, we are out there to have some fun!

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One thing that really makes people upset is when they get to the lake with a couple hours to spend and they find out that their is a tournament going on.

We have always tryed to assist at the landing by adding extra docks,a couple persons in the wtaer to help crank and tie down boats .

In july this year we have a one hundred boat tournament on a busy day[the afternoon is busy 3 to dark]our weigh instarts at 2.We put as many extra helpers around landing as possible and do not use docks that familys and persons with less landing experience will be using.

Any bad experience they have at landing is just turmoil towards fishing tournament.We even help load and unload their boats.

We also know that if its windy we have to get one of people in boat to drive tow vehicle to other side of lake to load boats and we try to prepare for this also.

Also we get permission to use parking at two of 5 landings on lake and try to publish such so all day boaters or other users do not become frustrated with us.

The one thing that really can create bad feedback is that we tie up landings and parking space.I think that is one reason for one day tournaments or weekday tournaments.

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Quote:

Cold One,

That didn't happen to be a lake just south of webster did it? That's where it happened to the guy i helped out.


slotlimit, it was at Horseshoe.

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I think "Water Hazard" nailed it! Excellent positive post. I would never get upset just because it takes someone extra time to load or unload (sometimes things just don't go as planned) but failure to "prep" the boat prior to backing down the ramp is just wrong.

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I think the strangest one that ever happened to me was when the parking lot at a small launch was full and there were vehicles with trailers parked on both sides of the road for 1/2 mile leaving one lane for travel. I left the launch and was abour 50 yards down the road when a guy comming from the opposite direction with a pontoon headed right for me instead of pulling over to wait confused.gif. He had to see me, but just kept comming. I found a spot with enough room to get off of the road, but I always wondered how someone could be that dumb.

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Last year I had the family to an old small sleepy resort in western, MN. We had the cabin nearest the boat landing, which seemed fine because only two people used it per day. We night-fished for walleyes and planned to "sleep in" the next morning. My wife was extremely sleep-deprived that week. We were surprised and disappointed when a tournament showed up, launching past our bedroom window in the pre-dawn; you could hit the wall our pillows were against with your boat. Seems like a poor choice of accesses and there was no advance notice. I don't mind that so much, its the chance I took renting a cabin. What was annoying; they stood 10 feet away from our open bedroom window, blabbering and laughing in loud voices. I cleaned a bunch of cans and trash out of our fire pit.

There's no shortage of rude people in the world; never will be. Just need to find some patience, drink decaf if we need to.

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I know how you feel Weed Shark, I dropped my wife off at the launch to get my pickup and trailer so we could load. A tournament weigh in just got over and the boats were comming to the docks and dropping someone off to get their vehicles. They ran my wife off the road when she was comming down to the launch and when she finally started backing down to load me, a guy backed around her and backed his trailer under my boat. I told him I didn't think my boat would fit on his trailer and refused to move after the way he had treated my wife. He pulled ahead and backed his trailer at a 45 degree angle to the dock and loaded his boat. Another guy did the same thing. We went up to our camping pad and listened to these guys partying and yelling until about 3am when they finally quieted down. The next morning we watched them as they came by the dumpster and threw the walleyes from the tournament out of their livewells into the dumpster. If I have a choice now, I won't stay in a campground where there is going to be a tournament. No offence to you guys that fish tournaments as I used to fish them too, but you do have some real pigs that are fishing with you. I have arrived at the fish cleaning station and waited to clean my fish because there were 30 guys from a tournament there first which is fine with me. The problem was that when they decided to leave, they filled the fish grinder so full that it overloaded and quit. They just got in their vehicles and left their carcasses laying on the table. We had to unclog the grinder and finish cleaning up their mess.

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I fished a walleye tourney on Big Stone this past weekend. The guys who ran the tournament had seriously thought this out, and it showed. The landing has 4 ramps and there were guys in waders helping launch boats. It took like no time at all to get 100 boats in the water. Landing was the same way. It was a very well oiled machine. As far as the fish go, once we weighed them in we never saw them again. The tourney guys put them back in the lake.

I'm not really a tournament guy. However I can understand the frustration of a non-tourney guy on that particular day. A lot of it really depends on how the tourney is set up.

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Next time you see someone that's having a hard time loading their boat on their trailer straight, you might want to help and suggest they have the rollers adjusted. One of my bolts came loose on my Shorlander causing me grief. Once adjusted and tighened up, no problems. Of course conditions play a role also, but that can't be helped. The only other suggestion I have is give yourself plenty of time.( sometimes easier said than done )

Good luck at the ramps and may cooler heads prevail, grin.gif

Nick

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slotlimit,I have never fished Swan due to the crowds. Horseshoe is getting choked by weeds so bad that I had a heck of a time getting backed out from the dock and turned around without getting my prop full of weeds. I had to use my Minnkota to get into the channel. The only time I thought about fishing Swan you had to unload your boat and go find a place to park the rig and then walk about a mile back to the launch. I fish to enjoy myself and that wouldn't have been enjoyable.

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Wow, this post has blown up quick! I read it the other day, after an occurrence out fishing with my kids for crappies at a north metro lake (Sat.). I was too hot at that time to reply. I would have had a couple of these “(Contact Us Please)” in my story. In the end, another boat hit my trailer light (crushed it), while my trailer was in water. A couple of choice words were said and the guy took off in boat. The guy was not loading a boat, but dropping people off at shore. He could not wait. I just had gotten done waiting over 30 minutes for my turn. It never fails, even if you wait until no one is around someone pulls up. I will always let another guy go in front if he is in a hurry. I love being on water, so I do not mind motoring around or fishing a little more until boat access is clear. I was with my kids and the oldest is 11 and can handle things very well. He helps me by holding boat at shore when I get truck (that was two block away) and straighten boat on trailer. Ah well, water under the bridge. I went home, popped on a new trailer light housing and rewired and was head’ in out to Chisago area lake for evening bite by 5:00 p.m… Kind of forgot about it until I started the reading the vast amount this thread has taken on. Just remember to take your time and do things right. It is not worth having something go wrong, like dragging lower unit on concrete when pulling out or not hooking front of boat to trailer.

Best regards,

SHACKBASH

And that’s I have to say about that!

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WOW a pontoon huh, coldone let me guess...... grin.gif Well I have to throw my .02 in the mix. Like alot of other guys have posted......be ready either going in or out, by NICE and help other fellow Fisherman if they need help, if you are in a hurry leave earlier instead of 10 minutes before dark, and "WAIT" in line because if someone jumps in front of me while I am waiting to load, I can cuss like a sailor and I will, oh and if that doesn't prove a point to the gentleman my boat is not worth that much money!!! And last but not least didn't any of your MOMMA'S raise you better than that, from what I have seen at most of the NE SD lakes they didn't!!! mad.gif

PERCHJR

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My worst experience at landing was at Coon Lake a couple years ago. Our bass club was having a tournament - 6-7 boats only that day and a severe t-storm blew up incredibly quickly. Everyone on the lake headed for the landing only to find that there was a group of 5 or 6 people in a 14 ft aluminum boat with about a 10 hp that were trying to get their boat on their trailer. First, they had backed their vehicle in a jack-knife down the center of a two-lane ramp blocking anyone else from using it. Then, they had no clue how to load the boat on the trailer. One huge guy was sitting in the back of the boat and the others were trying to lift the front up onto the trailer which they did not put nearly far enough into the water. In the meantime, it was raining as hard as I have ever seen it rain, lightening all around, wind howling, and trees falling into the parking lot. Only thing missing was hail. At some point, the guy in the boat backs the boat into both the dock and into one of our guy's boats scratching the motor housing badly. Anyway, finally they get it on the trailer when someone figures out that the big guy out to get out and help (they could have just backed the trailer in deeper too). With the boat on the trailer they tie it down while still on the ramp and speed off. All in all this took easily 10-15 mins during which time no one else could use the ramp. The only thing that they forgot to do was raise the motor so when the sped off and hit that high speed bump as you come out of the parking lot the skeg slammed into it so hard that the motor cowling came off and crashed to the ground in one piece. They must not have noticed or were too afraid to stop but they just kept going.

Storm was so bad that we never bothered to get back on the water after it. Took my bilge pump a good 10 minutes to pump out the boat by the time I did get it on the trailer.

Between the storm raging and them not speaking English it was useless to try and talk to/help them.

Daze Off

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wow... this is a hot topic! I'm a relative new-bee at the launching/landing thing so I can empathize with the guys that feel worried about doing things right and doing them quickly. I've gotten to the point now where I can launch my boat and get my boat on the trailer pretty quickly, whether it be under power or by winch. I look to see if there are signs saying power-loading is forbidden. If the signs are there, I crank the boat up by hand! It never ceases to amaze me how many guys will still drive their boats up and give 'er that last shot of power to get it all the way to the stopper! What's most interesting is that these appear to be the 'most experienced' boat owners - I guess wisdom doesn't always go with experience...

I always get my boat ready to launch while waiting on the side and do my 'take-down' after I've pulled clear of the ramp. There will always be the a-holes that think that they're the only ones that don't need to follow the rules or be considerate or be patient....

Oh well, for me - I always look to help out others while I'm waiting my turn - whether it be helping hold the boat on the dock while the owner parks the truck, help line it up when trailering, help guide the trailer down the ramp, etc. If everyone at the launch took the approach of 'how can help the other guys', we'd all be getting on and out of the water a lot faster and with a lot less anger and frustration...

On the other hand, if I guys is being a real jerk, I have no problem taking my 265lbs, 6'4" frame right to their face and giving them a good tongue lashing. The way I see it, I'm very kind and considerate to those that are also kind and considerate so I can rip apart the rude, manner-less, egotistical a-holes too!

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There is a website called "Boat Minnesota - A Course on Responsible Boating" by the Minnesota DNR. They say the line is formed by vehicles with trailers, not by vessels in the water. Here is the text in its entirety on boat ramp courtesy:

Courtesy on the Boat Ramp

Boat ramp traffic jams can be prevented if everyone practices common courtesy at the ramp. Be sure you observe these simple courtesies.

Prepare your vessel for launching or for the drive home well away from the ramp. Use at least two experienced people to launch and retrieve the vessel—one to drive the towing vehicle and one to operate the vessel.

Never block a ramp with an unattended vessel or vehicle. Move the vessel away from the launch lane immediately after removing it from the trailer. Return briefly to pick up the vehicle driver once he or she has parked the vehicle and is back at the ramp. When retrieving, do not pull your vessel into a launch lane until the towing vehicle is at the ramp. The line is formed by vehicles with trailers, not by vessels in the water. Drop off the vehicle driver, and wait offshore and clear of the ramp until he or she arrives with the trailer.

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I know of one place that power-loading is forbidden, Big Marine Lake. Haven't been there in a couple of years, probably still in effect. It's simply to prevent sand/silt from being washed and piled up elsewhere.

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I watched a guy power load his boat and when he got it on up to the roller on the winch he put it in neutral and let it idle while he tightened the winch. Then he got in his pickup and drove up the ramp and around the corner to the parking lot and the motor was still idling. When I got into the parking lot and tied the stern of my boat down, some guys were talking about a boat that had gome through the parking lot and headed down the road with the engine still running. This one really made no sense to me.

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Big Marine? Really? I have never seen anyone do anything but power on to their trailers there....hmmm.

Is there a sign?

Daze Off

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I watched a guy power load his Pro V onto his roller trailer at the garrison ramp on Mille Lacs & forget to strap bothe bow and stern to the trailer. He pulled the trailer out and tha-wunk-wunk-wunk, his boat is now on the ramp, motor about 6' from the waters edge.

I said 'now that's something you don't see every day' and then helped him get the back rollers under the bow. Surprisingly enough, it was not all that big of a deal to get it back on the trailer. Just unhook the trailer, get the rollers down close to the pavement, and crank her up onto the trailer. It did a number on his motor though and the V-bottom boat was flat by about 4" wide at the stern. Not pretty.

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must have happened more than once there at that landing, or alot of FM's there that day. I saw it & I know another guy has mentioned that scenario before.

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Quote:

Big Marine? Really? I have never seen anyone do anything but power on to their trailers there....hmmm.

Is there a sign?

Daze Off


It's been too long, maybe I remember wrong...Maybe it's a please do not power load or something. Kind of like the please do not fish on boat lauch/load deck sign.

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The guy drove away with his motor running?

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

He probably read this thread and got so scared of being too slow that he figured a new engine and water pump was worth less then someone giving him a dirty look and getting mad.

I can't quit laughing. That's just stupid funny.

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Wow UJ... so what's it like leading a perfect life, never making any mistakes???

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