Your Smart Boating Guide to Tying Up Yachts

Tying up yachts securely is relatively simple as long as you think about what you are trying to achieve.

First up you need to consider the ways your yacht can move in the berth.

Depending on the wind and tide your boat can potentially move forwards, backwards or sideways.

When you tie up you need to make sure you've covered against movement in any direction.

Let's start by thinking about forwards and backwards movement.

If you look at the photo on the right you'll see two lines attached to the stern cleat.

The line on the left is a stern spring line. It is stopping the yacht from being blown backwards onto the pontoon.

At SmartBoating you'll find some of our stern spring lines are in the water running from the pole to the dock.

In this situation pick the line up with boat hook and secure it to the stern cleat.

To stop forward movement we use two different methods for a our yacht share fleet.

If you are in one of the middle berths the crossed stern lines you can see in this photo are very effective at stopping forward movement.

And if you are in a berth alongside a concrete section of the wharf...

... you can use a forward spring (the line on the right of this photo).

The forward spring runs from the dock to the front of the yacht.

Stopping sideways motion is relatively easy.

A bow line stops sideways movement of the bow, and a stern line prevents sideways movement of the stern.

So just to review... if your take a look at this photo you will see 4 lines.

Starting from the stern, the first line is a stern line stopping sideways movement.

The next line is a stern spring stopping backwards movement.

The next line is a forward spring stopping forwards movement.

And you might just be able to make out a bow line at the front stopping the bow from moving sideways away from the dock.

We're lucky at SmartBoating that the pontoons at Bayview Anchorage Marina are floating so we don't need to consider the rise and fall of the tide when we're tying up yachts.

If you're not sure how to secure the lines to the cleats on your yacht...

The two photos below show the traditional method of figure eight loops around the cleat finished with a half hitch.

Some skippers don't like this method because if there is excessive tension on the line the half hitch can jam tight and it's really difficult to undo.

Most sailing schools now teach the '0800' method.

The four photos below illustrate the clockwise turn, followed by a figure of eight and then several more clockwise turns.

Both methods work well - choose the one you're most comfortable with.

Here's some help and advice for using fenders to protect your yacht's gel coat.

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