i tried parking a pontoon into a slip. i tried 3-4 times and couldn't do it. the slip was very narrow, the lane was pretty tight, and it was a bit windy. I kept overshooting the slip. I got close the last attempt where i tried to undershoot but still didn't really make it.

i suck. first time, but still, i was disappointed. i thought it was going to be easier.

you didn't sink, sounds successful to me.

don't tilt your motor up unless the slip is in very shallow water. Have someone on boat man a boat hook to grab the dock. Also when in reverse make sure you know what direction you are going in. And be prepared to goose the motor to suck you into the dock.

Didn't sink but not for trying.

I didn't do any any trimming - the water was deep enough. I could get close enough for a person to use a boat hook. But I wanted to get the boat fully into the slip as though I were by myself. But i think the wind was making it a bit more challenging and making me overshoot.

boats and small trailers. i suck.

Pick up a high quality telescoping boat hook.

Boat Hook

You can use it to push off or pull into a dock or pier.

Overshoot a little and then pull yourself in (helps if you have a 2nd person on board but you can do it yourself in most cases).


.

RAMMING SPEED!!

LOL

Wind is not your friend. Throttle control is going to be your best solution in that kind of a situation.

Inform your crew that assist docking to not put body parts between boat and dock. It isn't worth it to risk body injury to protect the boat. Better to position themselves to insert a bumper between boat and dock.

BTW- I don't suck, I've won 5 of 5 races this season in our local C Scow racing fleet. Living around water and boating my entire life helps. Wind is still a bitch in a pontoon.

quote:

Originally posted by LS1 GTO:
RAMMING SPEED!!

LOL

Row well… and live.

1- nomenclature. You’re docking the boat, not parking it.
2- your guests double as deck hands. There should be 1 at the fore and 1 at the aft, each holding a line secured to a cleat, ready to hand off to the folks on the dock. Also should have fenders, but not sure if that’s necessary on a pontoon..
3- as mentioned a hook is invaluable. We keep 2 on our boat, 1 is telescoping, 1 is not. A third for the dinghy.

Finally, practice makes perfect.. and each boat operates differently, sits in the water differently, etc. put down any wind catchers like a bimini, etc that might affect your docking. Try doing it on a calm day. Feel how your boat moves in the water, find the corners in your mind.. kind of like you know where your car is in space. Now you get to play with inertia, too!

You don't suck. You have insufficient experience. You will master this. Quickly.

Don't give up, it just takes practice. Pontoon boats suck in close quarters.
I went sailing with a customer/buddy that had inherited a 26' sailboat. I was in the sailboat repair business and we had done a lot of work on his boat. He was a novice sailor and asked me to go with him and his wife for their maiden voyage. It was a great day with wind 20+. His boat has a shoal keel which really hurts performance under sail or power. The approach to slip was cross wind and he started to panic due to side slip. He is a retired AF pilot so I told him "treat it like a crosswind landing." His eyes lit up and he figured it out.
Don't be afraid to use short bursts of throttle to get the bow where you need it. Do remember the more throttle, the harder you hit if you blow the approach.
Thet make dock wheels for the end of each finger pier. It helps getting fat boats in and out of the slip.

quote:

Originally posted by ArtieS:
You don't suck. You have insufficient experience. You will master this. Quickly.

THIS ^^^^
100% this!
And what Irrevrent said.
Your guests need to help out. Dont come in too fast, there’s no hurry at all.
After a few times, you’ll get the hang of it, learn to use the wind to push your boat (sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn’t ). If you have twin motors, learn to use the props independently, one forward, one forward - one reverse. You’ll figure it out pretty quickly.

Always try to undershoot the turn. Then use the wind to your advantage.
It is much easier to make a correction if you undershoot rather than overshooting the turn.

I've been piloting small boats since I was a teen. Currently a 23' runabout that we park on a lift in a narrow slot.

Don't be too hard on yourself, a pontoon is much harder to maneuver than a "regular" boat. You'll get it, and of course parking slightly upwind in conditions you described will help. Not straight in from way out - my wife struggles with this and the inevitable drift out of position.

The advice to let wind help push you works great if you're parking against a pier from upwind. For what you described I've had much better luck tracking just barely into the wind until your are making final corrections into the slip.

And just remember the most important axiom; never approach a fixed object faster than you are willing to hit it.

The advice to use others to help is good, but only if you describe IN ADVANCE exactly what you want them to do, and that everyone else stays seated until secured. Especially emphasize no jumping off the boat when it's still moving to try to "catch" it. Sheesh those moves by our neighbors make me wince. Somebody can die.

You can always do over, and most definitely do NOT worry about the spectators!

quote:

Originally posted by irreverent:
1- nomenclature. You’re docking the boat, not parking it.

Even more fun, you're docking it at a pier, not a dock. And that's before we even get to lines, rope and rode.

Dock lines, more specifically, spring lines make docking easy. Unfortunately, I can’t seem to find a good video explaining how to use one.

It can be challenging. My in laws live on the main channel of the Chattahoochee on Lake Lanier and often there is current and wind. Docking into the slip is all about your approach. If you get fouled up it’s usually best to just start over. Also, reversing with an outboard is a little like backing a trailer. You kind of have to think backwards and it’s best if you can see your engine to know which way it is pointing. Another lesson I learned a long time ago, go slow and neutral is your friend.

It’s so much fun, though. Women want you and men want to be you.

I found this to be a useful video on spring lines.

https://youtu.be/m-u4bZ9JELU?si=MRVFfFveVB-Q34MP

light boats with high sides (pontoons, small AL boats, houseboats) make docking difficult. Practice enough and you'll be able to parallel park it without any issues. You'll need to carry a little more speed into the slip if there is wind or current. That inertia will help overcome the force of the wind. When reversing the action is opposite of the way it is in forward and depending how much throttle you use you can either swing the bow OR pull the stern.

We have a 50'x14' houseboat in a 16' slip. If there is a perpendicular (to our dock) wind over 10mph we don't take it out. 40'+ of 10' side wall is a HUGE sail - even with twins to help jockey into position. One trip out last year the starboard kept dying when i shifted in/out of gear. That freaking sucked to dock, but I got a line on a cleat on the starboard front corner and was able to pivot 90 degrees to get the boat lined up with the slip.

Everyone has to learn. Its not intuitive.