By Mark
Romanack
With Captain
Terry Kunnen
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Even a large boat like this 30’ model can be launched and loaded quickly
with a little advance organization.
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HAVE
YOUR LAUNCH FEE READY
When you
pull up to a boat launching facility have your launch fee ready to go. If you
have the exact change the process goes much faster and allows the attendant to
serve more anglers in less time.
GETTING
READY IN THE PREP AREA
One of
the biggest problems at boat launches is anglers show up on the ramp without
having their gear or boat ready for launch. Most launches have designated prep
areas that are designed to provide an opportunity for removing the travel cover,
loading coolers and fishing gear into the boat, removing the trailer straps,
installing navigation lights, etc. Having these steps taken care of before the
boat hits the ramp will make the process of launching much faster and free up
the launch for other anglers as fast as possible.
On the
ramps that don’t have these pre-launch prep sites, drive around to the trailer
parking area and get the gear and boat ready for the water. When the boat is
water ready, drive around and loop and launch the boat. This simple step speeds
up the launching process and prevents other anglers from getting frustrated.
STRAP ON
OR STRAP OFF?
Depending
on your trailer type the ratchet strap that attaches the bow of the boat to the
trailer will need to be on or it can be removed before backing down into the
launch ramp. For roller style trailers keep the strap attached to the bow eye
until the boat is in the water. For bunk style trailers it’s okay to unhook the
ratchet strap when prepping the boat.
The one
exception to this rule is when fishing in freezing conditions. The bunks of a
fishing boat trailer can easily glaze over with ice and allow the boat to slip
off the bunks if the ratchet strap isn’t firmly in place. In freezing
conditions it’s always a good idea to leave the ratchet strap in place until
the boat is floating.
LAUNCH
THEN PULL AWAY
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Take a few minutes in the boat prep area to load gear into the boat and get the cover and straps off before backing down to the launch ramp. |
After
launching, pull your boat away from the dock a short distance and simply idle
in the channel while waiting for your partners to return from the parking lot.
This frees up the launch for other anglers to put their boats in the water and
greatly speeds up the flow of traffic.
When
your partners show up at the dock, simply idle in, pick them up and head out
for a great day on the water.
DROP OFF
AND GO
At the
end of the day when it’s time to load the boat, idle up to the dock and drop
off someone to go and get the vehicle and trailer. In the meantime, pull back
away from the dock so other anglers can do the same process.
Tying up
the dock while waiting for a partner to fetch the vehicle is a waste of time
and an inconvenience to other fishermen or boaters who want to use the ramp.
Some ramps have designated launching and loading lanes, but the majority of public
access sites require boaters to both launch and load from the same dock.
LOAD
UNDER POWER
Power
loading or the process of completely powering your boat up onto the trailer is
illegal at most public access sites. While power loading is frowned upon, that
doesn’t mean you can’t use the outboard to get the boat started onto the
trailer. Simply idle the boat onto the trailer until the hull contacts the
bunks. If the trailer is backed into the water far enough that the bunks are
mostly submerged, the boat should easily slide onto the bunks and only need to
be ratcheted up a foot or so.
Walking
the boat up to the submerged trailer takes far more time and ties up the launch
needlessly. This process requires the ratchet strap to be pulled out most of
the way and it takes considerable time to hook up to the boat eye and reel in
all the ratchet strap.
HELP A
GUY OUT
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Captain Terry Kunnen of Off Shore Tackle spends a lot of time at boat launches. Following his tips will make the launch and loading process stress free! |
These
simple boat launching and loading rules of etiquette will go a long ways
towards making fishing fun and taking stress out of the equation.