How would you exit this slip

[turbulicity]

Please see the drawing below. My boat is 50' with 13.6' beam. The slip lengths are also 50'. My slip is wider than usual at 20'. I am new in this slip, both times I was getting out, I had troubles. Leaning to the dinghy of my neighbor two slips to starboard in one, scratching the hull at the outer part of starboard finger in the second (I have a roller there but the wood it was attached to broke). By the way, it will only be me and my wife handling the boat.

In my second attempt, I had a pretty experienced crew of 5. I pushed the boat to port side of the slip, tied a line to the stern cleat and put one crew on the outer part of the port finger to hold that line on the dock cleat. I told him to hold it fast, offsetting the draft and prop walk to starboard. He couldn't do it. Either it was too much force to manage, or he made a mistake. In any case, I won't try that strategy anymore.

So, any recommendations? Alternative is for me to get out of the slip at a slack time earlier and tie the boat at the guest dock until time to departure. That's totally OK but then I just can't cast off and go anytime I want.

[Tempest]

Can you back into the slip?

[turbulicity]

Not really. Return is tricky as well but I figured out how to handle it. I have got no control in reverse under power, prop walk just overwhelms rudder. In neutral, little control. So backing into the slip is a tougher problem than backing out.

[SVAuspicious]

Are you just inside a t-head? What is up-wind and up-current of you? Lat-long so we can look on Google Earth?

[Omatako]

Originally Posted by turbulicity

I pushed the boat to port side of the slip, tied a line to the stern cleat and put one crew on the outer part of the port finger to hold that line on the dock cleat. I told him to hold it fast, offsetting the draft and prop walk to starboard. He couldn't do it. Either it was too much force to manage, or he made a mistake. In any case, I won't try that strategy anymore.

The only way is a line as you describe it above. The reason why the pull is so strong on that line is not solely down to the lateral movement to starboard but predominantly the movement stern-wards. If you only had the line looped once around the dock cleat it will be really hard to resist the pull of the boat.

Try more than one turn around the dock cleat or even a turn back to the aft deck cleat. The second will require a lot more line and the problem you may encounter with this is retrieving the line before it heads for the prop after being released. Try floating line

[turbulicity]

Originally Posted by SVAuspicious

Are you just inside a t-head? What is up-wind and up-current of you? Lat-long so we can look on Google Earth?

Sorry, upstream is a shore about 2 boat lengths away depending on the tide.

Coordinates are:
37.501579, -122.223431

That is an old sat image on Google Maps. I replaced that power boat there.

Thanks a lot.

[turbulicity]

Originally Posted by Omatako

The only way is a line as you describe it above. The reason why the pull is so strong on that line is not solely down to the lateral movement to starboard but predominantly the movement stern-wards. If you only had the line looped once around the dock cleat it will be really hard to resist the pull of the boat.

Try more than one turn around the dock cleat or even a turn back to the aft deck cleat. The second will require a lot more line and the problem you may encounter with this is retrieving the line before it heads for the prop after being released. Try floating line

Guess I could give it another try but I just lost faith about the dock hands actually listening to me. Time to get the admiral take the helm and me manning the dock I guess.

[Omatako]

Originally Posted by turbulicity

Guess I could give it another try but I just lost faith about the dock hands actually listening to me. Time to get the admiral take the helm and me manning the dock I guess.

Best suggestion so far but still not a panacea. My wife is getting better but has been practising for 20 years. Maybe yours has the required instinctive approach to driving.

[ccriders]

I was in Sweden last summer and saw that they frequently put a mooring ball just outside of their slips which they use as an aid when leaving and entering a slip. Would your marina allow such a thing? They really do not interfer with navigation and certainly make docking in close quarters much easier and safer.
John

[Sublime]

Originally Posted by turbulicity

In my second attempt, I had a pretty experienced crew of 5. I pushed the boat to port side of the slip, tied a line to the stern cleat and put one crew on the outer part of the port finger to hold that line on the dock cleat. I told him to hold it fast, offsetting the draft and prop walk to starboard. He couldn't do it. Either it was too much force to manage, or he made a mistake. In any case, I won't try that strategy anymore.

You mean a guy stood on the dock and held on to the line?

I saw a video by a guy named Capt. Jack (link). He had a length of line with both ends on the boat and around the dock cleat. When he was done with the pivot, he let one end go and hauled in the line. With your size boat, perhaps attach to your stern cleat, go around the dock cleat then go under the horn of your stern cleat just to get a little bit of purchase.