Propwalk

[Sapperwhite]

I have a great book describing docking and undocking a boat with a single right hand turning prop. The manual goes into fantastic detail, much more than I can go into here. The only place I know where to get the book is from where I got it myself, http://www.mdschool.com/School%20Store/Store-Books.htm . Look for item #5 on the list of books. It might be found on amazon, but i am not sure of that.

It's a great $15 investment. I have no affiliation with the school other than being a very pleased patron.

I have a full keel, single right hand turning prop myself. My particular technique is to keep the rudder hard right at all times. Doing this allows the boat turn right only. With the rudder hard right put the engine in forward and give it a good rev up, the boat begins going forward and right. Only do this for about 3 seconds. Back the revs down, then shift into neutral, then reverse. Now rev the engine whille in reverse for about three seconds, back down and shift into neutral. Notice that while reving in reverse with the rudder still hard right the boat will continue turning to the right (the stern will "prop walk" to port causing the nose to turn right still), but the forward movement from your forward burst will be cancelled out.

Basically you are always turning right by keeping the rudder hard right and using the prop wash and prop walk in short, controlled "bursts". By alternating with short bursts forward and reverse you will make almost no headway. You can spin 360 in your own wake.

This technique will not work with left turning props, or by holding the rudder in any other position than hard right. DO NOT let go of the wheel/tiller while hard right and reversing! The rudder will swing across to hard left from the wash and may cause damage, think uncontrolled "rudder gybe".

The Docking Techniques book on the link that i listed has many diagrams of different docking schemes using prop wash and walk under various current and wind conditions.

[teshannon]

Sapper,
Thanks for the link. It looks like a good investment so I'm going to order it.

[Sapperwhite]

Originally Posted by ccriders

.........If the wind is not too strong, which is not often, the I can get lined up with the slip and the stern centered on the slip, but normally by the time I get the stern to the pilings, the bow has blown down so that the slip is abeam,........John

Try NOT lining up centered to the slip.

I dock stern to. I line up at about a 45 degree angle to the slip (provided no wind....adjust for wind speed/direction). I know I will prop walk the stern to port. I have rudder hard right and put her in slow reverse. there isn't much walk because i am in slow reverse. I get into the slip about 1/3 the length of the boat still at an angle ( the angle has lessened some due to the slow prop walk). When i'm in the slip about 1/3 boat length, i rev up a short burst while still in reverse rudder hard right and the prop walk straightens me out while giving me a little more reverse momentum. Now I'm about 2/3 or 3/4 the way in and fairly straightened out. Ease her back in at low revs, or wrassle 'er in.
I do this single handed with pretty nice results (haven't taken anything out yet, knock on wood).

Wind and current will affect how much you use your walk and wash to achieve this, this technique isn't foolproof. You have to adapt to the conditions. If you don't line up well the first try pull out, go turn around even if that means leaving the marina ( or use the handy 360 trick), and try to line up again.

Lining up straight and then trying to use prop walk will just swing the bow past your slip, unless you have strong winds from starboard pushing your bow back down.

[SailorMitch]

Lots of the responses are saying the same thing but in different ways -- which is good. I agree with not lining up straight out from the slip IF there's a cross wind and then going into reverse. With a wind over the beam, I actually line up at about a 45 degree angle with the stern pointed into the wind. I also start out a fair distance from the slip itself to give me time to make corrections. Get a good burst of speed to get up some momentum, then shift into neutral as others have said. That has the boat backing at the slip at a 45 degree angle more or less into the wind. As you get closer to the slip, give it bursts of power as needed to keep up enough momentum so that the wind doesn't take the bow, and also start turning into the slip. The result is that you spend very little time with the wind on the beam. Yes, it takes practice!

Oh yeah -- also "crash proof" your slip as I call it. Have fenders, protectors, whatever on pilings or fingerpiers the boat might bump against.

[teshannon]

What Sapper is suggesting brings up the another variable, when do you start your turn. If the winds are light I normally start my turn such that when I am at 45 - 50 degrees my stern is not yet lined up with the slip. I then stop the forward motion and do a few revs in reverse to get the stern lined up, all the time with the rudder hard to starboard. I then straighten the rudder out and back in. If it's windy I do it Sappers way because it is quicker and then you'll get blown around less. You also want to end up with your stern as close to your slip side of the fairway as you can so you have less distance to back up.
That being said, it all sounds like a precision maneuver when in fact every docking for me is a little bit different. There are just too many variables to get it the same every time. The trick is do it slow and in a controlled fashion and don't hesitate to use prop walk to do a 180, go out and come back in and try again.

[sck5]

I actually took that course at the MD school of sailing. We practiced on an island packet 32 which had pronounced prop walk and a full keel. Once you figure out the interaction between prop walk, steerage and how strong a burst of power to use it gets easier. By the end of the day all of us novices were backing the IP into the slip without a problem (maybe not perfectly every time, but close enough). The key was (as somebody said above) only ever try to turn to starboard, "line up" at around 50 degrees and always always keep the rudder full starboard. That way full power bursts in reverse walk your ass to port and small to medium power bursts forward move your bow to starboard. THe trick is to spin the boat so it straightens out at the same time it enters the slip.

Tom Tursi wrote the docking manual referred to above. I think the ASA has adopted it now. It explains things much better (and with lots of pictures) than anything else I have seen

[billangiep]

I agree with all the comments above but this link may be useful? http://www.his.com/~vann/KrgStuff/360turns.htm

[Sapperwhite]

Originally Posted by sck5

I actually took that course at the MD school of sailing. We practiced on an island packet 32 which had pronounced prop walk and a full keel.

Tom Tursi wrote the docking manual referred to above. I think the ASA has adopted it now. It explains things much better (and with lots of pictures) than anything else I have seen

I attended the school also, I was on Moxie.

Also consider the keel. Full keeled boats and fin keeled boats don't react the same. There is more bottom surface near the prop for the wash and walk to interact with on a full keel than on a fin.

Some are saying they get to a certain point in the maneuver and then steer into the slip. My boat is full keel with good walk and wash, I never take the rudder from hard right during my personal procedure. That was the way I was taught, and it works really well for me. I think most of all you have to discover what works for your boat. Not everyone has the same bottom (full, fin, etc) or props (2 blade, 3blade, folding, feathering).

[sailaway21]

I think that BarryL and Sapper have detailed things quite well-along with everyone else. Perhaps the biggest mental obstacle to overcome is that the rudder does not work unless you have sternway. And the only effective method of gaining sternway is by low RPM's on the prop-dead slow astern. anything more and the prop walk will dominate. Conversely, the beauty of going ahead with the engine is that you can turn the boat without gaining any headway. All that is necessary to turn the boat is the flow of water over the rudder. Prop wash going ahead and sternway when going astern. the beauty of the idea of leaving the rudder hard right is that you can just eliminate it from the mental calculus-it's already in the only position it will do you any good in.

[sab30]

Trying to keep with the theme when I dock I have a starboard finger and pretty much have to dock bow first (like everyone else there) mainly due to it being very tight..if I lost it trying to back in recovery would not be easy. I would only try that in dead calm/slack water times. Back to my point how can I use "prop walk" to my advantage when docking bow in /starboard finger. If weather is bad I usually need a bit of speed to stay in control..when reversing to slow at the dock of course it tries to kick the stern out. How could I use it to my advantage in this situation ?