Hurricane Dorian prep

[wes]

Last year for Hurricane Florence I hauled out my 27 and weathered the storm very well on the hard (this is what BoatUS recommends, fyi). With Dorian approaching but projected to stay offshore of NC I'm going to try staying in my slip but with the storm tie-down recommended in recent BoatUS article. The basic principle is very long dock lines, to hold the boat centered in the slip but with a lot of flexibility for it to ride the storm surge up and down. From the article:



I'm using 35' lines, 1/2" diameter, three-strand nylon. Moved my boat so that I had empty slips on both sides (not everyone will have this luxury of course). This allowed very long dock line runs which are key to the system. I hung all my fenders on the dock side of the boat, just in case.







I hope that beastly big 50' Gibson stays in her slip downwind! Also of course hoping Dorian will head out to sea before it gets this far north. Wish me (and all of us on the southeast coast) good luck, please.

Wes

[AFM]

Looks like your well prepared.   What amount of storm surge can one expect in your area?.
Good luck,
Art  S/V Restless,  19XL

[wes]

Still too soon to tell. 3'-4' would be moderate. We have seen 9' more than once. I think my marina will be ok up to 5' or so. Beyond that, all bets are off. We have fixed docks, not floating - unfortunately.

Wes

[brackish]

Good luck with that Wes, looks like you've done all you can.  Hope it just skirts you with the pull side to you, probably won't get too much surge. 

I remember when I docked in Gulfport, MS harbor some folks used galvanized steel rings on the pilings with floats attached to the back side so they would go up and down with the surge.  Seemed to work in minor hurricanes.  Majors (Camille, Katrina) tended to wipe out the docks and piling, so nothing too effective for that.

Floating docks (what I have now) are good, but the marina owner says depends on the anchoring system.  He's had his pull loose and move, particularly the covered ones, with a strong thunderstorm.

[Mas]

Well sitting on Interlude even as this reply is tenured. Experiencing Tropical Storm conditions currently. First time ever having to release the gimbal mechanism on the stove to make coffee while sitting at the dock! Finger piers slowly going underwater as storm progresses. Slack tide is bout over and by high tide this afternoon finger piers will more than likely be covered with water. There are about a dozen of us riding Dorian out here based on the anchor lights on. (As general practice, during storms if a vessel is occupied the anchor light is turned on so we know where everyone is)

Hurricane party/prep got finished in the nick of time last night and first heavy band of rain and winds woke me up around 2:30 AM. Building steadily since then. Keeping fingers crossed power stays on. Can't imagine what is was like in the Bahamas as the winds are howling here with only tropical storm force winds.

Main reason I elected to stay aboard was to be able to adjust lines if needed, help monitor other vessels with absent owners, and to frankly test out how well our dodger, connector, and Bimini handle such. In the past we have have stripped them and then left. So far looking good,Interlude sits with her bow into the prevailing storm wind direction and we have a well protected marina.  Nice to have a relatively dry companionway and cockpit is huge. My prayers to all who have the full brunt of Dorian. Stay safe!

[wes]

Mas - where is "here"?

[Mas]

Southern Chesapeake Bay.

Just helped with a big Island Packet that was determined to run into it's finger pier. The owner had neglected to lock his helm and the wave and wind action had put the rudder hard over and thus was steering herself into pier. So....another storm prep tip, though frankly good practice all the time, is to lock your wheel/tiller in the centered position.

Wind is beginning to clock round to the North more. Supposed to settle in to the NW so hopefully will blow some of this surge outta here!

[wes]

Whew. We got only about 3' of surge at my marina (Bath, NC). My boat is fine, although I'm SO glad I moved it a slip away from the Gibson houseboat, which has a ton of windage and managed to push over the pilings that used to separate it from me.

Oriental got just over 6' of surge, minor compared to Hurricane Florence last year (over 9'). Feeling fortunate in NC.

Totally agree with Mas about the importance of centering and locking the rudder every time you leave the boat.

Wes

[jimhuber2]

Wes - Glad you made out OK. By the looks of the houseboat, it is a good thing you moved. Hopefully Charlie made out as well. Have you heard from him? Take care---    Jim

[deisher6]

Yes, Wes great move away from the barge!
Windrunner (PSC 34) made it just fine.  I too stayed aboard to keep up with the lines especially if there was a large surge.  Normal depth in the slip is 4.6-5.2 feet.  Dorian only went up to 8.8 fee,  just enough to short out the power on the docks. 

Smooth sailin'
charlie