Dock or Mooring Ball

[gigharborite]

My C30 is currently kept at a marina. My home is on the Puget Sound. I recently installed a 150' dock off the back of my home plus installed a fixed mooring ball about 300 feet from shore. The tides at my home are pretty extreme. During a super low tide (a few days a month), the land edge of the 30' float on the dock is sitting on dry land, while the seaward edge of the dock float is only in about 12" of water. The land under the dock is mud.

I had planned on leaving the boat on the mooring ball to avoid having the boat ground out during super low tides, but that means no shore power and the hassle or using the tender to get aboard. I see many other boats, including a C28, tied up to docks similar to mine and resting on the muddy bottom during these very low tides. I have been concerned about potential damage if the boat is allowed to be ground out during these tides.

My questions is whether or not I can leave the boat tied to the dock with an occasional grounding in the muddy bottom of the sound or should I do the extra work and leave the boat on the mooring ball, which will have a minimum depth of 12 feet even during extreme low tides.

 

[knotflying]

Your situation is no different than up by the bay of Fundy here on the east coast. It is not uncommon to see many a boat sitting in the mud at low tide.

 

[Karll]

We own a fractional ownership on Hood Canal close to Alderbrook and on a minus tide the dock is on dry ground but it has a lot of oysters so not just a mud bottom. We also have 3 mooring buoys. Not sure about letting it sit in mud but it does limit when you can use it if you have to wait for the tide to come in.

 

[gigharborite]

Thanks Karll. I guess a better question is whether the Cutwater sitting in the mud would either cause any damage or risk getting mud into any of the seawater intakes.

 

[Red Raven]

I think you have your answer in the C28 you said that is already on the mud. Maybe you could talk to the owner to see if he has any comment? I know of at least one tug owner that used to let his R27 sit in the mud at the dock in super low tides. He said it was not a problem. I would think as long as you keep the seawater intake above the mud you should be fine.

Curt