Approach slowly, heading into the wind or the tide (whichever is stronger), the way the moored boats are lying, so you stop with the buoy at the bow. A crew member points at the buoy throughout, picks up the line with a boathook and makes it fast to a bow cleat.
A mooring is a heavy weight on the seabed with a chain up to a buoy, laid permanently for a boat to tie to. Picking one up well is mostly about the approach.
- Look at how other moored boats are lying. They lie head to the combined wind and tide, so approach on the same heading as they are lying.
- Prepare: a crew member on the foredeck with a boathook, and a line ready in case you need to pass one through the buoy's ring.
- Approach slowly heading into the wind or the tide, whichever is stronger, so it slows you down and lets you stop where you mean to. Aim to stop with the buoy at the bow, where the crew can reach it.
- The crew points at the buoy all the way in. The helmsman soon loses sight of it under the bow, so the pointing arm tells them where it is.
- Pick up the line (often a pick-up buoy or strop) with the boathook, bring it aboard and make it fast to a cleat on the bow.
- Check that the boat is lying comfortably before switching off the engine.
Things that go wrong:
- Too fast. The boat overruns the buoy and the crew can't hold her. Never try to stop the boat by hand or with the boathook: let go and go round again.
- Running over the line. Put the engine in neutral as the buoy comes close, so the mooring line can't wrap round the propeller.
- Losing sight of it. Agree hand signals beforehand for distance and direction, since shouting into the wind rarely works.
Only use a mooring if you have the owner's permission or it is a designated visitor mooring. A private mooring is laid for a particular size of boat, and a heavier one could drag it.
Under sail the same principles apply: approach on a close reach or into the wind, and let the sails out to stop.
More in the book: Chapter 9, Anchoring and moorings