Public dock etiquette

Dave R · 07-28-2004, 09:51 AM

I was on Winnipesaukee rather unexpectedly on Saturday afternoon since the actual weather was far superior to the forecast. Decided to go to Wolfboro for a late lunch. Got to the public docks and there were quite a few boats waiting for dock space. ALL were larger boats than mine. I loitered for a minute or so and spotted a tight spot that I thought I MIGHT be able to squeeze into. I idled over to investigate and just as I was about to enter the space between boats and docks to see if the spot was big enough, someone disembarked from the same dock. I backed out and got out of the way. I then allowed another boat, that was there before me, to have the just vacated spot and when everything was stable again, I started back in to investigate the still empty, but tight, spot. This time, the captain of a decent sized deckboat that was waiting ahead of me, yelled at me that there were other people waiting. So I backed out, motored over to him and wished him luck fitting his boat in the open spot. He didn't bother to try and neither did anyone else that was waiting. So, I loitered for a bit and noticed another slightly larger spot that had been empty the whole time too. Rather than take it and upset the deckboat captain, I motored back over to him and pointed out the empty spot. He said "can I fit in it?" I said rather sarcastically: "I know *I* can..." and was about to offer to hold his hand while he docked but bit my tongue. He got into the spot, with some work, and I eventually got a spot for myself.

What do you folks do when there are adequately sized (for your boat, anyway) spots available, lots of poeple waiting, and no one takes the spots for whatever reason? I make the assumption that if there are spots available and no one makes a move, then they are waiting for a "better" spot. All the spots I've mentioned here were 2-3 boats in on the docks and required a bit of nerve and skill to properly approach.

Was I being a jerk? Is "spot" the wrong word for boat length space along a dock or pier?

07-28-2004, 09:51 AM	#1
Dave R Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 2,985 Thanks: 246 Thanked 744 Times in 444 Posts	Public dock etiquette I was on Winnipesaukee rather unexpectedly on Saturday afternoon since the actual weather was far superior to the forecast. Decided to go to Wolfboro for a late lunch. Got to the public docks and there were quite a few boats waiting for dock space. ALL were larger boats than mine. I loitered for a minute or so and spotted a tight spot that I thought I MIGHT be able to squeeze into. I idled over to investigate and just as I was about to enter the space between boats and docks to see if the spot was big enough, someone disembarked from the same dock. I backed out and got out of the way. I then allowed another boat, that was there before me, to have the just vacated spot and when everything was stable again, I started back in to investigate the still empty, but tight, spot. This time, the captain of a decent sized deckboat that was waiting ahead of me, yelled at me that there were other people waiting. So I backed out, motored over to him and wished him luck fitting his boat in the open spot. He didn't bother to try and neither did anyone else that was waiting. So, I loitered for a bit and noticed another slightly larger spot that had been empty the whole time too. Rather than take it and upset the deckboat captain, I motored back over to him and pointed out the empty spot. He said "can I fit in it?" I said rather sarcastically: "I know I can..." and was about to offer to hold his hand while he docked but bit my tongue. He got into the spot, with some work, and I eventually got a spot for myself. What do you folks do when there are adequately sized (for your boat, anyway) spots available, lots of poeple waiting, and no one takes the spots for whatever reason? I make the assumption that if there are spots available and no one makes a move, then they are waiting for a "better" spot. All the spots I've mentioned here were 2-3 boats in on the docks and required a bit of nerve and skill to properly approach. Was I being a jerk? Is "spot" the wrong word for boat length space along a dock or pier? Last edited by Dave R; 07-28-2004 at 10:00 AM.