I finished building my Skerry at the end of last summer. The boat is at my vacation home, on a lake in Maine. I am trying to figure out how to launch and store the boat. This is much more difficult than I thought it would be, and I’m looking for ideas.
My initial idea was to drive the boat to the lake’s public boat launch, sail it over to my home, and then keep it there for the summer.
Keeping the boat in the water, on a buoy, all summer seems like a bad idea. I have read that the boat should not stay in the water that long, even with an appropriate coating. Also, we occasionally get bad storms with very high wind and very high waves, which seems like something to avoid.
My second idea was to build a ramp of some kind, as in the attached photo. But the waterfront has absolutely no place that is level and free of boulders. A ramp sitting at a 30-45 degree angle seems like a bad idea, even if I could keep it stable.
So I’m out of ideas. If my only recourse is to drive the boat to the launch, sail it around there, and then remove the boat, that is going to greatly diminish my ability to use the boat.
I hope the sages here can come up with some approach that I have missed.
Question: is a dock out of the question? Or, a modified “jet ski” type lift? Don’t know about DES up in ME, but in NH, a “shore-anchored, seasonal ‘Raise-A-Dock’ “ structure is much easier permitting than a year-round permanent type dock. Then, when you’re not using it, store it up on the decking or the jet ski lift. If the boat’s on or in the water, you’ll use it.
You must be near me! I’m on Great East Lake, and I have had a Raise-A-Dock for many years. I tie up my motorboat and jet-ski there, so that’s pretty full. I was hoping for something quite a bit cheaper for the Skerry. I think my next move is to consider a small boat lift, but again, I think that would likely be expensive. And it’s something I’d have to put into the lake each year, and then remove. The nice thing about Raise-A-Dock is that I can manage everything by myself, and not have to do assembly and disassembly while standing on slippery rocks, in the waves.
Good morning, We’re just the other side of 16. Check with the crew at R-A-D. They’ve got some add-ons that might do the trick, giving you more space at the dock without breaking the bank.
I’m not sure the cost, and perhaps you can find one used, but down here on Lake Lanier in Georgia we have several shoreside restaurants that put out poly-float ramps designed for individual jet skis - they have a V-shaped center channel and rollers that slope down toward the water on one end. These floats have a lot of bouyancy - You can walk around on them even with the boat (or jet ski) on the float, thus you could sit in the boat and/or step onto the edge of the float while rigging, or if the water is shallow enough stand beside the float while rigging. No need to launch off of the float until fully rigged. When I take my old dog out for chicken wings, I’ve found I can run my NE Dory up on the float with no problem at all. The rollers make pulling up out of the water and sliding back down really easy, and easy on the hull finish. I’m sure the Skerry would be an even better fit due to being shorter. If you can find one of these at a price you are willing to pay (maybe even an old used one) and have the ability to moor it to a dock or posts, or even just anchors, it should work great. Also, as another option, the Skerry is light enouth that you might consider a home built set of davits or a modified A frame sort of scaffold (wooden or otherwise) that would allow you to use a cable or line-hoist block and tackle to lift your boat clear of the water. You could install lift points on the boat or use under-hull straps to support the hull. One last suggestion: I’ve made a “Connestoga Wagon” sort of set of arched hoops to support the cover for my NE Dory. (I keep my dory on a trailer, but that matters not.) I used 3/4 inch PEX plumbing pipe to form the arches and (I think) 1/2 inch aluminum tube pieces about 6" long to fit down into the oarlocks. Cut a small oval into one side of the PEX at the proper places, stick the aluminum pipe in, and then drill through so a 1/8 or 3/16 inch diameter bolt can hold the aluminum tube in place. It can thus pivot and align itself with the oarlock. My dory has 3 sets of oarlocks, so I have 3 hoops. A line runs stem-to-stern, tied to the apex of each hoop to keep them upright and add a strong fore-aft support line under the tarp. Tarping over this makes a great rain-proof cover that never collects pools of water. The same thing can be accoplished with fiberglass or wooden battens, and some sources sell little sockets that screw to the gunwale to accept the ends of the battens. My PEX hoops seamed cheaper and easier.
Here is a link for something that runs up to near $3,000 new looks about like what the resorts are using around here. https://www.ez-dock.com/content/uploads/2018/01/206030PW-C-ISO.jpg I see some other options for down to around $1500 new. I see some used ramps online going for $600 to $800 down here in GA.
@Jeff_Richards: Thank you for all the suggestions. I had considered one of those floating jetski platforms. I wouldn’t be able to attach it to my dock (that’s full up with other toys), so it would have to be anchored. My concern with this approach is that we can get very strong wind and waves.
@Joel_Nelson: I visited Raise-A-Dock this morning. (Wow, are they busy! There must be 50 completed docks sitting in their lot, waiting to be installed. Dennis, the guy who designed and patented the dock, built a successful business, but they were having trouble meeting demand. His son Ryan is now in charge. I remember Ryan visiting with his dad when they installed my dock 20 years ago. They seem to be better able to keep up with demand now). Anyway, Ryan showed me a jetski lift. It’s not too heavy, seems like two people could put it into the lake at the beginning of the season, and then take it out at the end of the season. That’s my leading candidate right now.
