Haul-Out

This spring, the makeshift haul-out that I had installed two years ago finally decided to give me trouble. The float, an old boat fender, has folded in half, and the haul-out rope broke with the winter ice. It's time I put in a more permanent solution.

So, I bought a buoy, a length of anchor chain, and a few other odds and sods, and put together a proper haul-out buoy.

The mooring buoy part of the haul-out consists of an 15" orange mooring buoy with an anchor chain suspended from it's eye. This chain runs through (and bolted into) a length of ABS pipe, and ends with a shackle. An anchor rope will run from this shackle at the lower end of the chain to an anchor, 20 feet below.

The haul out consists of a 30' loop (60' in total) of 3/8" poly rope running from shore to the mooring buoy. The loop passes through a ring bolted to the ABS pipe under the buoy, allowing it to run freely in either direction. The poly rope will have it's own ring, providing a spot to tie the boat's painter.

When I want to moor the boat, I'll tie it to the ring on the haul-out line, and then pull the line to tow the boat out to the mooring buoy. With the shore-end of the loop tied off, the boat will sit there, swinging in the wind without fear of collision or grounding until I need it again. To get it back, I'll simply untie the shore end of the loop, pull it so that the boat is towed back to shore, and tie it off again. Then untie the boat and continue on.

Simple.