mooring gear

[NateHanson]

Most folks I know around here use granite anchors. They're readily available and generally cheaper than a mushroom (and they retain much more weight than concrete when submerged). Something like 1200-1500 pounds would probably be fine for your little boat, if you're anchorage is fairly protected. You need someone with a barge to set it, but realistically, you probably need to hire someone to set even a 200# mushroom.

Since chain is generally the most expensive component of a mooring, the best way to save money is to set your mooring in shallower water. 30' is a lot of water for a boat that draws 3'. If it's possible to set your mooring in 20' MHHW, then you might save a couple hundred dollars on the chain alone. Remember, the scope is pretty short for a chain mooring like this, so they don't need much room to spin. My current mooring is in a narrow tidal river, and at low tide you can toss a seat cushion ashore with a good throw. At first it looked strange, because you get used to leaving lots of space to swing when at anchor, but that mooring has been perfect for a number of years now.

Nate

[Megunticook]

Good suggestion about Practical Sailor. I have a subscription to their magazine, and have been on the site, I'll dig in there further.

Interesting idea on granite. I assumed that would be as much as a mushroom. But I'll poke around the area and see.

I'm not actually sure about the depth--I was guessing based on the NOAA chart, a conversation I had with the lobsterman who has a mooring there, and my own observations. I haven't actually checked the depth yet at that spot, it's probably somewhere between 10-19 feet at low tide.

[Maine Sail]

Thanks for the opinions and info. everyone.

That's right, Joe, Army Corps issues permits for moorings outside of town jurisdiction in Maine. I submitted an application last week. Hopefully by May I'll have a permit, but then again we're talking about the Federal Government here, so it might be May 2015!

Good luck with the ACOE. In recent years they have been blasted for allowing too many "place holder" moorings, Harbor Island - Merchant Row and Duck Harbor are but two of the spots where they cracked down. They have really begun to limit permits for "place holder" moorings unless you are a riparian.... A "place holder" is a mooring in a desirable anchoring spot for a non-riparian or non-local land owners.

Perry Creek and Seal Bay etc. are two places were people are sticking "place holders". Vinalhaven /Perry Creek and Seal Bay are a tad different because many of the moorings are owned by local lobstermen for "storms" and this is allowed by Vinalhaven.

If you or your family own land on the island, you are doing work there etc. and can justify riparian type rights you should have no issue but if they deem it a "place holder" you may have trouble... Jewell Island about 30 years ago got so bad the city or Portland yanked every mooring out of there except for the cabin owner and MITA....

You might call Handy Boat in Falmouth, they always have a slew of used moorings kicking around...

[Megunticook]

In recent years they have been blasted for allowing too many "place holder" moorings, Harbor Island - Merchant Row and Duck Harbor are but two of the spots where they cracked down. They have really begun to limit permits for "place holder" moorings unless you are a riparian.... A "place holder" is a mooring in a desirable anchoring spot for a non-riparian or non-local land owners.

Perry Creek and Seal Bay etc. are two places were people are sticking "place holders". Vinalhaven /Perry Creek and Seal Bay are a tad different because many of the moorings are owned by local lobstermen for "storms" and this is allowed by Vinalhaven.

Interesting...I remember about 10 or more years back some entrepreneurial genius from away decided to plop down a bunch of moorings around the bay, in popular anchoring areas, with "For Rent" and a phone number stenciled on them. Apparently he didn't see a need to get any permits for them, just figured he could install the moorings and start making some dough. When the Corps got wind of it, they asked him to do a retroactive permit application, and during the public comment period they received an overwhelming negative response from the public, and he was told to remove them.

I hadn't heard about "place holder" moorings. The lobsterman who has a mooring in the harbor I refer to has several around the area, even though he only has one boat. I don't think anyone has a problem with it.

In my case, my wife's family has owned property there for 4 generations so I don't think it will be a problem.

You might call Handy Boat in Falmouth, they always have a slew of used moorings kicking around...

Thanks, I'll do that. Just for kicks I asked Hamilton to give me a quote: $1,900! I thought that was a little high, my calculations were more like $1,200. But some used gear in good condition would be ideal.

[Uffda]

Check with Toby Wincklhofer. He lobsters out of Camden harbor and also does mooring work. He put new bottom chain on my mooring this past summer and he had the chain at a reasonable price. 691-0062

[Brian2]

Hello,

I have a CD28 in 20 feet of water at high, mud bottom. 300lb mushroom, 30' of 5/8 chain, 30' of 1" nylon attached to the chain with an large thimble so much reduced chafe, whipped, with a 18" eye, whipped, attached to a ball and a pickup buoy, and a 20' overall bridle (so effectively 10' from ball to cleats) tied with a clove hitch. Used this setup in a very exposed harbor on the coast of Maine; never a problem. I am now in a more protected area in Maine, with a mud bottom, same setup, no problems. I remove the bridle in the fall, I have the mooring lifted to the surface and inspected every season. The bridle helps a great deal.

[NateHanson]

Interesting idea on granite. I assumed that would be as much as a mushroom. But I'll poke around the area and see.

I recently bought a 1200 pound granite mooring for $250. Ask the local mooring guy if he has one in good shape. If not, he'll know a granite guy who will drop one off at the ramp and drill it for a staple.

Nate

[Megunticook]

Army Corps permit arrived in the mail today. Must say I'm impressed how quickly they turned that around--it was the week after Valentine's that they received my application.

I'm probably never going to need to show this permit, but I'm glad I have it. Always pays to dot the i's and cross the t's in these matters. Must say the Corps was helpful and easy to deal with, pretty painless process. Nice to see a government agency being both efficient and effective.

So of course the permit was accompanied by voluminous paperwork in a packet, including the pertinent rules and regulations, which include the recommendation to install a helix mooring anchor and have an "elastic" system rather than chains to avoid the kind of seafloor damage heavy chains can apparently cause. I'm all for minimizing environmental impacts on the bottom of the bay, but is a mooring chain really going to cause significant damage? Or is this just the latest well-intentioned but hyperbolic federal regulation that some team of marine biologists came up with? How does the expense/maintenance compare on a helix system without chains?

[Brian2]

Could the helix recommendation be a general comment in the paperwork you received, without taking into account the specific location, or were they specifically talking about your location? In Maine with a mud bottom, what damage can chain do? Is there an outfit that can put in a helix for you? How much $?

Like I said before, I use a combo of chain and 1" nylon and a bridle, so I am covered for elasticity, but I still have chain on the bottom. I must add that my boat is off the mooring several times a week, so the nylon doesn't have a chance to wrap around and tighten itself and develop kinks. If your boat is rarely off the mooring, kinky line could be a problem.