Question for you Sedan Bridge owners : Docking?

pachanga_rick

pachanga_rick

New Member
Jul 30, 2009
32
Chesterfield, MI
Boat Info
1984 Sea Ray Seadn bridge.
Engines
Twin 454 Mercruiser
Do you dock bow first or stern first?

My wife brought up a good question about privacy while docking stern first. With that large glass doors it's easy for people from the docks walking by to see in.

even with the curtain closed you can still see out at people walking by so I guess they can still see in. :huh:
 
How do you get on/off the boat if you dock bow in? Jump? Ladder? Finger piers are usually not long enough to accommodate that.

Are your connections long enough (power, water, etc?)

Stern-in puts the business end of the boat against the dock. It's always fun to watch the sailboaters getting on and off their boats when they dock bow in...
 
Docks are more than long enough were we are going this
weekend and so our our cords.

She e-mailed me and I was thinking out loud and posted;
wanted to see if other bridge boat owners came across
this issue.
 
Remember how glass and light work. If your interior salon is more brightly lit than it is outside, people can easily see in (like at night when it's dark out and you have the lights on). During the day, it's usually brighter outside so people won't be able to see in - just because you can see them, they can't necessarily see you. That being said, we normally dock stern out so that we can see boats going by and have more privacy - the finger piers are plenty long enough for that at our marina and most of the big boats here dock bow in, stern out.
 
I do not have a sedan bridge ( someday). But in reference to the question....it's like a screen on your house. U can always see out. But passerby's cannot see in, unless they get right up on the window to look in. If they get close enough to see in your window past the curtains.... You will know they r on your boat
 
At my marina there is no advantage to backing in. If the dock is long enough everyone goes bow in even the big boats. I do back in sometimes to prevent the rare strong east winds from splashing large waves over the stern.
 
I always back into the slip. Privacy has not been a concern. If it had, I'd be more concerned about the view in through the front windshield. While I can close the blinds in he cockpit doors, I have no blinds for the windshield - just the sun screen. You can clearly see in at night if the lights are on inside.

Paul
 
People will make fun and assume you can't handle the boat when you forward in!

No, in all seriousness, it doesn't matter do whatever feels right in the situation. You can always swing back around if isn't working out.
 
Never been an issue in terms of people peering in. I feel it is easier to control the boat in reverse than in forward. My first season with this boat, I had a slip that required bow-in (b/c of water depth issues) and it was a beeotch getting in. No bow thruster and impossible to swing the bow of a boat without one. But that's just me.

lil'krissyiiia.jpg
 
With my sport-fisher I always stern in. (36' in a 33' slip) My wife had the same concerns about privacy so to fix the problem I had the rear salon windows tinted then had black canvas screens put on the rear windows as well. I have an electric fireplace/heater and recessed lighting in the salon and you cant see anything inside day or night. Even with all the tinting and screens, you can see out with no trouble or being too dark inside.
 
pachanga_rick said:
Do you dock bow first or stern first?

My wife brought up a good question about privacy while docking stern first. With that large glass doors it's easy for people from the docks walking by to see in.

even with the curtain closed you can still see out at people walking by so I guess they can still see in. :huh:
Click to expand...


Hi. I can hear your wife's concerns... but also, we have a really nice view of the water and watch the ships and other boaters going up and down the St. Lawrence. Plus, our cockpit is where we tend to eat our dinner... so we are bow in, stern out. It would feel wierd to have folks walking by while you are trying to dine. The view is the main thing for us for sure. We have long stringers that are fairly wide and we have a nice step w/storage in it that Joe made, it is quite heavy and works great for getting on and off... even for Joe's 82 year old mom!
Have a great Memorial day - see ya on the river!
 
As you can see from all responses it all depends on the slip setting. Although, majority go stern in there're some exceptional cases where people choose to go bow in. I've been in marina where in the slips with prime view people dock bow in to take the opportunity to enjoy that view while considering that all of the things Gary pointed are working as well. Depth issue would be priority for me over the view. So, see what works for you, but also having your stern in and facing the dock allows you to interact with your slip neighbors and make new friends.
 
With our 330 Dancer we have always backed in. The marina we're now at has security gates so the only people on the dock are slip neighbors and since we're near the far end of the dock we don't get many people walking past.

When we get the 550 home (around July 4th) we'll be backing it in also.
 
Good rule of thumb that I use: Stern in with fixed docks, and bow in with floating docks. Of course this is also finger-pier dependant.
 
Great replies and ideas!

My main concern is privacy, I would like to sit and have dinner with the family with out people walking by, looking in and start talking.

Keep in mind this is more of a question for when you bridge boaters travel to large public marinas for a weekend trip. not your permanent boat home were everyone knows everyone.

I like the tinted windows and black screens.. Thanks!
 
I have the dark tinited windows in mine. I also have the curtains off rightnow in orrder to get measured for new ones. In the day time you can be 2 inches from the glass and not see in. At night, you can see everything! Yikes!
 
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