Managing Loading and Unloading Alone

[Thornback]

About one-third of my fishing trips I fish alone. I was wondering what technique other solo fishermen use to launch their boat and to load their boat. I don't want to go wading so I prefer not to get my shoes/feet wet. When I launch alone I make sure I have attached the bow rope to the trailer tongue. Once the boat floats off the trailer I take the bow rope and pull the boat to the far side of the dock and tie the rope to a cleat. That insures the tied boat is not blocking the ramp for the next guy. Then I park the truck/trailer and walk back to the dock. I see some folks will wade out and push their boat off the trailer.
When I return to the ramp I gently ease the bow of the boat up against the end of the dock. I leave the motor idling in forward gear, get up from the cockpit seat, walk to the bow, pick up the rope, step off on the dock, and tie the rope to a cleat. Then I step back on the boat and turn off the ignition.
Fishing solo can be a problem trying to ease up parallel to the dock, kill the motor, grab the bow rope and try to jump onto the dock without doing the "split", especially if there is current or cross wind. Leaving the motor idling in forward gear keeps the boat's bow up tight to the dock.
The only downside I see to this is to make sure you are idling so the motor doesn't torque over and start swinging the boat around. I usually wait 30 seconds to see that I'm good to grab the rope and jump on the dock. That can be done quickly in about 15 seconds.
Anyone else use this technique at do you have a better idea?

[Princeton_Man]

I use a 30' rope with a loop on both ends. When I prep to launch, I attach one end to a bow cleat on whichever side the dock will be, the other end I loop over the winch. Starting with rope closest to the winch, I quickly lay up the slack in a coil on my trailer's spare tire.

With the straps already removed from the stern, I back to the water, release the winch strap, then back in slowly. As soon as the boat begins to float clear, I pull up as the rope uncoils, remove the loop from the winch and guide the boat to the dock. If there are two cleats on the dock I do a quick figure eight from the bow cleat to the dock cleat, then pull the boat up along the dock and using the other end of the rope I do a quick cleat to cleat tie at the back.

From the time the boat floats off the trailer I usually have it secured to the dock and back in the truck in about two minutes. When I return to the boat I release the rope from the cleats and move away from the dock before removing and stowing the rope.

I use the same rope to tie up when I return, but loading isn't complicated. I just back in, fire up the motor and pull onto the trailer, then move to the bow, reach under and attach the winch strap. I'll often time climb down on the trailer to winch it up. Trim the motor up from the bow trim switch, then step from the bumper to the dock to get back in the truck.

Since adding a keel shield, I plan to get a boat bungee for places like South Holston without good dock access.

[LgMouthGambler]

Back trailer and boat into water, just enough so my back tires are just at the waters edge. Get out of the truck, step up on bumper, and on to trailer to unhook winch. Give boat a little push back into the water a bit, then up and into boat to fire up engine and back off trailer. Then tie up the boat at the dock, and walk up to truck and get in and park it. Pretty much do in reverse order to put boat back on trailer.

[West6550]

Back trailer and boat into water, just enough so my back tires are just at the waters edge. Get out of the truck, step up on bumper, and on to trailer to unhook winch. Give boat a little push back into the water a bit, then up and into boat to fire up engine and back off trailer. Then tie up the boat at the dock, and walk up to truck and get in and park it. Pretty much do in reverse order to put boat back on trailer.

Same here most the time. I park the boat on the bank and pull the truck out.

Sometimes I use a long rope I have, D-ring on one end and loop on the other. I use this for no parking on a bank areas or if I think the boat will get blown off the bank.

I hook the rope loop to a pole or dock, back the boat down, in the water some, unhook the bow. Back the boat in, let it float back and pull the truck out and park it. I then pull the rope in and jump on the boat. Obviously it depends on how the launch is. 75% of the time I do what LMG mentioned, or the wife or buddy pulls the truck out after I back it down and hope on then let them finish the last few feet for it to float.

[Ron Fogelson]

I keep a long rope with a D ring tied to it in my boat.

Drive to the lake pull in line if there is one, unhook bow, walk to the back unhook rear and pull out my rope, lift motor take off motor toter and place in storage behind my seat.  While there pull out lifevest and attach kill switch and prepower my boat.  Walk to the front of the trail step over to drivers side of my truck attach D ring to bow and lay rope along the bed of my truck.  Open door roll down window and pass the rest of the rope through so when I close the door the rope is sitting in my lap.  Back down the ramp until boat floats free feeding slack line out as needed, if no one else is there I hold tight to the rope and pull forward until boat is beached on ramp.  I have a keelshield so no worries.  If people are there place truck in park pass rope out window as I get out of the truck and walk down the dock and tie off.  My rope is long enough that if the dock is on the other side of my truck I do the same thing but walk in front of the truck and then down the dock and tie off.

Loading run in at the last min, get off pad far enough not to wake ramp area, slowly make my way to the dock and then put motor in neutral walk to the front of the boat drop trolling motor and troll to the point of the dock I want to tie up to.  On my trolling motor I have a big thick boat bungee cord attached with D rings on both ends, one side is wrapped around the TM shaft and when I get to the dock I unclip the other end and snap the D ring into a boat cleat or around a post, leave motor running and walk to the truck back all the way down so the boards get wet, pull forward until I have room to step off the front of the boat to the dry ramp, walk the boat, unhook D ring, use TM to back out away from the dock, stow TM sit down and drive boat on to m trailer until I feel it hit the wench.  kill motor, raise motor, walk to the front step down, attach wench strap get in truck and pull out of the way.

I fish by my self 95% of the time and while it seams like a lot in writing I'm as fast if not faster then most working with 2 people. I'm in and out before you know it and have done it so long that when people try and help it jacks up my routine 

[Oldfart9999]

I unhook everything, make sure the plug is in, back in til it rocks just a bit, hop out of the truck and up onto the dock and grab the mooring lines, pull it the rest of the way and tie it to the dock. If I have a partner I hop in the boat and let them just launch me while I drop the motor and start it when the boat is afloat.
Rodney

[BigDBasser]

I leave the bow strap on, back down until I see the back of the boat float, unhook bow strap and power off trailer.  Pull up to dock or shore and lower Talon's to hold boat.  Move truck.  When pulling out, I lower Talon's at dock to hold boat while I back trailer down.  Load up boat and pull out.  Simple with the Talon's. 

[Kris]

When I fish with a partner I will allow them to help unloading and loading.  This can be a help and sometimes not.  When by myself I float the boat on and off the trailer.  I usually tie a long line to the boat and back into the water with the other end secured to the truck somehow.  Once floating on its own I will beach it or tie it to a dock if available.
Most times I don't step in the water but sometimes I do.  I bought a pair of World Wide Sportsman Water Shoes at BPS.  They basically look like tennis shoes with open areas to let the water out.  I do wear short socks with them but they do make it a lot easier.  I also have cold weather style floor mats that don't let the water onto the carpet.  Works for me.

[Nutt]

What I do is a lot like what Ron does.  I use the rope method exactly like he does it, but more times than not, I will leave the bow winch attached and back in till I see the rear of the boat float.  Put truck in park, step off of the front of the trailer into the boat, unhook the winch, fire it up and back off.  Like Ron, I keep about a 6' piece of rope with a safety hook on both ends.  I hook one end to either a cleat on the boat or the trolling motor shaft, and the other end to the dock.  Loading up is just as easy.  I have gotten pretty quick doing it this way.  I have seen Ron do what he says he does, and believe it or not, his big arse is pretty quick.

P.S.-Always remember to TURN OFF your headlights while launching before daylight!!  Nothing worse than trying to back down a double ramp before daylight and being blinded by the truck in the other lane.