Getting Boat On And Off A Trailer
Boating is, without a doubt a very enjoyable, exciting, and very relaxing activity. But unless you live right in the water or have your boat in a marina, there is the issue of getting the boat on the water and, at the end of the day, taking the boat out of the water. This could be very stressful for some people (it definitely was for me), but with the right guidance, it doesn’t have to be.
I’m going to list a few tips that helped me when we first got our boat.
Trailer Depth
This is very important you don’t want to have your trailer to shallow to were it is near impossible to get your boat back on it, and the opposite is also true. You don’t want that trailer so deep in the water that you end up driving your boat into the back of your towing rig.
To get the right depth of your trailer, you have to pay attention when you are getting your boat on the water. Take a look at the depth of the trailer and see how easy or hard it’s to get your boat off the trailer.
This process is going to take some practice, but it’s also going to help you know your equipment better, and it’s going to make your life easy when it’s the time to get your boat back on the trailer. Keep in mind that not all the trailers are the same, so you need to take the time to know yours and find the right depth for it.
Driving It On The Trailer
Before you try to attempt to drive it on, you have to make sure that your boat handling skills are good. If it’s your first time on the water, please give yourself more time to practice. Once you have some decent skills, you will see that it’s not that hard.
Lie up your boat with the trailer from a pretty good distance 30 to 40 feet away if possible. Then very slowly head straight to the trailer. To keep the boat going straight and slow bump in and out of gear. Keep in mind that when the boat is on the neutral position, you don’t have any steering capabilities. Once you reach the trailer, put the boat in the neutral position, and let the bunks straighten the boat. Once the boat is in the right position on the trailer, then give it some throttle to get it as close as you are comfortable with the trailer post. You can pull the boat if you have to with the ratchet strap, and once you have it in place, proceed to attach the safety strap. If it’s too hard to pull the boat up the trailer, you might need to back up the trailer accordingly.
Very important not to forget to trim up the outdrive; if you don’t, you might end up dragging the outdrive up the boat ramp and possibly damage your unit I have seen this done and it’s not a funny site. Now it’s time to get the boat out of the water and off the ramp. Don’t be that person that stays at the ramp getting everything off the boat and back into your vehicle.
Get off the ramp then, find a spot out of the way to unload and secure your boat to the trailer. Give the other boaters the chance to load or unload their boats without having to wait for you for no reason.
Loading It By Hand
If your skills are not good enough to drive it on the trailer yet, its ok no need to panic; you can get it on the trailer by hand. Sometimes we do it this way if the weather or the currents are not cooperating or if the ramp is too busy.
The process is similar, first, get the trailer on the water to the right depth as we discussed above then pull the boat on the trailer using your dock lines. Once the boat is close enough to the trailer post, hook the ratchet strap to your boat and start polling it until it touched the post then secure it with the safety strap. That’s it the boat is loaded now don’t forget to trim up before you pull the boat out of the water.
Once The Boat Is Off The Water
- Ok, you successfully got the boat off the water and into your trailer, GOOD JOB !!
- Before you hit the road, remember to get everything you need to get off the boat, don’t leave anything loose that can fly off the boat on the highway.
- Take out the drain plug and drain any excess water.
- Before you get your truck and trailer on the ramp, do a quick inspection for moss or algae or any debris that can cause your vehicle to slip back into the water. If your vehicle is equipped with four-wheel drive, it might be a good idea to engage it.
- Don’t back up too much that your back tires are on the water, a sudden current can lift your vehicle and make it lose traction and go into the water.
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it, boaters are usually very friendly people, and most of us would be happy to help a fellow boater rather than see them struggle or even damage the boat or hurt themselves. So scream for help if you need it.
- Remember to strap your boat to the trailer, the boat can bounce off the trailer on the road after hitting a bump, hole or anything else.
- Check your trailer’s lights make sure they’re all working, it’s very common for the lights to stop working after being submerged in the water.
The most important tip I can give you is to educate yourself on how everything on your boat and trailer works. Also, ask questions to other more experienced boaters but most importantly use your common sense. take your time and inspect everything and make sure that everything is the way it’s supposed to be before you take your boat and trailer on the road