Hi there, thank you for your question. I will be keeping her in a Marina berth for the first year. I have already practiced berthing another boat in the intended marina so have an idea as to what it will take to do.
Glad you made the choice and went ahead with your purchase and fair winds and safe passages.
Good idea in practising with your mate's boat but something to keep in mind too, (unless he has a SO 40) is to not definitely expect your own boat to handle exactly the same, very few boats do!
I have the slightly smaller version the SO 37 and have her for three years now. I head out solo all the time and never miss the opportunity in heading out when the weather picks up to push myself and learn the limits of my 37. So while your SO 40 is larger she has similar underwater lines and should handle similarly.
So if it's any encouragement to you and while you have a relatively large yacht in a 40 footer, single handed sailing her isn't beyond your reach.
And so hopefully my meandering text here from my own experience with my SO37 maybe of some help to you!
Like yourself I am berthed in a marina and when moored stern to, my finger berth is on my Starboard side and when moored bow to, my Port side is alongside the finger pontoon.
I also sail solo pretty much most of the time and have her rigged for single handed sailing. It didn't take much to rig her with a few additions; upgraded the roller Furler, added a spring boom vang and a few added clutches here and there pretty much sorted it.
One addition was of a fourth triple clutch on the coach roof where Jeanneau had supplied a single clutch. And then that single clutch I fitted to my Starboard aft deck adjacent to the toe rail, just forward of the Pushpit rail. And through this is where I ran my headsail Furler all within reach of the helmsman.
I'm guessing here too, your propwalk also takes your stern to Port when going astern?.
If you're berthed like myself on the same side of the finger pontoon this propwalk can work against you unless you use small bursts of engine revs as opposed to continuous use for obvious reasons.
It took me part of my first season to get to grips with this and be comfortable in all weather and tides and once understood it's an easy obstruction to overcome, (i.e., small engine bursts going astern).
Additionally, I don't have a bow thruster so again with practice and experience I found Ohana when mooring stern and Starboard to, she handled far better by carrying out the whole docking manoeuvre in astern. By entering the marina basin and continuing in astern to berth alongside my pontoon. Carrying out the full manoeuvre allowed me far better control with the flow of water continuous over the rudder, as opposed to motoring into the basin in ahead and then coming to a stop and reversing in astern. Also I have one quite large fender secured to the pontoon and my stern or Bow can rest against.
This appeals to my better half (the real boss, my wife
) as she can board with ease from the marina through the transom. However, when berthing in winds above 17kn I carry out the manoeuvre in ahead and berth Bow in and Port side to. And therefore, removing any risks of cross winds taking control of the bow when berthing in astern in higher winds.
Before entering the basin, I have my lines rigged bow and stern. Bow Mooring line ran outboard of guard rails from starboard fairlead and back to the stern to me. And the stern line run outboard from the starboard fairlead and looped and resting beside the bow line at arm's length from me and looped over the rails. Then when I'm coming alongside in astern with the engine in neutral but underway, I give a small boost in ahead and effectively acting as a brake and coming to a stop and killing her momentum. I step over the rails but holding both bow and stern lines. Securing the stern first with a quick couple of turns around the pontoon cleat and then a cleat hitch. Before making the bow line fast and stopping my bow from blowing off onto my neighbour's boat.
Rigging the bow and stern lines this way allows me to tie her up when coming in astern or bow in and once temporary secured I knock off the engine and add my springs and then re-adjust the bow and stern lines.
And as our marina is tidal depending on the tide, I will head upstream or downstream well past my basin a good few hundred feet before going astern and into the tide in astern and then reversing into our basin and then into my pontoon berth. This allows complete control with the flow of water over the rudder.
One important thing to watch when carrying out this manoeuvre for the first time though, is to be careful of how much the bow swings in opposition to the helm. Because as you know you're pivoting on your keel and making sure to give well enough room to allow the bow to swing and not to foul another berthed boat.
When mooring to a buoy single handed in anything other than benign and flat calm conditions what I've found works without the benefit of extra hands is to secure a temporary warp to both port and Starboard cleats but making sure you have fed the warp bitter ends out over the rails and in under the pulpit or bow rails and through the fairleads. I've made the silly mistake too of securing the line to the cleats and lobbing the line over the rails when in a rush
.
Then using the autopilot and coming to the buoy into the wind and into the tidal stream in a very slow ahead speed you can lasso the buoy single handed. Like you might lasso a cleat on a pontoon. Additionally using a boat hook, you can also hold the lasso and mooring line an additional 7 to 8 feet (or more), of reach off the bows when the weather and or tide pushes you off your course in order to lasso the buoy.
And in a worst-case scenario when mooring and you're single handed and the weather's picked up and being totally uncooperative. As has happened to me on a few occasions. What I've had to do is using an old halyard (because of its length). Secure one end to a bow cleat, through the fairlead and back outboard to the stern secure the middle of the line temporary and then returning it back up to the bow (outside of the guard rails), and through the opposite fairlead and securing to the remaining cleat. When rigged like this in poor weather you can motor up to the buoy abreast of the cockpit you then have only a few feet from the helm to lasso the buoy. And always remembering too regardless of whatever way you pick up your buoy. Always knock the engine out of gear as you near the buoy for safety reasons. As you don't want to motor over the Mooring riser and get it wrapped around the propeller. Or worse if you have a rope cutter on the shaft actually cut the riser.
And one last thing when lassoing a buoy from a yacht you have to form a round noose or one complete circle of warp with the line too. Otherwise, if you drop the warp over the buoy without a noose when the boat slips back and the tension comes on the line the line will simply just rise and slip up and over the buoy.
But with a little practice single handed sailing is an absolutely fantastic opportunity to get away from it all and enjoy our passion without having to be at the behest of someone else.
Hopefully my text hasn't been too confusing and of some help and best of luck.
EDIT: I didn't make it clear above but once the buoy has been lassoed with the temporary line, you can relax as the most important job has been carried out. But you must then haul on the warp and secure your actual mooring line to the Buoy, and then remove the lasso warp.
) and bought this boat so I don't know any different. For me it's habit weird when there are other people on board!
) as she can board with ease from the marina through the transom. However, when berthing in winds above 17kn I carry out the manoeuvre in ahead and berth Bow in and Port side to. And therefore, removing any risks of cross winds taking control of the bow when berthing in astern in higher winds.