From the description above, it sounded like D!pshcitt tied up close to the ramp in his effort to block that lane for himself.
It's the same as cutting in line.


I wouldn't assume anything like that. I always tie up the farthest away from the ramp as is practical, both outbound and inbound.
Follow procedure and everything takes care of itself.

If your boat is blocking the ramp, then your trailer better be, too, and you better either be in your truck, in your boat, or in between the two putting the boat on the trailer.

I can't really see any other way that the system works without that.

If you're wandering around the parking lot while your boat is blocking the ramp you should expect to catch flack from everyone on the dock and in their truck trying to get on the launch.

Fish on...

Todd

I am with Curt 100%. I don't know about other boat ramps in the state but I use the Shilshole ramp often, 30 launches on the annual permit this year. The regular users move their boat as far out as possible on launch so the people behind them have some water to launch. Coming in it is as far forward as possible so that the boats behind have some dock to tie up to. Where your trailer is has no bearing on where you tie up, the people behind can't know that info. It is first in line at the dock is the first to take out. It may mean that you have to wait a while someone goes off to get their trailer, particularly those who park out on the street in hopes of avoiding the ramp fee. Patience is a virtue at any ramp, particularly at Shilshole where sail boaters, canoes, jet skis, and any number of other strange craft are using the ramp. If you can't wait don't fish on weekends.

Motoring on to the trailer has some impacts, the most serious is damage to the ramp. Shilshole is not bad but if you look at extreme low tide there is a significant dropoff where the concrete ends. A final thought is that if you have been fishing and checkers are working when you tie up at the end of the dock they have to carry their equipment the entire length of the dock. It may not seem like much for one boat but if they check 60 boats the extra minutes adds up to hours that folks are waiting to take out.

Yup. Same goes for other PS launches so it's not just Shilshole. End of the dock makes me think you are puting in or just moored and not taking out. Do you expect boats to keep circling while there's an entire empty dock in front of you? If you have a sled and are going to power load then you shouldn't have any issue with someone pulling in front of you. Sounds to me like the issue is you didn't quite use the center with your trailer and instead pulled in front of someone who can't power load? If you left him plenty of room in his lane for his trailer then there is no issue. From my own experience I generally see the sled owners as the most impatient people at the ramp. Just because you can be out in a minute doesn't mean you can't wait a few minutes longer in line and just chill the F out.

Boaters with special launch/take out needs should avoid busy ramps unless they are there to observe experienced boaters launch and take out.

I have no issues with someone docking in front of me, in fact that is specifically the reason I tie up at the end of the dock, so if someone wants to hand load they can dock their boat closer to the ramp (but not all the way forward so they block the ramp) and if they get back with their trailer before me they won't need to line their boat around mine, also it gives people launching the most room to get their boats in.

As far as staying chill, I was totally chill until the guy came down and started hurling insults at me, at which point I started replying in kind.

Looking at it from his stand point he isn't blocking the ramp. He's next out. Your boat is at the other end of the dock and it's anybody's guess why. If you can power on and use the center (no dock) without going in front of him great. But it sounds to me like you could not so you should have been the one to "block the ramp" since you were there first. Then it would have been clear what was going on and there would have been no issue. This "blocking the ramp" seems to mean that others should always leave room for the sleds to jump in front and power on as they see fit. To me, when sleds do that, it's not good ethics.

So if it takes him 20 minutes to get back with his trailer that ramp should just be idle and no one else can use it? Wow that's efficient. Things are much quicker if the next trailer in line is the next boat to take out no matter where your boat is parked.

Yes that's the way it's always been long before people started fishing sleds in PS. The alternative is chaos. The next trailer being quicker only works if the boats, both manual and power load, are also in that order otherwise it just benefits you the power loader. Think about it. Four boats pull up at almost the same time and now it's a race to the trailers? Boat three might be first then two then four then one? Under that rule you have just transferred the problem to land (road rage) instead of the water. Also, boat three might be a single person manually loading so now he has to get his boat around two others while the impatient people are steaming? Everybody should just chill out. The guy closest to the ramp is next. It isn't a race but you also owe it to fellow boaters to move quickly.

Fixed it. BTW, using a true sled in the salt is inexperienced. Sorry.

Ok, let's use your example of 4 boaters. The guy at the front of the dock is the last back with his trailer. Now he has 3 trailers queued up in front of his and no way to get around them to get to the ramp. According to you the guys in front of him can't load because its his boat at the front of the dock, but the guy in the back can't get around the other trailers to get his boat out.

So now according to your system no one can use the ramp.

"JFC, they are in our midst."

DD
2012

This an excellent example.
At busy ramps order at the dock means nothing.
It's order of vehicle/trailer that determines who is next.
The system breaks if you try to do it any other way.

I manually load sometimes and I always find a way to get around boats that are tied up in front on me.

Ideally you stay with your boat continuing to move it closer and closer to the ramp and when the guy in front of you is ready to retrieve you go get your trailer and get in line behind him. 1,2,3,4 is the order of the trailers and the boats. And if it's slightly off there's plenty of room for jockying before backing down the ramp. No trailer fight, no potential of boats banging each other trying to jockey around. But like I said if you can get by using the center no dock then you can get by jumping ahead but if you can't get your truck around the others than you are mucking things up by mooring at the end of the dock.

Absolutely not! The both of you seem to think the person who can run to their truck the fastest is the winner. A bumper boat cluster F. I gaurantee you the majority aren't playing your game.

You can move boats around easily to get a boat from the dock to the trailer...you cannot shuffle trailers around when they are lining up at the ramp...again, the only way the whole thing makes sense to me is that the next trailer in line is the next one to load, and there better not be someone else's boat sitting in the way when that someone else's trailer is not ready to be loaded up.

Fish on...

Todd

Not so. There may be a 30 footer in front of you and beside you. And there may be currents as well. Why would you try to jockey around that? Your trailer should be in line behind the 30 footer's trailer. If it isn't and you are at the top of the ramp you can easily see that 30 footer is still in the way and you are better off waiting for him. Problem solved.

Try your scenario with the 30 footer at the end of the dock like Bossman. Everyone else pulls in front of him closer to the ramp. He has sprinted for his trailer and now you really have a time killing mess as that behemouth tries to jockey it's way to the trailer. And did the closest boat to the ramp leave over 30 feet? The 30 footer should have pulled up to the ramp while it was free and there'd be no issue.

Dock order not = trailer order = chaos.

If all you have is a single ramp for both launching and retrieving it's a different scenario. Come up here and try your method at Muk. If you don't end up paying damages for two boats you'll at least have a nice talking to. If your boat isn't next at the ramp and you can't use the center you'd better be waiting your turn and not trying to play bumper boats. Trailers can easily jockey around at Muk or Everett. You'll "get it" once you try your technique on more challenging launches.

All of the arguments make sense at many ramps but Shilshole is unique. There is no designated line up of rigs to take out. It is possible to approach the ramp with a left turn or right turn from the street or directly from the close ramp parking area. Add in small sail boats and canoes being carried or wheeled by hand to the ramp and the best one can hope for is minor chaos. The ramp is a Seattle city park ramp, not just for people fishing but all users including the tourist who rents a kayak and has no clue about ramp protocol. I have seen 4 rigs arrive at the ramp and all 4 end up pointed in different directions and no one can back up. There also are the walkers, bicycle riders and children crossing behind trailers waiting to back up. This might be a typical summer weekday, weekends and holidays are even more fun. Even with all the chaos things seem to move as fast at Shilshole as many of the more organized ramps I have used in the past.

You are talking launching which IS trailer order. Retrieval, which we are discussing, the trailers should be in the order of the dock unless you want a mess. If the dock has boats both launching and retrieving on the same side then it's pretty much a total mess already. Is it that hard to pull up front if you can? Your scenario ignores rough weather, currents, etc but you would agree that the rules should be the same on a calm day or a rough one right? If so how dare you chance damaging my boat due to your impatience. Just F'ing wait.