The essence of a mooring is weight. Attached to the weight is a mooring line and attached to the mooring line is a buoy. The weight rests on the bottom, the buoy floats on top and the line connects them. Assembling a manageable weight and having a mooring line sufficiently long will make a homemade mooring an alternative to conventional anchoring. Using light polypropylene line at the end of the mooring line makes mooring buoy retrieval practical for "smaller sailors."
Items you will need
3/4 inch nylon line
3/4 inch polypropylene line
18-inch concrete blocks, three each (total weight: 156 pounds)
Small Norwegian buoy
Carabiner
GPS unit
Boat
Assistant
Boat hook
Step 1
Prepare the nylon line by cutting it to a length that is three to five times the depth of water. Attach 5 feet of polypropylene to one end of the nylon line using a single carrick bend.
Step 2
Prepare the Norwegian buoy by attaching one end of the polypropylene line to the lifting loop of the buoy -- either with a bowline knot or an eye splice. Open the carabiner by pressing the center and insert the open end through the lifting loop of the buoy.
Step 3
Line the concrete blocks up so that the holes are aligned. Lace the free end of the nylon line through one hole in each concrete block. Turn the line back on itself and tie the free end to the line with a bowline knot so that all the concrete blocks are attached to one end of the line and the Norwegian buoy to the other.
Step 4
Set the mooring system by loading it into your boat and taking it to the location where you wish to moor the boat. Have your assistant lower -- not drop -- the concrete blocks which are laced to the rope over the side and lower them to the bottom. Mark the location as a waypoint in the GPS.
Step 5
Set the Norwegian buoy over the side of your boat. Use a boat hook to lift the Norwegian buoy out of the water when you want to use the mooring and attach your boat's mooring line to the carabiner, then put the buoy back over the side. Your boat will now be anchored to the mooring buoy.
Writer Bio
Will Charpentier is a writer who specializes in boating and maritime subjects. A retired ship captain, Charpentier holds a doctorate in applied ocean science and engineering. He is also a certified marine technician and the author of a popular text on writing local history.
