OPERATING AND PARKING YOUR HOUSEBOAT

FOLLOW THE CHANNEL MARKERS 

Going UP THE RIVER 

• RED square in on your LEFT
• GREEN triangle is on your RIGHT 

Going DOWN THE RIVER.... opposite.

COLLISION ..... "Always GO right" - (with power in any emergency. You have no brakes). 

• All boats drive on the right side of the channel
• Other boats driving towards you pass you on your left side

HIRE HOUSEBOAT RULES (Hire drivers are likely to be inexperienced.) 

• Car Licence only is required to drive hire houseboats, 
• They do not show any sign they are a hire boat. 
• All hire houseboats must be tied to the riverbank by 4:00pm
• ASSUME every houseboat on the river in daylight is a hire boat.

PRIVATE HOUSEBOAT ARE NOT RESTRICTED 

• Private houseboats with Licenced drivers have the same rules as any other boat with navigation lights. 
• Most carry two sets of floodlights, Side flood and front flood.
• COURTESY -  switch off your front floods on approach of another boat.
• Most river channel markers have reflectors that display in the flood lights. 

Your houseboat will have 4 mooring lines, 

• 1 each side from the back and 
• 1 each side from the front. 
• You need to work them in order of use according to river flow and wind direction. 
• It is very important to not let the houseboat go side on to the riverbank. Water flow is usually slow. Wind is usually the problem.

Learn to tie your knots without looking before you go houseboating.

1. Round turn and two half hitches is the most useful for tying to a tree onshore. (take the line ashore and walk round your tree with the line two times. Then complete the tie on the line back to the boat with two half hitches.)
2. Bowline is also usefull.

Mooring for the night.

1. Select a suitable riverbank site with suitable trees or mooring piles to tie to,
2. TREE LIMBS MUST NOT HANGING OVER THE BOAT. 

MOORING PROCEDURE, IN ORDER, with engines pushing forward onto the riverbank, holding against the wind blowing downstream.

1. Up wind stern line
2. Up wind bow line
3. Down wind stern line
4. Down wind bow line
5. Return to engines, go to neutral and watch lines for holding. ALL IS WELL? Stop engines.

REMEMBER KEEP REGULAR WATCH ON LINES AND BOAT POSITION.

Wind direction is your big problem. Water flow not so much influence.

1. Note directions, water and wind (Think upstream and downstream directions)

The order of letting go lines with the wind blowing down stream.

Start your motors and push forward onto the river bank with motors turned to hold the back of the boat against the wind. 

1. Down wind front line
2. Down wind back line
3. Up wind bow line
4. Power on to make the upstream stern line slack. Hold with the motor power and release the back line from shore mooring. Return to take control of the engines
5. Back well away from the riverbank before to turn towards your cruise direction. 
6. You are on your way

The order of letting go lines with the wind blowing up stream.

1. Work the opposite to the above. Remember water flow is likely to be down river.

WATER LEVEL HAS DROPPED. BOAT WILL NOT BACK OFF.

1. Send all people on the boat to the back, and try again
2. Select full power reverse. Keep moveing your reverse steering from one side to the other. Your boat may back off. GOOD!

NO.

1. Send all the people to the up-river side of the back deck
2. SELECT FORWARD GEAR.
3. Turn your steering as far as you can to push the back of you boat up-river. Keep full power pushing. Your down river bow may move off. 
4. YES. Tell people on the back to go to the other side.
5. Turn your wheel the opposite way and select reverse. You may back off. GOOD!

NO.

1. Leave the people where they are.
2. Select FORWARD gear, full power and turn you steering to point the front of the boat up-river, turning the back down river to break the from right bow off the sand. Keep power on. It may move slowly. GOOD!
3. Now go reverse full power steering in both directions to walk the boat off the sand. GOOD!

YES - crack a coldie.

NO. 

1. Plant a stick in the beach at the water level and wait for the water to come back. Then do it all again.
2. Think of something nice to do for a while.