Long launching ramps for BlueJacket

[landlocked sailor]

One of the challenges of cruising in a big trailerable boat is finding ramps that are adequately long. Sandy Point on the Chesapeake is perfect. I'd like to field suggestions from everybody about good ramps US & Canada. I want to have a good list to plan my cruising destinations. I'm sure other BlueJacket owners and builders would also be interested, or anybody else who needs to launch a pretty big boat for that matter. Rick

[rbgarr]

BoatUS has this beta for boat launch locations. Details about the characteristics of each ramp may have to be investigated ramp by ramp (somehow): http://www.boatus.com/ServiceLocator/

Delorme Gazetteers for each state have boat launch ramps marked clearly. Same deal regarding specific characteristics. http://shop.delorme.com/OA_HTML/DELi...minisite=10020

[jimkeen]

One of the challenges of cruising in a big trailerable boat is finding ramps that are adequately long. Sandy Point on the Chesapeake is perfect. I'd like to field suggestions from everybody about good ramps US & Canada. I want to have a good list to plan my cruising destinations. I'm sure other BlueJacket owners and builders would also be interested, or anybody else who needs to launch a pretty big boat for that matter. Rick

Yes sir we would be very interested in the launching and retrieving of a BJ 27 footer.

[jimkeen]

I have been thinking about this myself. Not having launched a Bluejacket(yet), I do not have first hand knowledge. I do have a good idea of what it would take so I have put a short list of ramps in southern New England that will work.
Plymouth MA Plymouth Harbor public ramp Access to Cape Cod Bay
Wareham MA Tempest Knob on the Wareham River Access to Buzzards Bay
Weymouth MA Back River Access to southern Boston Harbor
Bristol RI Colt State Park Access to Narragansett Bay
Somerset MA Somerset Town Ramp on the Taunton River with access to Mount Hope Bay to Narragansett Bay

There are more but these are the few I would consider as primary for my area.

[Woxbox]

I've been launching a 25 boat and more recently a 27 foot boat over the past 20 years and the first thing I learned is: don't trust the guides. Go out and look at them yourself -- at low tide and high. Second rule of thumb, the government facilities have big, nicely paved parking lots, but the ramp and dock details are often done by engineers who are clearly not boaters. Dumpy little marinas with gravel lots are often better bets. The other annoying thing is that there are many good ramps but with rules against leaving trailers overnight. Kent County, MD., is at the top of this list. And then there are the "residents only" launches (Cape Cod is good for this.)

Lately I've found that "flying" along the coast in Google Earth is a great way to spot ramps. Once you find the ramp, it's not hard to locate the marina and check out their website or give them a call.

Here's my current working list of Marinas. I haven't used most of these (I did most of this Google search over the winter) -- and my working list is constantly changing as I look to boat in new areas and ramps I've used in the past become unavailable or less attractive for one reason or another.

Favorites:
Rhode Island -- Allen Harbor
Sandy Hook, N.J. -- Atlantic Highland
Upper Chesapeake -- Duffy Creek
Lower Chesapeake -- Chrisfield (but I haven't used it in some years.)
Delaware Bay (seen it but not launched there yet) Lewes by the inlet.

[landlocked sailor]

Yes, this is exactly the stuff that is useful. There is no substitute for local knowledge. Google earth "flying" is great but it gives no information about ramp length and depth. My boat will float off at Sandy Point near Annapolis but we hav head to get a little more "creative" (read aggressive) at other locales. I will put together a list based on the info gathered here. Please indicate if you have direct experience like jimkeen and woxbox have. Rbgarr, the Boatus link doesn't work on my iPad; I'll try it on my pc tomorrow. Rick

[Hunky Dory]

My brother trailored a 25 ft. inboard everyday comm. fishing so could not wait for tides. He fished Hyannis in the AM from Bay view st. ramp[which just got rebuilt and is better than ever]. In the afternoon he fished Barnstable from the Mattachese ramp which also just got a long overdue rebuild Harwich has a nice ramp also. Cape Cod Canal has great ramps at both ends in Bourne and Sandwich. The state salt water fishing license that everyone was up in arms about is funding a lot of boat ramp rebuilds. If you check with local boat haulers they will know where the ramps capable of bigger trucks and boats are.

[landlocked sailor]

It occurs to me that being able to leave the truck/trailer overnight (or several days) ought to be part of the criteria too. Again, at Sandy Point, one needs only to leave a tag on the car indicating return date and emergency contact. Rick

[Breakaway]

Length and slope certainly help; but I will politely add that a roller trailer provides more ease of launching, regardless of ramp or stage of tide.

Kevin

[Woxbox]

a roller trailer provides more ease of launching, regardless of ramp or stage of tide.

It certainly does, but a lot of sailboat hull shapes don't lend themselves to rollers. I just added that slippery plastic to my bunks to help thing along. Haven't tested it yet.

[Breakaway]

I gothca good, Wox and concur.. The OP specifically stated the Bluejacket, which is a powerboat.

kevin

[landlocked sailor]

Use the ramp at Sans Souci state Park on the NYS canal today. It's short but steep and I was able to power off the trailer in a pretty good cross breeze without too much fuss, so it's a keeper. My trailer bunks are flat but have slippery plastic on them. I am just experimenting with powering on and off this season. Rick

[Bill Perkins]

It sounds like your tow vechicle has plenty of power. What depth of water at the wheels is required for your boat to float off ? Areas with a tidal range equal or greater than that automatically qualify at high tide if the ramp is useable for small boats at low . Marking those areas along the coast might give you some new ideas for trips , knowing you would find a number of useable ramps.

[Hunky Dory]

Use the ramp at Sans Souci state Park on the NYS canal today. It's short but steep and I was able to power off the trailer in a pretty good cross breeze without too much fuss, so it's a keeper. My trailer bunks are flat but have slippery plastic on them. I am just experimenting with powering on and off this season. Rick

A lot of ramps around here are posted NO POWER LOADING as it washes out the bottom of the ramp then they undermine and collapse. With the slippery plastic bunks a tap of the brake will get them off. Just don,t unhook the winch til you are down the ramp. You can drive on but when the boat stops you should use the winch not the throttle.

[landlocked sailor]

My method has been to be on the boat during launching and retrieving. While launching I just use enough throttle to back away from the trailer. Likewise, I just throttle forward to get to the winch hook and control the boat in a cross wind.
Bill, the slope of the ramp is the more important factor than length; I can launch off a short steep ramp more easily than a long shallow one. Rick