RE: [Paddlewise] Launch and exit from swim platform.

I don't know what your definition of a "large yacht" is (my definition: any
boat bigger than mine).

My "yacht" is a 38' sailboat with high freeboard.  I routinely board and
de-board my Guillemot Coastal kayak from the stern ladder.  The Guillemot
has a fairly tight cockpit opening, so you have to extend your legs and
slide forward from the back deck.

Needless to say, it is a balancing act, but I am now pretty confident in it
-- it is like boarding from a high dock.  You have to get the kayak
perpendicular to the "yacht" (parallel to the plane of the stern), stand up
in the cockpit while steadying yourself mightily on the stern ladder, then
use the stern ladder to support most your weight and balance while lowering
yourself onto and into the kayak.  Really tricky if a sea is running.

I haven't swum from this position yet, but I have had to chase a paddle down
once or twice.

--Karl Coplan

---Original Message-----
From: Michael Lampman
Subject: [Paddlewise] Launch and exit from swim platform. 


I have been asked about entering and exiting a kayak from the swim 
platform of a large yacht.  Frankly in many years of paddling, I have 
only launched or landed from a dock or similar structure two or three 
times.  On those occasions I crawled face down facing aft as if using 
the paddle float rear deck re-entry approach.

Are there other more effective techniques used for this?  How do they 
do it on the small so-called "Mother ships"?  Are mechanical aids of 
any kind used?
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