In praise of box moorings

GORDON DAVIES and his partner have sailed their Sirius 31 DS for the last eight summers from Essex to the Baltic

In many marinas in northern Europe, boats are moored by securing their bows to the pontoon and their sterns to two posts. These ‘box moorings’ are disliked by many British sailors, which is a pity as they are much safer than the usual British system of mooring to finger pontoons. They are also especially easy to use by solo sailors once you’ve got the knack. For those not familiar with boxes, let’s begin by looking briefly at how they are used.

CHOOSING YOUR BOX

In most marinas in the Baltic, there are very few designated visitors’ berths,