Osprey - 2-16-2007 at 09:56 AM
Baja Beaches Launch and Haul
For as long as there have been men in boats the battle has been joined – the neverending battle of beaches and boats.
The Boats
Bajaphiles (especially SOC afishanados) usually begin with small car-toppers, inflatables and trailered boats under 16 ft. As they get more trips
under their belts (older and richer) they bring down larger craft to get out farther and deeper where “the big ones are.”
There are as many launch-rig/trailer/boat configurations as there are people with money and imagination; the ingenuity of Baja boaters is boundless so
they are worthy combatants. Bystanders stand witness to the pitch of the battle, the point-counter-point as the boaters quickly wean their gear
packages off the “Rampege” they enjoyed in the U.S. They are determined and will not trailer a boat all the way to their favorite Baja fishing spot
and be easily defeated by hostile conditions. They have custom trucks and tires, telescopic trailer tongues, wheels with special tires all over the
trailers and the boats; military sand tracks, winches and windlasses, booms and blocks and tackles.
The Beaches
The beaches have an array of formidable weapons. They are like chameleons, everchanging, unpredictable, dynamic. They use the tides to great
advantage. When conditions are just right the tides fill the narrow launch ribbons with oxygen, hold it there until the sand/muck becomes the
consistency of wet concrete. The wind is not the boater’s ally – often the sea mist and wind combine to paint a hard sheen on the surface of the
approach, tricking the eye and burying the tires before any affective launch or haul can begin. At times the sand becomes a street sign – the sign
says “these tracks were made by other boaters, follow these tracks to the sea, you’ll be safe, have a nice day.”
The Battle
Launch
If the boater is hell bent on floating the boat off the trailer he may face daunting waves, water too shallow or dangerous dropoffs. If the attack
angle is too steep, the stern may pick up water before the boat is afloat. Often his worst fear is that he will be committed to putting the rear end
of his tow vehicle in the briny before he can safely get the boat afloat. Then he hopes against hope he has deflated the tow vehicle tires the right
amount to pull the trailer “back up the hill.” If he comes close to emergency mode he will spend the fishing day planning for the dangers of the haul
when he returns to the beach.
It is just after first light now when winds are often light – what will the waves be like when he gets back mid-afternoon? When the truck/trailer is
safely parked nearby, all boaters aboard, the whole party now must run the gauntlet of possible beach tricks of rocks, snags, sandbars, bait
receivers, discarded ropes, floating fishing line on their way to the fishing grounds.
The Haul
Those lucky guys with modern outboards know they cannot safely run their boats over the waves, up the sand, well away from the waves that could swamp
and sink their boats. Most hydraulic lifts just don’t have the speed to match the hand-eye movements of accomplished (or desperate) boat handlers.
In rough water on return all the small boats have the edge – they can be pulled up by hand, left to rock on their sides, run full out to get above the
last large wave. Inboards, in and outs and newer outboards have fewer options and usually try to leave the dirty work to the guy who does not own the
boat. He has to jump off the bow, back the trailer into the water, help guide, haul the boat or employ a rope, get back in the water, tie it on the
bow, run back to the truck and pull like hell. There are countless variations on this theme but all of them are mind-stickers that make every outing
an adventure with or without fish.
These adventures spill over onto others. On the beach near my house my boating neighbors and I have a good view of the beach from our homes and often
spy some hapless newcomer who needs a hand. We have pulled out every kind of truck, boat or trailer with whatever kind of 4 X 4 we have at hand.
Most of us keep the air down on our beach rigs just for that occasion. Often it’s a test of our good will and our communication skills because the
boaters are under stress, have lots at stake and each has his own ideas about how the rescue should proceed. My own worst fear is that their
emergency will happen right next to me, at first light, just as I’m about to try my own luck and I’ll surely lose valuable time at an early bite.
I’m sure each beach area is different so I should not generalize but on East Cape we see lots of new people with boats too big for these conditions.
After a couple of years trial and error they often begin to look for the 23 foot pangas favored by the Mexican fishermen but they get right back into
trouble when they upgrade the outboards to hydraulic units and the battle is once again joined.
Osprey--------
Barry A. - 2-16-2007 at 10:21 AM
What a fantastic "post" !!! Thank you for your thoughts-----right on target-------and thereby you have nailed part of the adventure (and challenge)
of boating in Baja.
Bravo!!!
Pescador - 2-16-2007 at 10:49 AM
This configuration may well be the most popular beach launching rig ever developed for baja usage.
Pescador - 2-16-2007 at 10:54 AM
oops, file did not post. Let's try this one
vgabndo - 2-16-2007 at 11:50 AM
Great post Osprey.
I'm in total agreement with the part about the liability of power tilt. I'm afraid it never occured to me when I bought my 35 HP Honda. On the
central SOC at Bahia San Nicolas, we have found that it makes a lot of sense and saves a lot of worry to head in early before the surf has kicked up
to a point where the delay in getting the 4x4 fired up and the haul line attached results in excessive water over the transom. Worst case (only once)
the boat was filled to overflowing. The stresses on the aluminum 16 footer damaged it just getting far enough up the sand to bail her out!!! I just
can't wait to try my luck again.
[Edited on 2-16-2007 by vgabndo]
Pescador-----
Barry A. - 2-16-2007 at 11:50 AM
----I totally agree. One exactly like the one in the pic served me well for well over 30 years in Baja. My "wheels" are installed on the rear
transom, but served the same purpose as the pictured ones.
After watching and reading (and participating with others) about so many trials and tribulations of other bigger rigs, I decided to stick with my
"tin boat", and never evolved. I regret that I could not (did not) ever access the big island, Guadelupe, but other than that I covered many, many
islands, and miles and miles of the Baja coast, over the many years. I still have my "tin boat", but use it for much milder purposes now-a-days. My
original "tin boat" ( a 12 footer) I destroyed----broke it's back on a huge wave 20 miles north of the BOLA by going too fast in rough weather.
vgabndo - 2-16-2007 at 12:07 PM
Barry: The skiff above didn't have its "back" broken, but its rib cage was a mess after a scary run in from Isla San Ildefonso a couple of years ago.
I was able to fix it, and the old girl is now stouter than when I bought her. And, she has 8 cu. ft. more floatation as a result. I'm hoping she'll
see thirty before I recycle her aluminum. (That isn't very much longer!:no
Crusoe - 2-16-2007 at 05:48 PM
Thanks again Osprey for a fantastic post. Very well said . You are so observant and eloquent.
4baja - 2-16-2007 at 06:37 PM
i went for a little more comfort, besides every time i take out a buddy in my boat who ownes a tin boat he ends up up grading to a larger boat. i cant
stand looking out to those outer islands and know that i cant get there and back safely.
4baja - 2-16-2007 at 06:40 PM
new boat
4baja - 2-16-2007 at 06:43 PM
new
Iflyfish - 2-16-2007 at 07:04 PM
Best advertisement yet for hiring a panga!
Iflyfish
Cypress - 2-17-2007 at 02:28 PM
Pescador! Thanks for the picture.
Looks like the solution to a bad
ramp/launch and an easy way to get a boat in the water most anywhere.
Pescador - 2-17-2007 at 06:29 PM
Yeah, we have talked about this before, but the balance is centered and I have seen one person launch the boat, fully loaded over a big sand beach,
over rocks, and over the muck we call San Lucas Cove, and when they come back in, they put the wheels in the center, drive the boat till it hits
ground and then haul the thing up the beach with a four wheel drive.