Creating boat dock off lake on property

[Brady]

 

My lot I purchased is at the end of the lake on the turn around, therefore, I am going to install my dock on my property instead of on the the lake. My question is about the best method for creating the slip. I was thinking of pouring a 4 foot concrete wall on 3 the sides of the slip and on the back. And then allow the water to simply flow in so I can put my boat there. Is there a better way to do this? I could pylon it, but I fear the sides where the dock is will ebb away over time. Curious as to your thoughts?

[oldjeep]

Make sure you run it by the dnr first. If it were me I'd go with a track lift and pull the boat up onto your prooerty.

[Brady]

@oldjeep it is on a private lake and the owner, hence the architectural review board asked me to create a slip on my property because the turn around is tight. Thank goodness I don’t need to get any government agency involved....or my wife for that matter!

[oldjeep]

I think I'd still want the boat on dry land if it is in the turn around. I assume you are planning on a lift, preferably a really high one? Seems like the wave action against a concrete bunker would splash pretty high.

[LeonL]

Given the info provided (not a lot) I'd favor what @oldjeep says. Put in a "railroad" track and build your boathouse on dry land. Building anything on land is so much cheaper and earlier. Use an electric cable winch sit back and grin.

[Chef23]

My concern with concrete walls would be backwash even if they are small and you are a long way from the course. I like the track idea with the boat on dry land. It also would make it much easier to clean the boat and you could winterize it in place.

[Sethro]

The problem I see with being on dry land is I assume you would still want a dock along the side of the track. The dock would be sticking out in the tight turn space just like a lift.

[Conor]

@Brady my Friend has a setup just like you described. Concrete U shape dug into shore on turn island with lift. The problem he deals with every year is his slip fills up with sand and dirt from boats going around island. We bought a dredger to suck out slip and relocate the material that finds its way into his slip. Still prefer his setup over pulling boat up onshore every time your not skiing, that sounds like a pain in the ###.

[oldjeep]

@Conor - why would that be a pain? You hit the button and drag the carriage up, same thing you do if you had a lift. Father inlaw had one at a previous house and it was pretty slick, made cleaning the boat super easy. As for a dock - I'd think a sideways dock would suffice - something that ran parallel to the turnaround

[bigskieridaho]

That track thing is a dumb idea. He is on a private lake and not some big body of water. When you are on a private lake you want easy access to a dock and your boat. The track idea is not. Build your walls into the shore and wide enough to not have a confined space for buildup. May have to clean it yes, but makes way more sense in this instance. Keep the tracks for the trains and old schoolers.

[oldjeep]

I'm thinking that either some people don't know what a track lift is or I'm missing something. These things are super common for ski boats.

 

 

This is a track lift straight into a boathouse - On a private ski lake

 

 

 

[bigskieridaho]

@oldjeep I get it. However, there is little room on a turnaround to do that. Also, when waiting for a set you would have to pull the boat up every time....not very convenient.

[oldjeep]

@bigskieridaho - you would seriously sit floating at a dock in the turnaround waiting for a set? sounds like a great way to get your boat bashed up, unless these turnaround areas are a lot bigger than the ones I am used to. The course I'm used to the turnaround area on one side is where you wait - as if the waiting boats are an island.

 

But I guess it depends on your particular lake setup.

[Ed_Johnson]

As a kid growing up in Wisconsin, everyone on the Lake had tracks, as in the top photo above. All our docks came out because of ice during the winter

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The idea of the tracks coming into a Garage above is really slick !!!

 

 

[oldjeep]

That garage above is at the New Germany Trophy lakes and has 3 tracks entering it ;) (Photo is from a for sale ad for one of the boats).

 

On my folks lake about 1/4 of the houses have track systems straight into a boathouse. My wife and I are currently looking for a lake to move onto and I'm hoping the slope will be correct for installing a track so that the boat/canopy can be in the yard.

 

 

[mwetskier]

the track advocates seem to have missed the point that you would still need an actual dock to get in and out of the boat after its rolled out into the water. i think @Brady was clear that he could not have a dock extend out past the edge of his property due to the narrow turn around channel. but looking at the pictures included by the track & cradle fans i noticed they all have the necessary side loading dock extending out from shore.

 

the best solution i've seen so far is the one pictured below. i bet a much smaller one boat version without the boat launch would be pretty ease to build and it seems to answer all concerns.

 

 

[Sethro]

Having had a lift for the first 20 years or so of boat ownership, I've now had a track system with a boathouse for the last 5. One could not pay me (ok maybe an irrational amount) to go back to using a lift. What kind of depth are you talking about 10,20,30 feet from shore?

[6balls]

If you could run a wireless remote to the track system like I do to my boat lift, you would not need a dock. Control it from the cockpit.

[Wayne]

A neighbor has two dug out slips on his property, both were constructed using the steel sea wall that gets “pounded” into the ground. The walls are about 6 feet high above the lake bottom, I’m not sure how deep the go into the lake bottom. There are a few concrete versions on my lake as well. All of these are on canals with no wake restrictions.

 

It seems hit or miss on the longevity of these types of slips for long term durability. I’ve seen both construction methods failing with the examples on our lake. My neighbors walls are leaning in and squashing his boat hoist. He’s had it braced up for 3 years so far waiting until he has funds for a full redo since a few professional repair attempts have not stabilized things.

 

I would give the Hewitt Roll-a-rail a serious look. We considered one for our home, you literally can get in the boat and use a remote to lower you into the water. In/out time is as fast as any vertical lift. Being on the turn around I could not foresee leaving a boat floating in a slip. It would get tossed around quite a bit.

[Brady]

Man, all these comments have been awesome. I am a bit restricted as to the CC& R's but I can definitely say I am ruling out the concrete walls. The owner told me a neighbor dug out his dock and lined the edges with 2 foot boulders. I worry a bit about that with the sediment build up. @oldjeep what is the name of that system? And what is the cost? I loved that. I am thinking I want to be able to have a slip for easy access but then incorporate that system behind the slip for cold water days. I am including a pdf of the site. I have two choices for where to put the dock--either end of the lot. Thanks for all the input!

[savaiusini]

@mwetskier I recognize that lake! Ski Park, Orting, WA... Crazy how a tiny image like that jogs the brain!

[oldjeep]

There are a number of mfg of rail systems. Best bet is to shop around and see what is available near you. 9k for 100 ft sounds like a bargain.

[Zman]

Definitely a "to each their own" discussion. But, I would go with boat slip cut into your shoreline with a boat house and lift. Ski Chaste near Mobile, AL has 6 slips, 3 at each end, in the turnarounds (1 not active). No issues due to boats going around turnarounds, and several leave their boats floating at dock while others ski. Again, no issues. They are fairly wide turnarounds.

[A_B]

The way I see it, the biggest

Issue is you can’t easily pull into a dock and hangout while changing skiers, grab a beer, or whatever. You need to be in the water like mwetskier posted so you are away from boats zooming around the island. We must have been thinking alike on that as I was scrolling down, that is exactly what I thought and wondered if you had enough room to build your own “lagoon”. It can’t be straight in or you will get pounded by waves, unless you lift the boat every time, and that could be a hassle. I don’t like the concrete walls due to backwash. A lagoon with sloped clay banks underneath sand could make a nice swim area too.

[John Brooks]

Those rail systems look very nice and seems like a better option than a dock.

 

I have one friend that has a boat launch on his lot, at the top of the ramp has a garage and inside keeps his boat on trailer with tractor attached to it. This also a very nice set up.

[Chef23]

I like what @mwetskier posted if there is a way to do that. It protects the boat from getting pounded by rollers and gives you somewhere you can hang out and stage skiers.

[Stevie Boy]

@A_B whats to stop you having a decked area on land, on one side of the track, to get changed and party on, cheaper , bigger, barbeque, the works, probably get away with 60ft of track, if the topography allows that.

[A_B]

My only concern about the track is time to load and offload. I have seen only seen one system and that sort of creeped along.

 

My lake co-owner and I thought if we were ever to buy property around our lake, we would dig a canal to the backs of our houses that would open up to a small pond that could be used for swimming and docking boats and other toys. This is what I thought of when I read about @Brady’s “problem”... I nice problem to have.

 

Could always work with a neighbor building a large shared deck/dock that is out of the turn island to share expenses with.

 

As far as lifts, I like the hydraulic lifts for speed versus cable systems.

 

[whitecaps]

Seems to me that having rails going out into the ski area would be a hazard even if they hug the shoreline and lake bottom. And then they might get mucky and inhibit rolling properly. Maybe something like this elevator lift without a seawall just the concrete pilings needed for lift- still need to cut out some shoreline so its recessed and not in the skier/boat path.

[andjules]

as @mwetskier points out, you'd typically have an extended dock along with a marine railway. However, if you can modify your shoreline (which you obviously can, if you're considering digging out to put your dock in your property), you can take a different approach with a rail system:

1) starting at your existing shoreline, you can dig inshore a bit to recess a slope/ramp for your rail system. Most photos you see of marine railways extend well into the lake, but that's because they are usually installed so as to not interfere with a natural lake's shoreline, and as such, extend far into the lake at a manageable slope. By starting your slope a few feet in from shore, the rails needn't extend/interfere much at all.

2) beside your ramp, you could also slightly modify the shoreline so you can install a wide dock/platform at shore's edge (not a long dock extending into the lake). You can ride in your boat (or use ropes) as it comes off the rail system, then park broadside at shore's edge, as long as you give your boat 2-3' of depth. That would make it convenient for your ski partners hopping in & out.