<< I was able to walk the boat into the trailer with a couple of
ropes and a little unplanned wading. So far I have only used the foot
or so of my winch line. Are there other/better methods than the two
described above? >>
Kellen--
I have had some of the same problems you have experienced in Utah here at Lake
Tahoe. The wind can come up suddenly and fiercely in the afternoon making
loading the boat back on the trailer quite a challenge. I have tried
everything. I put guides on the trailer, which helped, but it is still
difficult. When it's really choppy it is really a three person job. One on
each side of the boat and one on the trailer crank.
One thing that did make my life a little easier was to replace all the keel
rollers and make certain they where really well lubricated when I put the new
ones on. I'm not sure what you're supposed to use for that purpose, but I
just used some of the grease used for the wheel bearings. It's waterproof. I
did that a few years ago and they still work fine. That helped a lot.
Another thing that has helped was some advice given here a long time ago.
Lubricate the bunks. I keep a tiny squeeze bottle with some biodegradable
soap in it handy. I just run a very small bead of soap down each bunk before
retrieving the boat. Just be careful. The next time you launch your boat
will slide off a lot easier than you are used to. Don't let it get away from
you!
With those things done, the boat will center itself a lot easier on the
trailer and the keel will more likely stay on the keel rollers as you crank it
in.
One last thing that I have found that makes it easier: A wetsuit. I am a
SCUBA diver and in the early part of the season, when the lake is super cold,
I will wear my wetsuit pants and booties while launching and retrieving the
boat. If I'm not freezing it is a lot easier to concentrate on keeping the
boat straight and get it on the trailer quickly. If you don't have a wetsuit,
you can get a light weight (1 to 2 mm thick) pants for less than $40 and
booties for $10 or so through one of the diver mail order catalogs. If you'd
like a web address or name of a company, let me know. I'd be happy to send
it.
A question for you: Is Hatch just a common name in Utah or are all the Hatch's
related? Many years ago (26 years ago?!) I was a heavy equipment operator and
drove an ore truck for a phosphate mine in Vernal. The company was, "Hatchco"
which was owned by a Hatch family. Any relationship? I spent several years
working in Vernal and then taught skiing for another couple of years at Park
City. I very much enjoyed my years in Utah. It's rather amusing now living
in the Sierra's when I hear someone complain about the cold. About as cold as
it ever gets here in the winter is the high teens or low 20s with the
exception of maybe a night or two when it might dip near zero. At Park City
or Vernal, during the winter, those would be considered rather mild winter
evenings.
I hope this rather lengthy tome helps you.
Geoff
P-15 Lollipop
No. Lake Tahoe, NV