How do you come ashore from a small motorboat?

tclubber

Active Member
Hello all,

please forgive the clickbait title.

My experience with motorboats is limited to renting license-free motorboats for a couple of hours. I never left the boat during these rentals. I am thinking about renting a boat for a whole day the next time I am in Ibiza, and being kind of antisocial, I don't want a skipper. Maybe I'll even make an effort to get a motorboat license to enjoy more HP.

There is one stupid thing about using a boat that I don't quite understand - how do you come ashore if there is no jetty that you can use? E. g. assume I rent a boat in SanAn, go to Cala Salada and want to go ashore to get some food. You can't go all the way to the beach in the boat because the water is reserved for swimmers.

Is there any other option for coming ashore apart from anchoring the boat behind the buoys, putting the ignition key into the back pocket of the swimming trunks, jumping into the water and swimming?

P. S. I know lots of people have a great sense of humor here, but it's a serious question.
 
Some places will bring the food out to you so I'd say they could bring you ashore to. If you are going to spend, spend spend in the restaurant..
 
in formentera I've seen people shuttling people from their boats ashore with those motored rubber dinghies. it's a service of those fancy chringuitos there.

another option would be bringing a foldable and inflatable SUP with you. you'd only get wet feet (if your balance is good)
 
Personally I'd be scared shitless of not anchoring the boat correctly and watching it float away from the bar at Sunset Ashram etc ??
 
Is there any other option for coming ashore apart from anchoring the boat behind the buoys, putting the ignition key into the back pocket of the swimming trunks, jumping into the water and swimming?

at cala bassa I chucked all my money in a knotted carrier bag and swam to shore to the chiringuito at the far end whilst forum member Fat Phil B and other pals looked after the boat (laughing their heads off). not the answer you wanted but it worked and was (mainly) hassle-free
 
You can use delivery service, just phone the restaurant and the geared up ones will bring the stuff to your boat. Else you can use a fender/SUP if your boat is big enough to carry one.

I would also be scared of leaving a boat anchored whilst swimming in to go ashore for very long in case it drags excessively and never do it if the sea is choppy. In Summer you are as much at risk of colliding with another anchored boat as losing it. Buoys are the answer - if you can find one free. If you can tie the boat up you can safely swim to shore and basically forget about it just keep it in sight in case anyone tries to sneak on board (in practice this is a very rare thing to happen).

As far as swimming in, yes that's always an option - did that at El Bigotes. Keys for boats are not designed to be a problem getting wet - but having a proper dry capsule you can attach to your wrist is best - that way at least you're not handing over soggy euros !! Something like this >>

 
hookers in Jamaica swim out to your boat with grams of coke in there mouth.... No that's a good service..
 
Buoys are the answer - if you can find one free.
Are anchoring buoys free to grab, or do they have owners / are reserved for specific boats?

I was thinking about a small 5-6 meter boat, not a luxury yacht with a tender and a jet ski. My SUP skills are very basic - I feel more secure swimming than on an SUP, especially if there are any waves. Chances are, me using an SUP would involve some swimming :oops:

Thanks for a dry box recommendation, I was not aware of those. I have a small dry poach to be put on an arm, but found it very impractical - it is small, is a disturbance when swimming, and I was afraid it would come loose and sink to the bottom.
 
Are anchoring buoys free to grab, or do they have owners / are reserved for specific boats?

I was thinking about a small 5-6 meter boat, not a luxury yacht with a tender and a jet ski. My SUP skills are very basic - I feel more secure swimming than on an SUP, especially if there are any waves. Chances are, me using an SUP would involve some swimming :oops:

Thanks for a dry box recommendation, I was not aware of those. I have a small dry poach to be put on an arm, but found it very impractical - it is small, is a disturbance when swimming, and I was afraid it would come loose and sink to the bottom.
If the dry pouch had air in it- would it not float?
 
Are anchoring buoys free to grab, or do they have owners / are reserved for specific boats?

I was thinking about a small 5-6 meter boat, not a luxury yacht with a tender and a jet ski. My SUP skills are very basic - I feel more secure swimming than on an SUP, especially if there are any waves. Chances are, me using an SUP would involve some swimming :oops:

Thanks for a dry box recommendation, I was not aware of those. I have a small dry poach to be put on an arm, but found it very impractical - it is small, is a disturbance when swimming, and I was afraid it would come loose and sink to the bottom.

It depends where - you may find in places like Porroig there are people who will claim ownership where they actually don;t have any right to etc etc ... there is meant to be some regulation ( https://www.ibizacentralcharter.com/en/regulation-of-anchoring-in-the-pitiusas ) but in practice it's a bit of a free-for-all.

You won't have space on a 5-6m boat for toys bigger than a wakeboard really so swimming in is more practical. But really - they best thing to do imho is grab some bocadillos, ice and drinks from the little kiosko at the port in San Antoni before heading out, find yourself a lovely isolated quiet cove, anchor up and eat on the boat. You can drive much quicker to any beach club on the island any time you like. Having a boat allows you to get to the really special places like Portixol which otherwise are a real mission by car and on foot. Take advantage and leave the cheek-by-jowel crowds anchored up like sardines at the beach club ? !!

Those capsules are way safer than any pouch and come in a range of sizes. Trust me, I've tried just about everything !!
 
It depends where - you may find in places like Porroig there are people who will claim ownership where they actually don;t have any right to etc etc ... there is meant to be some regulation ( https://www.ibizacentralcharter.com/en/regulation-of-anchoring-in-the-pitiusas ) but in practice it's a bit of a free-for-all.

You won't have space on a 5-6m boat for toys bigger than a wakeboard really so swimming in is more practical. But really - they best thing to do imho is grab some bocadillos, ice and drinks from the little kiosko at the port in San Antoni before heading out, find yourself a lovely isolated quiet cove, anchor up and eat on the boat. You can drive much quicker to any beach club on the island any time you like. Having a boat allows you to get to the really special places like Portixol which otherwise are a real mission by car and on foot. Take advantage and leave the cheek-by-jowel crowds anchored up like sardines at the beach club ? !!

Those capsules are way safer than any pouch and come in a range of sizes. Trust me, I've tried just about everything !!
We pulled in at Portixol last year, lovely little cove. Sadly the wind had brought jely fish in but will go back there when we next get out to the island. There were 3 people on the beach who we presumed must have hiked on the beach. Reminded me of Stivina Beach in Croatia for remoteness , although that had more people on it.
 
We pulled in at Portixol last year, lovely little cove. Sadly the wind had brought jely fish in but will go back there when we next get out to the island. There were 3 people on the beach who we presumed must have hiked on the beach. Reminded me of Stivina Beach in Croatia for remoteness , although that had more people on it.

Lots more awesome little places to pull in. The other way down to Portixol is a tad sweaty - but no less fun :cool:. I ran it (and back up the cliffs ?) last year. In the days before I had aGopro with proper video stabilization :oops:?

 
You won't have space on a 5-6m boat for toys bigger than a wakeboard really so swimming in is more practical.
Can you swim from a boat to Atlantis, or are the rocks too slippery to come out of the water safely?

Also, when exploring really special places, is a rib a better option than a regular boat? Since you can probably simply pull it ashore in a lot of places instead of anchoring...
 
Can you swim from a boat to Atlantis, or are the rocks too slippery to come out of the water safely?

Also, when exploring really special places, is a rib a better option than a regular boat? Since you can probably simply pull it ashore in a lot of places instead of anchoring...

Yes you can easily swim from a boat to Atlantis - but watch out because the water is pretty deep there so you need to let out a lot of rope. For me though the best way to get there is by kayak - and it's much more eco-friendly too !

If the water is choppy a rib is much better than a sports boat and they are a bit easier to handle, but I would not take a decent sized boat onto shore anywhere. Not only is it forbidden most places there are swim zones (apart from the tiny shuttle ones to and from a jetty/pontoon) you will struggle to stop it being dragged back out by wave movement for very long.

The best skills you can learn are diving down on breath hold (for when you inevitably get the anchor stuck on a rock at some point and have to swim down and free it), and handing in very tight spaces (for when you end up boxed in by some boat full of partying people and have to get out without catching other peoples' lines or colliding with them !).

Taking a decent sized boat out alone is best done after doing your RYA Powerboat II and having a bit of experience with others on board to help. Doing everything yourself always comes with a lot of responsibility if you are inexperienced, especially when you're tired !
 
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