[Gerry Zagorski]

As I mentioned before the problem with a stern tie with outboards, is when the outboard is tilted up when not in use. You have to allow for that extra clearence which means you will be further away from the bulkhead making it harder to board. With fixed docks, depending on the tide, the distance from the stern to the dock varies based on the tidal stage.

With a floating dock that is somewhat minimized since it does allow you to tie your boat much tighter in the slip because you don't have tie it to allow for tide swings. This assumes you have riding irons on the fixed pillings as well. Riding irons have a ring on them, which allows your lines and boat to ride up and down with the tides along with the floating dock. Some marinas put tires or floats around the pilling which you tie your lines to serve the same purpose. YOu can also purchase these if your marina does not have them.

With your engine up, tie the boat into the slip and see if you can get on and on and off comfortably from the stern. If not, you can make a plank that leads from the floating dock to the stern/swim platform if you have one. If that does not work out, you may be forced to have to tie bow in.

One caution... If the current rips in your area like Dan mentioned above, you just might want to tie bow in to make it easier and safer to get your boat into the slip. Once you get used to handling her in tight quarters try backing into the slip a few times and if you master it, then a stern tie is usually much more convienient for boarding.

One thing is for sure and as mentioned in a prior post, less is more when docking in tight spaces with a single engine. It takes a lot of small adjustments to get yourself lined up propertly, especially in reverse and with a strong current.

I'm sure you will figure out which makes most sense for your particular boat and dock combined with variables like your docking skills and the current.

One other thing to do is be observant. Take a look in your marina and see how other boats are tied. If all boats with single outboards are tied bow in there is probably a good reason for it