Low Water Ramp - With Wash Out

[Bartableman7]

One of my favorite ramps has a major drop off and the trailer wheels will fall right off the concrete with low fall/winter water.  I'm thinking of buying some 3000 lb load ramps and just putting them onto the end of the concrete into the water.  Work great?  Seeing any issues?

[2tall79]

That is why power loading is discouraged on many of our local lakes.

[jbsoonerfan]

8 minutes ago, 2tall79 said:

That is why power loading is discouraged on many of our local lakes.

Yep, nothing like seeing someone take that 250 and blow it up on the trailer without having any idea what it is doing to the bottom near the end of the ramp. But hey, they have to look cool, right?

[Further North]

Maybe they just don't want to get their feet wet when the water is 40°.

[OnthePotomac]

I am really fortunate where I launch at the state park on the Potomac near my home because the concrete ramps go way down deep to accommodate the falling tide variations.  Power loading is the norm.  There is however, a county park north of me where the docks do not float the ramps are stingy in depth, so the county has painted traffic yellow stripes on the docks to define the ramp ends.  Launching/loading here on a really low tide can get hairy. 

[TnRiver46]

Is there a strong current that would wash them away? Only one way to find out, somebody might steal the ramps if they are pricey. Scum of the earth tends to loiter at boat ramps 

[Ratherbfishing]

If you can get part of the boat in the water, and your boat isn't toooooo heavy, you MIGHT be able to push it back far enough so it'll slide off without the wheels dropping down into the "washout".  Just a thought.

[senile1]

@Bartableman7, are you able to get enough of the bunks wet to allow the boat to be pulled off the trailer with a rope, or as @RatherBFishin stated, you could push it off?   

 

On 10/20/2019 at 12:48 PM, jbsoonerfan said:

Yep, nothing like seeing someone take that 250 and blow it up on the trailer without having any idea what it is doing to the bottom near the end of the ramp. But hey, they have to look cool, right?

 

I never thought of power loading as a way for people to look cool, though there is always that guy, right.  I believe power loading is the most efficient method of removing a boat from the water by oneself.  To power load without creating holes at the bottom of ramps, I do the following:

• Get the bunks completely wet and position the trailer at a depth so that the boat slides right up to the roller with minimal throttle speed. 
• Cut the throttle as the boat reaches a certain point on the bunks, allowing momentum to carry it the rest of the way up. 
• Do not gun the motor to get the boat up to the roller. 
• If you fall slightly short of the roller, winch the boat up.   (If unable to winch it up, get back in your vehicle and back it down a few inches to allow the boat to be winched up.  Believe me, doing this does not look "cool" but it is still quicker than other methods.)

 

Once you do this a few times with your boat, you learn the right depth for your trailer to get the boat up to the roller without having to get back in your vehicle to adjust.

 

[WRB]

We all know how far to back down the trailer to launch our boats. The problem occurs when we don't know the ramp has a hole at the end until the trailer fall off into it. When we know it's a matter of stopping before the tires drop off, slow way down and stop short. Get in the boat and back it off. 

You will never stop others from what they do. 

I wouldn't bother with adding load ramps, it's not your lake, I would change lakes.

Tom

[NHBull]

Teflon bunk slides are your answer.......

Changes your life?

[Jig Man]

On 10/20/2019 at 12:25 PM, Bartableman7 said:

One of my favorite ramps has a major drop off and the trailer wheels will fall right off the concrete with low fall/winter water.  I'm thinking of buying some 3000 lb load ramps and just putting them onto the end of the concrete into the water.  Work great?  Seeing any issues?

Is this the only ramp on the lake?  

[Bartableman7]

One ramp only.  Strip mine open by the state.

I wouldn't leave my load ramps there.  I'd put them back in my truck after loading.

[WRB]

The problem I fore see is the trailer tires falling off the ramps, otherwise give it try.

Tom