Halifax boat access ???

[Corky]

Well it looks like the Halifax boat access ramp will be closed for the summer ??? I guess you guys need to travel a little just to get in the water and Millersburg might get some ramp traffic this year if this is the case..What doest thou sayeth ???

[kent]

Hi Corky,
I did not know that is was closed. Wonder what is going on with that?? The ramp in Halifax boro is available, but at summertime lower water levels, it is only good for kayats and inner tubes....
kent

[Corky]

Unfortunately someone got killed there pulling across the tracks now everyone involved is worried about safety/liability issues...Horrible, yes....I cross tracks every day with none of the usual safety precautions here but I know enough to look around before I pull out there...Here's the link.. http://www.pennlive.com/news/2016/10...sing_stil.html

[Papee]

I use that ramp 95% of the time. I don't have any problem going in but coming out I've got woken up quick. It wasn't close really but it felt like it. I use that ramp because it's just a short trip to my camp. Parking at the Millerburg one is a challenge with a trailer but I usually just park right at the ramp because of being in the club and it being so hard for me to walk any distance.

I'll most likely use Marks(saturn surplus Mark) private ramp across for the store if Halifax stays closed. Low water isn't good for that ramp though. I could back in the water there too but may be a problem getting back up the hill. I guess that's why I have a winch on the Jeep though. Plenty of trees to hook onto. I do use the Boro ramp at times, with the Jeep I can just back right into the water there until I find water deep enough to get the boat off.

[Corky]

Some boat ramps are scary...My wife got an expensive lesson on not backing the vehicle too far into the water...The rear axle went in too far and the water got into the differential..We didn't know about it until the rear started making noise{I wasn't along so I didn't see it}...By then it was too late...I ended up changing out the whole rear it was cheaper than dealing with that mess...Not sure how it actually got in there the vent is up much higher than the housing...Anyhow,I can't really say much I put in at a ramp in Sunbury and something cleaned the axle cap right off the trailer..It was a bearing buddy cap so I had to buy another set just to get one.. In any event I'm looking forward to trying different ramps this year with the new set-up...

[Coyotes-R-Us]

OK at the risk of sounding way weird...

Do you guy HAVE to float your boats off the trailer .???
Even with my big boat I never put the axle hubs of the trailer
in the water, and never get the truck tires wet.
I was under the impression with an airboat this was a non issue.
No ramp needed.
What am I not seeing?

[aerokirk]

If you're talking about running dry you better be planning to put a Lycoming on your boat as the 4A084 will most likely not have sufficient power to run dry unless your standing outside of the boat and sliding downhill

[Coyotes-R-Us]

Not dry per say.
But push the boat off the trailer in to the water.
Like said, there are many days my big inboard boat Is not even wet
On the trailer, I simply push it off the end of the trailer in to the water.
Been a time or two we unload on the ground by the water and use the truck
and trailer to push it in to the water when the mud is deep.

[Corky]

Some access points at the river are shallow...As in long and shallow...Sometimes you need to back into the water a bit just to get to the point where you can the boat off the trailer...In my wife's case she doesn't have an airboat she flys around in a 22ft checkmate speedboat so the 250 outboard needs some water just to get off the trailer in a normal fashion...She's not the type to try to shove the boat off the trailer and hang on to the rope in the swift river current...Loading and unloading in the current is tricky and not easy to get it on or off the trailer without scraping the side wheelwells if it's too shallow...I've since added a set of upright bumpers to keep the boat more centered keeping it off the wells in the process...Much easier now but still needs some water for that type of boat..

In my case I'm going to add cushions on the inside wheelwell radius so the boat can rest against the inside without any problems...Small roller ramps will be added at the rear to help with a low water transition onto the trailer...I'll do a thread on the trailer build this spring...

[Papee]

Corky my Jeep has hoses on the rears so no worries about getting water in them. As far as unloading, With the rollers I have on I could just shove my boat off the trailer on dry ground. I like to back my boat in the water when I'm unloading the same way I will when I pick up the boat when I'm done. On ramps with no cement in the water the ramp is different from one side to the other one side being deeper or maybe even the middle of the ramp. I like to find that spot when unloading so I know where to back in to load.

I don't start my boat to load, I just push it out and pull it on the trailer with the mooring rope until it's on far enough to hook the winch to it. I can probably unload/load my boat in less than three minutes. I'll be doing a video on how I do it this spring.

[Corky]

Yeah, Papee I don't get it...The vent tube was up higher than she'd ever be able to back the durango in... I'm guessing the rear end differential cover plug was the problem...Dodge in their wisdom used a rubber push-in plug and I'd seen it was leaking fluid before the mishap...The fluid was rusted mud{mix of water and oil} when the cover was taken off and everything was junk...
I bought another durango that has the factory towing package with all the coolers and I'm in the process of getting it ready for towing duty for the boats..This one will be a dedicated tow vehicle for them...
Our other durango died a slow death between the rear{which I replaced} and the trans..Now the frame is pretty much junk...We had trouble with it from new.. The trans had issues while still under warranty..Oh well...At least I've got plenty of spare parts...

[bgmcl60]

outer axle seals are bad to leak when the vehicles rear tires are deep in the water only takes one time. never seen a rear axle hsg plug leak other than a small amount of oil.