On a dewy morning you might daydream of Ireland.

When you think of getting a six-pack not everyone in boating knows it can mean something other than reaching for a cold one. I don’t profess to have known the difference for more than a couple of years. I do know that earning a U.S. Coast Guard Six-Pack or Operator of Uninspected Passenger Vessels (OUPV) captain’s license made me a better captain.

The evolution of down east inspired designs during the past several decades has been an interesting process to observe. This genre of design was inspired by the salty, no-nonsense Maine-built lobster boats. Occasionally a yachtsman commissioned a yard to finish a hull with a “yacht” interior, although they were still rather basic when it came to styling and amenities. Eventually boats from Maine builders such as Wilbur, Jarvis-Newman, Spencer, and Wesmac began to carve their own slice of the pie, gracing waterways around North America.

Have you ever screwed up a docking approach so much that you continue to ponder it for a few weeks afterwards? This one blemish seems to taint all the joy of the boating experience you had just moments before. Well, if you haven’t stopped reading, you can move to the head of the class. If you have and want a few more tips on docking, specifically when backing down into a slip around pilings, read on.