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How to Pick a Boat Ramp
May 22, 2024
Not all boat ramps are created equal! Chris has a ton of experience boating, and shares his insider tips on what to look for when picking a boat ramp. Chapters: 0:00 - Boat Ramp Parking Lot Features 1:15 - Boat Launch Features 2:20 - Courtesy Docks 3:11 - Paying for a Boat Ramp
View Video Transcript
0:00
Hey, this is Chris with Lake Hub and I'm in my car because we have just pulled into Pilot Noel Park here at Lake Lewisville
0:06
We're gonna talk about some options that that how to pick a boat ramp so you can go launch for that day
0:12
We're gonna talk about all kinds of features One of the things we're going to talk about is I'm just gonna go ahead and pull up here
0:18
To the parking so as we drive up here One of the things you got to look at when you're when you're looking for a boat ramp is look for plenty of great
0:27
Parking spots. These are all striped. They just restriped all this. So this is beautiful
0:31
They got long parking spots in the in the week during the weekend
0:35
This place gets packed but the most important part of a parking lot is to have a
0:41
Turnaround at the end of the parking lot if it's not a drive-thru You need a turnaround because you're gonna back your boat out
0:48
You're not gonna back that thing down through 25 different trailers You're gonna need a nice big turnaround where you can come down here back out your boat
0:57
Drive around and you can head head head back to the ramp to go pick up your boat
1:03
So when you're looking for it look for great parking spots Look for a turnaround if they don't have it
1:09
you better start practicing how to back up your boat through a bunch of trailers and
1:14
Obstacles. All right. Another thing that we look for is how many Boat launches does it have how many lanes does the launch have this one
1:22
You notice it has two full lanes now when you're busy You're coming out here on the weekend. It's nice to have two lanes
1:27
So someone can be loading or two people can be launching at the same time, you know So this one has the texture but also has a nice high curbs on either side
1:35
So you're not driving off the ramp off into the rocks. It's a beautiful ramp. It's got a nice
1:40
angle that's another thing that you want to look for that a Lot of people think that having a shallow ramp is good
1:48
But it's not you want a nice steep ramp You want something that when you pull into the water that your boats going to float off quickly
1:56
Because if that's a real shallow ramp, you're having to stick your most your car into the water
2:01
Just to get the boat off the ramp, you know, just get the boat off the trailer That boats going to have to float a little bit before you go. But if you look right here, this is a beautiful ramp
2:10
It's got texture concrete. It's got two lanes. It's got curbs It's just this is a wonderful example of the ramp that I would choose if you're going to go out
2:19
Especially if you're a new boater. All right. Another thing you want to look for is does it have a courtesy dock
2:25
This boat ramp has a beautiful courtesy dock. It has a long walkway all the way out to a floating courtesy dock
2:32
So no matter what height the river going to hide the lakes going to be that that launch is going to be level for your boat
2:39
This one has it's kind of small like when it's really busy and you get two or three boats out there
2:44
It can get full but a lot of people can you can park on either end
2:48
You can park right on the end launch your boat tie it up come back in your car
2:53
Drive it park it and then you guys can launch with your family if you're here with later
2:57
We're gonna cover how to launch your boat by yourself That's something a lot of newbies don't know how to do or they know how to do it
3:04
They just don't know how to do it. Well, I have three different ways. You can launch your boat by yourself
3:08
That's gonna be quick. It's gonna be safe. It's gonna be easy All right, guys, when you're coming out to the boat ramp
3:14
Think about is how much does it cost? There's very few boat ramps out here in Texas lakes that are free
3:19
They have them but they're hard to find and they're really busy or they're in horrible condition
3:23
So when you come here to this park, they charge $10 one-time fee for every time you bring your car in
3:30
So that's again. They have an attendant here. It's easy to pay
3:34
They take credit card here at Lake Lewisville here and pilot and all but a lot of places don't have attendees you pull up
3:39
You got like a form you got to fill out You got to put your check or you put your cash in there and then you mean you put that in a box
3:46
And that's how you pay to launch your boat for the day. Also
3:50
You can get an annual pass. I pay one time a year get my annual pass come as many times as I want
3:56
Don't have to worry about it. So just be prepared when you come out. Make sure you have enough cash on you available
4:02
Just or or go find that free one and just get there early Hey, if you're looking to trade your boat in you're looking to buy a boat. You're just checking out this video
4:10
Hey go check out my video on some tips on if I should buy a boat at a boat show
4:14
Save some money go get your boat. Go trade it in and Get out on the water today
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