One of the most asked questions I get is about docks and what’s my opinion on the perfect dock? Floating ? Fixed? Crib? Lift Up? or even marine railways? It’s a great question and one that warrants some discussion.
Before diving deep, perhaps an eye opener as to costs for docks..and get ready as you may be shocked to learn that a large custom dock with seating area, seasdoo ports and more can easily break the $100K mark! while you can obviously spend much less or even attempt to construct your own, keep one thing in mind – the nature of the Kawartha’s terrain and weather conditions can place challenges to even the best builders to ensure your new dock is solid and a safe harbour for your investment in watercraft. Since some docks you’ll pass along your travels in the Kawartha’s have watercraft attached that can exceed $150,000…one wants to be confident that even if the ‘winds of November come early’…youre ready. Want to be absolutely certain? Go marine railway and or boathouse and rest assured your investment is safe.
So now that sticker shock has settled in, the decisions beyond budget are fairly simple and include :
- Water level fluctuations? Some lakes in the Kawartha’s such as Mississauga Lake, Gold Lake, Beaver Lake, Stoney Lake and more can experience fairly large swings in water depths from “high water mark” to low “summer season” levels. A floating dock automatically adjusts ensuring your boat is at the optimum level when tied against the dock side. Compared to fixed height leg docks where a boat may be at ideal levels in the spring but be floating under the decking in summer, causing potential damage. With large fluctuations, you’ll need a long ramp that is hinges to the floating section and is affixed to shore to accommodate for movement. Ensuring that ramp is solid and able to withstand the forces of nature as waves push your heavy dock and its contents against the ramp is a critical requirement. Think physics class and lever dynamics…For this reason, the floating section is often anchored, but again, needs provisions for allowing up and down movement. Leg docks can be adjusted during the season but it’s more work and large dock set-ups are difficult to adjust.
I personally prefer floating docks as they represent at my cottage the perfect function while minimal maintenance. I simply unhook the ramp, pull up anchor and tow to my sheltered bay. leaving in the lake for winter.
2. The terrain at your cottage impacts the construction techniques used in building your dock. Canadian Shield rock usually entails drilling into the rock to anchor the dock to shore. There are some innovative solutions for rock docks including cantilever braces for deeper water situations. I personally built my first dock on Kasshabog Lake (Kosh Lake)when I was 17 yrs old and used a technique popular at the time – the rock crib. I negotiated the purchase of some cedar logs from a local farmer, used rebar to afix the structure and made cribs which I filled with rock to form a solid platform. these cribs remain intact today…quite a few (ok, lots) of years later. Hunting for rocks to use as fill, transporting them across to the cottage (water access) made this a big job but given the life span…a very cost effective solution. I’ve re-decked the dock twice…
3. Permits. Lots of discussions regarding who has authority over building docks – from the municipality, MNR to Oceans Canada? The Trent Severn Waterway has very stringent dock guidelines. I’m not here to advise you as to how to get permits but your dock builder should be able to assist. An important question is are you replacing or repairing an existing dock or is it a new dock? Otherwise, a call to your local municipality building department can help get you started.
Keep in mind – a dock is a wonderful connection to the lake and that’s what cottaging is all about. Whether its used merely to tie up your boat or serve as an outdoor living space on the water, taking the time to design a solid, minimum maintenance dock is worth the time and effort.
