Your Island Car

The dinghy is your only link to shore, ice, and restaurants. If you flip it, lose it, or tie it up wrong, your charter grinds to a miserable halt.

The Painter (The Tie-Up Line)

The line attached to the bow of the dinghy is called the painter. When tying up to a crowded dinghy dock (like Foxy's or the Soggy Dollar), leave a long painter. Do not tie the dinghy tight against the dock. Leave 10 feet of slack so other dinghies can wedge in, and you can pull it to you when you return.

The Engine Realities

Charter boat outboards are notoriously temperamental, usually 9.9hp or 15hp 2-strokes or 4-strokes.

The Kill Switch: Ensure the red lanyard is clipped in, or the engine will crank but never fire.
The Vent: If the external gas tank has a vent screw on the cap, open it. Otherwise, the engine will create a vacuum and stall after 5 minutes.
Fuel: Outboards burn gasoline (petrol), not diesel. Do not put boat diesel in the dinghy tank.

Beaching the Dinghy

When approaching a beach, tilt the engine up before the prop hits the sand. Have the crew jump out into knee-deep water and pull the dinghy up the beach. Always account for the tide. If you pull the dinghy onto the beach at high tide, it will be stranded 20 feet from the water when you return.

Tidal Stranding Calculator

Estimate how far down the beach the water will retreat.

Tidal Drop (Feet)

Beach Slope

JavaScript required.

Fallback: On a shallow Bahamas beach with a 3ft tidal drop, the water can retreat 90+ feet. Tie the dinghy to a long anchor in the water, don't drag it up the beach.

Common Mistakes

Mistake	The Reality
Towing the dinghy in big seas	If crossing an open channel (like to Anegada), hoist the dinghy on the davits. A towed dinghy can flip, ripping the engine off.
Leaving the dinghy unlocked	Dinghy theft is real, especially in the Caribbean. At night, hoist it on the davits. At the dock, lock it with the cable.