Gloucester, MA Assistant Harbormaster
Dear Dave,
I have a pier and float system on one of the tidal estuaries in Gloucester. I keep my 30 ft. houseboat at
the outer end of the floats and I purchased two 6' helix moorings from you in 2008 to tether the boat
and take stress off the float and pier system. I turned both helixes in by hand during the low tide and
although it was a fair amount of work, I was able to do it with a 6' crowbar. Your helix moorings have
been holding my boat in place for the last 3 summers with no issues and I have been very satisfied with
my purchase.
My pier extends 100ft across the salt marsh and in the winter time I pull my floats alongside the pier
and also anchor my houseboat up on the marsh as well. Since the houseboat only floats during the
flood tides, I have typically fastened it with multiple Danforth anchors off the 4 corners of the boat. As
an added safety measure, I run one line out to the closest helix mooring (about 75 feet from where the
boat sits during the winter months).
During the December 2010 storm on Cape Ann (which was the worst I have seen since the blizzard of
1978) we had extreme tides and 70+ mph sustained winds through the overnight high tide. My 12+ ton
houseboat tore a 1/2" nylon line and ripped out two Danforth anchors during the storm. The single line
tethered to your helix mooring is the only thing that stopped my boat from tearing completely loose,
which would have not only damaged my houseboat, but would have destroyed my 35 year old pier. I
can't thank you enough for making the technology available that saved my boat and pier! I will be
ordering more helix moorings from you to hold my houseboat during the winter months since this is the
only technology available that will give me the peace of mind I need during winter storms and will not
raise the ire of the Conservation Commission due to the environmentally friendly nature of the product.
Jim Marshall
Cape Ann Resident and
Gloucester, MA Assistant Harbormaster
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