Bow Spring

A spring line led from the bow area of a vessel towards a shore point farther aft.

Its fore-and-aft lead primarily checks the vessel’s forward movement along the berth. It works with an opposing spring and other mooring lines to control surge, sway and yaw caused by wind, stream, tide or passing traffic.

Names such as forward spring, head spring and bow spring are not used identically everywhere, so the actual lead should be stated when giving instructions. Load sharing, chafe protection, tidal adjustment and keeping clear of snap-back zones are more important than relying on the name alone.

Basic Mooring Terminology