Marine slip
|
|
Lyme_slip.JPG
In boating, a slip or slipway is a ramp into the water used to launch and retrieve boats and flying boats. They are generally made of concrete, stone or wood. The height of the tide can limit the usablity of a slip: unless the ramp continues well below the low water level it may not be usable at low tide.
To launch a boat or aircraft, it is moved down the slip on its trailer or wheels until it floats. The wheels can then be retracted or removed or the trailer can be separately removed. To retrieve a boat or aircraft, the opposite procedure is used.
The term has been adapted to uses not involving fixed ramps, as a ferry slip may be a docking facility where the vessel remains in the water and aprons are lowered to meet one or more of the decks of the vessel.