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While at a dock without fingers is it easier to bow in or aft in for ease of getting on or off boat any suggestions ???????

You need to be more specifc. Factors affecting the decision include:
wind direction and strength relative tothe dock; current or wave direction and strength relative to the dock; under motor power or sail power; height of dock relative to boat; amount of space at dock for your boat relative to other boats, or structures; Single handing or have crew; and is dock space designed for parallel or Med style, end only?

Those factors do have an impact, but I think generally speaking it is easier to drive the boat backwards, at least at low docking speeds.

If you get the boat moving backwards, its just like driving a front wheel drive car, with the only difference being that your rear end is more suseptible of being pushed around by the wind, current, etc... Some people even stand up on the other side of the pedestal, and 'drive' it that way...

In high wind, with the dagger board up, trying to go in bow first can be like trying to push a rope...

Quite frankly, when I first got the boat, going in backwards was about the only way I could do it, and not look too bad... Over time, you'll gain experience and have better control over the boat.

If the dock doesnt have "fingers" ....couldnt you dock along side? So it is easier to step in and out from the side.

oh... It looks like I might have missed the point...

Yeah, I'd certainly prefer to just come up alongside.

If you go in bow first, the bow just isn't really a good place to be trying to get on and off the boat, unless the dock is up near the deck level. If the dock is really low, then you have to worry about busting the trailer winch eyelet off, which would be real bad...

The rear is probably nicer for ingress/egress, but you got that prop back there... If the dock overhangs enough, such that it is clear down near the prop, the next things to worry about are your rudder brackets and motor itself...

I dunno, it looks like either the bow or stern present problems... If you can't come along side, and especially if this is a dock you will use frequently, you might seriously consider a dinghy - and leave the boat anchored out away from the dock. A cheapo from Walmart or some place like that would be well worth avoiding a repair job...

Maybe I missed my point.....originally I was supposed to get a finger dock so could geton/off the boat from the cockpit....now they put me at the dock bow in no finger dock...hence I need a way to get on the boat without killin myself......climbing up on bow ???? or backing boat in and thru transom ??????

Still not completely clear, but guess you mean that you're in a vertically arranged slip ...
one that's aligned bow-to-stern between pilings?

Assuming so ... I'd probably prefer to back my 26X into the dock, subject to acceptable winds and currents, since the transom offers pretty easy access. I might leave the motor down for loading, then push the stern away and raise the outboard clear of the water before leaving for the week. Obviously, it requires careful arrangement of docklines and spring lines to prevent the outboard from ever hitting the dock - especially careful if you're tied to pilings and also subject to tidal changes.

As DLT observed, these boats are frequently easier to control, close-quarters, going in reverse. Further, even with the narrower transom on your 26M, I cannot imagine loading the boat across the bow, so you'll probably be happier tying stern-to. Pretty sure I recall that someone posted pix of his "informal gangway," that filled the gap between his boarding ladder and the dock.

I think the most prudent solution is to try to get a more practical dock space. The idea of having to back up to a dock to enter/exit from the transom sounds ridiculous. The boat isn't nearly as manueverable going backwards, plus with current/wind, you run the risk of hitting your prop, etc, and it is much easier to enter/exit, load/unload gear from the side of the cockpit. Good luck.

Leon

Del,

At creep speeds in tight quarters, especially reverse, tractor (puller) motion turns much tighter than my forward motion turning radius.

Also, many fishing terminals (such as where I am keeping mine in the water right now) have stern ties for the offloading and prcessing of catch. makes for very efficient use of the dockspace, course that step off the level dock onto the back of the top of the stern deck,transom feels like it is a long way in the air............., and makes load balancing interesting. when loading the boat.

Since I generally hook the bow line to the far out piling, it makes for an easy swing with a safety when doing the final backing next to the dock.