Figured I'd post this here, since there's not a boating forum.

I went down around Demopolis today to scout around and do some bow hunting out of my boat. I found a spot that looked good to run up on shore a little and tied off at the bow (line fairly taut) and the stern (loose). In hindsight this was a mistake because the boat was parallel to the bank. Well, I heard a barge go by while I was in the tree and to my surprise when I came back the inside of my boat was SOAKING WET. It looked like it had been sprayed with a fire hose. Even my inflatable life vest inflated because it got soaked enough to trigger it. At first I thought someone was messing with my boat as a "keep out" type thing and douched my boat with their wake multiple times. But, the more I think about it I think it was the wake from the barge. It almost turned out really bad as the boat was LOADED with water and my bilge line was plugged up with dirt dauber nests (I can't make this crap up).

So, what's the best way to moor a boat on the side of the river without it getting swamped? Should I anchor from the stern and bow and leave plenty of slack in both? What do the River Rats have to say? Find somewhere off the main channel?