Subject: RE: [Paddlewise] crossing ship channels safely? Jerry and Duane, I am new to the list, recently retired professional boat captain for over 35 years. And, I have been following this thread for a couple of days now. I couldn't help but make a comment, and a suggestion when I saw Jerry's questons. 1.> What are safety considerations on crossing shipping channels? Charts so you know where the channels are, planning not to stay in a busy channel itself, but to one side or the other. Larger vessels are restricted by 'draft', he has to stay in the channel. In addition, he has to maintain speed in order to have 'steerage way'. And, in most channels a ship with 'speed on' can hardly stop ... sometimes itr can take a mile or so to respond. 2.> How do you know when you are in the channel? Charts and bouys, and if you are smart .. a GPS. Few handhelds have bouys indicated, but they do have the shorelines. 3.> How can you tell if a large ship is going to cross in front or behind? If in doubt at all, you maneuver ... he is very restricted. 4.> Do you VHF to large ships that you see to inform them of your presence? Bear in mind, in most channels, ships and other large vessels do not 'monitor' channel 16, depending on the water ... they might be on 12 or 13 .. but this is not alway true. If they are in waters that require a 'pilot', they may be on the pilots working channel for those waters. If you do not know these waters, as part of your planning, call the USCG and ask them what channels the ships and pilots use in any particular waterway. 5.> What do you do if it is foggy, just trust to luck that no ship is bearing down on you? NEVER TRUST IN LUCK! And, do not always expect that the 'ship' would be sounding his 'fog' signal. It is a 'rule of the road' that he should, but believe me, few do. Remember, the pilot or captain of the ship is up very high. Many times he ses a 'ground' fog, but is looking over the top of it. He is looking for other ships, not a sea-kayak or small private boat. 6.> In your night crossing, do you think that a large ship would see your lights and avoid you? Not on your life .... I worked for many years on the Amazon River (or the Rio Para, part of the Amazon delta waterway). In this area, which has fog a great percentage of the year, and there are literally hundreds of small artisanal fishing boats .. canoes, small sail boats, etc. In most cases, if we were to hit a boat we would never know. The river is full of logs, crocodiles (some as big as your kayak) ... generally the 'pilot' is in the wheelhouse, closed, air-conditioned, watching his radar. Believe me ... a small boat or kayak will not be seen on most radars. And, no one uses 'fog horns'. I have thought about this same question many times over the years. Suggestions .... Portable Radar Reflector ... used by sailboats, these fold up and can be stored aboard. A small piece of hardware ... like a mast socket or flag pole socket or even a fishing pole holder might be installed on your kayak or small craft. This reflector does not need to be installed high in the air ... mount it on a short pole about 2' in length. Battery powered strobe light ... not so good in the fog .... but, believe me, a strobe at night will catch their attention. Some of these, like the GUEST lite ... are quite good. Flares ... hand held, or small flare pistol .... do not use RED ... that means you are in trouble ... use 'white' mag flares. If using a pistol, shoot it 'straight up' almost ... not at the ship. It could be a tanker ... and if it landed on his deck ... it might cause quite a show. Mag flares are quite 'hot' ... If you are using a VHF ... don't just turn it on when you see the ship .... leave it on anytime you are in the channel or waterway ... carry and 'extra' charged battery if you have too. Pay attention to the traffic. Most 'pilots' will keep you informed ... just listening ... as to their where-abouts. If you must talk to them, advise them 'your location' exactly, and do not start idle conversations. Actually, if I was 'onboard' and a 'sea-kayak' called me ... I would probably start the conversation myself. A handheld will last for hours in the 'listen' mode, but long conversations will drain your battery quickly. Have a fun and safe trip .... just be aware of the limitations og the 'big guy' .... Regards, Capt. Donald R. Reid - Master Oceans not more than 1,600 Tons (Retired) Representative - Merchant Vessel Personnel Advisory Committee (MERPAC) STCW work group (U.S. Coast Guard Advisory Panel), as a representative of licensed Masters above 500 Gross Tons. Gulf Coast Mariners Association **. Master Marine Surveyor - U.S. Surveyors Association - Professional Mariners Association .. USA P.O. 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The Gulf Coast Mariners Association is organized, and shall be operated, exclusively as a non-stock membership corporation. ------------------------------------------------------------ ----------------- > ----- Original Message ----- > From: owner-paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net > [SMTP:owner-paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net] on behalf of > Gerald Foodman [SMTP:klagjf_at_worldnet.att.net] > Sent: Monday, June 26, 2000, 0:54:18 > To: Strosaker_at_aol.com > Cc: paddlewise > Subject: [Paddlewise] crossing ship channels safely? > > Duane, > What are safety considerations on crossing shipping > channels? How do you > know when you are in the channel? How can you tell if a > large ship is going > to cross in front or behind? Do you VHF to large ships > that you see to > inform them of your presence? What do you do if it is > foggy, just trust to > luck that no ship is bearing down on you? In your night > crossing, do you > think that a large ship would see your lights and avoid you? > Jerry > > > ************************************************************ ** > ************* > PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright > the author and not > to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's > permission > Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net > Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net > Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ > > ************************************************************ ** > ************* > ----- End Of Original Message ----- *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
"Donald R. Reid" wrote: > Battery powered strobe light ... not so good in the fog .... > but, believe me, a strobe at night will catch their > attention. Some of these, like the GUEST lite ... are quite > good. > The only issue with this is that in the Great Lakes, a strobe is a distress signal. In other North American waters, it is likely to be interpreted as a distress signal. Mike *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Mike, at sea ... according to all the 'rules and regs' ... a strobe, per sie, has no meaning ... A 'red strobe' might be interpreted as a distress signal ... but .. a white strobe will certainly 'catch their attentions' and that is the whole objective of the deal. Like an EPIRB ... the orginal EPIRBS were aircraft distress signals ... and broadcast omly on the aircraft distress frequency ... and then boats started using them .. especial long distance cruising sailboats. It was supposed to be a sign that an 'aircraft was down' ..... but, if you are in a boat ... and it's sinking .. you certainly want to catch someones attention. EPIRBS are now mandatory on vessels going beyond 200 miles and over a certain tonnage. To be honest, I am an ocean master .. I never qualified not studied the rules of the road for the Great Lakes ... but I do have the inland rules on my computer ... and I find nothing about strobes as 'distress' signals. A fire on a boat, flares (red), day signals, waving of arms, etc are all optional distress signals ... but, again, when in distress, what counts is getting someones attention. I've never heard of anyone being 'cited' for using an improper distress signal. Anything goes if it saves lives. I even used a 'cell phone' once to call the coast guard because they didn't respond on VHF to report a 'rig fire' and that we were picking up survivers. Donald > > but, believe me, a strobe at night will catch their > > attention. Some of these, like the GUEST lite ... are > quite > > good. > > > > The only issue with this is that in the Great Lakes, a > strobe is > a distress signal. In other North American waters, it is > likely > to be interpreted as a distress signal. > > Mike > > *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
"Donald R. Reid" wrote: > Mike, at sea ... according to all the 'rules and regs' ... a > strobe, per sie, has no meaning ... > > A 'red strobe' might be interpreted as a distress signal ... > but .. a white strobe will certainly 'catch their > attentions' and that is the whole objective of the deal. > > To be honest, I am an ocean master .. I never qualified not > studied the rules of the road for the Great Lakes ... but I > do have the inland rules on my computer ... and I find > nothing about strobes as 'distress' signals. Check http://www.cgaux.org/cgauxweb/manuals/vemanual/veman6d.htm and do a search on "strobe". It's the only online reference I could find quickly. I've never understood why the Inland rules differ from the ocean rules in so many little things. Mike *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
>Flares ... hand held, or small flare pistol .... do not use >RED ... that means you are in trouble ... use 'white' mag >flares. If using a pistol, shoot it 'straight up' almost >... not at the ship. It could be a tanker ... and if it >landed on his deck ... it might cause quite a show. Mag >flares are quite 'hot' ... Yes, but setting their ship on fire *would* get their attention. ;-) Good to have someone who has been on "the other side" on the list. -Patrick *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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