Hi Dave, I know this is kind of off-thread, but... I figured you might know since you've paddled in the QC's. What is the standard operating procedure for an American kayaker using a handheld VHF in Canadian waters? If I'm not mistaken, we no longer need a license to use handhelds in the US. The licensing is still required in Canada. Or is it just one of those things...just like your USCG-approved PFD isn't technically approved of in Canada, but it is an "approved" piece of safety equipment. Shawn Shawn W. Baker 0 46°53'N © 2000 ____©/______ 114°06'W ~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^\ ,/ /~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^ baker_at_montana.com 0 http://www.geocities.com/shawnkayak/ *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
"Shawn W. Baker" wrote: > What is the standard operating procedure for an American kayaker using a > handheld VHF in Canadian waters? > > If I'm not mistaken, we no longer need a license to use handhelds in the > US. The licensing is still required in Canada. Or is it just one of > those things...just like your USCG-approved PFD isn't technically > approved of in Canada, but it is an "approved" piece of safety > equipment. The legal requirements are that you must have two pieces of paper: a Restricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit and a Ship Radio Station License. I have these because when I acquired my VHF, they were required for use in this country. Though no longer required here for our service, they are required for use in Canada. (Check the FCC Web site for confirmation: http://www.navcen.uscg.mil/marcomms/othrcoms/fcc.htm) However, my understanding (and my experience) is that no one up there cares to enforce the licensing rules about use of handhelds by kayakers, unless someone flagrantly abuses the privilege. I have traveled extensively in the Charlottes and also quite a bit on the West Coast of Vancouver Island and have never been checked. I have never heard of any kayaker being checked. In addition, outfitters in the Charlottes routinely rent VHF's to kayakers with no mention of a licensing requirement. I suppose the practice might be different in more populous areas (viz., the harbour at Vancouver). YMMV. Someone who lives in Canada would certainly be in a better position to comment on this than I am. -- Dave Kruger Astoria, OR *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
>From: Dave Kruger <dkruger_at_pacifier.com> >"Shawn W. Baker" wrote: > > > What is the standard operating procedure for an American kayaker using a > > handheld VHF in Canadian waters? >The legal requirements are that you must have two pieces of paper: a >Restricted >Radiotelephone Operator Permit and a Ship Radio Station License. I have >these >because when I acquired my VHF, they were required for use in this country. >Though no longer required here for our service, they are required for use >in >Canada. > >However, my understanding (and my experience) is that no one up there cares >to >enforce the licensing rules about use of handhelds by kayakers, unless >someone >flagrantly abuses the privilege. In addition, >outfitters in the Charlottes routinely rent VHF's to kayakers with no >mention >of a licensing requirement. >Someone who lives in Canada would certainly be in a better position to >comment >on this than I am. Cap'n Canuck here: At the time I got my VHF, you needed an operator's certificate for yourself - a one-shot, life-time certificate for which you took a short course and wrote a simple exam. You also needed a "station license" which was for the radio itself, and which was renewed annually, for a fee. The Canadian government is no longer requiring this annual renewal and fee (at least not for handheld VHFs). My guess is that provided you transmitted only in a real emergency, nobody is going to fine your ass or refuse to put it in a sling and winch it up to the helicopter. Do note that Canada uses very slightly different frequencies for the same "channels" than the US does. Consult your manufacturer's manual; my radio has an icon on the LCD display to indicate whether it is in Canadian or International (US) channel mode. >I suppose the practice might be different in more populous areas (viz., the >harbour at Vancouver). We had problems a few years back where immigrant fishermen were cluttering up channel 16 (the hailing and emergency channel)for hours on end with idle chatter in their native tongue, clearly out of a lack of knowledge of the protocols. I assume the powers that be must have used direction-finding equipment and advised the offenders of the error of their ways, 'cause the problem went away. Philip Torrens N49°16' W123°06'(Vancouver, BC, Canada) ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com *************************************************************************** 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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