Charts

This column is a forum for sharing the vast range of practical While you are in the site you need to look at the latest Weekly
experience accumulated by our membership and not just my Supplement to the Local Notice to Mariners (LNM). The weekly
favorite boat maintenance topics. It is intended to be the place © LNM contains all the new changes and other late breaking
where you, the reader, can ask technical questions and either updates since publication of the monthly LNM. If you’ve never
obtain direct answers in this column or direction to appropriate _!ooked at this web site, or seen these two documents, you really
reference material. need to. I know that they look intimidating to someone who has

With this article we’ll return to the originally scripted plan and ‘not seen them before, but once you get used to how they are
look at the instrumentation (depth, speed, GPS, LORAN, etc.) organized, and the information they contain, they can literally be
most of us have, at least to some minimum degree, aboard the _ lifesavers if you heed the information in them.
boat. In a previous article we looked at the marine compass, As recreational sailors we don’t always pay that much attention
possibly the best, most reliable instrument you could hope to ‘to updating our charts. That’s not good. Whether you are a
find. Of course it doesn’t require things that fail like external ‘compass and clock navigator’, or have the slickest new electron-
power, remote sensors, or interface cables, so it’s bound to be ics, your charts still need to have the right information on them.
reliable. Almost all of the other instruments on our boats today Searching for a buoy or mark in the fog (we have had a lot of
are electronic. That’s not to say they are unreliable, but because practice doing that these last three years!) whether based on a
they need a power source, they can become inoperative at the DR, Loran or GPS, can be real frustrating or down right scary if
most inopportune time. So before 1 go any further, a word of the buoy has been moved or replaced by a temporary buoy and
warming. Never, ever, ever, ever rely solely on electronic instru-. you didn’t know it because your charts are out of date. As an
ments as your only reference when navigating. Electronic instru- example, if you sail Frenchman or Blue Hill Bay and go looking
ments are great tools, but like a good hammer, it is only as good _‘for the Egg Rock. Bell buoy 8 (44-11-01.88N, 068-30-34.19W),
as the skilled hand that uses it. it’s not there any more.

Paper charts are basic reference around which all of our other Some of the other information in the Monthly Edition are
navigation instruments revolve. Before you go cruising have special warnings for various harbors, including Boston, Ports-
good charts with you, and make sure they are up to date. Just mouth NH, and Kennebunkport. These harbors now have
because you have this year’s edition doesn’t guarantee they have _ specials security zones in force. The Monthly Edition references
all the latest changes incorporated into them. Even if you have __ the charts and other information sources so that you can stay out
the latest electronic charting software it will most likely be out of _ of trouble while trying to enjoy a cruise. Additionally it has
date. If you have an Internet connection go to the First Coast information on the bridge repairs on SR27 Bridge across the
Guard District website http:/Awww.uscg.mil/d!/navinfo.htm and Townsend Gut and the new operating schedule necessitated by
download the latest monthly Local Notice to Mariners, or if you _the repairs. Depending on your summer plans, this could be very
don’t have a computer, subscribe and have it sent by mail. Many Worthwhile information.
local libraries also have computer work stations that can be used The Weekly Supplement # 19/05 has updated information for
to download the information you select. The monthly edition has chart 13283, Cape Neddick Harbor to Isles of Shoals. It corrects
information conceming the waterways of the First Coast Guard the VAR data to 2005 values and changes the annual decrease
District, which covers the coastal waters from Eastport, Maine to _for several compass roses on the chart. 1 don’t know about you
Shrewsbury, New Jersey. but I like to have this type of information.

‘The website is a superior source of information. Not only is The nautical chart is the basis of navigation on the water. No
there a link to the Local Notices but as you can see from the matter how basic or advanced your instrumentation is you need
table below, a source for many of the other publications you accurate charts. Be prepared. Take a look at the Monthly and
should have onboard including Volume | of the Light List and Weekly Local Notice to Mariners and update your charts before
the Ist District Coast Pilot. Another good feature of the site is you get underway.
that as a taxpayer you already paid for the information, the
download is free. Printing could be a different story. You’re on Racing Numbers
our own for that! The Race Committee is asking skippers to use sloop numbers for
racing. Numbers do not have to be permanently attached to sails,

Agency (NIMA Mariners they can be attached to shrouds. Numbers should be large

Chart Corrections – First District Light List – Vol 1 enough to be read from a reasonable distance.

Charts (PD)