Crossing a channel the rules

[Frontier]

OK I need a bit of help here. I had a sort of incident, well and argument with another boat while returning up Chichester Harbour. If I am in the wrong then I apologise to the person concerned (if he is on here), but I don’t see what else I could have done.

So there I am cruising with the tide up the main Fairway, with boats moored on buoys on both sides and a boat coming down the fairway in the opposite direction.

All of a sudden a chap comes into view in a tiny tender (like an egg cup) rowing between two of the moored yachts on my starboard side looking as if he intended to cross the channel. He was about the length of my boat ahead when he came into view.

I thought “he will stop rowing,” I am a big mobo coming up and within a few feet of him and another boat is coming down, which he couldn’t possibly beat across the channel.

I instinctively eased off a little the moment I saw him and turned a bit to port, I couldn’t keep going to port or I would cross in front of the boat coming down. The rower hesitated for a second and then amazingly continued in front of me, which I simply couldn’t believe. I had to go astern with considerable power to stop and also continue bearing to port across the channel.

He then starts shouting saying “you were not going to stop were you” Well frankly no! He only appeared at the last moment and to stop would have and indeed did cause considerable action and distress on my part and those onboard. He then moaned about having right of way to cross the channel.

OK I am on weak ground now (well water I suppose /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif) I was not sure if he had right of way or not. I tend to give way to everything in the harbour that is being rowed or sailed; I had just gone around or avoided about 50 yachts or more coming up the channel, giving way and getting many polite waves of thanks. (No I could see the smiling faces so they were not waves of disgruntlement before someone chips in with that. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif )

I simply can’t see how he can be justified to use rules against me, with the little distance he allowed, and he obviously intended to make the boat coming the other way stop as well. After me and the boat coming down there were not other boats in the channel. Why couldn’t he simply let us pass and then cross? It must be easier to just stop rowing for about 10 seconds than to make a 32ft mobo stop dead. It’s a bit like someone running out of a shop and straight across a pedestrian crossing, yes pedestrians have right of way but they also have a duty to use the crossing in a reasonable manner, one can’t be expected to know.

So why was he so amazed I was not going to stop, did he have right of way having left such little time for the other boats to see him and anticipate his actions.

I try to be a considerate mobo skipper and this has upset me a bit.

Comments appreciated, If I have got it wrong I will at least learn from it.

 

[Richard10002]

Whether he was in the right or not, he was:

Stupid

A TWAT

Ignorant

Almost dead

etc..

I think there is a rule about not entering a channel unless your exit is clear, but I cant remember the detail. There might even be a local rule.

 

[[2068]]

The section of the fairway between the moored boats should be considered a "narrow channel", and to pull out 1 length in front of an advancing mobo in an egg cup is madness.

###

Rule 9 - Narrow channels
• Keep as close to starboard side as is safe & practicable.
• Vessel of less than 20m or sailing vessel must not impede a vessel which can only navigate within channel.
• A vessel may not cross a channel if it impedes a vessel that can
only navigate in the fairway or channel...

###

However, you did the right (and only possible) course of action, which was a crash stop. For him to force you to do this is very inconsiderate, imho.

The colregs are designed to tell you what to do "when a risk of collision exists". Some people misinterpret this to mean that you can use these rules to actually create a situation where a risk of collision exists, and try and use it to their advantage: this is false!

dv.

 

[DAKA]

The Chichester HM has stated that mooring fairways are to be treated as narrow channels and I dont believe he should have impeded you as he was clearly not in the same need of the deep water as you were.


I usually cruise through harbours at 5 knots which allows me the option to 'giveway' in such circumstances by passing in front !

 

[Phoenix of Hamble]

Sadly it appears that you encountered someone who fully appreciated how to be a complete and utter tosser.......

life is full of people who fail to demonstrate even the most basic common sense/courtesy (delete as appropriate)....

 

[bilbobaggins]

"Leesten veree carefullee, I vil say ziz only vonce!"

In my humble opinion, you did exactly and properly what the intent of the drafters of the Collision Regulations sought - you avoided a collision.

You managed to protect the eedjit in the rowing boat from the consequences of his own stupidity. Rule 6 was obviously satisfied; Rule 2b was clearly relevant, and you satisfied that. Whether or not you even considered those Rules, much more importantly, you probably saved a life.

Ignore the fool-of-a-rowboater. Take cred. You done good....

/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Frontier]

Thanks bilbobaggins and all the other posters, the comments are much appreciated.

D

 

[hlb]

In all my years of boating. I've found dinghy sailors, of whatever persuasion, are a bloody pain. Either they demand right of way, not looking where there going. Or just plain stupid.. Course there must be good ones, but then they never got in the way.

Steaming (Literally) into Salcolme the other week. three foot deep in water, proved it. Life boat along one side. Rib along the other, Blue lights and claxton blaring. Still dinghys were getting in the way. One would have got bashed out the way, if he had not backed up, sharpish.

 

[Gludy]

The advice to date - that you were in the right both as regards your understanding of the rules and tyour actions is spot on.

I have run into troubles down in the same place with small racing dingies organising races across the channel and forcing me to a stop without steerage (in a 60 foot boat) then whilst I was stopped crashing into me. In my view there is going to be a serious accident there one day. On that occasion the race organisers asked me to leave the channel!!!

 

[Stoshak]

I hope you're not working yourself up towards a rerun of your Emsworth Rant!

 

[gjgm]

maybe I m not so hot on the collregs, but my understanding was that there is a stand on and give way vessel, but no "right of way" vessel; each boat at various times has the obligation to avoid a collision. So if an accident occured because this guy made no effort to stop and you had hit him, because you were unable to stop in time, he may well be found to be at fault, as he clearly could and should have avoided you.
I had one last year in Chichester where one of these fast dinghys sailed right in front of me, then turned 180 degrees and went straight into me. And you wonder.., what the hell are you doing? No appology of course.

 

[aquaholic]

Off course you did nothing wrong which has been echoed by others, for whatever reason this guy made a dangerous foul up and I think he maybe one of these 'never in the wrong' car drivers we see on the roads and the only way to eliviate his shock was to have a go at you. Take no notice, we just have to tollerate these idots....unless of course you carry a catapault and some rotten herring bait!

 

[Major Catastrophe]

Frontier's nemesis was a a bloke rowing a tender, but this thread has drifted into a rant against racing dinghies.

 

[Gludy]

Its the same be it rowing or sailing.

There is a problem in that area with tiny boats crossing channels and not appreciating Colregs nior the harbour rules. I thought that was wha the discusssion was about.

 

[SnaxMuppet]

Sounds like you did exactly what I would have done (and correctly IMO) but I would have given HIM a piece of my mind afterwards!

It reminds me of a situation I have on the upper River Fowey a couple of months ago. The tide was quite low and the navigable channel narrow (about 3 boat lengths I would guess). I was going round a lefthand bend when I saw a motor cruiser type boat coming round the same bend in the opposite direction. I naturally thought he would stay to the starboard side of the channel and so I did the same thinking we would just pass port to port. Instead he stayed on the port side. I couldn't go any further to starboard without risking running aground and so to avoid a collision I turned sharply to port and we went starboard to starboard... JUST! It was a bit scary. Normally I would make those kinds of decisions in plenty of time to avoid confusion but when the channel is so narrow it would have been stupid of me to force him to my starboard in advance... you would just expect him to stay right in such a narrow channel and to pass port to port.

As far as I could see I did nothing wrong. I was staying to starboard in a narrow channel and even if you consider which was the stand-on/giveway vessel then I was the stand-on and he the give way not that that really was the point!

Nope... I just put it down to him being a plonker and it emphasised the fact that ultimately, regardless of the rights and wrongs, it is down to ME to prevent my vessel from colliding with another.

Well done for doing just that.

 

[[2068]]

Horn not working?

I would have used 5 short blasts /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Gludy]

I had a situation where I used 5 short blasts with a boat crossing from port to starboard at speed. I was doing 20 knots - they, a small boat, were doing about 30 knots - we were on a collision course, I was the stand on vessel, and the response to five short balsts was a friendly wave as I went into an emergency stop!! Some people do not even know what that signal means.

 

[[2068]]

That reminds me of the dangers of using radar in overlay mode.

Exiting Langstone harbour for a short hop in near darkness back to Sparkes last season: if the GPS/Plotter is set to a detailed enough scale such that you can see the detail of an unfamiliar harbour exit (say 1/2 mile), then the radar will be set to the same scale, which is much too zoomed in to be used sensibly for detecting other vessels ...

... such as the rather unhappy coaster (a few thousand tons) that simultaneously appeared from behind on the radar like a huge cucumber, and gave five short blasts to indicate that my somewhat erratic course was going to cause a problem very very shortly.

It got my attention, to say the least.

dv.

 

[Fire99]

I think common sense must still prevaiil in all circumstances.
'Mr Rower' clearly had the misguided belief of, "I'm a rowing boat, he's a nasty motorboat so he must give way at all costs!"

Lets be honest you were pretty good to have managed to avoid him.
The sad thing is he'll probably do it again one day to another MOBO where the skipper will panic and probably collide with another vessel or run him down.

I certainly wouldn't give yourself a hard time over it.

regards,

Nick

 

[mjf]

Not sure about your A/C to port but all else OK.


This happens all the time in the approach channel at Puerto Solento. I usually navigate using one engine at a time to keep steerage and very frequently stop to let rowers and sailers cross ahead. Problem is the guys behind me ;-)