Direction of buoy age when not clear...?

[Matata]

Dear learned committee. I understand passing the port buoy on your port side entering a port and appreciate the changing markers on the Menai strait marked on a chart as a purple arrow which marks the direction of buoyage but I'm going up to the Scottish loughs in the summer and looking at the charts the direction of buoyage is not so obvious. Is there a rule of thumb if not clear? i.e. heading north the red buoy is....or if your going clockwise around an island then... Ta Nik

 

[MoodySabre]

Look for red and green close to ach other and the channel is in between and from that you can assume the direction of bouyage.

 

[NormanS]

Dear learned committee. I understand passing the port buoy on your port side entering a port and appreciate the changing markers on the Menai strait marked on a chart as a purple arrow which marks the direction of buoyage but I'm going up to the Scottish loughs in the summer and looking at the charts the direction of buoyage is not so obvious. Is there a rule of thumb if not clear? i.e. heading north the red buoy is....or if your going clockwise around an island then... Ta Nik

I doubt if you'll find any loughs in Scotland , but the charts make the direction of buoyage very clear. beware of a particularly peculiar change, in the middle of the Sound of Harris.

 

[awol]

Look for red and green close to ach other and the channel is in between and from that you can assume the direction of bouyage.

Until last year when they changed the red to a cardinal, following that advice could have landed you smack on the Ferry Rocks in the Kerrera Sound!
The answer is to look for the directiom of buoyage on the charts.

 

[NormanS]

Look for red and green close to ach other and the channel is in between and from that you can assume the direction of bouyage.

Except in the Sound of Kerrera, where that will land you right onto the Ferry Rocks! (Unless your charts are bang up to date).

 

[Mistroma]

Except in the Sound of Kerrera, where that will land you right onto the Ferry Rocks! (Unless your charts are bang up to date).

I still remember the first time I approached the ferry rocks going north with green to port and red to starboard. Fortunately, I'd already looked at the chart and knew it was telling me to either steer to port and keep green buoy to starboard or to starboard and take the other channel around the red buoy. Not at all obvious without checking the chart as it just looks like a pair of normal channel marks. As you say, you'd end up on the rocks if treating it as a channel.

 

[alanch]

Look for red and green close to ach other and the channel is in between and from that you can assume the direction of bouyage.

Bad advice to follow in the Thames estuary years ago. There was a red buoy marking the south edge of the Oaze deep which also marked the West side of the Red Sand Towers, with a green buoy on the East side, and therefore having the towers in the middle. It was like that for years until a ship tried to go between them. Then they took the green buoy away.

 

[Aja]

Still makes me smile watching virgins approaching the narrows at the top of the Kyles of Bute.

Donald

 

[alan_d]

Dear learned committee. I understand passing the port buoy on your port side entering a port and appreciate the changing markers on the Menai strait marked on a chart as a purple arrow which marks the direction of buoyage but I'm going up to the Scottish loughs in the summer and looking at the charts the direction of buoyage is not so obvious. Is there a rule of thumb if not clear? i.e. heading north the red buoy is....or if your going clockwise around an island then... Ta Nik

I would echo the advice to check the chart, but the general rule is that the direction of buoyage is that of the flood tide. Because of this the direction of buoyage is usually with you when you enter a port, but this is not invariable. Entering the port of Oban from the NW you will be travelling against the direction of buoyage (the flooding tide enters Oban Bay from the south and flows out to the NW). Most of the potentially confusing lateral marks there have been replaced by cardinals, but if you are entering at night the sectored light at Dunollie will show green if you are too far to port and red if you are too far to starboard.

 

[aquaplane]

When you are in Scottish waters you won't be over endowed with buoys.

If it's not dry it's deep is a reasonable rule so if you see it avoid it. Just avoid the edges.

Even I could navigate the Burnt isles and Karerra sound with a chart and the CCC books so it can't be difficult. I didn't hit owt either.

 

[scottie]

The church is where the flow changes in the east Kyle

 

[Halo]

+1 for those who have pointed out Ferry Rocks [Oban] I think it is the most counter intuitive buoy age in the uk and should be changed as it is a trap for the unwary in a very popular waterway

 

[awol]

+1 for those who have pointed out Ferry Rocks [Oban] I think it is the most counter intuitive buoy age in the uk and should be changed as it is a trap for the unwary in a very popular waterway

Obviously the NLB agreed with you so they changed the red can to an east cardinal and added another red to the west of the green.

 

[NormanS]

+1 for those who have pointed out Ferry Rocks [Oban] I think it is the most counter intuitive buoy age in the uk and should be changed as it is a trap for the unwary in a very popular waterway

Maybe if you like to come up with the money, the rocks could be blasted away.

 

[ex-Gladys]

Normally, direction of buoyage is in the direction of the flood tide

 

[Robert Wilson]

Still makes me smile watching virgins approaching the narrows at the top of the Kyles of Bute.

Donald

Aaah, what joy - I am no longer a virgin !!

In 2013 I transitted the Burnt Island narrows with two Fifes on port, and two Fifes on starboard of me. Several millions of pounds worth of Classics beating hard through the narrows, just feet away from me.

I was NOT looking for the Reds 'n' Greens or even considering the tidal flow, I just held my breath, started the engine and scooted out clear of them.

"The chorus from the Fife crews was "Chicken......" :friendly_wink::friendly_wink::friendly_wink::friendly_wink:

 

[Mistroma]

Normally, direction of buoyage is in the direction of the flood tide

As mentioned in post #9 but not always obvious just looking at a channel.

 

[NormanS]

When you are in Scottish waters you won't be over endowed with buoys.

If it's not dry it's deep is a reasonable rule so if you see it avoid it. Just avoid the edges.
.

Were you by any chance, the navigator on the submarine Astute? That seems like a particularly unhelpful and stupid suggestion.

 

[FWB]

Shouldn't be a problem unless you come across this ....

 

[William_H]

Yes the red and green buoyage should be set out not relating to going into harbour or up stream of a river but according to the flood tide. This does leave some dillys of uncertainties. Like Port Moresby harbour (of long ago) with a lovely coral reef with a red at one end and a green post at the other just inviting you to sail between them. It says a lot for the cardinal system of buoyage which is not ambiguous. Clearly you need to double check a chart before you make assumptions. olewill