Night Passage Advice

[DAKA]

Having failed to obtain a professional skipper to move my boat round ready to meet up with the Forum 2009 CI cruise (II) I am having to cast off in the dark this evening.

While I am not going far it has made me realize that I am ill equipped/prepared for a night passage (should I ever be delayed or need to use a night time weather window for example)

I have never ready done anything at night (unless you count returning from the rising sun to Belaugh at 20 knots).

What is different ?

Do you cruise at 25 knots or reduce to 10
Do you need radar ( I've done a fair few fog miles)

Do you still give way to sail ?
I presume they have no idea if you are power or sail so give way to starboard in case you are sailing ?

What about lights , I have a search light but how far can you see with them ?

 

[jhr]

Nice try.....

 

[TargaLout]

You don't say how far the trip is, where from or to (Marina berth to mid sea muster point?) how many people on board, how are we supposed to assist if we don't know the facts?

 

[Wiggo]

YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS???

Surely we should have laws to stop inexperienced people going out on boats at night? Happy to charge around at 25 knots, can't tell the difference between a yacht and a mobo from its lights?

If he rams me in the dark, I'm going to sue the broker who sold him that boat...

 

[Kilter]

Full speed ahead and damn the consequences! (not that there'll be any of course)

 

[fireball]

Do you still give way to sail ?
I presume they have no idea if you are power or sail so give way to starboard in case you are sailing ?

I'm going to take this at face value rather than refer back to your historic digs ... or even your signature line!!

Ok - it's easy to tell if something is underpower or undersail if you can see them from the front or side .... if it is under power then there will be a steaming light won't there.
If no steaming light then assume it is undersail ...

if you're coming up from behind and can only see 1 white then you're overtaking anyway.

if you want to see a real pigs ear, then come along to the Cowes Fireworks - it's like Christmas with loads of boats having all the wrong lights up!

Damm ... I bit

 

[Wiggo]

Call Trading Standards. This lack of professional skippers needs bringing to the governmnet's attention, if you ask me...

 

[Firefly625]

always seem to be sailing across the channel at night... just seems to work better that way... however I will now avoid fast moving Mobo's with a search light!!

...my advice... throttle back & don't use a search light... Oh, and keep your eye's open ;-)

 

[TargaLout]

Navigating at night can be an enjoyable part of your recreational boating experience. It can also be a very dangerous part if not approached properly.

Night navigation requires skill and concentration and should not be taken lightly. Many things change on the water after daylight. While on your boat at night, your depth perception decreases and distances and sizes of shores and navigational aids can look different. Waves become harder to see and judge and reflections in your boat's windshield can be confusing.

Your night vision can be drastically reduced by bridge and city lights as well as lighted buoys that are close aboard. All of these factors should be taken into consideration when navigating your vessel at night.

Before navigating at night for the first time, it is a good idea to take someone with you that has night navigation experience. You should always ensure that all of your electronics are working properly and invest in a high quality spotlight. Remember that landmarks and navigational aids are going to look different at night and you will need your spotlight to double check buoy colors and numbers while underway. Always make sure that all of your running lights are operating and are not blocked from another mariner's view by flags or other obstructions attached to your vessel.

When using your spotlight, you should take whatever steps you can to prevent from shining your spotlight into the wheelhouse of other boats. You can easily ruin another boater's night vision with your spotlight. Be prepared to look away from other vessel's spotlights should that skipper shine his light into your wheelhouse. Only turn your spotlight on for the amount of time you need it to light what you are looking at. Never leave your spotlight on continuously while underway as it can distract boaters that are a fair distance away. If you feel the necessity to leave your spotlight on at all times, you may want to reconsider taking your boat out at night.

When using your electronics, it is a good idea to turn down the brilliancy of their backlights. Your eyes will not have to adjust as drastically between looking at the waters ahead of you and looking at your electronics if you keep them as dim as possible. Also, remember, that after a few hours of looking at a radar or GPS screen, you can very easily become fatigued and develop a headache. Don't hesitate to take a break and let someone else steer occasionally to help cut down on fatigue.

Unless you are involved in an emergency, there is no reason to navigate at full speed in the darkness. Don't hesitate to back off the throttles and give yourself more time to react at night. Keep a very sharp lookout for lobster pots and unlit buoys as well. Both of these objects can appear much smaller at night and can be much easier to hit.

When navigating in the vicinity of other boats in the dark, remember that it is possible that the other boater does not see, or is confused by, your running lights. Watch nearby boats closely to ensure that they are not on a collision course with you. If a nearby boat does look to be on a collision course, make a dramatic course change if possible and try to make yourself more visible. Turning your spotlight on without shining it directly on a nearby boater more often than not attracts just enough attention to alert the other boater to your presence. Remember, try not to destroy the other boater's night vision.

Use extra diligence in ensuring that your passengers and crew do not fall overboard at night. Locating a person in the water at night is very difficult and your chances of recovering that person are very slim. Keep less experienced passengers seated and don't let anyone wander onto open decks alone or unnecessarily. Always wear your life jackets and insist that everyone on-board your boat does as well. Imagine throwing a coconut overboard while cruising at night, then turning around and trying to find the coconut. How well you can see that coconut is a good representation of how well you would see a person floating with their head just above water.

All of these factors should be kept in mind when approaching night navigation. Remember that night navigation requires considerable focus and concentration and should not be taken lightly. Learning to navigate your boat safely at night can add a whole world of enjoyment to your boating career. Failure to learn proper night navigation techniques, however, can quickly land you in the middle of a very bad situation.

To be continued..............

 

[jfm]

I am ill equipped/prepared for a night passage
Do you need radar
Do you still give way to sail ?
I presume they have no idea if you are power or sail so give way to starboard in case you are sailing ?

Blimey Daka. If the post is a wind up (it has plenty of hallmarks) it's not actually very funny. If it's serious, you shouldn't go out. If you don't know what a steaming light is, and why it's not visible from the stern, and such like, you need to do some colregs homework

 

[TamarMike]

At speeds above about 15 knots I usually find I have to turn up the wicks in the nav. lights to stop them blowing out.

 

[gjgm]

put it on a trailer.
And then on the ferry.
Helps keep the engine hours down.

 

[Firefly625]

At speeds above about 15 knots I usually find I have to turn up the wicks in the nav. lights to stop them blowing out.

... I find the same problem...... how may candles do you use in your search light...?? I've seen one saying something about a million candle power, frankly I'm concerned that by the time I had lit all those I might have run out of matches....?

 

[Tidnock]

I suppose you could cover the windows on the lower helm and do a night simulation and see how things go, have a second mate on the flybridge, he can take over if it look like your going wrong bit like SOM dual controls

 

[DAKA]

thanks for all your responses I will be reading in better detail tonight.

It was meant as a serious question with a little humour added, I am pleased some found it.

I havent done many miles in the dark.

I am casting off tonight at 2330, I have reservations about it.

 

[D3B]

Pete

I have a few night hours under my belt now. many raggie hours but it all still applies.
things I found on my mobo. the steaming light was far too bright and I had to get 2/3 of it covered as it was blinding me all the time(masking tape). I got a lot of reflective glare off the windscreen frame, so some towels handy. Our nice clean white plastic boats are not ideal for night passages
Speed...Never done any speed at night. All 10 Kts and below. Someone else has talked about turning down the brightness on the nav equipment. and non movement of crew.

Know your lights for other vessels. and either set the radar to check for collision or keep a good look out on the bearings.
and of course you know that night time doesnt change colregs

On one of the raggie sessions the radar was picking up pots, but only fairly close to....I think it was set to pick up almost anything on the water.
Keep ALL lights off other than those you really need. The brightness of the spot even pointing away will blind you for quite a while. It is surprising how much you can see in the dark. I just checked windguru and they are forecasting rain for IOW until about 22.00, then skies clearing so you may have a moonlit night which will give fantastic viewing.



So far ALL my night hours have been done with a very experienced crew member who probably has as many night hours as I have day.


Enjoy. I will look for your report in due course.

 

[Nick_H]

Just in case you are serious, the searchlight is exactly that, it's for searching for things like MOB's, it's not the marine equivalent of headlights. Don't switch it on at all unless you have a problem.

 

[Elessar]

OK lots of good advice already.
I assume you know how to identify buoys etc at night. If not don't go, too much to explain.
Main thing is being able to see, so your eyes have to get used to the dark which takes about 20 minutes.
So lose all uneccessary light, including instrument lights, chartplotter etc.
Certainly don't put the searchlight on. Without it you'll see everywhere, with it you only see the tiny spot it is illuminating.
Use a red torch for looking at charts.
If you don't have red lights in the cabin, leave the loo light on and shut one eye when you go (otherwise the crew will put the main cabin light on and blind everyone). Similarly shut one eye when you flick on the instument lights, take a sneaky confirmation look at the plotter or whatever.
With all of that done, as long as the shore isn't awash with light, you will see surprisingly well across the water.
Don't go faster than you can see though, which for me is about 10 knots.

 

[Philiz]

Great post TargaLout, very useful advice for all us novice boaters who may venture out at night.

 

[Elessar]

And I've just read D3Bs post properly - all good advice.

On my boat the steaming light makes night work dangerous with the covers folded away as it illuminates the whole cockpit.

However, I just have to deploy the roof of the canopy and all is well, the light misses the cockpit and all the brightwork.

Might your Sealine be the same?