Passage Planning

ssjpiv said:
Does anyone have a sefinative as to what a passage plan should contain...... even better still some sort of template?
Click to expand...

No. It really is common sense. Its a bit like a safety plan. Think of what hazards there are en route and plan round them:

some basic headings:

weather
ports of refuge
tidal gates
route
timings

I usually start by measuring the distance, calculating approximate passage time and then start looking at times you can enter the destination, tide times and flows en route, likely / possible departure times and then any tidal gates en route. If all that hangs together, I look at "what ifs" eg ports of refuge, possible weather changes.

By that stage I have all the necessary waypoints in the plotter and on paper, though TBH I never use the plotter for passage planning. Always paper charts.

I'm not sure whether you would include things like food and provisions and crew abilities in passage planning. Certainly they are things to think of.
 
The examiner will not be looking for a word perfect passage plan that can be compared to a standard list to verify you have covered all the bases. To an extent they want to see that you are confident in predicting what lies ahead from a navigation (pilotage), people, boat and weather perspective, ports of refuge i.e. places top go to for whatever reason in an emergency or just to stop (always a topic for checking) - especially how to get in and limitations on entry.

From the SOLAS V Leaflet in one of the links on my post is a good list to memorise and use as aid memoir: -

Voyage Planning
Regulation V/34 ‘Safe Navigation and avoidance of dangerous situations’, is a new regulation. It concerns prior-planning for your boating trip, more commonly known as voyage or passage planning. Voyage planning is basically common sense. As a pleasure boat user, you should particularly take into account the following points when planning a boating trip:
• weather: before you go boating, check the weather forecast and get regular updates if you are planning to be out for any length of time.
• tides: check the tidal predictions for your trip and ensure that they fit with what you are planning to do.
• limitations of the vessel: consider whether your boat is up to the proposed trip and that you have sufficient safety equipment and stores with you.
• crew: take into account the experience and physical ability of your crew. Crews suffering from cold, tiredness and seasickness won’t be able to do their job properly and could even result in an overburdened skipper.
• navigational dangers: make sure you are familiar with any navigational dangers you may encounter during your boating trip. This generally means checking an up to date chart and a current pilot book or almanac.
• contingency plan: always have a contingency plan should anything go wrong. Before you go, consider bolt holes
and places where you can take refuge should conditions deteriorate or if you suffer an incident or injury. Bear in mind that your GPS set is vulnerable and could fail at the most inconvenient time. It is sensible and good practice to make sure you are not over-reliant on your GPS set and that you can navigate yourself to safety without it should it fail you.
• information ashore: make sure that someone ashore knows your plans and knows what to do should they become concerned for your well being. The Coastguard Voluntary Safety Identification Scheme (commonly known as CG66) is also free and easy to join. The scheme aims to help the Coastguard to help you quickly should you get into trouble while boating. It could save your life.
Click to expand...
 
BlowingOldBoots said:
The examiner will not be looking for a word perfect passage plan that can be compared to a standard list to verify you have covered all the bases. To an extent they want to see that you are confident in predicting what lies ahead from a navigation (pilotage), people, boat and weather perspective, ports of refuge i.e. places top go to for whatever reason in an emergency or just to stop (always a topic for checking) - especially how to get in and limitations on entry.
Click to expand...

Agree.

I've not done any of the higher-level RYA stuff, but the impression I get from hearing about it (from candidates and examiners) is that it seems to be a good honest assessment of your practical abilities as a real-world skipper. Not a box-ticking exercise in how closely you can follow the One True RYA Way of doing everything.

Pete
 
Ok, stating the bleeding obvious, but I'd say just have confidence in your own abilities and take into consideration what you consider to be the important things that would affect the trip if you were really going to make it.

Don't bull sheet, as the examiner will almost certainly have picked a passage with which he is very familiar. If you are asked to go somewhere difficult that you don't know, just put a bit more effort into the bits you think are difficult and plan to be a bit more cautious. Use your experience of similar places to think about similar gotchas. And consider what you'll do if the passage doesn't go to plan - ports of refuge, effect of arriving early or late, etc. All of which is what you'd do in real life.

Really, I think the examiner is just looking to see that you have the experience to anticipate what a given passage entails.

The examiner must've spent 60 to 70 minutes talking to me about mine, but I can't remember a great deal of what he asked. Most was pretty ordinary stuff. I remember he asked me about getting the mainsail down (he was checking that I realised there would be a strong cross tide off the destination that would sweep me past if I was unwary).

He also asked me at the end if I'd go tonight. I said no because there would be fog at the destination, so we listened to the reports at the end of the shipping forecast and I got a couple of brownie points when they reported poor visibility. So lesson is, treat it as though it were a real trip not an academic exercise.
 
dt4134 said:
I remember he asked me about getting the mainsail down (he was checking that I realised there would be a strong cross tide off the destination that would sweep me past if I was unwary).
Click to expand...

Hmm. Not sure I'd make that connection talking about it in the abstract.

When the time came, I'd be aware of the tide and make sure we were pointing up into it - either because I knew from the plan that there would be an east-west (or whatever) tide or, failing that, because I tend to automatically line up transits on the shore as we head towards it. But in the cabin, miles and hours away, if someone started asking me questions about doing something with the mainsail tomorrow morning, I don't think tidal considerations would occur to me.

You were doing well, I reckon :)

Pete
 
I did my offshore exam on friday, and the one of the complaints with my passage plan was is that i although i understood all my notes etc, it should be written so that if you are incapacitated for whatever reason, any member of your crew (within reason) should be able to pick up your plan and be able to follow it through safely.
 
fien397 said:
I did my offshore exam on friday, and the one of the complaints with my passage plan was is that i although i understood all my notes etc, it should be written so that if you are incapacitated for whatever reason, any member of your crew (within reason) should be able to pick up your plan and be able to follow it through safely.
Click to expand...

how does that work when i an single handed :confused:
 
sailorman said:
how does that work when i an single handed :confused:
Click to expand...

you wont be single handed for the exam will you??

edit, sorry thought you were the original poster for a min, i suppose if your normally on your own, that aspect doesn't apply. The point is i wasn't and he picked up on it
 
Last edited:
duncan99210 said:
Most of our passage planning tends to consist of a note in the log that we're headed for a particular place.
Click to expand...

We often don't finally decide where we're heading until we're on our way! Locally, tides aren't much of a consideration, and weather conditions once you're out are often not what you thought they were.Pretty much all passages start out in the same direction, unless I fancy heading towards Glasgow - which I'm not likely to! So, beyond saying "We're off now, and we expect to be back in x days", passage planning is a bit of a non-event. Of course, if my plans included the Mull of Kintyre, Rathlin Island or any of the tidal gates further north such as Dorus Mor or Corryvreckan, then I'd have to be a bit more picky! But the nearest of those is a long day's sail away, and I'd probably prefer to take 2 days.
 
Dont be over reliant on GPS -it could fail at any time.
Cripes.. when was that written?
If you wrote a list of everything that could possibly go wrong, that must be on the bottom, by which time you are probably on the seabed anyway !
 
temptress said:
we have just made a new passage plan:

Leave South coast May
arrive in Scotland for July
Sail to Cape verdes in Sept
Sail to Brazil in Jan

What more do you need?
Click to expand...

You should be careful having deadlines like that. That#s how a lot of people get into trouble ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top