By Bob Currie, Recreational Boating Safety Specialist
U. S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Base Galveston Flotilla
In this column I write a lot about safely operating your boat as the boat operator, or captain as you will be addressed by the Coast Guard. But have you ever thought about safety as a guest on someone else’s boat? I have, and my friends and I take turns operating our boats when we go fishing. I would say that half the time we go out in my boat and the other half the time it is in a friend’s boat. This column will be about a list of considerations for when you are a guest on another person’s boat: The Guest List.
The Base Galveston Flotilla of the US Coast Guard Auxiliary operates out of the US Coast Guard base on Galveston Island. They aid the Coast Guard by providing maritime observation patrols in Galveston Bay; by providing recreational boating vessel safety checks; and by working alongside Coast Guard members in maritime accident investigation, small boat training, providing a safety zone, Aids to Navigation verification, cooking in base and station galleys and aboard cutters, and on the Coast Guard Drone Team.
Item 1: The Float Plan
Preparation is one of the main keys to boating safety, and when things do go wrong on the water, filing a float plan with one or more people can mean the difference between being rescued and being lost at sea. As a guest, you can ask your host if he has filed a float plan, but don’t forget it is a good idea for you to file your own float plan. It doesn’t have to be as detailed as your boat operator’s float plan, but you should file the basic information with at least one person with instructions to contact the Coast Guard if you become overdue from your trip.
An old friend, Al, would hang a Gone Fishin’ sign on the door of his shop. While this wasn’t the same as filing a proper float plan with his wife, it at least gave rescuers an idea of where to start looking if he came up missing. But keep in mind that 71% of the earth’s surface is covered with water. Al needed to be a little more specific if he wanted to be rescued. As a guest you need to provide the same basic information in your float plan.
As mentioned in another column, the best float plan I have ever seen can be found as part of the U.S. Coast Guard smart phone app. It not only asks specific questions needed to help rescuers find you, but it will also email the completed float plan to up to two contacts. Float plans completed using the Coast Guard app can be saved and used as many times as you wish, and can be edited to fit the current situation, including date and time, itinerary, and persons on board. Anyone on the boat can file a plan. You do not have to be the Skipper. Even Gilligan, the Howells, Ginger, the Professor and Mary Ann could have filed a float plan. If you choose to file a float plan using another method, the following information should be provided to at least one contact:
- Your boat’s identification (registration number, length, type, type of propulsion)
- Your vehicle information (make, model, license plate number, launch location)
- Safety gear aboard (Life jackets, visual distress signals, food and water)
- Persons on board (name, age, gender, address, phone number)
- Itinerary
- Where will you depart from and what time will you depart
- Where are you going to and what time do you plan to arrive
- Any waypoints along the way
- Check in time (always have a check in time and don’t forget to call)
If you do not want to use the Coast Guard app’s incorporated float plan, then I recommend going to the Coast Guard Auxiliary’s Float Plan Central web page and use the float plan from that site: Float Plan Central – Official site of the Float Plan (cgaux.org).
The Float Plan Central float plan is a PDF file that can be sent using any device that uses the PDF file format. The third page of the plan is the Boating Emergency Guide.
Item 2: Your Personal PFD
Whenever I am a guest on another person’s boat I always bring one of my own life jackets (aka personal flotation device, or PFD). I know my friends have extra life jackets aboard, but I always wear my own because I know it is properly fitted and suited to me. If you don’t have your own life jacket, be sure to check with the captain to ensure that he has one for you and then put it on before you get underway. The worst time to find out that the extra life jacket your captain has is 2 sizes too small to fit you is when you are about to abandon ship.
Item 3: Sunscreen
Yes, you need sunscreen even in the winter! Before we go further, you will need a go bag to carry all the stuff we are going to list. A medium to small backpack is quite suited for the purpose. Go ahead and put some sunscreen into your bag right now.
Item 4: Water and Snacks
Okay, it is technically more than one item, but we will discuss the items as a class of necessity. You should ask if your captain is going to provide water and snacks, and your captain may well do so. But I recommend that you carry a supply of water at least enough for one day along with some power bars or granola. You don’t want to get 20 miles out and find out your captain’s idea of liquid refreshment is the new Onion Coke.
Item 5: Extra Clothes
If you fall overboard or enter the water for some reason, it would be nice to have a change of clothes, as air drying isn’t as fun as it sounds, especially if the weather is a little cool. Extra clothes come in handy if you get caught in a rainstorm and get soaked before the captain has time to put the Bimini cover up. Make it a long sleeve shirt. The sun can be brutal and even though you may have sunscreen on a long sleeve shirt can give you extra relief. Always wear a hat, and put an extra hat into your bag.
Item 6: First Aid Kit
Hopefully your captain has one aboard, and you can surely ask before you make the trip, but a small first aid kit of your own is still a good idea. If you are going to be fishing, include a hook removal or hook cutting device. Even the most careful fisherman gets hooked occasionally.
Item 7: Communications Device
Captain Kirk never beamed down to a planet without his communicator and phaser. I am not saying you need a phaser (or 21st century equivalent), but you sure need a communicator suited for the area in which you plan to boat. Check with your captain. Hopefully the captain has a VHF/FM radio for communicating directly with the Coast Guard in case of an emergency. I have a handheld marine radio that is guaranteed to reach the Coast Guard anywhere within 20 miles of shore. I carry it with me when I go out in another person’s boat even though they may also have one or more marine radios. My personal radio is waterproof and it floats. It fits into a pocket on my life jacket, and that is where I carry it. Yes, a cell phone works in many cases, but it is not something you can depend on as much as you can a marine radio. If you don’t have a marine radio, do take your cell phone, and you can increase your chances of talking to the Coast Guard in an emergency if you download the Coast Guard app on your phone. Each page of the app has a link to emergency assistance at the click of a button. The app gives your longitude and latitude, which is the very information the Coast Guard needs. While any transmission of your marine radio on Channel 16 shows the Coast Guard your latitude and longitude automatically, cell phones do not give any indication as to your location. If you plan to go out further than 20 miles, then you need a satellite phone, an EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon) or a PLB (Personal Locator Beacon). I have heard the Coast Guard talk to a boat that was 70 miles out via marine radio, but the communication was spotty and was only due to atmospheric skip, which is not always available to make long distance transmissions. VHF/FM is line of site transmission.
Screenshot of Coast Guard Safety App
Item 8: Boat Familiarization
When you are a guest on someone’s boat, you need to know a few things about that boat in case the captain ends up overboard or otherwise becomes incapacitated. You need to know how to be able to operate the boat in an emergency or how to make an emergency call on the radio or satellite phone. You need to know how to crank the engine. If the captain ends up in the water and is some distance away from the boat, the chances are the captain will have the emergency kill switch lanyard attached to them, and if there is no spare lanyard you will have difficulty starting the engine so you can navigate back to the captain. You need to ask your captain about the basic operation of their boat, and I also recommend that you get a little time at the wheel and throttle so you will have the feel of the boat should you need to operate it in an emergency. You need to know where the anchor is, how to use the radio, where the first aid kit is, where the bilge pump switch is, where a spare dewatering device is (bucket, hand pump), and generally what to do in an emergency. Many of our emergency calls are due to the captain’s incapacity or the captain falling overboard.
Summary
Boating is not just for boat owners; guests are a large part of the boating community. As a guest you have some responsibility to look out for your own safety even though the captain has thought of just about everything needed for your safety. A short Guest List can help you make the most of a trip, especially if something goes wrong.
For more information on boating safety, please visit the Official Website of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Boating Safety Division at www.uscgboating.org. Questions about the US Coast Guard Auxiliary or our free Vessel Safety Check program may be directed to me at [email protected]. SAFE BOATING!
[Dec-7-2020]
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