In the last two columns, I talked about how the skipper of one vessel knows what to do when interacting with another vessel.
The United States Coast Guard is responsible for all the coastal waters of California and for all navigable waters connected thereto. Photo by Joel Williams
By Captain Ray
Published: February, 2010
In the last two columns, I talked about how the skipper of one vessel knows what to do when interacting with another vessel. I’ve discussed the concepts of “stand-on” vessels and “give-way” vessels and how the Navigation Rules define the actions required of each in various situations. So you may be wondering: Are there traffic cops out on the Bay—or the world’s oceans for that matter—to enforce these rules? Why have I never seen a boat “pulled over”?
In fact, there are a number of agencies charged with promoting safety on the water. The United States Coast Guard is responsible for all the coastal waters of California and for all navigable waters connected thereto. In the San Francisco Bay, the Coast Guard’s jurisdiction extends all the way from the South Bay to Petaluma, Napa, Sacramento and Stockton. The Coast Guard is also responsible for Lake Tahoe, ostensibly because it is in two states. (But I think the U.S.C.G. took one look at the lake and said, “Yeah, we’ll take care of this!”) In addition, in terms of state law enforcement, most counties have a marine detachment within their sheriff’s offices. And, every harbor and municipal marina has a harbormaster and often a harbor patrol.
With all these agencies and their overlapping spheres of authority, you might think that these various marine law enforcements agencies must be a significant presence on the water. At least, they must conduct regularly scheduled patrols. But that’s not how it is.
For one, there is a lot of water and only limited resources to patrol all of it. Since September 11, 2001, the duties of the Coast Guard have changed substantially, from search and rescue and law enforcement to homeland security. Additionally, the budget problems in many counties have hurt the Sheriff’s Departments’ marine patrols.
Yet, even in the absence of any meaningful marine police presence, the overwhelming majority of vessel interactions are uneventful. It is in everyone’s best interest to do the right thing, cooperate, follow the Rules, and not cause confusion or potentially dangerous situations. After all: A collision at sea can ruin your whole day!
But, sometimes this cooperation does break down. Like so many other places in our society, there are some people who don’t know the Rules and some people who just don’t care!
As for the former category, the United States is in the minority of the world’s nations in that it does not require some proof of competence in order to operate a vessel for pleasure. Licensed personnel are required on all vessels carrying passengers for hire, including the ferry you are most likely riding on as you read this. (Walk around the ferry—you will see licenses posted.) For non-commercial boats, however, there is no equivalent of a driver’s license. A handful of states have some minimal requirements—usually for powerboats and/or minors—but for the most part, all that is required to operate a boat is a valid credit card.
As for the latter category—people who just don’t care about the Rules—there is little you can do but keep a sharp lookout and protect yourself from their carelessness. In early January, the United States Sailing Association sent me to St. Thomas, in the United States Virgin Islands, to conduct instructor training courses. We spent one night on the water between St. Thomas and St. John. In the space of about three hours, we counted eight boats operating without lights, some at very high speeds. Here on San Francisco Bay, the most common violations of the Navigation Rules that I see are unlit, nighttime operation of sailboats—fortunately, they are not moving very rapidly—plus the chaos that ensues at launch ramps when everyone jockeys for position.
Ray Wichmann, is a US SAILING-certified Ocean Passagemaking Instructor, a US SAILING Instructor Trainer, and a member of US SAILING’s National Faculty. He holds a 100-Ton Master’s License, was a charter skipper in Hawai’i for 15 years, and has sailed on both coasts of the United States, in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Greece. He is presently employed as the Master Instructor at OCSC Sailing in the Berkeley Marina.
