Boating at Night

[Gerry Zagorski]

A few tips here since the days are getting shorter and many of us will be boating at night.

Boating safely at night requires a good deal of skill, confidence, knowledge and lights. It’s much more dangerous boating at night for several reasons but to go out with out lights or not knowing how to use them increases the potential for trouble….

Point in case, my brother and I have been boating at night for several years. We were out a few years ago and the red/green nav lights on the bow stopped working. I usually carry spares for this reason but didn't have any. We had the white front facing helm light on the hard top and the rear white stern light so we could at least be seen. But with out red and green nav lights it's hard to tell the orientation and the direction our boat was traveling. Someone in our marina was on his way home and passed by us. He thought we were anchored since we were not showing any red/green. As he approached he noticed we were underway and had to slow down as he approached us because he could not determine the direction we were traveling with out the aid of the red/green nav lights. He gave us a piece of his mind back at the dock, rightfully so. Next trip to the store I picked up spares.

One other thing that is dangerous as well, having lights and using them incorrectly... While out one night we encountered several boats anchored up on the rip that still had their red/green running lights on. Anchoring up at the rip is not a common occurrence. First time we drifted through we assumed these boats were also drifting since their light packages indicated so. Luckily we kept the engine running and noticed we were gaining ground on and were able to avoid them.

Can't be too safe out there guys…… Especially at night.

Here are a few tips to make things safer for you and others at night:

Make sure all your lights are in working order before you leave the dock. Carry spares just in case.

Red and green nav lights should be displayed while you are underway or adrift not at anchor.

Anchor lights should be displayed while at anchor or when you are tied to something stationary and are not moving.

Practice reading the orientation and movement of other boats at night based on what lights they are displaying and how you are seeing them. A simple way to remember which side of the boat has red or green lights is "Red Port Wine". That means red nav lights will always be displayed on the port or left side of a boat. It would then stand to reason that green lights are starboard (right). Knowing this you can determine the orientation of a boat relative to you and as you come up on them what you need you need to do to avoid a collision.

Don't shine your search light on to other boats. Doing so can cause temporary loss of vision to the other boater.

While running keep other lights in the cockpit as dim as practical to avoid glare and allow your eyes to adjust to low light. This will increase your night vision.

Don't get too attached to your GPS and use it as you sole night navigation aid. It might crap out one night and you'll be out of luck. Practice with out your GPS at night. Don't shut it off but get used to land and other fixed navigation lights you can use to line up a safe ride home in case it's not working.

If you’re dead in the water at night or at times of reduced visibility anchor but in a safe place. Do not anchor in or near a channel. It’s much easier to locate and anchored boat then one that is adrift.

You should be very familiar with an area before attempting to run it at night. Check it out during the day to get your orientation. First few times out at night take it slow and get used to what things look like at night.

Last but certainly not least it’s important that you know where you are at all times. If you become disoriented stop, get out a chart, look at your surroundings and figure out where you are. Then and only then should you get back underway. Knowing how to read charts and use a compass can really help you here.



Safe boating to all.

Gerry