From the Captain of the Port

I’ve written often about hurricanes, great and small. This column is about rip tides, rip currents and undertows – which are what distant storms often leave us. Lest one of us comes to grief… Undertow v Rip Tide v Rip Currents Anybody that has ever been to a beach understands undertow. It is the backwash as gravity returns a breaking wave to the sea. All but small children can stand against it – and its effect ends…

Commodore, First District, Southern Region (D1SR) United States Coast Guard Auxiliary Imagine that you are walking along the sidewalk, trying to get to the coffee shop on the corner. But the person next to you is leaning against your shoulder, keeping pace with you and pushing you away from it… There is only one way you’re going to make it to the coffee shop (short of belting the guy!). You have to lean into him to such…

If there is any discipline that has more ancient roots than voyaging over the seas, and whose ancient ways still work today, I’d like to know. Since time immemorial, even in an age of GPS and knowing where you are on the planet within feet, the ways of the ancient mariners still are useful today – especially when your GPS fails on a dark and rainy night…   From the Shores of Ancient Babylon If you measured…

Previously, we talked in the past about cell phones aboard boats and the issues thereto. And they are fantastic devices – and therein lay another issue. As the functionality of cell phones starts to rival computers (did I say “rival” – I should have said “outpaces!”), we are right at the cusp of technology overload. This can’t be good for safety of life at sea. This column is about that.   U.S. Coast Guard Advisory On October…

With Valentine’s Day in the offing, it is time for all those who stand a watch and wait for the return of those that went to sea to think about being the “safety officer” before they go! And, skipper, how about the love you have for those that go to sea with you – kids, grandkids and mates – and creating the safest environment aboard that is feasible or possible?   From the Heart to the Head…

Many have heard me say, and hopefully act in fidelity with, the words above. While all Coast Guard Auxiliarists have the absolute option to say, “No, sorry. I just can’t do ‘x’ for you,” the vast majority of us say, “Yes, yes and yes” when asked to undertake some task for active-duty. You may notice that I didn’t say “the U.S. Coast Guard” because I didn’t want to subtly imply that Coast Guard Auxiliarists aren’t part of…

Or “Physician Heal Thyself”; Luke 4:23* As we (probably) all make New Year’s resolutions to go on a diet, we keep getting reminded that we are getting heavier as we get older. No matter where we turn, someone is telling us that we are getting fat and need to be thinner! Guess what? So are our boats! Yes, as boats get older, they get heavier and that has a lot to do with being less “sea-kindly” and…

There is a natural tendency to shy away from the unfamiliar, especially when you can’t get the words back. Remember the first time you were faced with a phone message machine: “Leave your answer after the beep” – BEEP! Now what? Even today, that beep can strike fear into the hearts of some. Now, how about multiplying that a hundred-fold to everyone tuned to VHF channel 16…? Some Basics Unless you know the cell phone number of…

All of us are familiar with registering our vessels with the State Department of Motor Vehicles. Like a car, DMV wants to know her horsepower, fuel type (gas or diesel) and the Hull Identification Number, or HIN. This is the on-the-water equivalent of a car’s VIN. You are required to display on each side of the bow the state registration numbers, followed by the expiration sticker itself. But is your boat eligible for documenting with the USCG…

There are three kinds of “norths” – Magnetic, True and Grid. Why are there differences between them? This column is about that. The small English village of Langton Matravers, on the Dorset coast of the United Kingdom, until recently had just one small claim to fame. In 1914, a young Ian Fleming, later the author of the James Bond novels, attended prep school there. But on November 2, 2022, Langton Matravers wrote itself another footnote in the…