Hey Rich, I don't think MS understood when you said Lobsters... they are lobstahs 
I Feel Sorry for Folks Cruising Maine.....
- Thread starter Maine Sail
- Start date
Being originally from New England, I know what fog is. Living here in Fl., I know what t-storms are. I'll take my chances with the t-storms all day over the pea soup. I'm more likely to survive the storm than some yahoo going full bore in fog.
And we do get some nasty fog here in winter when the southerly winds blow that warm moist air over our cooler waters.
NotCook
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- Dec 29, 2008
- 805
I can’t even comprehend not being able to see the end of the bowsprit!
I took a nap on the way to Catalina Island from Los Angeles Harbor and departed in beautiful weather. The Admiral was at the helm. She woke me up and asked if there was anything she should do different in fog. I looked around at nothing but grey. I was instantly awake. This was my old boat with no radar, a handheld VHF in the cockpit and no AIS and the radar reflector was buried in the lazzertte. I was never so happy to sail out of the fog bank 40 mins or so later into bright sunshine. She told me I had been asleep for almost an hour in the fog before she heard something and figured she should do something. Lots of ship traffic in the shipping lanes there and .....whew we didn't hit anything and no one hit us
Roger that. The high speed power boat idiots see other converging boats on radar and decide to pass one way or the other on their own, not realizing the low speed guys like us also see them on radar but have no idea where the hell they are going and which side they are planning to pass. I believe they control their high speed boat as if they are driving a car....scares the hell out of me on foggy days.
We run radar, an automated fog horn, running lights, AIS, VHF 16 & 13 and have a radar reflector up. Still does not prevent all close calls or prevent the idiots from doing 30 knots in pea soup....
I have an automated fog horn. I tried it few times and found it really does little.
i) It's horribly distracting. You can't hear other boat's engines, the sounds of bells, water breaking on rocks, cars, etc.
ii) In a quiet anchorage, the other boats start honking horns and flipping me the bird ;^)).
I might use it if I had to anchor in an emergency in a channel or place that another boat might not expect -- otherwise, it's a feature of my Icom that I just don't use.
I have an automated fog horn. I tried it few times and found it really does little.
i) It's horribly distracting. You can't hear other boat's engines, the sounds of bells, water breaking on rocks, cars, etc.
ii) In a quiet anchorage, the other boats start honking horns and flipping me the bird ;^)).
I might use it if I had to anchor in an emergency in a channel or place that another boat might not expect -- otherwise, it's a feature of my Icom that I just don't use.
When I used to operate in the fog I was shocked at how many boats are out in fog and the speed they travel at. I don't go out in fog any longer. I may get caught out in fog but I don't leave a harbor if I can't see. It's too scary and stressful. GPS helps some but doesn't show other traffic. Radar is scary because you see what there is to worry about and there's a lot of it. And AIS is good but suffers from a lot of clutter - clutter when you need clarity. In between looking at those three screens you have to contend with the large diesel engines you hear throbbing, and the whining 2 cycle outboards. You might not hear the 4 cycles. And the ships' horns and radio messages. Yikes! Dry mouth, stress induced mental impairment, and physical sequelae of stress. Why do it? For fun? For ego? There isn't a good reason. And once again I'll repeat what a professional ferry captain told me -"Recreational boaters have no business being out in fog." I've pretty much taken his advice.
Out in the fog...
Most of my fog sailing has been in Maine and Southern New England. Personally, I enjoy it it. My biggest concern (assuming my redundant chart plotters and radar are working, along with my AIS) are the lobster buoys and toggles.
I too am concerned with traffic of the rapid type -- mostly sport fisherman and sport boats (like Cigarettes, etc.). I've had couple of instances of lobster boats that I think were playing with me -- they roared up and the headed-off at the last minute. I could hear them, see them on the radar, etc. I won't say that those experiences were pleasant. But they were pretty isolated. The worst bit of high speed traffic, which I only saw on radar (never spotted the miscreant) was between Montauk and Block Island a bunch of years ago. There were two boats going in opposite directions passing me at 35-40 knots in "pea soup" fog and current. I heard the roars, said some things on the VHF (they didn't have AIS signals); and that was that.
But there is something neat about going IFR (flying's Instrument Flight Rules) on the water. If I don't have far to go, and can just relax and take it all, I just find it intensely absorbing.
My wife really found it terrifying at first. Now she's much more relaxed about it. (Not that she enjoys it. It's more of an inconvenience.) IF we have fog, she won't willing push off. If we're out there and it descends or "blows in", well its just an adventure -- as long as I slow down a bit. ;^)))
Most of my fog sailing has been in Maine and Southern New England. Personally, I enjoy it it. My biggest concern (assuming my redundant chart plotters and radar are working, along with my AIS) are the lobster buoys and toggles.
I too am concerned with traffic of the rapid type -- mostly sport fisherman and sport boats (like Cigarettes, etc.). I've had couple of instances of lobster boats that I think were playing with me -- they roared up and the headed-off at the last minute. I could hear them, see them on the radar, etc. I won't say that those experiences were pleasant. But they were pretty isolated. The worst bit of high speed traffic, which I only saw on radar (never spotted the miscreant) was between Montauk and Block Island a bunch of years ago. There were two boats going in opposite directions passing me at 35-40 knots in "pea soup" fog and current. I heard the roars, said some things on the VHF (they didn't have AIS signals); and that was that.
But there is something neat about going IFR (flying's Instrument Flight Rules) on the water. If I don't have far to go, and can just relax and take it all, I just find it intensely absorbing.
My wife really found it terrifying at first. Now she's much more relaxed about it. (Not that she enjoys it. It's more of an inconvenience.) IF we have fog, she won't willing push off. If we're out there and it descends or "blows in", well its just an adventure -- as long as I slow down a bit. ;^)))
A few yrs back I bareboated a trawler out of Anacortes WA for a week in the Pacific NW & Canadian Waters. On the last day heading back to Anacortes, I was crossing a straight with a tug/barge off my port quarter.
Then I hit the fog, out of nowhere, thick as pea soup. Then the starboard engine alarm went off. Then the GPS wouldn’t track. OMGosh. Couldn’t find the channel into Anacortes.
That was the most stressful 45-60 min I have ever spent.
I’m glad we don’t deal with a lot of fog in S Cal. It can be really scary.
Cheers.
Bob
Then I hit the fog, out of nowhere, thick as pea soup. Then the starboard engine alarm went off. Then the GPS wouldn’t track. OMGosh. Couldn’t find the channel into Anacortes.
That was the most stressful 45-60 min I have ever spent.
I’m glad we don’t deal with a lot of fog in S Cal. It can be really scary.
Cheers.
Bob
Reason: It wasn't foggy when you set out, you have a long way to go and no good nearby anchorage. Anchoring in the fog is just as dangerous as moving at 6-7 knots.
I've sailed in coastal Maine fog, at times when we couldn't see the bow of our boat. This was before AIS. The only good thing about fog is how it carries sound. I don't know how lobstermen do it with the roar of those big diesel engines filling their ears. I'll take thunderstorms over fog because thunderstorms actually keep other people off the water.
- Will (Dragonfly)
Yeah it was really foggy last week in Penobscott Bay also. Decide to dingy to the fuel dock in Belfast for water Saturday morning. How hard can it be? Head up the bay, take a left. You couldn't see past the next moored boat. Of course I leave my handheld compass behind. 10 minutes later I break out laughing, just did a big circle & find myself back at the boat.
It's not supposed be on all the time? One prolonged blast then two short every two minutes for sailing and one prolonged every two minutes if under power. It works quite well and we've been doing this a long time or at least since "idiots with GPS only" started doing 30 knots in pea soup. We've been hailed many times by boats, apparently without radar, asking our specific location and course. A couple of them even knew the rules and could tell we were under sail...
35+ years ago, when I was a commercial lobsterman, only the folks who actually knew what they were doing were out in the fog. It was extremely rare to see anyone out there who was not 100% competent... Today the waters are flooded by idiots guided by a little GPS screen ignorant to anyone else on the water.
This was from a few years ago but still relevant today:
Fog Courtesy? - Cautions!
A good reason not to go directly to or near a navigational buoy while routing your cruise. For some reason the popular plan is to run from buoy to buoy coming as close to the buoy as possible before proceeding to the next map marker.
I prefer to stand off from this direct route when faced with limited visibility. If I am close enough to hear the bell then I know where I am. If I hear the bell on the wrong side of the boat then I am too close to shore and correct immediately.
A good tool to use is your depth finder. You can follow the contours on your chart and find your port.
That rule works only if everyone slows down and listens. Trouble is the power boater with a gazillion horses behind him going at break neck speed. Couple that noise with the water hitting the hull and the noise from the apparent wind and you can't hear yourself think much less hear a bell or whistle from 100 yards. The guy creeping along at 2 knots isn't the concern.
Actually, on second thought, anchoring in fog is more dangerous because it takes away your ability to respond.
- Will (Dragonfly)
We don’t use a bell or whistle we use a very loud automated electric fog horn..That rule works only if everyone slows down and listens. Trouble is the power boater with a gazillion horses behind him going at break neck speed. Couple that noise with the water hitting the hull and the noise from the apparent wind and you can't hear yourself think much less hear a bell or whistle from 100 yards. The guy creeping along at 2 knots isn't the concern.
Is this driven from your VHF? Where is the speaker located and what kind of speaker?
Edit: Forgot to mention a good sized fog bank located offshore from MDI today. Egg Island (I think that's the island) was barely visible from Acadia National Park Loop Drive.
Well, this is what we're dealing with right now. Currently forest fire 13,000 hectare out of control in the NE corner of Georgian Bay. The small craft route is closed in NE Georgian Bay.
https://www.parrysound.com/news-sto...kes-its-way-to-carling-nobel-and-parry-sound/
https://www.parrysound.com/news-sto...kes-its-way-to-carling-nobel-and-parry-sound/
I joke, but only half so, that I would like a fog horn that is so loud it will bring the ferry captain out of the pilothouse saying "What the F**k was that!" It would also get the attention of the speeding blind. In fog, loud is good. Louder is better.
We're in SW harbor and watched the fog bank all day offshore - lazy day aFter a long trip up here from Falmouth foreside - just ahead of the fog.
Hope it'll be sailing weather tomorrow, we're out for another 10 days,
Hi Dave, where are you? We'll be here until Saturday, 8 Hunters and a Wilbur
Hope it'll be sailing weather tomorrow, we're out for another 10 days,
Hi Dave, where are you? We'll be here until Saturday, 8 Hunters and a Wilbur