Essential Boating Etiquette And Manners (Part 1)
A combination of hard and fast rules and the unwritten courtesies that all boaties should know and extend to each other.
Boating Etiquette
Boating etiquette has been evolving and developing for hundreds of years. There are the actual rules that cover the do’s and don'ts of life on the water - just like the road rules. These are the written rules that you must follow, whether you have a boat licence or not. Failing to abide by these rules will result in fines that may affect your drivers licence too.
On the other hand, there are the unwritten rules. The courtesies that the boating community extends to one another. Boating etiquette is about safe behaviour, as well as what is socially accepted.
This article will deal with the Hard and Fast rules of boating, while the next will address the unwritten rules of boating etiquette.
The recent pandemic resulted in many restrictive lockdowns and people felt as if they couldn’t leave the confines of their house. They could, however, use a boat with their own family (as long as it was within 5km of the family home). This resulted in a spike in boat sales and many people were out on the water as novices. It was obvious a good proportion of these people were not aware of the boating rules, as well as the courtesies of boating.
The Loophole
There is an anomaly in the boating licencing system in Australia (with the exception of QLD) that says: “You don’t need a licence for driving a powerboat under 10kt, or a sailing boat without an engine or using paddlecraft such as a canoe, kayak, surf ski or rowing vessel”. - Source NSW Government.
In effect, this means that legally, anyone can operate a powerboat or sailing boat of any size (as long as they don’t exceed 10kt) without any knowledge of boating rules. It is akin to someone driving a car, under the speed of 18.52km/h, without a drivers licence.
Although, perhaps there is more room for error and correction on the water - as there are no marked roads or lines - it seems a bit mad to let people operate a large powered vessel without some form of education of rules. Perhaps then, it is timely to have a look at the basics.
Hard and Fast Rules
The first important fact to know is:
Left is the port side and is always depicted by red signs or lights and right is the starboard side and is always depicted by Green signs or lights. So, when encountering a pole in the water with a red sign, you would always keep it to your left hand side and when encountering a pole with green sign you would always keep it to your right hand side.
Six Hard and Fast Rules
1. Giving way, overtaking and avoiding collisions
- Powered vessels must give way to all sailing vessels and all paddlecraft, rowing vessels and human powered vessels.
- Powered vessels must give way to starboard powered vessels, or if meeting head-on steer to the starboard to pass.
- You may overtake on either side of a vessel, but only when safe to do so, by keeping a safe distance and a safe speed.
- You must try to avoid collision with other vessels by altering your course, changing your speed, letting the other vehicle pass and/or making a sound signal.
2. Proper lookout
- The skipper (or captain) must keep a proper lookout at all times. He/She must be mindful of any obstacles such as vessels, land, swimmers, divers and rowing vessels.
- They must also keep an eye out for submerged and floating hazards along with aquatic animals.
- When towing, they must engage an observer to watch the person being towed. Both the driver and observer must keep a lookout.
3. Keep a safe distance
- All vessels must keep a safe distance from other vessels, structures, people, the shore and marine animals (such as whales and dolphins).
- A safe distance gives the driver enough space and time to avoid a collision with these things.
4. Safe Speed
- A safe speed gives the driver enough time to stop or turn a vessel to avoid collision, injury or damage.
- Factors to consider are – visibility, other vessels, manoeuvrability of your own vessel, water depth and navigation hazards.
- It is also important to be aware of fading light at sunset and make sure your navigation lights are on early.
5. Alcohol Limits
- As when driving a vehicle on the road, you must not drive a vessel if you are under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
- Alcohol and boating are a dangerous combination, this can apply to passengers as well, even more so than on land.
- Waves, motion, engine noise, wind and spray can all multiply the effects of alcohol.
- It’s a good idea for passengers to watch their intake as there is an intensified risk of falling overboard and drowning if you are affected by alcohol.
- Consumption affects judgement, reaction time, coordination, vision and balance. Especially if you have children on board, more than one person needs to stay sober to help the captain keep everyone safe onboard.
6. People on Board
- As the skipper (or captain), you are responsible for the safety of everyone on board. This includes making sure you have adequate, approved life jackets and keep in mind vessel loading and passenger behaviour.
- You are responsible for making sure the vessel doesn’t carry more people than it is designed to carry. If a vessel is overloaded it can lead to swamping or capsizing.
- It is important that your passengers understand that what you decide (about any situation) is final. What the skipper says.. goes.
- Passengers on board must be safely seated while the vessel is underway, they must know not to extend any part of their body past the sides or the bow.
- It’s also the skipper’s responsibility to make sure there are current flares in case of an emergency and an EPRIB if possible.
- It’s important to know boating rules to keep everyone safe, because safe boating is happy boating.
THE NEXT STEP
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