Sharing US Waters with Ships, Tugs and Divers

Prerequisites

• The basic steering and sailing rules, from Introduction to the COLREGs and COLREGs: Rules and Lights.
• Where the US Inland Rules apply instead of the international ones, from US Inland Navigation Rules.
• How to use a VHF radio and the US channel plan, from US VHF Radio & Distress Calls.

Learning Objectives

This lesson covers the "sharing the water" part of the ASA 101 Keelboat Sailing 1 standard and the busier harbours you meet in ASA 103 Coastal Cruising. By the end of it you will be able to:

• Explain what Rules 9 and 10 ask of a small sailing boat in a US channel or traffic scheme.
• Recognise tugs and barges at night, and never pass between a tug and its tow.
• Plan around a ship's blind spot and stopping distance.
• Use the VTS channel and channel 13.
• Keep the legal distance from US Navy ships.
• Tell a diver-down flag from the Alpha flag.

Narrow Channels and Traffic Schemes

Rule 9 (narrow channels). In a narrow channel or fairway, keep as near to the starboard side as is safe. Two parts of Rule 9 matter most to a small sailing boat:

• A vessel under 20 metres, or any sailing vessel, must not impede a vessel that can navigate safely only inside the channel.
• No vessel may cross a channel if that crossing impedes a vessel that can only use the channel.

"Not impede" is stronger than "give way". It means you act early enough that the ship never has to change course or speed because of you. Waiting until the two of you are close and then claiming right of way as a sailing vessel is exactly what Rule 9 forbids.

In practice, sail just outside the buoyed channel when the chart shows enough depth, which in many US harbours it does.

If a ship doubts what you are doing, it may sound five or more short, rapid blasts. That is the doubt or danger signal (Rule 34(d)). Treat it as "Get out of my way now", and make a big, clear alteration.

Rule 10 (traffic separation schemes). Approaches such as New York, Boston, the Chesapeake, San Francisco and Los Angeles-Long Beach have traffic separation schemes (TSS): inbound and outbound lanes with a separation zone between them, shown in magenta on NOAA charts.

• A sailing vessel, or any vessel under 20 metres, must not impede a power-driven vessel following a traffic lane.
• If you must cross a lane, do it on a heading as close as practicable to a right angle to the traffic flow, and cross quickly.
• Stay out of the separation zone except to cross it or in an emergency.
• Small boats and sailing vessels may use the inshore traffic zone, which is usually the better place for you anyway.

In a channel or a lane, the ship is the boat that cannot move, so you move.

Tugs, Barges and Tow Cables

Tugs and barges are everywhere in US waters. They are slow, hard to read at night and very dangerous to pass in the wrong place.

The tow cable. A tug towing astern may have a long cable between it and the barge. Its middle often sags out of sight below the surface, then comes up tight without warning. Never pass between a tug and its tow. Pass astern of the barge, at a good distance, or wait. A sailing boat caught by a tow cable can be capsized or rolled under the barge.

Day shapes. When the tow is longer than 200 metres, the tug shows a black diamond shape where it can best be seen. The barge shows one too.

Lights at night. The towing light is yellow and shows aft, like a sternlight.

When you see stacked white masthead lights, look behind the tug for the tow before deciding where to pass. A flashing yellow light ahead of a tug marks the front of a barge, which may be far ahead of the tug's own lights.

A pushed barge can hide a small boat from the tug's wheelhouse. Give tows as much room as a ship.

Ships: Blind Spots and Stopping Distances

The blind spot. From the bridge of a loaded container ship or tanker, the bow and the cargo hide the water ahead for a long distance. Pilotage authorities warn that it can reach hundreds of metres, and even more on a ship with deck containers. A small sailing boat close ahead may be completely invisible from the bridge.

A good rule of thumb: if you cannot see the ship's bridge windows, the people on the bridge cannot see you.

Stopping and turning. Canada's Pacific Pilotage Authority says a large ship can take up to two nautical miles to stop. In a channel it may not be able to turn at all.

Speed. At 15 knots, a ship two miles away reaches you in eight minutes.

What to do:

• Watch for ships early. Take a series of compass bearings, or use your plotter's AIS target data. A bearing that does not change means a risk of collision.
• Cross astern, not ahead, whenever you can.
• Make one large, early alteration so the bridge can see what you are doing. Small changes are invisible from a ship.
• At night, shine a bright light on your sails if you think a ship has not seen you.
• In poor visibility, stay out of the channel. Radar may miss a small yacht in rain or waves.

Vessel Traffic Services

A Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) is a Coast Guard traffic control centre for a busy port. It watches shipping with radar, AIS and cameras, and talks to ships by VHF. The rules are in 33 CFR Part 161.

US VTS areas include New York, Houston-Galveston, Los Angeles-Long Beach, San Francisco, Puget Sound, Buzzards Bay and the Lower Mississippi. Each has its own VHF channels, listed in the regulations and the Coast Pilot: San Francisco and Puget Sound use 14 for much of their area, for example.

Who must take part. VTS users are power-driven vessels of 40 metres or more, towing vessels of 8 metres (about 26 ft) or more, and vessels certificated to carry 50 or more passengers for hire. A recreational sailboat is not normally a VTS user and does not have to check in.

Why you should listen anyway. On the VTS channel you hear ships reporting where they are and where they are going, which tells you what is about to come round the corner.

Bridge-to-Bridge Radio: Channel 13

Under the Vessel Bridge-to-Bridge Radiotelephone Act (33 CFR Part 26), these vessels must carry a radio on the bridge and listen for navigation safety calls in US waters:

• power-driven vessels of 20 metres or more;
• vessels of 100 gross tons or more carrying passengers for hire;
• towing vessels of 26 ft or more;
• dredges and floating plant working in or near a channel.

In most US waters, that listening channel is 13. On parts of the Lower Mississippi, channel 67 is used instead.

When to call a ship. If you are not sure the ship has seen you, or you cannot tell what it intends, call it on 13. Use its AIS name, or identify it by position: "Outbound container ship off buoy 12, this is sailing vessel Osprey, the sailboat on your starboard bow." Agree a passing plan in plain language.

Keep it short and never use 13 for chat. Usually the best answer is to keep clear so the call is not needed.

Naval Vessel Protection Zones

US Navy ships in US waters are protected by a security zone set out in 33 CFR Part 165, Subpart G.

• A Naval Vessel Protection Zone is a 500-yard area around any US naval vessel longer than 100 ft.
• Inside 500 yards, you must operate at the minimum speed needed to keep a safe course, and follow any orders from the ship or its patrol boats.
• You must not come within 100 yards without permission. If the Navigation Rules mean you have to get closer, ask on VHF channel 16: call the Coast Guard, the official patrol or the naval vessel.

Navy ships are often escorted by patrol boats. Do what they say at once. Other security zones, around cruise ships, tankers or bases, are published in the Local Notice to Mariners.

Divers and Their Flags

Two different flags mean "divers below". Keep well clear of both, and go slowly if you must pass.

States set their own rules about the red flag, including how far boats must stay away. The distance varies from state to state, so check the local rules where you sail. At night, a dive boat restricted in its ability to manoeuvre shows red-white-red all-round lights.

Divers surface without warning. Slow down, look for bubbles and heads, and pass wide.

Ferries

Ferries such as the Staten Island Ferry or Washington State Ferries have no special right of way under the rules. But they are fast, frequent and often in narrow waters, so treat them like ships.

• Learn the routes from the chart and watch the terminals for departures.
• Expect a ferry to leave its slip with little warning and turn sharply.
• Never anchor or heave to in a ferry lane.

Worked Example: Crossing a Busy Channel

You are sailing across a dredged ship channel to reach an anchorage on the far side. It is a clear afternoon, with 12 knots of wind on the beam.

1. Before you cross: you look both ways along the channel. Your plotter's AIS shows an inbound car carrier three miles away at 14 knots, and a tug pushing a barge outbound about a mile off.
2. Timing: the channel is 600 yards wide and you are doing 5 knots, so you need about four minutes. The car carrier arrives in about 13.
3. The tug: it is closer and slower. Its bearing is steady. You decide to wait and cross astern of it.
4. The crossing: once the tug has passed, you cross at right angles, with the engine running as a backup in case the wind drops.
5. On the radio: you scan 16 and 13. You do not need to call, because you are well clear.
6. On the far side: you notice a red flag with a white stripe on a float near the anchorage, and give it a wide berth.

Common Mistakes

• Sailing down the middle of a channel because "sail has right of way".
• Passing between a tug and its tow, especially at night when the tow is unlit or hard to see.
• Crossing ahead of a ship "because there is just enough time".
• Drifting inside 100 yards of a Navy ship while watching it.
• Confusing the Alpha flag with the red diver-down flag, or thinking only one of them matters.

Summary

• In narrow channels and traffic lanes, small boats and sailing vessels must not impede ships that cannot leave the channel.
• A yellow towing light above the sternlight means a tug towing astern. Look for the tow, and never pass between them.
• Ships have long blind spots ahead and need up to two miles to stop. Cross astern and make big, early alterations.
• Listen to the VTS channel in busy ports, and call large vessels on 13 if unsure.
• Stay at least 100 yards from US Navy ships, and go slow within 500 yards.
• The Alpha flag marks a dive vessel. The red-and-white flag marks divers in the water. Keep clear of both.

Check Your Understanding

1. You are sailing up a narrow channel and a tanker is coming up behind you. Who must act? You must. A sailing vessel must not impede a vessel that can only navigate safely within the channel.
2. At night you see two white masthead lights in a vertical line and a yellow light above the sternlight. What is it, and what should you look for? A tug towing astern. Look astern of it for the tow, and never pass between them.
3. Which vessels must listen on channel 13 in US waters? Power-driven vessels of 20 m or more, passenger vessels of 100 gross tons or more, towing vessels of 26 ft or more, and certain dredges.
4. How close may you come to a US naval vessel without permission, and how do you ask to come closer? No closer than 100 yards. Ask on VHF channel 16. Within 500 yards, go at minimum speed.
5. What is the difference between the Alpha flag and the red diver-down flag? The Alpha flag is a navigation signal for a vessel restricted by diving operations. The red-and-white flag marks divers in the water under state law.

Sources

• https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/navigation-rules-amalgamated
• https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/33/26.03
• https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/33/161.12
• https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/33/161.16
• https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/33/165.2015
• https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/33/165.2025
• https://app-ppa.gc.ca/standard/pilotage/2019-07/PPA%20Safe%20Navigation%202019%20Web%20E.pdf