Assembling A Navigation Plan: Part 3

In collaboration with Simon Robitaille-Brisson and Luca Leboeuf.

This text is the third in a series of three on the construction of a navigation plan. The text makes use of electronic navigation and is intended to be pedagogical, in the sense that it goes into much greater detail than normal on certain aspects. The first text sets out the construction “recipe”, a four-phase approach:

  1. A heuristic (exploratory) phase;
  2. A detailed boat and crew specification;
  3. One detailing chart plotting (electronic);
  4. One for peripheral elements.

Texts two and three apply this recipe to a navigation between Freeport, Bahamas and a marina near St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Quebec. The second text details the heuristic phase, the reflections on the boat’s specifications and makes the first offshore trace between Freeport and New York.

The third text – this one – details the electronic chart plotting and navigation peripherals. If necessary, a reader may want to return to the second text to understand the boat’s specifics and the construction of the offshore route.

Routes

“Ce qui se conçoit bien s’énonce clairement, et les mots pour le dire viennent aisément.” (What is well conceived can be clearly stated, and the words to do so come easily.). Boileau summed it up pretty well. When you have clear ideas, it is very easy to put them into text, words or actions.

It is the same idea for plotting a route, which is simply the written extension of a navigation plan. When you have a clear idea of where you are going, it is easy to plot.

On the coastal side, plotting involves planning coastal navigation to the Catskills, thinking about stepping the mast down and planning lock passages. I start the planning by trying to keep as much as possible to days of less than eight hours, ignoring the currents. I tell myself that with a period of half a tidal cycle (six hours twelve minutes) giving us a small boost between 0 and 1.5 knots, we will be able to cover the planned distance in less time and spare the crew.

New York Harbour

Not us, but you get the point.

I’d love to tell you that the first thing I thought of when planning the arrival in New York were sailing considerations, but that would be telling you stories. I thought of the sailboat, sailing towards Manhattan Island and us, both mad as brooms and tired from a week at sea, busy taking photos of the crew with the Statue of Liberty in the background. Can you hear the scene?

That said, it is important to plan ahead. New York is a massive port, with a traffic separation scheme at its entrance. I expect a lot of traffic. I remember the ColRegs associated with narrow channels (and draft-restricted boats), the associated rules for sailboats and planning a route that is outside the channels intended for tankers.

I also remember that we have a Class B AIS, which is likely to provide less real-time information due to traffic. This is not because the electronics are problematic, but because we do not have priority on the airwaves, unlike Class A AIS. We will have to remember rule no. 5 of the ColRegs and keep our lookouts on sight.

I adopt the strategy of staying close to the buoys, but outside the channels. I stay on the port side of the main channel, which is a bit counter-intuitive, but saves me two crossings of a narrow channel and allows me to plan a nice photo of the Statue of Liberty. The constructed route is shown in the image below.

I also remind myself that arriving in New York harbor will probably be stressful, that we will be tired, and I make a mental note to myself to record my navigation plan in a notebook that I can keep with me, with simple instructions. It keeps my eyes on the outside environment. It also gives me a procedural list to check off during execution.

Finally, it keeps me from squinting at my phone (especially if it is raining) or worse, from being indoors on the charts. In my pilotage notes, I also note when we will hoist the Q flag, when I will make my VHF call to Liberty Landing Marina and when I will communicate my instructions to the crew to prepare for docking.

My pilot notes look like this:

  1. Declination is about 13° west. Maintain speed at 4.0 kts.
  2. Arriving at the entrance to the main channel: course 297° T for 1h40. Skirt the green buoys.
  3. Gradual turn towards Manhattan. Heading 326°T for 16 minutes. Still skirting green buoys.
  4. Course 348°T for 1 hour. We should see a starboard side secondary channel buoy (green-red-green) and arrive under the bridge at the entrance to New York harbor.
  5. We continue at 344°T for 42 minutes. We should arrive at another lateral traffic separation buoy (green red green). This is our signal to turn.
  6. We turn at 028°T for 33 minutes. There are several side channels and we’ll be paying close attention to the multitude of buoys along the way.
  7. We prepare the crew for the Statue of Liberty photos.
  8. Approaching the Statue of Liberty.
  9. We reach green buoy 35 and continue at 016°T for 13 minutes.
  10. During this segment, we prepare the fenders and call the marina on VHF (channel 72).
  11. The marina entrance should be on our starboard side. We enter the secondary channel and follow the marina’s instructions.

As this is our first arrival after ten days at sea, I also ask one of the crew to look at where we can buy various items around the marina: sim cards, groceries, etc.. I also take a look at the restaurants, to celebrate with the crew the passage offshore.

New York to Catskills

In this segment, there’s nothing particularly interesting in terms of navigation. I plan consistent days with the 8-hour horizon and the marinas available. I also note that the segments are well marked, so the strategy will be to sail on sight, with occasional instrument checks.

I note, however, that these will most likely be “dock against current” berths, meaning that the current will probably push us towards other boats. I also note that the start of each day will be “tactical”, with the most favorable tide change allowing us to gain speed. I also take note of the NOAA website, where you can find tide information. The navigation plans for the first two days are summarized below.

Day 1

Day 2

Catskills and Locks

The first day is a very short one (34.6 min), and we sleep at the gate of the first lock (Troy Lock). I make a mental note to myself that, at the start of the season, we probably won’t be the only ones up there, and we may have to sleep elsewhere. So much the better if it’s a short sail: we’ll be able to arrive earlier.

Locks

I leave the description of the chosen strategy on Arsenault’s site. I detail the most important in the summary table, specifying that I estimate a speed of 6.0 knots (motorized) and 30 minutes per lock. The table is in french, but it can be understood easily: segments between locks, distance, cumulative distance and ETA. Two days of almost ten hours are to be noted, which is quite a bit longer than the eight-hour days initially planned, due to the locks. I also note that the days will be split in two, with the crew alternating shifts. The only exception is during a lock passage, when everyone will be mobilized.

In this text, I am omitting the presentation of the navigation routes for brevity’s sake, but it is essentially the same as the other segments: buoy-to-buoy navigation, on sight. We will be in the Champlain Canal, which means that traffic management will also be an essential component of navigation: “red on red” passages.

I would also like to remind the crew that because we are moving from one watershed (Hudson) to another (Rivière Champlain), the direction of the buoys (Red right return) will be reversed along the way.

Champlain Lake

Navigation on Lake Champlain involves a long day and an overnight passage to arrive early at U.S. customs and exit the United States.

There are 73 nautical miles between Chipman’s point Marina and Rouses Point, or between 14 and 18 hours of sailing. So we will leave early in the morning and arrive at Rouses Point early the next morning. We will resume our offshore watches, and monitor channels 9 and 16 on the VHF. If the Hudson River is that full of debris, we may wait until sunrise to leave.

The planned segment is shown in the image on the right. At this stage, I am sure the crew will want to “close” the segment to get ashore. We will have to remind them to be patient during immigration procedures.

Peripheral Topics

Customs

A website of invaluable help for navigation preparations is noonsite (a pun on the term “noon sight”, an astronomical navigation technique), which succinctly details possible navigation plans, as well as immigration procedures in almost all countries.

The CBP Roam application makes it easy to organize U.S. customs. Its only drawback is that it requires a cellular connection with data (or Starlink). You then have to fill in the boat’s particulars, scan the crew’s passports and submit on arrival. Of course, I also made sure I had the “Q” flag on board.

For exiting the Bahamas, there are offices to formalize exit from the territory at the marina where we are, as well as at the neighboring marina. There is also an online application for reporting exit, but I have not explored it.

Dismasting

I asked a crew member to draw up a dismasting plan at a marina in Catskill. He called the chosen marina, checked the services and tools available to carry out the operation. He also confirmed that a hardware store was not too far away, enabling us to buy the “2 x 4s” needed to build the supports. We also discussed the need to dismantle and reassemble the solar panels at the stern of the boat during dismasting.

Managing Flights

I asked a crew member to book the flights for everyone. As this boat delivery is for a client, we took the cheapest flights, which could have limited baggage options. We paid particular attention to the fact that we would have additional hold luggage, containing tools, navigation equipment and life jackets.

Crew Preparation

I have given the crew a list of the personal equipment they will need for offshore sailing, including clothing. I have also made it clear that if it is small, important and often handled (glasses, cell phone, etc.), it is likely to fall overboard by accident. It might be a good idea to bring a second one. I also communicated the temperature forecast between Freeport and New York, taken from a trip planner via PredictWind, suggesting to the crew not to think only about Bahamian temperatures.

The temperature forecasts from each weather model are shown in the image below. Unsurprisingly, it shows that temperature decreases with increasing latitude (whichever model you choose). This suggests clothing for temperatures between 30°C and 5°C.

Food Planning

The boat’s refrigerated storage capacity was not known at the time of planning. What’s more, meal planning is something to be worked out as a group, to try and reconcile everyone’s needs and preferences. So I limited myself to identifying one or two grocery stores, and figured we would do the grocery shopping on the spot. The customer also helped us by telling us where he usually did his grocery shopping.

Perhaps the most important element of food planning is how long and in what way the grocery shopping is structured. We’ve planned for up to 10 days on the high seas, so you need to think about 3-4 days of fresh food, followed by 4-6 days of storable food. You can also think of vegetables that keep well at room temperature, or eggs that haven’t been cleaned, which keep for a long time at room temperature.

I have also stressed to the crew the importance of removing as much packaging as possible on board. Not only does this save space, but in the south, glued cardboard packaging (cereal boxes, tin labels, etc.) is a perfect breeding ground for cockroach eggs.

Permanent Orders

Watches

Standing orders are instructions to be followed at all times during navigation. The most important of these derives from rule 5 of the ColRegs, i.e. the obligation to keep a permanent watch on the boat. During offshore sailing, the boat moves forward 24 hours a day, so you also need to keep a watch at night.

Rule 5 is usually broken down into watches, where crew members take it in turns to be responsible for watching (and maneuvering) the boat.

There are several ways of organizing watches, but in the table below I detail the one we decided on following a group discussion. These watches have three distinctive features.

Firstly, they are fixed: no one changes time slots. The advantage is that this facilitates sleep cycles, an important component of well-being during long voyages. The disadvantage is that you only see the same periods of the day. It is always the same person, for example, who sees the sunrise on the high seas (a magnificent sight).

Secondly, the watch schedule specifies who gets woken up. By specifying in advance, we clarify who to look for in the middle of the night, if more than one person is needed to carry out a maneuver (I also made it clear to the crew that it was always okay to wake me up, whatever the circumstances). It also makes it easier to plan personal sleep cycles.

ScheduleWatchpersonPerson on call
09-12/21-24Crew 1Skipper
12-15/00-03SkipperCrew 2
15-18/03-06Crew 2First mate
18-21/06-09First mateCrew 1

Finally, watch planning alternates between the less experienced crew and the more experienced skipper or mate. This, in theory, limits major omissions to breakage adjustments, or to any breakages in progress (spare parts, rig wear, etc.). This supervision can also reassure less experienced crew members.

In addition to this watch planning, I also made it clear to the crew that I would spend the first night with them, just to help them get accustomed to sailing offshore at night on a boat.

This is not the only way to organize watches. It is important to remember that the watch plan should be agreed, satisfy the crew and respect the idea of continuous monitoring. Finally, watches are certainly more “nippy” at night. The assigned person is the only one on watch. During the day, most people are in the cockpit, and keeping watch is less of a chore than a pleasure.

Storage Within the Boat

For the offshore segment, I ordered excess equipment (notably water and the outboard motor of the tender) to be stored on the starboard side of the boat, creating a natural list at standstill (+/- 5 degrees). For seven days, the weight compensates for part of the heel coming from the starboard tack wind. (In coastal segments, the boat’s weight was rebalanced to ensure no heeling).

Safety Measures

I ordered the crew to wear a personal flotation jacket at all times (which I provided). I also instructed them to tie themselves to the boat (using jack lines) during night watches. Finally, I specified that in heavy weather, we’d tie up if necessary. I also gave the usual briefings on satellite phone SOS calls, radio SOS calls and smoke extinguisher location.

(I should point out that these were only the safety measures that formed part of the standing orders. On arrival, we took an exhaustive inventory of the safety equipment on board and reviewed a few emergency procedures together).

Reefing at Night

I have ordered that we take a reef (or more, depending on circumstances) automatically at nightfall. As a result, we sleep better, even if it means going a little slower, but there is less risk of a bad squall, which is harder to see coming at night.

Coastal Legs

During the coastal leg, we only sail during daylight hours, so I only scheduled watches over an eight-hour period. I ordered four-hour shifts, in teams of two, where one person would keep an active lookout for debris at the front of the boat.

Checklists

Checklists are pre-digested memory aids that help to avoid major oversights. They are not a panacea, nor are they a substitute for judgment, but they are certainly useful for checking that you have not forgotten something. It is for this reason in particular that I keep with me some offshore departure procedures (largely borrowed from the Royal Yachting Association), which I take the trouble to review with the crew before departure.

My lists are more elaborate than the one shown above, covering some topics in more detail, but also covering more topics (notably groceries and medicines). That said, the basic idea is to make sure you have checked every item on the list before you set off. This is particularly important when you are not sailing your boat. By going through the list, the idea is to assess any possible pitfalls and, if necessary, evaluate whether you need to buy or whether you are prepared to accept the risk.

GPX Files

We are all familiar with “.docx”, “.pdf” or “.txt” formats. These are computer storage conventions for documents. If you work in engineering, you will also be familiar with “.cad” files. If you work in graphics, you will be familiar with “.ai” or “.eps” files. These are data storage conventions specific to an IT activity.

.gpx” files are no different: they’re a convention for storing data relating to longitude and latitude points: waypoints, navigation routes and so on. It is an open format, in the sense that it does not belong to any one company, and is a standard used by almost all navigation software. Computer-savvy users will be able to open the file with a simple text editor (notepad, sublime, atom, etc.) and see that .gpx files are basically an XML schema adapted to geodetic data.

More than just what they are, .gpx files are also very useful for sharing navigation plans. As an example, the offshore navigation plan discussed in the second text is available here (use at your own risk).

These files can then be downloaded into your favorite navigation software (or your on-board computer). It is a good safety practice to ensure that navigation plans can be found on more than one electronic system. So I shared the .gpx files detailed in this text on more than one device on board, including the first mate’s cell phone.

Conclusion

This navigation plan is reasonably detailed and complete. We know where we want to go, we know reasonable alternatives, and our questions have been answered. We could go into more detail – I’d certainly say I usually do less – but the idea is to have a sufficient understanding of the systems we are sailing with (boat and crew) and the environment we will be sailing in. It is also important to remember that when you start a sailing plan, you begin with many more questions than answers. It is by working through one question at a time that you put the plan together, like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

Finally, we remember that a navigation plan is not a rigid rule that we have to follow to the letter once we have set off. It is an object that allows us to anticipate what is coming… and to adapt intelligently if the unexpected happens. In this respect, these three texts would be incomplete without mentioning its execution. Let me remind you that this navigation plan is real and is used to deliver a boat between the Bahamas and Canada.

As I write this conclusion, I am sitting in a café in Norfolk, Virginia, a port of refuge we identified in the second text. We had to return due to damage to the auxiliary propulsion system (the “engine”). So we had to adapt the plan in real time, which I will detail in a fourth text.

References

Arsenault, J-F (2024). Jour 14 : Écluses 1 à 6 du Canal Champlain, text retrieved online in May 2024 from this address.

Bahamas Customs (s.d.). Click2Clear (C2C) – The Bahamas Customs Department, text retrieved online in May 2024 from this address.

Customs and Border Patrol (2023). CBP Reporting Offsite Arrival – Mobile (ROAM), text retrieved online in May 2024 from this address.

Du Sud, P. (2024-a). Faire un plan de navigation: 1ere partie, text retrieved online in May 2024 from this address.

________ (2024-b). Faire un plan de navigation: 2e partie, text retrieved online in May 2024 from this address.

Grenada Bluewater Sailing (s.d.). Sailing Pre-departure Checklist, text retrieved online in May 2024 from this address.

Noonsite.com (s.d.). Noonsite, text retrieved online in May 2024 from this address.

PredictWind.com (s.d.). PredictWind, text retrieved online in May 2024 from this address.

Wikipedia.com (s.d.). GPX (format de fichier), text retrieved online in May 2024 from this address.