Charts and Sailing by the Seat of your Pants

Charts and Sailing by the Seat of your Pants

My wife is a chart sailor. Her boat is both tall with a 50 foot mast and it draws 6 + feet of water. Before we go anywhere in it she has her course charted out, has a better than good idea of what and where things are in the water and what she needs to avoid.

My little boat is a drop keel 21 footer that has a short 35’ mast and can pull less than 2’ of water. She says I sail by the seat of my pants and a life cushion to sit on. I am not that bad, but I do not worry like she has to with her boat.

If I am going into an area I have not sailed, I do check the charts for things like rocks and obstructions. I look for chart notes like:

Rk, R or Rks - Rock or Rocks

Hk or Wk - Hulk or Wreck
Obstn - Submerged Obstruction
Co - Coral
Foul - Foul Ground 

PA- Position Approximate
PD - Position Doubtful
ED - Existence Doubtful
Rep - Reported
SD - Sounding Doubtful

Foul Ground or Spoil Area are areas you need to note well. You need to identify, highlight, and stay clear of dashed outlines with descriptions like "Spoil Area", "Fish Haven", "Fish Traps", or "Dumping Ground". These can be areas where all those old cars and trucks, building material, or garbage goes? These spoil areas never show soundings because depths change all the time. 

I have a depth finder with an audible alarm in it and a fish-finder that shows and displays depth and they are always on when we go to new areas. I also have another safety back up. I take my wife and she will do the worrying. *-)  I also can get our cat to scout for danger in the crows nest. 8-)  

And No, you can not borrow ether of these two back up systems from me.

By just noting problem areas on a chart you are way ahead of most boaters out there.  I am not a course fanatic but it is just seahorse smart to have an idea of what can be a problem.  I do not like to ruin my day by not using my head. The below chart symbols are chart noteworthy. The link below is a great information source.

These are the primary danger symbols on a chart From the eBook Quick Guide to Chart Symbols by Captain John.