⚠️ NIGHT PASSAGES AND BEST PRACTICES ⚠️

SV ARROW Night sailing off the coast of Pacific Mexico.

Captains and crew aboard cruising vessels are wise to be on constant alert day or night.  Night Passages are inherently more dangerous than daytime passages due to a distinct change in how we see and what we do and do not see in the darkness.  Passages made between sunset and sunrise have a particular set of best practices that are important to the safety of ones vessel and crew.  Please review the following list and consider what you can do to make every night passage safe and thereby fun.

  • Before the onset of darkness prep topsides.  Make sure everything is well stowed or tied down.  If sailing, choose a comfortable and prudent sail configuration.
  • Consult all navigational charts along your planned course.  Be sure to zoom in to look for any rocks or obstructions that may only be visible on a closer look.  Additionally, navigating coastal and offshore waters along the Ocean Posse routes outside of US Waterways mariners will find places where the charts  do not match up with the actual contour of the land and sea.  Being aware of this as a fact is imperative to the safety of ones vessel and crew.  Charts are not always GPS accurate. Use multiple sources of information like radar, OpenCPN, and Sat charts as an additional aid to navigation.
  • Set  a watch schedule and make sure that everyone on watch understands how to use navigational and safety equipment including AIS.
  • If entering or leaving an anchorage, harbor, or port be sure to give a wide berth to headlands.  
  • Run radar, throughout the night.  If possible overlay your radar image over your electronic chart to verify both with one another.  If there is a discrepancy, trust the radar over the electronic chart.  The radar is also great for looking for squalls.
  • Check for other marine traffic.  If your vessel is equipped with and AIS make sure everyone on watch knows how to use it to see other vessels that may be in  your range or on your course.  Note: Not every vessel on the ocean is equipped with AIS so this equipment, while an exceptional safety advancement, does not take the place of visually scanning the area for lights or shapes on the water.
  • Know how to read navigational and ship lights at night.  There are international rules on light color and placement aboard vessels of different sizes carrying different loads.  The lights will show what part of the vessel is in view and the direction of travel.
  • Objects at night have come up a lot faster. 
Navigation lights.  Credits: qld.gov.au

 

Be aware, be cautious, be vigilant, and, most importantly,

be safe so you can enjoy all your sunrises and sunsets out at sea. 

 

Sunset at sea off the coast of Mexico

by Maurisa Descheemaeker, Ocean Posse editor