The options available today are numerous but the old Mark 1 Mod 1 eyeball is still the best navigation device.
In the early 70's the US Navy ship I was on had LORAN. On one particular night, as we steamed into Hong Kong, the LORAN was inoperable. Right after a watch change, the oncoming officer of the deck saw a lighthouse disappear behind a point of land. He didn't think that was correct. He quickly consulted the paper chart, referenced several other lights by color and flash frequency and came to the conclusion we weren't where we thought we were. He ordered an immediate course reversal and summoned the Captain and the head navigator. Had we continued on the course we were on, we may have entered Communist Chinese waters. Had it not been for an alert officer and his eyeball, I might have been part of an international incident. Hail the eyeball and paper charts! Dennis C. Touche' 35-1 #83 Mandeville, LA On Tue, Feb 28, 2017 at 9:48 PM, Frederick G Street via CnC-List < cnc-list@cnc-list.com> wrote: > Josh — respectfully: > > At some point, you have to trust in something. When offshore, there’s no > coastal piloting tricks like taking bearings. If all the electronics die > and the compass craps out, you’re in trouble. Having backups to the > backups in electronics allow you to compare data from different sources > and hopefully pick what appears to be the most reliable. But I still log > GPS coordinates every hour, when offshore, along with heading and speed; > then if the electronics go down, you can at least dead-reckon yourself. > Call it proper seamanship, I suppose. > > — Fred > > Fred Street -- Minneapolis > S/V Oceanis (1979 C&C Landfall 38) -- on the hard in Bayfield, WI :^( > > On Feb 28, 2017, at 8:54 PM, Josh Muckley via CnC-List < > cnc-list@cnc-list.com> wrote: > > But the irony is that you are all swearing off tablets just to turn and > place your faith in other "purpose built" electronic devices. > > Professional made chart plotters are subject to electrical failures, > software errors, user error (vespes wind), and lack of chart updates. > Compasses can be affected by geo-magnetic anomalies or nearby ferrous > metals. Fundamentally, safe navigation requires proper seamanship > including a vigilant watch and redundant instruments. Understanding the > limitations of both is just as critical and that is where tablets get > risky. It IS almost too easy to become enamored by their capabilities and > then overestimate their reliability. > > Josh Muckley > S/V Sea Hawk > 1989 C&C 37+ > Solomons, MD > > > > _______________________________________________ > > This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you > wish to make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to: > https://www.paypal.me/stumurray > > All Contributions are greatly appreciated! > >
_______________________________________________ This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish to make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to: https://www.paypal.me/stumurray All Contributions are greatly appreciated!
