The Art of Plotting a Course

I am thinking ahead to the late winter and early spring when I shall be taking some budding Magellans across the Channel and down to the North coast of Brittany and back.   On these passages, the navigators will be planning their courses to steer over legs of 60M+ (good opportunity for those aiming for the Yachtmaster Offshore ticket).  I have found a number of times that the art of planning a course to steer has been forgotten, or skippers have never been taught a simple method.  Reliance on GPS, chart plotters and all the modern electrickery on boats now is all very well; but have you planned what to do if your main electrics fail, the hand held GPS’ batteries are dead and there are no spares?  For any passage across the Channel I plan my course to steer by working out the total set/drift of tides in a westerly direction and then in an easterly direction and subtract the smaller total from the larger.  This then gives me a total push in one direction, which I use to shape my course to steer.  I have a simple form which I use, not my design, but imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and I am sure the originator of this form would not object to my plagiarism!
If any of you are about to embark on a cross channel trip and would like a copy of my guide, email me and I will send it to you (instructor@sail-help.co.uk).   I also have a simple mathematical method of interpolating between springs and neaps which avoids using the graphs included inside the front covers of tidal stream atlases.   Alternatively if you would like to join me on my Easter or Whit Sunday cross Channel cruises, send an email.

Taking a group of budding Yachtmaster Offshore candidates the other week, I was surprised to find one had never conducted a pilotage exercise to take a boat into a river or port at night.  I believe that it is important that both competent crew and day skippers should experience sailing at night.  What happens to a day skipper who charters a boat and has no idea of how to safely navigate himself, boat and crew into a haven, particularly if something has delayed the daytime passage

Have you ever thought of retrieving someone from the water using a headsail sheet?  This is not the easiest recovery method in rough weather, but is feasible particularly if you have no other means.  A lot will depend on how many are on board your boat, their strength, how strong the casualty is and in what stage of hypothermia he could be.   The method can only be used on a sailing boat which is rigged with a furling headsail.    The sail must be furled away, and the sheet should be unrigged from any turning blocks or cars but remain attached to the headsail and led back to a cockpit winch.   A bight of this sheet should be lowered into the water in which the man overboard places a foot.  He can use part of this bight to haul himself up so that he can grab the toerail.  Then, with the sheet taken directly onto one of the primary winches, the casualty holding onto the toerail and with his foot in the bight, a member of the crew can be wind him up onto the deck.  Once close to the toerail, the casualty, with self preservation foremost in his mind, will be able to grab a stanchion or the toerail, or proffered arms and haul himself onto the side deck.  I hope that the photo taken in the quiet confines of a marina shows enough for you to get the idea; note that the lady with the safety line to the casualty is not part of the rescue operation.

The last three month’s tips have shown you some ways of recovering someone from the water, in all cases the method has been dependent on the casualty being conscious.  Have you a preferred method of recovery?  What would you do if the person who fell overboard was unconscious?  How will you secure him alongside, how will you get a line round him, and how will you recover him?   Man overboard is close to the top of the list of the worst things which can happen to a skipper.   Have you thought through how you would deal with such an emergency?