Rocks and the 1,2,3,4 Rule.

1.  Rock is 1 word symbolised by 1 dot on a chart

2. Underwater Rock is 2 words symbolised by 2 lines in the form of a cross on the chart. 

3. Covers And Uncover are 3 words symbolised by 3 lines in the form of an asterisk on the chart..

4. Awash At Chart Datum are 4 words symbolised by the 4 dots in each of the quadrants of the cross on the chart.

When is the Moon waxing or Waning (in Franglais!)

A Breton sailor once told me that the Moon - La Lune - is a woman and she lie !  So when you look up in the sky and you see the ‘D’ shape - for Declination - she actually increase !

Spring High Tide at your local port

Did you know that the time of High tide at Springs falls at about the same time - give or take an hour either side.  So even before you look at the Almanac you know the time of High Tide to within an hour or so, as long as you have a Full or New moon.

Intelligent Pile

In order to get a rope to feed out evenly and without snagging, make an intelligent pile first.  That is to say lay on the deck first, the part of the rope you will need last.  Try this with the furling line or main sheet to avoid snags.

Cross winds rule to find out if the weather will deteriorate or not

Place your back to the lower winds and if the upper winds are coming from the left, the weather will most likely deteriorate.

Distance off measured by dipping distance of a light

The distance off in miles is
2.08 x Sq rt of Height of Eye in metres + 2.08 x Sq rt of Height of Light in metres.

Distance to the Horizon

Approximately 1.17 x Sq Rt of Height of Eye in feet = miles distant. Or 2.08 x Sq rt of Height of Eye in metres = miles distant.

Handy MOB retrieval system

Double up a long rope and tie a bowline in the doubled rope.  You now have two loops which an MOB can climb into with one loop for the arms and one loop for the legs and because you doubled the rope you have a handy loop left over to which you can attach a spinnaker halyard.

Your log has broken, so how fast are you sailing ?

Take anything that will float and is bio-degradable and drop it in at the bow.  Count how many seconds pass before it reaches the stern.  Your speed will be approximately 3 x the OAL of your boat divided by 5 x the number of seconds.

Rolling Hitch

This is a very useful knot for taking the load off to free a jam, say on a winch.  If your jib sheet gets a riding turn on a winch then tying another rope onto the jib sheet with a rolling hitch and loading this rope onto another winch to take the load, allows you to free up and unjam the jib sheet on the winch.

Stand On or Give Way

You are a power driven vessel and have a power driven vessel on your starboard side on a closing bearing.  You are the give way vessel.  The trick to remembering this is that at night you would see the other vessel’s port (Red) light.  Think of it as a stop light.  Red for stop.  And go astern of him, allowing him to Stand On.

Going ahead, Going astern or Closing ?

If you see another vessel and you are not sure if you are on a closing bearing, line up something between you and the vessel - a stanchion for example - if the other vessel remains on the stanchion you are on a closing bearing.  If he goes ahead of the stanchion you will pass behind him.  If he falls behind the stanchion you will go ahead of him.  This all assumes that you both keep to a constant course at a constant speed.

Using a double figure of 8 knot for safety when sending a man up the mast

To attach the spinnaker halyard to the bosun’s chair, it’s a lot safer to to tie the chair on using a double figure of eight knot and fold the shackle end back and clip on as an extra safety margin.  Now if anything happens to the figure of eight knot you still have the safety of the snap shackle to rely on.

Buys Ballots Law

With the wind to your back, the low is on your left (In the Northern Hemisphere.  It is the reverse in the Southern Hemisphere)