Quote:
Originally Posted by B-Laps
I have to fundamentally disagree with you that placing additional markers is the incorrect approach here. You're trying to use a slippery slope fallacy here, and it's nonsense. One person adding markers to some rocks in a problem area isn't going to cause markers to appear over the entire lake.
It's generally quite accepted for people to place markers at hazardous locations near their own docks to mark rocks to avoid. This is just an extension of this practice.
It's also quite possible that it's not entirely possible to resolve the issues in this area with the current marking system that NH uses, without placing channel markers here. There is a well known problem with the NH marking system that's only resolved when there is a chart on board the boat to observe the depth of the water and accurate location of the hazards.
There are two zones of ambiguity with the Red-Black system and these are when the hazards are north west of the marker or the hazard is south east of the marker. In this case the hazards are south east of markers and if the captain of the boat thinks that they are heading on a north-south, rather then an east-west course they are going to go on the wrong sides of these markers.
While there's little defense for not having a chart on board, it's all too possible that once you become fairly proficient in navigating the lake you might not realize that this location is one of those zones of ambiguity. It's also possible that some of these captains have been navigating this area the wrong way for years and have never hit anything yet.
As a personal example, my inlaws live just off of the hole in the wall. The first time I came through the hole in the wall in my own boat, I was confronted with a red marker in front of me. I was traveling north east at that point. Now I knew that you go outside of this marker from visiting prior. But when I was trying to figure it out for the first time it was extremely confusing. If I was traveling east I should have been on one side of the marker, If I was traveling north I should have been on the other side.
I know that there's not a lot of real hazards here judging by the number of boats that we regularly see go on the wrong side, but I still was fighting to incorporate my knowledge of navigation in a real world example.
I think few people can morally justify standing back and waiting for official action to be taken while they have the power to help people. I commend chasedawg for attempting to take positive action in this situation, and I condemn you DEJ for either your uncaring attitude or you thoughtless appeals to authority.
|
The rule is realy VERY simple. No matter what direction you are traveling in you pass on the North side and East side of a Black top and pass on the South side and the West side of Red top markers. All you need is a compass no matter which direction you are traveling. The rule is written pertaining ONLY as to which sides to pass. It is irrelevant WHAT the obstruction is or exactly where it is compared to the markers. As long as I know EXACTLY what direction I am traveling (ie compass) I can decide on which side to pass. Has never failed me in almost 30 yrs of boating.