Time again for my
route rant.
Routes and
GPS driven auto pilots is antithetical to sailing and positively can be dangerous for motoring.
With respect to the later, waypoints for routes tend to be a buoys and at the shorted "path" between common destinations. This created virtual roads and traffic will "clutter" those roads and converge on the nodes... waypoints. Use of the
autopilot can allow skippers to get lazy or involved with other tasks and not e diligent in watch keeping. So add the two together and this is an
accident waiting to happen... and it's not only at the nodes as it can be anywhere along these virtual roads. As someone who's sailed in the same local waters for years I am well aware of these virtual roads and the hazard associated with being "on them".
The former matter is simply that sailing often can not fetch a waypoint or a series of them on a
route. Typically, the sailor will have ample time to select the next mark on his journey in sequence and route creation is hardly worth the effort, and certainly can't be steered using
GPS and autpilot following a route.
I am all for planning and identifying marks and waypoints in advance, even creating waypoints which can be easily selected, sequentially and having a library to refer to and access.
I've never understood the utility of routes in a reasonably busy sea with many vessels underway.
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