Who remembers all around white lights?

[Chotu]

what people seem to keep forgetting here, is that you pretty much cannot anchor your boat in the traditional sense in these special anchorages. They are chock-full of moorings. You can’t anchor in them. And the boats on the moorings don’t have lights. They don’t need them at all.

Hitting boats in the special Anchorage, which is simply a densely packed mooring field, would be the same thing as hitting boats that are at the dock. Like just ramming your boat through a marina through all of the fingers of docs. Basically the same thing. An anchor light isn't protecting you from that level of idiocy

post after post after post people keep picturing that they can pull in with their boat and anchor here. You can’t. There’s no room. There’s barely enough room to get a 50 foot boat onto a mooring in these morning fields. You come pretty close to hitting the other boats. They typically have special moorings for boats 50 feet and up. Mostly they’re chock-full of 30 and 40 foot boats. But you have no hope of anchoring in one of these places ever.

So you have to stop picturing it like that. That’s not what it is. It’s a mooring field. Completely taken over by moorings. Regulated by the town. Installed by the town in most cases or the local marinas.

and all the way back to when I first started sailing almost 35 years ago, I believe there was a 10-15 year wait for moorings in the special anchorage back then in the harbor I started at. You had to be a resident of the town and you had to get your name on the list and just wait your turn for a mooring to become available in the special Anchorage that you could put your boat on for the summer.

This is where you put your boat for the whole summer. In the spring you do all your work. Your bottom paint. Then your boat goes out on the mooring for the whole summer. It sits there all summer long. In the morning field with the rest of the boats. There’s no anchoring going on. there are relatively few slips in these areas as well. The special Anchorage, which is a mooring field, makes up a vast part of the storage capability of a given harbor.

in some harbors, all you have is this mooring field in the special Anchorage and a dinghy dock. One that you are allowed to keep your dinghy on all summer long.

People seem to be getting lost and forgetting all of this.

[Jim Cate]

what people seem to keep forgetting here, is that you pretty much cannot anchor your boat in the traditional sense in these special anchorages. They are chock-full of moorings.

But... one of the listed special anchorages upthread is... wait for it... San Francisco Bay!

From memory, that one ain't full of moorings and you can indeed anchor in it. However, I don't see how the whole of SFB can be a "special anchorage" dedicated to recreational boats less than 65 feet or w hatever the current definition may be.

But to reiterate a point made by many: the chance to "get away" with unlit anchoring is not a benefit. Lighting your boat at anchor (or IMO moored) is something a seaman will do no matter where he may be. We have been T-boned by a drunk in broad daylight. The chances go up in the dark! The anchor light may help...

Jim

[Hhew]

Just jumping in here to point out that the white all-around anchor light is not meant to illuminate the boat for collision avoidance, per se. It is meant to communicate to others that the vessel is anchored, for the purpose of making the correct stand-on/give way decision. Exactly the same communication as the black ball day shape in daylight - we all use those, right? Adding deck level lights is cheap and wise.

[requiem]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

From memory, that one ain't full of moorings and you can indeed anchor in it. However, I don't see how the whole of SFB can be a "special anchorage" dedicated to recreational boats less than 65 feet or w hatever the current definition may be.

Well, it's certainly not full of moorings, but it's not the entire bay either. Only Richardson Bay is the Special Anchorage Area. I suspect the proliferation of moorings in other places is just up to the locals.

[Lodesman]

Originally Posted by RaymondR

One should be mindful that a lot of this maritime regulation goes back to the days when a light was a candle in a box with windows and required constant attention by watchmen and the rules were compiled by pragmatist.

When "special anchorages" were created in 1940, I imagine many of these lights were kerosene lamps. The US wasn't in the war yet, but lend/lease started then, and it's likely they understood the inevitable, and possibly considered the justification in the anchorages to conserve kerosene for the war effort. Just a thought.

[Montanan]

Originally Posted by requiem

Well, it's certainly not full of moorings, but it's not the entire bay either. Only Richardson Bay is the Special Anchorage Area. I suspect the proliferation of moorings in other places is just up to the locals.

And only a portion of the Richardson Bay.

CFR

§ 110.126a San Francisco Bay, Calif.

Richardson Bay Anchorage. That portion of Richardson Bay, north of a line bearing 257° from Peninsula Point to the shore at Sausalito, except for federally-maintained channels, and all channels approved for private use therein.

Note:
Mariners anchoring in the special anchorage area should consult applicable ordinances of the Richardson Bay Regional Agency and the County of Marin. These ordinances establish requirements on matters including the anchoring of vessels, placement of moorings, and use of anchored and moored vessels within the special anchorage area. Information on these local agency requirements may be obtained from the Richardson Bay Harbor Administrator.
[CGFR 69-109, 34 FR 17771, Nov. 4, 1969, as amended by CGD 78-126, 45 FR 10760, Feb. 19, 1980; CGD11-99-009, 65 FR 20086, Apr. 14, 2000]

[Jim Cate]

^^^
Ah ha! I see that I should have read t he whole thing... the list of special anchorages posted upthread only said "SF Bay"... sounded like they meant the whole bay.

And Richardson Bay has been a "really special" anchorage for a long time, with lots of derelict vessels and, uhhh, alternative life style folks bobbing about in front of some of the most expensive real estate in the country. The resulting conflicts have lead to the special note quoted above and a lot of hard feelings, both ashore and afloat.

Glad we are gone...

Jim

[Montanan]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

^^^
Ah ha! I see that I should have read t he whole thing... the list of special anchorages posted upthread only said "SF Bay"... sounded like they meant the whole bay.

And Richardson Bay has been a "really special" anchorage for a long time, with lots of derelict vessels and, uhhh, alternative life style folks bobbing about in front of some of the most expensive real estate in the country. The resulting conflicts have lead to the special note quoted above and a lot of hard feelings, both ashore and afloat.

Glad we are gone...

Jim

There are many very specific designated anchorage areas in the S.F. Bay Area, albeit there is only the one "special anchorage" in Richardson Bay.

33 CFR § 110.224 - San Francisco Bay, San Pablo Bay, Carquinez Strait, Suisun Bay, Sacramento River, San Joaquin River, and connecting waters, CA.

§ 110.224 San Francisco Bay, San Pablo Bay, Carquinez Strait, Suisun Bay, Sacramento River, San Joaquin River, and connecting waters, CA.
(a) General regulations.

(1) Within the navigable waters of San Francisco Bay, San Pablo Bay, Carquinez Strait, Suisun Bay, New York Slough, San Joaquin River Deep Water Channel, the Stockton Turning Basin, the Sacramento River Deep Water Ship Channel between Suisun Bay and the east end of the West Sacramento Turning Basin, and connecting waters, anchoring is prohibited outside of designated anchorages except when required for safety or with the written permission of the Captain of the Port. Each vessel anchoring outside an established anchorage area shall immediately notify the Captain of the Port of her position and reason for anchoring.

(2) No vessel may permanently moor in areas adjacent to the San Joaquin River Deep Water Channel except with the written permission of the Captain of the Port.

(3) Each vessel anchoring for safety reasons in the San Joaquin River Deep Water Channel, the Sacramento River Deep Water Ship Channel, or the Stockton or West Sacramento Turning Basins shall be positioned as near to the edge of the channel or turning basin as possible so as not to interfere with navigation, or obstruct the approach to any pier, wharf, slip, or boat harbor and shall move as soon as the reason for anchoring no longer exists or when notified to move by the Captain of the Port.

(4) No vessel may anchor within a tunnel, cable, or pipeline area shown on a Government chart.

(5) No vessel may moor, anchor, or tie up to any pier, wharf, or other vessel in such a manner as to extend into an adjacent channel or fairway.

(6) No vessel in such a condition that it is likely to sink or otherwise become a menace or obstruction to navigation or anchorage of other vessels may occupy an anchorage, except when unforeseen circumstances create conditions of imminent peril to personnel and then only for such period as may be authorized by the Captain of the Port.

(7) Each vessel carrying explosives shall only anchor in an explosives anchorage except as authorized by paragraph (a)(1) or (a)(17) of this section.

. . .


Reference link to S.F. Bay

d) Anchorage grounds.

(1) Table 110.224(d)(1) lists anchorage grounds, identifies the purpose of each anchorage, and contains specific regulations applicable to certain anchorages.

(2) The geographic boundaries of each anchorage are contained in paragraph (e) of this section.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/33/110.224


There are similar C.F.R. sections for the many other designated anchorages in the USA.

[ThereAndBack]

I'm really not sure if this is relevant, but I wanted to share something. This is a picture I took last night of Georgetown Bahamas. I have trouble finding a single boat without a mast head or "highest possible" anchor light. There are over 300 boats here. See attached pic.

[Montanan]

Originally Posted by ThereAndBack

I'm really not sure if this is relevant, but I wanted to share something. This is a picture I took last night of Georgetown Bahamas. I have trouble finding a single boat without a mast head or "highest possible" anchor light. There are over 300 boats here. See attached pic.

And yet likely during the day, nary a single boat will be displaying a black ball at anchor signal.

[ThereAndBack]

Originally Posted by Montanan

And yet likely during the day, nary a single boat will be displaying a black ball at anchor signal.

Exceedingly rare to ever see one in any of my cruising grounds. Would probably be avoided by the rest of the crowd if you showed one. lol

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by ThereAndBack

I'm really not sure if this is relevant, but I wanted to share something. This is a picture I took last night of Georgetown Bahamas. I have trouble finding a single boat without a mast head or "highest possible" anchor light. There are over 300 boats here. See attached pic.

That agrees with my observations. Most boats use a masthead light. And they aren't hard to see.

Agreed also on the lack of anchor dayshape use. Almost no one uses them in my experience. It seems to largely be a North American vs Europe thing, where it is rare in the former and much more common in the latter.

[noelex 77]

Day shape use is frequently raised on the forum.

Personally, I think it quite simple. Anchor day shapes are of limited practical help on our sized vessels, but they do protect from the possible legal complications of failing to comply with the collision regulations.

I always display an anchor day shape for this reason.

Originally Posted by ThereAndBack

Would probably be avoided by the rest of the crowd if you showed one. lol

That would be an added bonus if it was true .

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by noelex 77

Day shape use is frequently raised on the forum.

Personally, I think it quite simple. Anchor day shapes are of limited practical help on our sized vessels, but they do protect from the possible legal complications of failing to comply with the collision regulations.

I always display an anchor day shape for this reason.



That would be an added bonus if it was true .

My thoughts exactly, Nolex, and my practice as well!

Jim

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by noelex 77

Day shape use is frequently raised on the forum.

Personally, I think it quite simple. Anchor day shapes are of limited practical help on our sized vessels, but they do protect from the possible legal complications of failing to comply with the collision regulations.

I always display an anchor day shape for this reason.

Agreed. Useful for legal protection. Not so much for actual protection.


But I really think location matters. Here in 'the colonies' they're generally not used, so hence have little benefit. But in areas where boaters are used to seeing them, it certainly makes sense to fly one.