We just finished the first of this year’s Supporter’s meetings. It was scheduled to be an hour, but in the end we had a wide-ranging conversation that lasted over two hours.
One of the subjects we got into was singlehanding, with the following thoughts and tips being discussed:
Legal?
There is no question that singlehanding is fundamentally banned under Rule 5 of the COLREGs.
However, probably mostly due to the prominence of solo racing, singlehanding seems to be generally accepted these days, even by the authorities.
People will argue the ethics all day, but in my view this is a risk/reward decision that each of us must make for ourselves, taking into account that we could damage another yacht or small boat by hitting them, or even kill someone.
That said, I think that if we singlehand in a seamanlike way with intelligent use of technology, these risks are acceptable, although others may certainly differ.
I have singlehanded quite a bit and that was back in the day before many of the anti-collision aids we have today, most notably AIS, so I’m most assuredly biased on this point.
Anyway, here’s some tips to make singlehanding safer.
The Echomax has been around a long time, although the upgrade to both S & X bands seems newer. I cannot find any objective test data (akin to the data on passive reflectors) but I assume there must be something out there. I did learn in a quick search that these devices are not triggered by the low powered signals from recreational broadband units until as little as 1.5 nm away. Better than nothing.
Hi Andrew,
1.5 nm is way better than nothing for a sleeping single hander in my view! And a ships radar should trigger it from 10 or so miles. That was the case with the CARD I used back in the day.
Hi, My experience is that it will be more sensitive than that. Of course I don’t know which radar every other boat have, but I have got alarms from known recreational broadband radars in well excess of 3 miles. again, it is not a perfect system, but absolutely adds one more layer of Swiss cheese.
Hi Arne,
Thanks for the fill on that. I had never heard of the Swiss cheese model. What a great metaphor for risk management. Absolutely the way I think about risk around boats.
Having sailed a lot with boats around including racing I think you can see light’s at night better than boats during the day. Often I have seen lights as the sun goes down when I had not seen boats.
Hi Ted,
Sure, I have noticed that too, particularly when racing and all the boats are using trilights. That said, I still think that Arne’s tip has merit because we human animals are just more alert in daylight.
Hi, absolutely agree, however, I know that I am not as good at keeping a watch and making good choices when I am tiered and sleepy, which means I presume other people are the same. This means that I try to sleep as much as I can during the daylight, so I am as awake as I can for when the night comes.
During the day, if something happens and you need to “work”, you will much quicker wake up properly and make better decisions. This is because daylight tells your brain to be awake, and it also makes it easier to see everything and get a good overview of whatever situation you needed to respond to.
The other factor that matter to me, is that I’m thinking most other people are more awake during the daytime, and will be more likely to notice me on time and make an avoidance maneuver if we happen to be on a collision course. During the night, maybe they too are lazy/un-alert and don’t notice and respond in time. I am aware that this is putting the safety in their hands, but to me it makes sense. Again, Swiss cheese!
To me adding solo sailor to your AIS name seems liking sticking a ‘Baby on Board’ sticker on your car. You’re now expecting other road users to adjust their driving to suit your circumstances or I think thats the reason for these stickers. COLREGS should always be the first, last and only word on this in my opinion.
That said I am also a very prodigious solo sailor and most of my sailing is alone and sometimes in the distant company of other solo sailors (Jester Challenge for example). Some of these also add solo sailor to their names. I absolutely cannot argue with the case that it probably does add another credit to your safety bank as it might give the watchkeeper on a larger vessel an indication of why you may not be either fully alert or able to manouver as well as a fully crewed boat. This though is not their problem.
Any additional safety measure you can employ when solo sailing is of course desireable but for me who is taking this risk its my problem to look out for other vessels rather than the other way round.
Hi Gary,
I guess I can see that argument, but it’s a bit absolutist for me. My thinking is that given that a single hander will not realistically be able to keep a proper lookout at all times, warning others of the situation is the right thing to do.
Hi, completely agree with John here. I just want to add that, like the other things, it is the same Swiss cheese philosophy, it is not a “someone take the wheel” approach!
Regarding those stickers on cars (and this label on the AIS), I don’t think the main purpose is to expect the rest of the world to adjust. It just tells your surroundings that they can expect unexpected behavior and a way to let the others know to pay some attention or be a bit more forgiving towards you. Maybe they won’t be so rigid about right of way, or angry if you react a bit slower.
Even if it may annoy some skippers if I were to get close to them, I do not think many would willingly ram down a boat. My experience is that having it on my AIS means I get hailed earlier, and I have invariably had positive feedback.
However, probably the best benefit from adding “Solo Sailor” to the AIS, is that I can’t even count how many new friends I have got from that! I get hailed on the radio much more often, both sailing and anchored, from people inviting me over etc. I have never once had a bad experience with this, even ships call me up just to ask if I’m good while on crossings etc.
Yes I’m being swung round in opinion. Good points being made which I guess is the great thing about a forum. I particularly like the last comment about more communication. A few months ago I was in the Atlantic, 1000 miles from anywhere and I crossed paths with a tanker going to Senegal or some such place. I radioed him as I wanted to check what wind speed he had as I felt mine was over reading and he would not stop talking and asking me questions about the boat, where I was going, he was genuinely interested. I think if I’d had the ‘solo sailor’ after my name he would certainly have got in touch first but he would have continued chatting till out of VHF range. He must have been really bored.
It is very nice to see some discussion of the logistics of solo sailing. I would love to read more tips and strategies for solo sailing.
My question is: Are there any statistics on the actual added risks for solo sailors? How often has an accident happened with a solo sailor that would not have happened if it was a couple that was sailing? I am not so much thinking about racing, but more about the solo cruiser.
Hi Maurik,
Almost certainly not. See number 2 here: https://www.morganscloud.com/2024/12/17/8-offshore-cruising-boat-gear-evaluation-tips/
In fact I would put the tracking of such things under the heading of “be careful what you wish for”. Offshore sailing is one of the few things left in our world that is not heavily regulated and I fear that good stats and regulation would go hand in hand.
Hi John,
Having sailed a good 9 000 nautical miles in the past year with automated radar alarms from dusk to dawn, I have to say this supplemental set of eyes was appreciated. You set up zones and if a potential target enters the zone, you get an alarm. We like a zone at 4 nautical miles and one at 2. It sees a 35 ft fiberglass boat from a good 8 miles. For most alarms, the potential target disappears as you keep moving, but I like it. Like anything else, you have to understand your equipment, especially if you play in the settings. The heavier the weather, the more false alarm you get. Our radars are two 4G radars from B&G. They help tremendously on storm watch, during passages as well as at anchor. As you mention, one must be wary of the juice they drain. We have a policy on board that the battery bank should never be under 70% at 6 pm. We don’t want to have to start the generator during the night.
Between French Polynesia and Tonga as well as between Fiji and New Zealand, we noticed a trend with Chinese fishing boats. First of all, they are out there and they don’t emit on AIS. You will see the ship with your eyes, but not on AIS. You will see it on radar as well. This may sound crazy or futuristic or way too advanced, but our theory, and some other boating friends also have that theory for having witnessed it as well, is that they remotely fire up buoys on AIS to lock in with their bounty, for nets, pots, etc. that they come back to. So, from time to time, you see the ship with your eyes and some buoy on AIS for only a short minute. It’s some distance from the ship you are seeing. I know that because I see the AIS/radar overlay. You click the dot on AIS that we think are buoys and it doesn’t describe a ship at all, but seems Chinese by the short description. Is that possible? Probably. Anyhow, they are shutting their AIS in exclusive economic zones they have no business being. That presents a danger, sure, but they are also concerned about not being caught. We’ve always had them move away from us. They must be watching that AIS monitor 24/7 and perhaps radar as well. Our boat is big, we have AIS and we for sure show up on radar. I wouldn’t trust them, of course, but they are also on a strict avoidance mission with us. China claims only 2% of its 3 000 sophisticated offshore fishing vessel fleet have AIS… Dubious claim at best. I hate it anyways when I see a ship with no AIS 3-4 days from any land; smugglers, pirates, fishermen or honest sailor free of the encumberment of technologies, I don’t want them anywhere near our boat. They are either hiding or don’t have the tech to see me in the dark. Let’s keep our distances. The sea is big enough.
Being a lawyer and having done a fair bit of insurance law, the last thing an insurer wants to do is insure an illegal risk. However, depending of the governing law of the contract, they may cover you for your own stupidity (sorry, supreme court wording), literally (silly accident that could have been avoided, lack of foresight, etc.). Solo sailing and COLREG is not a great match, it’s obvious. Underwriters will insure single-handed sailing, even reputable ones (not racing, obviously, but cruising) BUT they set limits, like 12 consecutive hours or 24 hours per period of 36 hours. I’ve always wondered if it had anything to do with COLREG no°5 and them not wanting to sanction an illegal practice…
So, if a single handler has good protocols in place and does not neglect them, alongside a smart use of tech, maybe it does respect COLREGs? I think so because of the use of the words “the prevailing circumstances” in no°5. The prevailing circumstances basically means the existing conditions. The existing conditions could be single handling itself or the weather or something else. If single-handed sailing was formally prohibited in any way, why would the legislator forget to mention it or not use time thresholds akin to underwriters? Seems too big an oversight to believe it just slipped. Aviation and land transport regulations are strict on that (flight duration, off time, max driving time or distance in 24 hours or over a period of 7 days for truckers…). Anyhow, it’s noting short of a fascinating subject. Still, to state the obvious, the most responsible way of single-handling a vessel should always be put forward, regardless of the legality of the practice. It’s good seamanship.
Thanks for this article. I’ve found myself single handling our boat only once for nearly 48 hours while the captain was unable to stand. To top it off, it was the most worried I’d ever been about my husband. The minutes became so long. Now, I know better from that experience. I would do things totally differently should it happen again, like sleep more, assume from the get go that I might be in this situation for a long period. So, even if you are not single handling your vessel, you can unexpectedly find yourself in that situation. This article is therefore interesting for everyone, not just the true single handlers.
Hi Marie Eve,
Fantastic comment, thank you! Not only is it great to have your fill on radar alarms, but I found your lawyer’s analysis of single handed legality fascinating and informative.
One note I would make is that single handing not being specifically banned may be more about the history of the COLREGs rather than any tacit approval. I just don’t think the authorities are thinking much about yachts when these things are updated.
Also your points about the importance of rest if you find yourself suddenly single handed are very well taken.
Phyllis found herself in the same situation half way between Norway and Svalbard when I came down with a bad tummy bug and it’s a truly scary situation that needs planning for. In our case we were luckier than you because I was not sick as long.
Hi Marie Eve and John,
Your comments bring up an issue I have been banging on about off and on over the last few years and that is that for a crew of two, a skipper and a less experienced crew, the skipper has a responsibility to ensure that the less experienced crew could take over the boat and get the boat safely to port if the skipper was for some reason unavailable. It would not have to be done in an elegant or pretty manner, but it would need to be done safely for crew and boat.
This may mean a fair amount of teaching on the part of the skipper and also ensuring that the boat is set-up to make single-handing if not easy, but reasonably do-able. And it will likely be a bit intimidating for the less experienced crew to move from being more a passenger to being a full crew, but the skipper will benefit by feeling like he/she has a true partner at sea and the crew will feel far more part of the passage and the running of the boat.
My best, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy
Hi Dick, you are so right.
On that note, my husband is a far better sailor than me. He also has a 3rd sense for squalls and knows exactly when to bring the para-sailor down. Still impresses me. He reads the ocean very well. It’s hard when he says “do what you think is best” when he puts me in charge because I think he thinks better, and he probably does and would do things differently, but I know enough. I keep learning every time we sail.
All our lines lead to the cockpit, so that’s nice. Even the genoa, once out, all the lines we need lead to the back winches available from the cockpit. It makes it much safer and easier to handle the boat alone.
John, it’s my pleasure, it’s nice to have a relevant space to come read on various subjects tied to cruising and perhaps partake when opportune.
I agree that COLREGs were not written for cruisers or sailors with cloth, racing or not. Way bigger money is involved in preventing collisions and loss of ship and their cargo.
That being said, enforcement of the COLREGs is complex and somewhat futile. I’m sharing just in case anyone worries about COLREGs or is curious about how it works. They are not gonna knock on any sailor’s door anytime soon. Most and foremost, “they” is “a country”. For the sake of the argument, each country is responsible COLREGs are respected on boats with their flags on the international level. For example, the Canadian Government is responsible that COLREGs are respected on vessels registered in Canada, like our vessel.
In reality, Canada made rules that are basically Canada’s version of the COLREGs and it enforces them within Canadian waters regardless of your flag, because you are in Canada and must respect Canadian law, not the COLREGs.
How bad a sailor do you have to be so a foreign country would report you to your country under COLREGs? You’ll end up if jail for negligence or sued for damages way before anyone thinks of the COLREGs. But most importantly, you will simply be fined according to local law, wherever you are, always. Let’s just say it’s way better to make sure to comply with local law anywhere you are than with general COLREGs, even if that’s a great start. We received a notice from the Coast Guard because we did not give a 500 meter clearance to a tug assisted cargo ship in the Bay of Islands in New Zealand. They are fancy, they recorded everything for the port captain. We were never fined, but it could have been 2 000$. And we were very far. Nowhere close to danger, but not 500 meters. It had nothing to do with the COLREGs.
International waters are another thing and that’s what the COLREGs are for: the high seas. When we check out of New Zealand, they will not care less about the crew’s qualification on board because it’s Canada’s job COLREGs wise. Funny thing, had we registered our boat in Panama, it would be Panama’s job… So when you check out of anywhere where your boat is not from, they don’t care, they will simply give you your port clearance certificate (there are exception where it’s more complicated and it’s best to hire an agent, but it’s generally more complicated to come in than leave). If we read the fine print when we leave New Zealand, we will declare that we meet our flag’s requirement which legally implies we follow COLREGs since Canada is part of the International Marine Organization and has adopted COLREGs. When our boat moves in international waters, technically, we must enforce COLREGs because we are a Canadian flag boat, but more than that, the cumulative effect of conventions make our floating abode one ruled by Canadian law. Any crime committed on board would have to be treated per Canadian law. Think of a cruise ship, ownership is not as important as the flag of it’s hailing port if you are thinking about your rights if ever you get on one and the law that could apply depending on where the ship is… Back to COLREGs, the thing is, Canada never checked us per se. They are not even remotely aware of our qualifications and never asked for them when we registered the boat, yet, they accepted our vessel be under a Canadian flag. If I get in Canadian waters, they will ask for my qualifications, but not as per COLREGs, but Canadian law… Still, if a Kiwi checks out of New Zealand in a Kiwi flagged boat, it’s a whole other story. They need to obtain an International voyage certificate and prove the boat is adequately crewed, the skipper qualified, the boat equipped… They are looking after their boat, not the people because many Kiwis leave under another flag. I wonder if this has anything to do with COLREGs because the vessel is leaving the country…
It’s very peculiar that only the flag matters for who looks after whom as per the COLREGs in international waters. That being said, how else could it be? It’s inherently flawed, but many things are when we legislate at the international level.
I’ll stop, because I could go on for very long.
Till next time,
Marie
Hi Marie, good comment thanks.
Kiwi ex-mercantile marine navigator here, interested in your recent experience.
Northland Council Navigation Safety Bylaw covers the requirement to keep >500m clear of the bow of any vessel greater than 500 Gross Tonnes (Large Vessel), and >100m clear of the sides or stern. AND >500m clear of a Large Vessel engaged in docking (with or without tugs).
Maritime NZ Rules suggest >200 m from the stern of a Large Vessel which I would agree with. Most NZ Regional Councils / Councils have their own maritime bylaws that are similar, but with local differences. These bylaws mostly reflect Maritime NZ Rules (with a few strange inconsistencies).
I would certainly suggest passing ahead of a Large Vessel navigating in restricted waters (harbour limits) by 500m or less, would not be safe practice. And you would likely be notified of this by 5 or more short blasts from a very loud ship’s horn..! So I’m pretty sure you didn’t do this. Be especially careful of outward bound ships, as once the pilot has left, they will accelerate rapidly but be hard to slow down.
But Marie, I am struggling to think where a large cargo ship would have been docking in the Bay of Islands for you to transgress a “500m rule” – there is no large commercial wharf there. Perhaps you got close to one of the passenger ships that frequently anchor in the Bay?
The harbour master for the Bay of Islands could have fined you for getting too close to a large vessel. In my experience if there was no immediate danger, they will use any interaction as an opportunity to educate – not punish. You will know the harbour master boat from its siren and blue flashing light. The NZ Police also have boats on the water which can report or detain you.
But it is very surprising to me that NZ Coastguard was involved in any capacity – perhaps the ship reported you? The Coastguard here is a voluntary organisation funded by membership (NZ $150 per annum) and donations, and staffed by volunteers. They have no policing power or mandate and as a rule, don’t get involved in anything that isn’t directly to do with saving lives at sea (anyone) or assisting vessels in trouble (focus on members).
Perhaps they contacted you as a courtesy, to educate you as a foreign registered vessel on this local bylaw? My brother is a Coastguard skipper so I have some insight here. You might consider joining Coastguard whilst in NZ waters as your membership includes at least one free tow a year to a safe port, should you need assistance.
WRT to Maritime NZ requirement for NZ registered vessels to obtain an International Voyage Certificate. This used to be issued by Yachting NZ as a Cat 1 Certificate based on World Sailing Offshore yacht Racing Cat 1 requirements. Last year Maritime NZ took this role over, and The Voyaging Certificate requirements appear largely similar to those under Cat 1, except the price is about 10 times more than YNZ charged! Good old government departments.
So really nothing to do with the Collision Regs IMO, except the skipper and crew need to prove sufficient knowledge in this regard (certification or experience). I believe the requirement is based more on being a small country with one of the largest ocean search and rescue areas in the world. The average tax-payer gets annoyed funding rescues for ill prepared boats and sailors. Maritime NZ have to get involved in event reporting (after the fact), so I guess are wanting to minimise their costs by controlling who and what goes to sea.
Hope you are enjoying your NZ cruising time.
Hi Rob, very interesting to get your input!
It was in Taurangua, so that’s where my mistake is in reporting the story correctly. It’s not the Bay of Islands, it’s the Bay of Plenty. We were getting out of the Taurangua Bridge Marina and to go back to the ocean, you have to go through the shipping channel where the ships can dock on both sides. It’s fairly big and they have cranes on both sides of the shipping lane. As to the entity that accosted us, I just looked on the notice it’s the “Bay of Plenty Regional Council Harbourmaster”, so, it must have been one of their boats, a fancy black and fast inflatable. They said they filmed the whole thing and it would be submitted to the port captain for review. Maybe that means the harbourmaster? Or maybe he said harbourmaster. I’m not sure I remember correctly. Anyhow, it’s details. But, they gave us that official notice, took ID and email and said we would get an email if we were fined. We never got an email.
Anyhow, I personally find 500 meters ahead very long. We are very conservative and never do anything unexpected, especially in a shipping lane. So, by my reckoning, we were 250-300 meters away, but not directly ahead, but on the side of that ship. We later saw an illustration of the rule and the 500-meter is not a 500 meter radius bubble ahead is only 500 meters if it’s straight ahead of you. It tapers off to the sides where it’s a 50 meter clearance. I believe to this day, especially after seeing an illustration afterwards that we were just fine where we were. The young person, no beard yet, giving us the notice seemed to be in training with an older fellow. Maybe the port captain was of the same opinion as us or was forgiving considering we were foreign flagged and not familiar with the Bay’s rules. We will never know, or maybe that email is coming?
I assumed the boat was Coast Guard, but you are right, now that I look at their website, they don’t do that part. I was unaware it was entirely funded on membership and that they have a lot of volunteers. We are members and we called them once on 16 because our raw water pump was dying at the end of our crossing from Tauranga to Christchurch. I’ve rarely wished so much something would hold till port. It held. Coast Guard checked in on us every hour for a good 8 hours. They were very kind and ready to intervene.
Thanks for the explanation on the certificate. It brings some clarity as to what the objectives may be. And you do have a lot of coastline in NZ. We’ve seen some ill prepared people out there. So many maydays in the Auckland area. So much so that we’ve answered two on the same day once! There even was this guy that could not report any GPS position. No AIS and his phone had died. He was being asked what he could see around him… We were baffled. You listen to 16 in those area on the weekend and it’s a form of entertainment on its own. Just from my personal experience, I understand that people must indeed get tired of hearing those stories.
Talking about categories, it was recommended to us to be Cat. 2 for going on our adventures down around the South Island. I’ve gone through the lists and we are Cat 2 or Cat 1, to the exception of SSB. Although our only through hull does not have the plug attached right next to it. And the jackline should allow the skipper to go the full length of the deck without unclipping or so I had read. We fail there too, but we fail forward…
We’ve been in the so called roaring 40s for over a month and a half now and it’s the best of NZ for us so far, although the Coromandel Peninsula had our hearts before that. It’s all or nothing weatherwise down here. It does roar. But it’s so worth it. Stewart was unforgettable. We’ve made some core memories there with the kids. We are now in the Fjords. We went from Preservation Inlet to Dusky Sound in the past week. What a place! What’s not to love down here?!
Your country is absolutely magnificent.
Hi Marie,
Tauranga makes perfect sense being an active port with large ships and lots of recreational vessels trying to share / compete for space. I imagine there are many instances where “incidents have happened” with our not uncommon “she’ll be right” boating attitudes (that you have experienced).
Thanks for closing the circle – I would have been wondering otherwise. I think where you have been “caught” is the Large Vessel was considered to be engaged in berthing / un-berthing (with or without tugs), when according to our bylaws there is a 500m bubble all round. Once the vessel is underway and clear of the wharf, then what you describe becomes the requirement, except the distance to the sides is 100 m (not 50 m) and at the stern it’s 100m or 200m depending on the source.
Once the vessel has left the harbour limits, the collision regs take precedence and the bylaws no longer apply.
Your voyage south sounds wonderful, on our list for retirement! Captain Cook’s early records of being in the Sounds at daybreak (all hands on deck for warships at dawn) are great reading – he described having to shout to the officers on the poop deck just a few feet away, such was the noise from the birds’ dawn chorus!
I sail singlehanded often from Long Island Sound to the Gulf of Maine and 2 years ago to Halifax. I always use my digital radar with guard function all night, in the fog, or when sleeping even during the day. I use AIS too, but the radar guard is more effective because it catches fishing boats that do not broadcast. I always sleep in the cockpit when within 100 miles of shore.
I have been singlehanding in New England waters since 1978, so long before AIS and with no radar and frequently at night in coastal waters. But only for 1 overnight during which I usually catch 20 min of sleep 2-3 times during the night.
I have never had a close call at night. All of my close calls have been during fog due to poor seamanship on the part of powerboat operators and once 2 coastguard J 120’s tacked into me at Watch Hill passage after a VHF conversation that verified they would hold course which was a port to port passing. My radar saved me from a collision. So even professionals do unseaman-like things.
Hi John,
Thanks for coming up on that. Out of interest, which radar are you using now and how often do you get false alarms?
As to sleeping in the cockpit, I used to do the same when in coastal waters.