2015 New York Safe Boating - 57

use the wind or current as a brake to slow you down. If
the wind or current is on your stern, it will swing your boat
around before your anchor has a chance to set. It is best to
lower the anchor over the bow slowly, rather than heaving
it. As you lower the anchor the wind or current should be
backing your boat slowly away. When the anchor touches
bottom, the crown will help the flukes take hold in the
bottom. Ensure that your anchor has taken a good hold of
the bottom, and that it isn't dragging. Secure the anchor
line to a bow cleat.

be approached slowly into the prevailing wind or current. A
person on the bow should use a boat hook to reach the line,
called a pennant, trailing from the eye at the top of the buoy,
pull it up and attach it to a cleat at the bow of the boat.
Leaving the mooring is the reverse. Remove the pennant
from	the	cleat	and	allow	the	wind	and/or	current	to	move	
the boat clear of the mooring buoy, using reverse if needed.

You should never anchor by the stern because the
transom of a boat is not designed to cut through the
water. Water will wash over the stern and swamp the
boat.

It is important to show courtesy towards other boaters.
Avoid close quarter situations and give fishing boats,
sailboats, and manually propelled boats a wide berth. Stay
well clear of swim areas, boats towing people on water
skis or similar devices, and away from diver flags. Don't
create	excessive	wakes	or	spray	other	boaters.		Don't	fish	in	
channels. Lending assistance to fellow boaters also shows
courtesy and respect to others on the water.
Courtesy toward shoreline residents can be shown by
observing "no wake" speeds near docks, moored boats or
swim platforms and avoiding high speed operation within
close	proximity	to	the	shore	and	congested	areas.		Keeping	
radios and other noise low when anchored close to shore
and engine noise reduced or muffled (particularly in the early
morning or late at night) also shows courtesy to those who
live close to the water.

Courtesy

Mooring
Using a mooring buoy is an alternative to anchoring or
docking a boat. Mooring buoys are white with a blue
horizontal stripe and are spherical in shape. Mooring buoys
are permanently anchored to the bottom. Yacht clubs and
marinas may have large mooring fields or a home owner may
even have a single mooring for their own personal boat.
As with docking and anchoring, learning to use a mooring
buoy is a skill that needs to be practiced. The buoy should

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2015 New York Safe Boating

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of 2015 New York Safe Boating
