A cautionary tale about keeping a good lookout.

[Crocodile]

Hello All,
recently I had the good fortune to be on a fishing trip out of Stanage.
Picture this, travelling from Middle Percy island back to the Duke islands.
6m platey + big Suzuki outboard + non-feedback steering + biggest wave 2 foot, 24 miles to travel.
So I got the boat pointed in the right direction, GPS course to steer, compass about right, can actually see the white rocks of Marble Island in the distance, RPMs just purring along doing about 22 knots.
Does travelling get any easier than this?

Mid-week in a fairly remote location and it is a big ocean.
Mainly keeping a lookout for whales.
After about 1/2 an hour I see a splash out to starboard a couple of miles off and think it's a whale, have a second look and it is another boat coming in on my starboard.
As we close I am looking through the same piece of windscreen at a big center console.

Same piece of windscreen is the key, that means a constant bearing which is a collision course.

As we close I make a very deliberate turn to starboard to make it clear that I intend to pass astern.
We passed about 300m astern and I could the other helmsman plainly, he was not looking at me and did not wave or respond.
I wonder if I was seen or not, the other boat did not respond in any way.
Can you imagine the allmighty clang if two big plateys came together at a combined speed of say 35 knots.
The moral of this story is the need to keep a lookout at all times.

[scottar]

All too common unfortunately. Had a similar siuation off Brisbane recently where "by the rules of the road" I had right of way. The other skipper either hadn't seen us or was just an ignorant prick.

[Andy56]

Being right doesnt help avoid an incident. Being right doesnt get your boat back the next day if you have an incident. Being right doesnt mean you get off scot free after an incident. It will cost you time and money.
The moral of the lesson, assume the other guy is a prick and wants to cause you pain. Being right is an ego trip. Allow for idiots.
but i know, its hard sometimes. I aint perfect either, lol.

[Dignity]

All too common unfortunately. Had a similar siuation off Brisbane recently where "by the rules of the road" I had right of way. The other skipper either hadn't seen us or was just an ignorant prick.

Ah, I see the problem, using rules of the "road" not rules of the seas, see it all the time up the coast here. (Scott, know what you meant though)

[inveratta]

The moral of this story is the need to keep a lookout at all times.[/QUOTE]


Precisely....just because you may have right of way etc etc ....doesnt relieve you of the responsibility of avoiding collisions at sea....ie keeping a lookout.......even if you were in all respects paying due attention and had right of way..if theres a collision ..its still partly your fault.Old man was RN trained and drummed that into our young heads..

[gazza2006au]

It's mysterious act that boaters do maybe we need that aussie commentator/narrator for those clips on fb lol

[TREVELLY]

Yep I nearly got run over by a ship in the dead of night on shelf off Moreton - I had flood lights lighting more than 100m about the boat.
Pitch black night 12.30am 300M+ ship coming directly at me doing over 40kph - got out of it's way with less than 100m to spare.
One hour later same ship returning at about 50-100m off direct hit - I do a runner again
Then one hours later third time and only again about 100m off my course it goes past again.
Had I not been up and about I was dead first pass.
Yes I do not know why it went past 3 times (I left after 3 times btw)
No I am not trying to become famous for a ship nearly running me over as some idiots have suggested
Yes I have better things to do than make up stupid stories or exaggerate.
Added radar to boat and will also add a radar reflector
Pic of ship on second pass Attachment 117768
.

[gazza2006au]

Trev aliens out to get u mate lol

[Noelm]

One time my mate and I were coming back from the shelf, I was just "dozing" in the passenger seat, and he was laying back, steering with his feet, I sort of happened to open my eyes at the exact moment we went past Bass Point, missed it by about 10M he was sound asleep, there was boats all around fishing, pretty scary to think of the possibilities, no idea how the boat kept course over about 40 mins of driving, with just his feet resting on the wheel.

[scottar]

Being right doesnt help avoid an incident. Being right doesnt get your boat back the next day if you have an incident. Being right doesnt mean you get off scot free after an incident. It will cost you time and money.
The moral of the lesson, assume the other guy is a prick and wants to cause you pain. Being right is an ego trip. Allow for idiots.
but i know, its hard sometimes. I aint perfect either, lol.

Not about being perfect Andy - none of us are but too many blokes get on the water and pay f all attention for whatever reason and yes - everyone is at fault to some extent in a marine collision. We were never in danger in this case - I saw him a long way off and as it became evident he wasn't going to alter course, we did passing astern of him. I have through sheer good fortune avoided being run down from behind one evening by a large cruiser many years ago - a sixth sense making me look over my shoulder allowing me a few seconds to take evasive action - old mate at the helm with his lights on inside clearly visible as he gas bagged away to his mate totally oblivious to our presence. I've been a commercial mariner for the last seven years - the stuff some muppets do never ceases to amaze me - we constantly have speedboats attempt to go between tugs and tows.

[scottar]

Yep I nearly got run over by a ship in the dead of night on shelf off Moreton - I had flood lights lighting more than 100m about the boat.
Pitch black night 12.30am 300M+ ship coming directly at me doing over 40kph - got out of it's way with less than 100m to spare.
One hour later same ship returning at about 50-100m off direct hit - I do a runner again
Then one hours later third time and only again about 100m off my course it goes past again.
Had I not been up and about I was dead first pass.
Yes I do not know why it went past 3 times (I left after 3 times btw)
No I am not trying to become famous for a ship nearly running me over as some idiots have suggested
Yes I have better things to do than make up stupid stories or exaggerate.
Added radar to boat and will also add a radar reflector
Pic of ship on second pass Attachment 117768
.

Most likely killing time waiting to meet a pilot. Captains will regularly do donuts instead of risking anchoring if they only have the night to wait. We have done the same with a tug and tow - circles at 4 knots …….allllllll night. Heaps of fun.

[scottar]

Ah, I see the problem, using rules of the "road" not rules of the seas, see it all the time up the coast here. (Scott, know what you meant though)

LOL. Still give way the right Sam.

[GBC]

Hello All,
recently I had the good fortune to be on a fishing trip out of Stanage.
Picture this, travelling from Middle Percy island back to the Duke islands.
6m platey + big Suzuki outboard + non-feedback steering + biggest wave 2 foot, 24 miles to travel.
So I got the boat pointed in the right direction, GPS course to steer, compass about right, can actually see the white rocks of Marble Island in the distance, RPMs just purring along doing about 22 knots.
Does travelling get any easier than this?

Mid-week in a fairly remote location and it is a big ocean.
Mainly keeping a lookout for whales.
After about 1/2 an hour I see a splash out to starboard a couple of miles off and think it's a whale, have a second look and it is another boat coming in on my starboard.
As we close I am looking through the same piece of windscreen at a big center console.

Same piece of windscreen is the key, that means a constant bearing which is a collision course.

As we close I make a very deliberate turn to starboard to make it clear that I intend to pass astern.
We passed about 300m astern and I could the other helmsman plainly, he was not looking at me and did not wave or respond.
I wonder if I was seen or not, the other boat did not respond in any way.
Can you imagine the allmighty clang if two big plateys came together at a combined speed of say 35 knots.
The moral of this story is the need to keep a lookout at all times.

He's probably on a different forum, "I was cruising along, had right of way and was wondering when old mate was going to yield........" haha.

[Dignity]

Trev, the pic doesn't work for me. Wasn't the sand dredge by any chance.

[Brother Sharkbait]

A boat owner down the road from me had more than a near miss!
I’ve never seen a boat in this lads yard before in over 30 years. Out of the blue, a 7-8m fibreglass cat appears in his yard. In twelve months of being in his yard and it had only been dunked two or three times.
I then get a phone call from the shop across the road from the boat, to say that the owner of the boat had gone out to the reef for the day and upon returning, collided with a channel marker (think of a thick steal telephone pole) coming into the Cairns Inlet in the dark! I believe that he was doing 25-30 knots when he looked up in time to see the the pole just prior to impact!
He received a large cut to his forehead and several broken ribs resulting in a stay in hospital. Luckily for him the vessel stayed afloat. The blood thinners in his system from recent heart problems meant he bleed like a stuck pig, Trinity Bay is full of Bull sharks which would of made quick work of him one small bite at a time.
According to the owner, the channel marker was not lit at the time of the accident. Personally, I think he didn’t see the light against the citys multi coloured lights!
Inexperienced boat owner, poor visibility mixed with speed equals disaster!
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