Coastal Piloting
Review Date:
06/03/2005 Publisher: Magic Lamp Productions, 2002 CAD 16465
The basics of “everything you need to know while sailing within sight of land” are covered in, what the authors claim, is the “equivalent of a six week evening course in Coastal Navigation”. There are brief interludes where the commentator talks from the helm of a boat, but this is dominantly in lecture format with clear diagrams, visual aids and practical shots of chart work and electronic instruments.
To some ears, the voice may become a little monotonous but you can, of course, set your own pace, refer back to bits you have not understood, and do practical examples, using the rather primitive black and white copy practice chart that accompanies the disc. It is certainly basic, but clear. Apart from a few unfamiliar American words and phrases, it is familiar ground. The brief section on the fundamentals of the “pecking order “ for the Rules of the Road, make one aware of the difficulties faced when the six different sets of rules controlling boating in the USA in some circumstances are mentioned – mercifully not covered in detail. Other sections cope with reading a chart, using basic charting equipment, plotting by DR and EP and so on. Test questions follow.
The only minor quibble I had was to note that when indicating the use of the magnetic ring of the chart compass rose, no mention was made of the need to adjust from the published date. – PDD
