Hello all,

I was hoping that soneone could answer a question for me. In the near
future I will be in the market for a boat that I can take out onto the
ocean. my plan is to travel from NY to FL along the eastren us. I do
not have any experience driving a boat.

That being said, I am looking for information on any license that may
be needed. I have been told that a open water pilot license is
required. Is this true ? If so how do I go about getting one. If
not is there someplace that offers training ?

I would like to have a good idea of what I am doing before I make any
purchase. I have spent enough time at/on the ocean to know this much,
the minute you stop respecting it, it kills you. I would like to ovid
that.

gmar wrote:

Hello all,

I was hoping that soneone could answer a question for me. In the near
future I will be in the market for a boat that I can take out onto the
ocean. my plan is to travel from NY to FL along the eastren us. I do
not have any experience driving a boat.

Uh, before you attempt that sort of voyage, you probably ought to get a
few years of experience in boat handling in your local waters, and not
out of sight of land, at least not the first year.

You also ought to take a USCG boating safety course and some more
advanced courses, too. For anything other than the initial course, I'd
look to the commercial schools.


That being said, I am looking for information on any license that may
be needed. I have been told that a open water pilot license is
required. Is this true ? If so how do I go about getting one. If
not is there someplace that offers training ?

No captain's license is necessary to drive your own pleasure boat down
the eastern seaboard, unless you are carrying passengers for hire. Some
states are now requiring you take and pass a simple boating course and
test, but that's not the same thing.


I would like to have a good idea of what I am doing before I make any
purchase.


You're not really going to learn how to pilot a boat safely in the ocean
if you don't have a boat to pilot. You can learn some in classes, but
without some years on the open ocean, you cannot learn to read it.


--
* * *
email sent to will *never* get to me.

On Thu, 18 Sep 2003 10:28:42 -0400, Harry Krause
wrote:

gmar wrote:

Hello all,

I was hoping that soneone could answer a question for me. In the near
future I will be in the market for a boat that I can take out onto the
ocean. my plan is to travel from NY to FL along the eastren us. I do
not have any experience driving a boat.

Uh, before you attempt that sort of voyage, you probably ought to get a
few years of experience in boat handling in your local waters, and not
out of sight of land, at least not the first year.

You also ought to take a USCG boating safety course and some more
advanced courses, too. For anything other than the initial course, I'd
look to the commercial schools.


That being said, I am looking for information on any license that may
be needed. I have been told that a open water pilot license is
required. Is this true ? If so how do I go about getting one. If
not is there someplace that offers training ?

No captain's license is necessary to drive your own pleasure boat down
the eastern seaboard, unless you are carrying passengers for hire. Some
states are now requiring you take and pass a simple boating course and
test, but that's not the same thing.


I would like to have a good idea of what I am doing before I make any
purchase.


You're not really going to learn how to pilot a boat safely in the ocean
if you don't have a boat to pilot. You can learn some in classes, but
without some years on the open ocean, you cannot learn to read it.

Amen!

John
On the 'Poco Loco' out of Deale, MD

I'm curious: The park service and other agencies say that if they have to
rescue people incompetent backpackers who think their first practice run
should be in January in North Dakota, they will charge them for the expenses
incurred. Has anyone heard of the Coast Guard saying similar things?

Another boater lost in the Bermuda Triangle?

Yep. Your tax dollars are no longer enough... they'll charge you by the hour
if they possibly can.

--


Keith
__
If you must pick between two evils, pick the one you've never tried before.
"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
I'm curious: The park service and other agencies say that if they have to
rescue people incompetent backpackers who think their first practice run
should be in January in North Dakota, they will charge them for the
expenses
incurred. Has anyone heard of the Coast Guard saying similar things?

Well, sometimes it's justified. In the case of hikers, I recall at least two
news stories which mentioned that the searches had cost a couple of small
town police departments a few hundred grand for helicopter time, etc. In
both cases, the hikers were woefully unprepared and inexperienced, for the
terrain and weather they were trying to tackle. That's wrong.

"Keith" wrote in message
...
Yep. Your tax dollars are no longer enough... they'll charge you by the
hour
if they possibly can.

--


Keith
__
If you must pick between two evils, pick the one you've never tried
before.
"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
I'm curious: The park service and other agencies say that if they have
to
rescue people incompetent backpackers who think their first practice run
should be in January in North Dakota, they will charge them for the
expenses
incurred. Has anyone heard of the Coast Guard saying similar things?

"JohnH" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 18 Sep 2003 10:28:42 -0400, Harry Krause

wrote:

some stuff cut out
Uh, before you attempt that sort of voyage, you probably ought to get a
few years of experience in boat handling in your local waters, and not
out of sight of land, at least not the first year.


I could not agree more. You really don't want to even start trying to plan
a long trip till you and your crew know your boat inside and out, as well as
the electronics, backup navigation methods, and how your boat handles
weather. Not to mention learning the rules of the road, and getting some
experience dealing with idiots who ignore them. Also, you will have a
better idea of how you and your crew enjoy spending the day on the water.
It's very easy to sit down and take your cruising speed, multiply by however
many hours, and think you will really be able to maintain that. Probably
not realistic.

Dave

You should hear some of the incompotent nonsense that happens here on the
Chesapeake. Recently I heard an exchange between a tow-boat operator, and
some guy who'd piloted his boat up onto some rocks, about 2AM. The tow-boat
guy told the boater to attach the tow-hook to the D-ring on his transom.
The boater asked for help locating his transom. Then the tow-dude told Mr.
Stranded to shine his light where the tow-hook was attached to the boat.
Then, he said "Don't shine the light on me, shine it where the line is
attached to YOUR boat." I kid you not.

Dave

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
Well, sometimes it's justified. In the case of hikers, I recall at least
two
news stories which mentioned that the searches had cost a couple of small
town police departments a few hundred grand for helicopter time, etc. In
both cases, the hikers were woefully unprepared and inexperienced, for the
terrain and weather they were trying to tackle. That's wrong.

"Keith" wrote in message
...
Yep. Your tax dollars are no longer enough... they'll charge you by the
hour
if they possibly can.

--


Keith
__
If you must pick between two evils, pick the one you've never tried
before.
"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
I'm curious: The park service and other agencies say that if they have
to
rescue people incompetent backpackers who think their first practice
run
should be in January in North Dakota, they will charge them for the
expenses
incurred. Has anyone heard of the Coast Guard saying similar things?

I believe it. I stayed at an Adirondacks resort this summer, and anytime I
came back to the dock after night fishing, one particular meat head would
come out to the dock to "help" me by shining one of those zillion
candlepower flashlights at my boat. Of course, by the time the beam goes
100', it's 10' wide AT LEAST, meaning it was shining right into my eyes.
After two nights of this, I politely yelled "turn off that f__king light,
please!" Would you believe she asked me why, after the boat was tied up? And
this was a 65 year old woman with a boat of her own.

"DaveH" wrote in message
...
You should hear some of the incompotent nonsense that happens here on the
Chesapeake. Recently I heard an exchange between a tow-boat operator, and
some guy who'd piloted his boat up onto some rocks, about 2AM. The
tow-boat
guy told the boater to attach the tow-hook to the D-ring on his transom.
The boater asked for help locating his transom. Then the tow-dude told
Mr.
Stranded to shine his light where the tow-hook was attached to the boat.
Then, he said "Don't shine the light on me, shine it where the line is
attached to YOUR boat." I kid you not.