Safely Sharing Waterways

Recently, The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released a report on boater safety, including the challenges in sharing waterways between commercial traffic, recreational boats (motors and sails) and, of course, paddle craft.

The entire thing is quite a good read. You can find a good summary here, and the full report in PDF form here. Fellow paddler and NYC blogger Frogma has a post up about a recent experience she had with a group in low visibility, sharing the waterways; nothing terrible happened. There's no reason these waters can't be shared.

There is a lot to unpack from the report and its summary. Setting aside the typo of "waived" for "waved" early in the document, I thought I'd write up what I see in what they came up with. What's in italics in this post is lifted directly from the report.


There are three organizations that are referred to throughout the document, sometimes by name, sometimes by acronym. The USCG is the United States Coast Guard; NASBLA is the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators; NWSC is the National Water Safety Congress.

Who are these people?

Well, the Coast Guard is the Coast Guard; they're a branch of the American military that falls under Homeland Security. My brother was an active USCG member and is finishing up as a reservist with the rank of chief; their main role is law enforcement and SAR (Search And Rescue). Also, icebreaking.

NASBLA is an association of US state boating agencies. They have a lot of standards, and good information, but no enforcement capability; that's the realm of the individual states.

NWSC is a non-profit, formed in 1951, to promote safe recreational use of our waterways. That's straight from their website.



The report itself opens dramatically, recounting the day last summer (2016) when a NY Waterways ferry collided with a couple of kayakers, part of a larger group, on a trip out of Pier 84 in Manhattan; this is accompanied by a screenshot from a "bridgecam" showing the kayakers and the sun glare conditions on the water.

However, that is all you will hear about that story, and pretty much all you will hear about paddling in New York City. Nothing else in this report addresses or references that incident or any findings about it.

Early in the summary, the report states:

. . .all recreational vessel operators need to attain a minimum level of boating safety education to mitigate risk. In addition, the NTSB [National Transportation Safety Board] believes the U.S. Coast Guard should require recreational boaters on US navigable waterways to demonstrate completion of an instructional course meeting the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators or equivalent standards.

OK, I agree with this, in principle at least. Anyone operating on US waterways should know what they're doing. But, what would that mean? Here, they're saying the Coast Guard should require boaters to demonstrate that they have taken a class the meets standards set by NASBLA, or something like that.

Except, think through what this means organizationally. This means that first NASBLA has to create standards, and then get agencies to offer those classes. Not only that, but they have to ensure those classes actually meet those standards (or, is it the Coast Guard's job - it isn't clear). And, on top of all of that, the report tasks the Coast Guard with making sure mariners have taken one of these classes. Madam, might I see your boating safety diploma?

Although the number of registered recreational vessels has decreased over the last decade, the reduction is not reflective of the trend in the total number of vessels on the waterways. In fact, the number of canoers, kayakers, and standup paddleboarders (SUP) increased by 21.9 percent between 2008 and 2014 (see Appendix A), with the vast majority of their vessels being unregistered. Consequently, the number of interactions between these diverse vessels has risen, thereby increasing the safety risk, especially where confined waterways limit the ability of vessels to maneuver safely.

Registration of paddlecraft would bring a very different dynamic to the industry. For one thing, unlike motor or sail boats, you don't need a lot of training to get started - which is arguably one of the concerns in the first place.

All that being said, I can't help but believe that disparate sets of data are being used to paint a picture of irresponsible paddlers clogging our nation's navigable arteries. They're saying that 1) there are more paddlecraft out there, but also 2) they aren't registered, so therefor 3) there must be a lot more unregistered paddlers out there!

Maybe this is true. But, even the industry is uncertain about growth. Is it mostly recreational boats? Sea kayaks? Whitewater boats? How much of the growth in paddlesport is in areas defined as shared waterways? How many of these known-to-be-unknown paddlecraft are on shared waterways, as opposed to a lake or a pond?

The safety risk is exacerbated not only by the diversity of waterway users but also by differences in their experience, marine knowledge, and boat-handling skills.

Holy shizzlesnacks, that is a true statement. And here, we start to get to the heart of the problem. Most of the paddlers I know have at least enough experience to know what they should and shouldn't do, and have basic knowledge of the "rules of the road", or COLREGS. 

On the other hand, anyone can buy a boat at Wal-Mart and put in at Liberty State Park or Inwood and start paddling in a commercial shipping zone. I have seen people on the water in vessels that are clearly not meant for the conditions here, paddled by people who do not demonstrate even minimal knowledge or ability. And if you're a commercial operator, you don't know. You can't tell who's and expert and who's not.

According to a Coast Guard estimate, only 28 percent of motorized recreational vessel operators were required by state laws to complete a boating safety course or pass an examination of boating safety knowledge in 2015. 

Adding additional risk, recreational vessel operators may not realize that their vessels’ small sizes and nonmetal construction materials make both visual and radar detection more difficult. An officer in charge of the navigation watch on a large cargo or passenger ship positioned 100 feet or more above the water’s surface will be challenged to see from the bridge window or detect by radar a paddleboard whose operator is maneuvering in close proximity to the larger vessel.

These are two very important facts. On the first, the challenge is the disparity between regulations in the several states, in particular when they share waters - for example, New York and New Jersey on the Hudson River. On the second, I am of the opinion that this needs to be communicated more. Captains are not necessarily being jerks when they can't see you. They can't always see something as small as a kayak or paddleboard. We are hard to see, even with our bright colors, reflective tape, and use of radios.

This is where I'm glad to say the report includes non-paddle craft as well; the problem of sharing waterways is not limited to human-powered vessels.

Open motorboats accounted for the highest number of injuries and fatalities (1,661), followed by personal watercraft (656), cabin motorboats (305), canoes and kayaks (230), and pontoon boats (139). A comparison with Coast Guard recreational vessel accident data from 2011 showed similar trends. 

In contrast, very few operators of non-motorized recreational vessels are required to be licensed or demonstrate knowledge of the navigation rules, and many operators of motorized recreational vessels are exempt from these requirements as well. You might make the argument that despite the increase in unregistered paddlers, there hasn't been an excessive increase in paddlers involved in injuries and fatalities.

The degree of risk overall appears to be influenced largely by a lack of awareness or understanding of the navigation rules among a large portion of recreational boat operators and by their lack of adequate boating knowledge and skills.

Here is the only other notable mention of August's accident in New York City:

The tour operator involved in the August 2016 New York City accident was unaware of the practice that counterparts in Chicago employed: the use of radios by kayak tour guides to communicate with commercial vessels. NTSB believes using radios is a practice that can enhance safety, and practices such as these should be shared among HSCs (Harbor Safety Committees) so that stakeholders can learn about them and implement them as appropriate.

NTSB concludes that all recreational vessel operators need to attain a minimum level of boating safety education to mitigate the various risks associated with the type of vessel being operated. 

[Emphasis mine]

Yes. Amen to radios, with the caveat that they are not 100% effective. Paddlers are low to the water, and I have heard directly from commercial skippers that they do not always have the ability to reply to every call, especially when completing a complex maneuver. It's still useful to announce a securite, and even more useful to listen to the other traffic around you. 

And, I agree that all recreational vessel operators need to attain a minimum level of boating safety education. It's hard not to. It's a common sense idea.

However, this brings us back to the gaping hole at in the center of this report: there is no clear definition of who is responsible for defining or maintaining these standards, nor for enforcing them, nor who is responsible when they are violated. 

Findings 

1. Harbor safety committees can substantively improve safety between commercial and recreational vessels if risks are regularly identified, practices are developed and implemented to mitigate these risks, and these practices are shared with stakeholders and other harbor safety committees. 
2. All recreational vessel operators need to attain a minimum level of boating safety education to mitigate the various risks associated with the type of vessel being operated. 
3. The Coast Guard should renew its efforts to seek legislative authority to require recreational boaters on waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to obtain education that meets National Association of State Boating Law Administrators or equivalent standards. 
4. A Guide to Multiple Use Waterway Management should be reviewed and updated at regular intervals.

I hate to pick nits, because I agree with so much of what is said in this report but:

1. Yes, they can. But how many will, and who would make sure that they do?
2. Yes. Absolutely. But again, who defines that, and then makes it a standard?
3. Just to be clear, the report is saying that the Coast Guard should ask congress to let them enforce rules created by an interstate consortium that in itself has no enforcement powers.
4. Yes. Whatever this document is should be reviewed and updated. But, at the risk of sounding like an owl . . . .Who? Who?

Recommendations 
As a result of this report, the National Transportation Safety Board makes the following safety recommendations 

To the US Coast Guard: 

1. Establish a process whereby, at regular intervals, all harbor safety committees identify the safety risks posed by the interaction of commercial and recreational vessels in their respective geographic areas; where necessary, develop and implement practices to mitigate those risks; and share successful practices among all harbor safety committees. (M-17-1). 
2. Seek statutory authority that requires all recreational boat operators on waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to demonstrate completion of an instructional course or an equivalent that meets the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators standards. (M-17-2). 
3. Work with the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators and the National Water Safety Congress to review and update A Guide to Multiple Use Waterway Management at regular intervals. (M-17-3).

To the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators: 

1. Work with the National Water Safety Congress and the US Coast Guard to review and update A Guide to Multiple Use Waterway Management at regular intervals. (M-17-4) To the National Water Safety Congress: 5. Work with the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators and the US Coast Guard to review and update A Guide to Multiple Use Waterway Management at regular intervals. (M-17-5).

At the end, the report basically puts the onus on the Coast Guard - already one of the most underfunded military or police organizations in the United States - to work with an interstate consortium as well as numerous "harbor Safety Committees", the latter of which may or may not be well-defined. They're all supposed to keep this document updated, and to enforce not only the rules, but that everyone on shared waterways has taken an approved course.

Now, I love me some regulation of industry, but I do wonder how this would work, especially in a time when deregulation and smaller government are coming into vogue.

Winter Bluebird Day

Mr. Cowgirl's new drysuit came in, and we were itching to try it out on the water. Fortunately, yours truly had been organizing a day trip for that very weekend, and so we set out early in the morning for the Inwood Canoe Club.

Our plan was to head out to North Brother Island, or Randalls Island if we were running late.
No one else could make it, so it was just the two of us, and after kitting and fitting, we set out: up the Hudson to Spuyten Duyvil, down the Harlem, through the Bronx Kill, then out around the Brothers.

Passing Fort Washington.

A cooler hat near Swindlers Cove.

A curious structure atop a barge.

There were several signs of new construction along the Harlem, in particular the waterfront of Roberto Clemente Park and, in the South Bronx, new buildings and the refurbishing of old buildings.

In just under two hours, we arrived at the Bronx Kill, turning left to head down it, and saw a newly-built, not-occupied building on the Bronx side, and a fancy pile driver on Randals Island.

Pilin' for what?

The eastern end of the Bronx Kill is one of my favorite waterborne views in the city. I've been here at sunrise, watching pink clouds turn to orange and then yellow, and on overcast days when the entire world might as well be the sea between Queens and the Bronx. Even on a day like today, however, sunny and bright, the breadth of the view was amazing.

Mr. Cowgirl takes in the view.

What lies beyond?

We had a quick snack of cashews and raisins, as we took in the traffic.

First, there was a large barge being pushed southbound to the gate (Hell Gate, that it - we were just north of it). Then we saw a small barge emerge from the gate and head, curiously, between the Brothers - an unusual route because it's narrow and about a third as deep as the main channel around North Brother Island.

But then, we saw an even more interesting sight, and overheard a securite on the radio: a Rheinauer tug pushing a barge up from the gate, with another tug right by it. About half a mile behind it was another barge.

We decided to head north along the Bronx shore, wait for these two vessels to pass, and then look to make our crossing where we wouldn't be in a blind corner.

Ships go in.

Ships come out.

But then, we saw what the first two tugs were up to. The captain announced he'd make a "left wheel" about 400 yards, and what he meant was that we was making a U-turn between North Brother and the Bronx, and his fellow tug acted to push the vessel sideways.

This kinda made sense because, while we were close to slack tide, there was still some current, and for a barge to be pushed from one end would have made a very difficult turn-in-place. So, the second barge pushed from the side, helping her pivot to face south, and then get pushed into place in order to dock along the Bronx shore.

As this was starting to happen, I radioed the skipper, paraphrased as follows:

KC: Rheinauer, Rheinauer, this is Kayak Two just south of you, across from the Brothers. Capain, do you need us to move?
Tug: Who is this, Kayak Two?
KC: Yep Kakak Two. Near the Bronx Kill.
Tug: I don't see you.
KC: [waves paddle]
Tug: Oh, there you are. No you're not in my way, but that one coming from your right is headed there.
KC: OK, thanks. Over and out.

"We're crossing now," I said. I put out a short securite just to let everyone know our intentions, and we headed towards North Brother, the first tugs making their little turn maneuver, and the other one I'd spotted adjusting course clearly to its port - that is, towards where we had just left and not where we were.

I don't mean to belabor radio communications, but when they work they can save a lot of grief and uncertainty. I'd rather ask someone what they're up to than guess. I also have to say, tug skippers are among the most professional and straightforward I've dealt with on the radio.

After we crossed, I announced we were done and would be out of the channels, and said thanks to the captains, and got a "thank you" in return. Fuzzies on the Radio!

Our Rheinauer friend completing her maneuver.

A short break. Manhattan in the far background.

At this point we started around North Brother Island. I've been out this way a couple of times before, in 2012 and 2015. (OMG, have I really been blogging about kayaking that long?) So I'll recap succinctly by saying it's one of the most tragically-storied islands in NYC, Typhoid Mary and General Slocum, abandoned ruins, not allowed to land.

The old plant.

"Ruins" on the chart.

The old ferry dock.

The caretaker's house.

Channel marker 9.

Bird Sanctuary

"It's one of the spookiest islands," said Mr. Cowgirl - right as a bird of prey's piercing shriek let loose across the cold, hollow water.

The bird screamed again, and again, and we spotted it: a hawk, maybe a falcon, perched in the empty branches of the island's trees. Top left-ish of the following picture.

Where's the bird?

At this point we joked that if we were in a horror movie, the audience would be screaming at us to paddle faster. But, you know, in horror movies people can't know what to do. What if paddling faster just meant a jump-cut to use paddling into a shark's mouth?

Also, zombies may not swim, but they can wade.

We continued on our way, clockwise, coming around the southern side. Here we could take in the view of the famous Hell Gate bridge, as well as Manhattan, in the distance.

 New York City: a nice place to live.

I was also please to see something still standing, which I spotted back in 2014 on a trip out to Flushing: A tv and chair. "An Eames Chair," speculated the Mr.

What I like about the following photo is the doubt-reflection of the kayak's tail end.

Hmmmmmm........

In short order,  we set out our return, observing our tug friends were where we left them. The wind had picked up just a little bit, and veered a but to a more westerly direction. Where we'd been a tad too warm on the outbound leg, we were now just right - and when we stopped for a quick bio-break in the Kill, we got shilled right quick.

Farewell North Brother. Our Rheinauer friend heads home.

We were in the Bronx Kill at a time I've rarely been at, early enough in the tidal cycle that there was still some depth, but late enough that there was a strong eddy at the spot where it becomes a rapid. We played a bit with some peelouts and eddy turns.

At one point, a sizable wave train stood up. It was starting to disappear by the time I snapped this photo, but was quite fun - especially since it popped up while we were trying reverse peelouts !

Love Train. . .Freight Train . . .Wave Train.

The paddle back up the Harlem was uneventful. At Spuyten Duyvil, we tried playing with the eddy currents there as well, but they weren't quite as well-defined as in the Kill. After five hours out, with only a short shore break, we were ready to head in, where we cleaned up and put away - but not before encountering Inwood's resident paddleboarder on the water, and another club member who'd just come back from paddling to Yonkers.

Nuclear Kayaking.

I do like this last image though. The entire day was very sunny, so many of my photos had intense lense flare. Add onto that a wet outer lens cover, and I can assure you that there are many more surreal photos in the Cowgirl's library than you'll see online.

We stopped by for a pint at the local pub where our fellow club member was having a get-together with friends (birthday and welcome-to-the 'hood). When we got home, we both were ready to crash out - suddenly our all-day paddle caught up to us physically.

North Brother Island is one of my favorite places to paddle to, even without getting out there. I hope I'll get out there more often.

Circuit Ridin'

My good friend AW dropped her boat off earlier this year at New York Kayak Company for some much needed repairs. As the combination of weather and schedules cleared up, we made plans for some of us to paddle down there from Inwood, meet her, and paddle back. It's a long, lonesome paddle, and now that spring is here most of us don't need much of an excuse to go on a trip.

Trouble was, with the weather we had Saturday, we had to put off that trip, and AW was busy Sunday, so she couldn't make it. However, the Cowgirl has a bevy of paddling friends, one of whom was hankerin' to get out on the water Sunday, what with the beautiful predicted weather. My good friend and fellow NYKC ranch hand SS agreed to meet us at Pier 40 and paddle AW's boat back.

IB and I met at Inwood, running a little late, departing at 1400, about 1h15m past Battery Low. We might have left sooner, but would have had to wait longer to turn around for the return. As it was, we made excellent time, about 1h50 minutes, and all in spent about an hour killing time before we left.

On the way down, we saw a curious sight - a Circle Line boat that passed us kept unusually close to the Manhattan shore below Riverbank State Park. We also spotted a beautiful Spanish training ship, the white-hulled, four-master Juan Sebastian de Elcano, moored in a berth near the Intrepid.

More importantly, I used my radio a bit, in part to allay IB's concerns about ferry traffic. Between Pier 96 and Pier 66 I made a couple of announcements, along the lines of, "Securite, Securite, this is kayak two, southbound on the North River, Pier 84" (or wherever we were). The North River is the old mariner term for the Hudson River, and it's how you'll hear other vessels refer to it.

While at the shop, I picked up a new neoprene sprayskirt, a knife (to replace one that decided to plunge into the Harlem), and some lines to secure hats and glasses. I talked shop with the desk help, caught up on gossip with SS, and got plenty hydrated - I was well into the middle stages of a head cold and needed to keep up my fluids.

SS took AW's boat about in the Pier 40 embayment. It's a different model than other boats she has paddled, but she's paddled plenty of the same make (Tiderace). We set out north, with less current than our trip down, and practiced the same radio protocol. At one point, we did directly contact a Circle Line vessel that we thought was pulling in to a slip we were paddling before, but the captain assured us he was parking a few piers up. Circle Line's got several places to park.

It was a beautiful day, and that was reward enough. Clear, sunny skies, and air temps that belied the mid-50s F of the water. We crested over ferry wake, and paused when a tender swerved in front of us while rounding 'bout to a parked crane barge. Once clear of midtown, we began the long trip alongside nearly endless Manhattan parkland.

One unusual sight was the KT Albatross, a large ocean-going bulk carrier. We spotted her from the Upper West Side as she passed, southbound, under the George Washington Bride, and like our earlier Circle Line friend, curiously close to the Manhattan shore. While normally I would have gone out in the channel for more current, I wasn't sure how long she'd stay so close to shore, so we kept near the outer line of the mooring field above 79th Street Boat Basin.

Onward we went, finding odd spots where standing waves belied unusual underwater topography. Eventually, we passed under the George Washington Bridge, past the red buoy, and onwards home.

It was a bonnie day, with good friends, and we did someone a favor. SS got to see the north, and all in, roundtrip it was a scotche over 18 miles. With current, we managed to return in about 2h10m.

Contact

This summer I finally bought a handheld marine radio (Standard Horizon 851x, if you're interested). After years of paddling without my own radio, I finally dropped the money to get one, in part because I paddle more near the big vessels in the harbor.

Some people might

As it happened, we were coming back from a short trip across the river and decided to wait for a southbound barge to pass us by. While we waited, I overheard that vessel and another talking on the radio - I paraphrase below:

Vessel 1: This is [vessel 1] coming round the Battery to the North River.

Vessel 2: Hey there vessel 1, this is [vessel 2] southbound on North River. one to do one or two?

Vessel 1: 1 is fine.

Vessel 2: OK. Hey, there's some kayakers here, about 4 by the Holland Tunnel.

Vessel 1: I don't see them.

Vessel 2: They're behind me now.

Vessel 1: OK, I see 'em.

So, a little translation first: The Hudson River is referred to as the North River, and "one or two" I think is code for 1 or two toots of the horn, which are the more traditional way of signaling passing port to port (1 toot) or starboard to starboard (2 toots).

I decided to let them know our intentions, first talking to Vessel 2, then Vessel 1, but neither responded.

As it happens, I was able to look up Vessel 2's owner and email them, and I got a reply from one of the crew. He hadn't heard me hailing them, but had heard me attempting to hail the other vessel. He gave me a nice pat on the head for being a polite kayaker and suggested a way to signal intentions better (one that I knew, but which we were not using). And that was that.

Put another way: I emailed a harbor vessel after trying to talk to her on the water.