Living in Tauranga and paddling in one of the countries biggest ports, we get to see our fair share of ships coming and going. (about 8 per day on average).

After seeing the (above quoted) newspaper article about the yachties, I thought it might be relevant to share some of the maritime rules, as they are not actually that easy to find.


Vessel's of 500 tonnes or more have right of way
500 tonnes is approximately the size of a tug boat.

Not only is a big vessel difficult to manouvre, but what a lot of people don't realize is that a large part of the ship is underwater. When navigating in narrow channels and entrances, there is not much room for the ship to move.




Maintain a safe distance around a moving ship.
Our Harbour master recommended we stay completely out of the shipping channel any time a ship is moving.

Like a waka, ships are often steered from the back. The Captain will be in the tower at the back of the ship. Which means when you get close they can't see you.

Always assume the ship cannot see you, and act accordingly.





Ships are fast.
Ships do travel fast even though it may not look it. Coming into port they are generally doing 10 knots.

So how fast is 10 knots? In simple terms, if you are 100m in front of the ship (1 rugby field), you have about 20 seconds to get out of the way.


Give 50m clearance while in port
Even when the ships are in port and not moving you still have to take a wide berth. Why? because cranes fail, logs and containers do fall off occasionally, and you don't want to be underneath them when it happens.




Here are some tips that might help you

• Always assume the ship cannot see you
• Know where the Tug boats are berthed, if they are not there where are they?
• Find out what the Pilot boat looks like. If you see if going out, that is a sure sign something bigger will be on its way shortly
• Learn about your harbour, where the shipping channels are
• If a ship starts entering the harbour have an alternative training course up your sleeve.
• Different regions have different rules. Check with your local harbour master if you are not sure of the regulations

References
Article Sun Live - Yachties Facing Tickets
Maritime NZ website
Port of Tauranga

If you have any questions or find these articles useful, just drop us a bell at [email protected] and that will encourage us to write some more.

Alex Ryder
Tauranga Moana Outrigger Canoe Club