Yudu - Digital_REEDs_East08

Be sure to check the Navigation Rules for Anchor Lights: Vessels at anchor must
proper light locations and ranges of visibility. show an anchor light unless located in a spe-
Sailing Vessels: Vessels under sail less than cial anchorage area designated by the Secre-
20 meters in length have several options. tary of Transportation.
They may show separate red and green side- For vessels less than 50 meters in length,
lights with a white sternlight; the red and the light should be an all-round white light
green lights may be combined in a single visible for two miles. It should be located
bow fixture. Another option is to show a where it may best be seen.
masthead all-round red light above an all- Many sailboats have masthead anchor
round green light in addition to the normal lights. It must be kept in mind that these are
sidelights and sternlight. The combined red- located well above the line of sight of many
green-white masthead light is very popular small coastal vessels likely to be encountered
as it has the advantage of consuming less at night. A safer alternative is a light hung at
power while being highly visible offshore. the lowest height from which it can be seen
When this tri-color light is shown, normal in all directions.
sidelights and stern light are not shown, nor Vessels less than 7 meters in length are not
are the red-over-green lights. required to display anchor lights when an-
Vessels less than 7 meters may, instead of chored in an area clear of vessel traffic.
running lights, carry a flashlight or lantern Shapes: Anchored boats should hang a
to be shown in time to prevent collision. black ball in the forward part of the vessel.
Sailing vessels under power must show the Sailing vessels under power with sails hoisted
same lights as a power vessel (the tri-color must hang an inverted cone (point down) in
masthead light may not be used). the forward part of the vessel. (Inland Rules
Some state regulations require sidelights only exempt vessels under 12 meters in length.)
and sternlight on a sailboat of any size.
US Customs and Border Protection:
Surviving the New Regulations
ustoms
The first thing to note is that the require- clude the vessel’s name, nationality, mas-
C
ments related to entry procedures for private ter’s name, place of docking and arrival
yachts is constantly evolving. Ignorance of time. At that time, you may be directed to
the law will not be accepted as an excuse by an inspection area. Undocumented US ves-
the generally polite but unfailingly serious sels must have valid identification numbers
officials connected with US Customs and as issued by the state of registry. US vessels
Border Protection (a new combined agency will not be required to pay entrance and
ules
under the Department of Homeland Secu- clearing fees (so-called “formal entry”).
R
rity). Reeds recommends that every skipper s &OREIGN
mAGGEDVESSELSMUSTREPORT
anticipating leaving US territorial waters talk their arrival to USCBP immediately and
with a USCBP agent prior to leaving or con- make formal entry within 24 hours. Call
tact the Washington DC office via their Web- 800-973-2867 after normal business
site, www.cbp.gov, where you will find the hours. The good news here is that USCBP
current forms, procedures and regulations. does not charge overtime. Foreign ves-
The following information was valid at the sels may then purchase a cruising license,
time of going to press in late summer, 2007. which will allow the vessel to travel from
Basically, all pleasure boats of any size that one US port to another with no clear-
are arriving from a foreign port, whether ance and entry procedures other than a
that vessel is a US-registered vessel or a phone call. This cruising license should
foreign-registered vessel, must report to a be obtained at the first port of entry and
USCBP port of entry immediately upon ar- is normally valid for one year. After the
rival, and must also report any foreign mer- expiry of the license, the vessel cannot get
chandise aboard that is subject to duty. another one until at least 15 days after the
s 4HEREQUIREDREPORTMAYBEMADEexpirBation ofYhAN the first licY ense and the ves-
means of communication,” and must in- sel arrives again from a foreign port.
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