6 • Apr. 22 - May 5, 2016 • The Log


thelog.com


Have an opinion about some- thing you read in The Log?


Write to: The Log Editorial, 18475 Bandilier Circle, Fountain Valley, CA 92708-7000.; or email editor@thelog.com.


Letters/Online Comments


Loved the April Fools’ Day story


Re: Imperial Beach angler catches fi sh helps rescue stranded boater (March 25 issue). I live in IB so I had to let my friends know that this guy was my next door neigh- bor to add to it. Great to have a little fun!


Steve


Submitted on TheLog.com Totally sucked me in


Re: Imperial Beach angler catches fi sh helps rescue stranded boater (March 25 issue). Thanks for a good chuckle — at my own expense for being so gullible. Released some pleasure endor- phins for the day and put a smile on my face. Good job! I’m glad The Log has a sense of humor. Sail on!


Anonymous Submitted on TheLog.com


So not funny


Re: Imperial Beach angler catches fi sh helps rescue stranded boater (March 25 issue). What a waste of time reading that BS.


Kiwi Submitted on TheLog.com


SB slips are not in the ‘cheap seats’


Re: Santa Barbara City Council to consider slip fee increase (April 8 issue). Regarding your Santa Barbara slip fee increase story. I believe you should have included the fact that in SB, 99 percent of all slip permit holders have paid thousands for the rights to rent a slip. For example my 35 foot slip has a market value of $70,000 (cash) plus the harbor transfer fee. Your article gives the impression that our slip rates are in the cheap seats. Not quite true. Very similar concept to Catalina moorings.


Robert


Submitted on TheLog.com Boating Ignored?


Re: Height increase cleared for new Channel Islands Harbor hotel (April 8 issue). While automobile parking seems to be a big concern, there is no mention of docking for boaters who are hotel guests or visitors nor is there any mention of


See COMMENTS page 19


Ask a Maritime Attorney Who’s at fault in a Shipping Lane collision?


By David Weil, Esq. Q


I was recently a pas- senger aboard my brother in-law’s moto- ryacht during a pleasure trip to Catalina when we had a close encounter with a mer- chant ship. We were in fairly thick fog and we were steer- ing a compass course from the fl ying bridge helm station when we heard a loud series of blasts from a ship’s horn that was obviously very close. My brother-in-law ran down to the lower helm station to look at the radar, and he was able to make a hard right turn to keep us out of trouble. In hindsight I felt he did a number of things wrong, including his failure to look at the radar or monitor the VHF radio, but the biggest problem was, in my opinion, we were in an established ship- ping lane in a time of limited visibility. If there had been a collision would he have been responsible?


pleasure boat, or the failure to monitor radar or a VHF radio, could lead to a fi nding of fault in a collision. We will address those issues, but we should note the Navigation Rules (commonly referred to as the Rules of the Road) are not followed by vessel opera- tors, or evaluated by courts, in a vacuum. All of the circum- stances existing at the time must be considered, including visibility, weather, sea state, and the number, type, course and speed of vessels involved in the incident and other ves- sels in the immediate area at the time of the incident. The most important thing to know about collisions at sea is that they are almost never deemed to be the responsibil- ity of one party. This is in large part due to the application of Navigation Rule 5, which requires all boats to maintain a good lookout at all times, and Rules 2 and 8, which require all vessels to take steps to avoid


A


Our reader is interested in whether the use of shipping lanes by a


collision even if they have the right of way in an encounter. Since the burden for safety at sea is shared by all mariners, liability for damage caused by a collision at sea is attributed between various parties under a concept known as “compara- tive fault.” Under this system, each party will be required to bear some percentage of the total loss, based upon the percentage of fault allocated to them. The circumstances vary considerably from case to case, and the outcome will depend upon what the expert witnesses have to say about the actions of the parties. This is the umbrella under which all cases like this will be evalu- ated. With that in mind, we can look at our reader’s concerns. “Shipping lanes” exist at the approaches to major bluewater ports and are clearly marked on nautical charts. Recreational vessels are not prohibited from entering a shipping lane. They are, however, required under Rule 10 of the Navigation Rules to exit them as quickly as See ATTORNEY page 11


Fast Facts – Sportfi shing Revenues


Did you know California’s revenues from fi shing licenses and report cards reached an all time high of $65,174,380 in 2009? However the number of licenses and report cards sold in 2009 totaled less than half of the amount purchased in 1970. Fishing license and report card revenue totaled $63,674,556, on almost 2.5 million licenses and report cards sold, in 2015.


Here is a quick look at revenues, with license and report card/stamp sales: Year


2015 2010 2005 2000 1995 1990 1985 1980 1975 1970


Total Revenue $63,674,556 $60,255,027 $54,445,315 $48,265,569 $45,099,334 $39,287,924 $32,303,054 $21,520,334 $17,319,131 $10,164,718


Units* Sold 2,482,099 2,410,008 2,870,727 3,158,085 3,007,802 3,314,096 3,501,821 6,274,667 5,666,766 5,815,566


* Licenses/validations/report cards/stamps Source: California Department of Fish and Wildlife


On Board With Johnson by J.R. Johnson


NOAA photo


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52