Are you looking for information so you can take our Boating Course? You're close, but not quite there, go here instead > Extra Stuff for the Boating Class Are you a current student in the Boating Class? Then you're in the right place to find all kinds of extra information, study aids, clarifications etc. Read on! Fall 2008 Class Schedule

How far is that anyway?

Nautical measurements don't always make complete sense...but then it's all based on tradition and it has its own language. Here are some nautical measurements, just in case someone utters tham and you have no idea what they are talking about!

6 feet = 1 fathom
1 cable = 1/10th of a nautical mile (720 feet or 120 fathoms)
7.5 cables = 1 mile
5280 feet = 1 statute mile
6076 feet = 1 nautical mile
880 fathoms = 1 mile
1 nautical mile = 1/60 of a latitudinal degree (1 minute of latitude)
60 nautical miles = 1 degree of latitude
3 nautical miles = 1 marine league

Want more? Visit Commander Bob's page.....

So what exactly does "Small Vessel" mean?

Someone asked this in a class and it turns out it's not an easily quantifiable thing. After corresponding with two separate government officials, I was sent the following, interpret it how you wish and contact Transport Canada if you want more information than this.......

From the Small Vessel Regulations: Section 3.

(1) Subject to subsection (2), these Regulations, except Part I, apply in respect of the following small vessels:

(a) a pleasure craft;

(b) a passenger-carrying vessel that does not exceed 15 tons gross tonnage and that does not carry more than 12 passengers; and

(c) a power-driven vessel that does not exceed 15 tons gross tonnage, that does not carry passengers and that is neither a pleasure craft nor a fishing vessel.

(2) These Regulations do not apply to floating devices that measure less than 2 m in length and that are not designed to be fitted with a motor.

But what about......?

OK, so maybe that cleared some things up....but how do we define a passenger, and what about a pleasurecraft...how is that defined?

The Office of Boating Safety for Transport Canada sent me the following:

_____________________________________________

The Canada Shipping Act, 2001 also defines "passenger" as follows:

''passenger'' means a person carried on a vessel by the owner or operator, other than

(a) a person carried on a Safety Convention vessel who is

(i) the master, a member of the crew or a person employed or engaged in any capacity on board the vessel on the business of that vessel, or

(ii) under one year of age;

(b) a person carried on a vessel that is not a Safety Convention vessel who is

(i) the master, a member of the crew or a person employed or engaged in any capacity on board the vessel on the business of that vessel, or

(ii) a guest on board the vessel, if the vessel is used exclusively for pleasure and the guest is carried on it without remuneration or any object of profit;

(c) a person carried on a vessel in pursuance of the obligation on the master to carry shipwrecked, distressed or other persons or by reason of any circumstances that neither the master nor the owner could have prevented; or

(d) a person of a prescribed class.

As you can see from (b (ii)) above, any guests on board a pleasure craft would not be considered as "passengers" under the Canada Shipping Act, 2001.  Therefore, by definition, if a "pleasure craft" were to carry passengers, then the boat would cease to be a "pleasure craft".  For example, if someone were to take their pleasure boat out for a day trip and charge his/her friends a fee (beyond sharing of expenses) to join them for the trip, then the boat would become a passenger vessel and be subject to differing requirements.

As for alcohol consumption, these regulations are in the hands of individual provinces so we recommend that you consult with the appropriate local law enforcement authorities with regard to consumption in different areas.

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Oh yes, clear as mud.

So am I allowed to drink alcohol on my boat?

While our course notes say very clearly that it is illegal for anyone to drink alcohol while underway. the issue came up (over a beer of course) after class one night. A thought was posed "Obviously this does not apply to commercial vessels...but what about large pleasurecraft entertaining...say a certain millionaire and his private yacht....?"

Well, two things came out of this converstaion

#1. How do we define a pleasure craft?

#2. Who can drink on what and when?

After much discussion, I posed the question to the legal beagles and these were their responses:

_____________________________________________

Thank you for your email of March 26, 2008 inquiring about the rules for liquor in boats. Unfortunately, the answer is not clear cut and there is no easily accessible information available.
 
The Criminal Code includes the offences of operating a vessel or having care or control of a vessel, whether it is in motion or not, while impaired by alcohol or a drug or having a blood alcohol level over .08.
 
Your reference to the requirement for permanent sleeping quarters, etc., refers to Ontario law only. The Ontario legislation specifically forbids the operation of a boat with liquor on board unless it is unopened and sealed, or stored in a closed compartment. Alcohol can only be consumed aboard a pleasure craft that has permanent sleeping accommodations and permanent cooking and sanitary facilities, and only while the boat is "at anchor or is secured to the dock or land."
 
In Alberta the issue of liquor on boats is dealt with by defining as a "temporary residence" "a watercraft that has built-in living accommodation and is moored in an area where moorage is not prohibited." Liquor consumption on a boat in other circumstances is prohibited under the general rule prohibiting the use of liquor in a public place.
 
In BC it is necessary to distinguish private vessels used by the owner and pleasure vessels operated as a business.
 
A pleasure vessel used as a business, like the Christmas lights tour boats or a yacht which is rented out with a crew for day tours, may serve and sell liquor to the guests only if it is licensed. We have a special set of licensing rules for these vessels: Here is what our policy manuals says:
 
Motor Vessels:

Special conditions apply to liquor sales and service on motor vessels, again established under the general manager's broader authority to set licence terms and conditions under section 12 of the Act. The conditions for motor vessels were established to accommodate the circumstances of a particular category of motor vessel, including cruise ships or larger motor vessels that ply scheduled routes or travel from one destination to another. The intent is also to recognize that some charter vessels provide a service that, while primarily marine oriented, is consistent with the services provided by other sectors of the hospitality industry (for example, luncheon and dinner cruises), and may therefore be appropriate for licensing.

To ensure that motor vessel licensing is in the public interest, and recognizing the difficulties of controlling patrons when the licensee has a limited ability to eject unruly or intoxicated persons, the policy gives special consideration to providing for the safety of passengers who have consumed alcohol. These requirements are incorporated into federal safety standards for the type of boat transportation being offered. As a condition of the liquor licence, the licensee must demonstrate that these standards have been met.
 
All liquor must be purchased through a designated liquor store or other person approved by the Liquor Distribution Branch. This legislated requirement for all licence classes is explicitly stated in
the motor vessel policy to clarify that liquor cannot be purchased at American ports for service during the cruise or tour, unless otherwise approved by the general manager.
 
Finally, the special conditions that apply to motor vessels permit liquor service at dockside for a maximum of up to one hour prior to departure and one hour after the end of the trip. If dockside service beyond these times is contemplated, the licensee must first obtain a resolution from the appropriate local government or First Nation. The general manager, in deciding whether to authorize the extended liquor service hours, then takes this resolution into consideration. This limitation is in effect because of the potentially negative effects liquor service may have on communities. The policies set out below reflect the view that the purpose of licensing is to permit liquor service while the vessel is underway, and that, with the exception of the one hour service prior to departure and after the vessel's return, liquor sales and services in the community can be provided by means other than dockside liquor service.
 
Your Pattison yacht question refers to the rules for a private vessel used by the owner/lessee and guests. This is considered a private residence. A vessel may be a private residence if it is "genuinely and actually occupied and used" by the owner or lessee as a private dwelling or vacation home. People can consume liquor in their residences. A vessel which qualifies as a residence is a residence whether docked or under way. (The Criminal Code prohibition against
operating or being in care and control of a vessel while impaired or over .08 still applies.)
 
Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General Liquor Control and Licensing

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Interpret that how you wish...if you have further questions on it, really, don't ask me please, I'm a biologist and a volunteer webmaster....not a lawyer and I don't work for Transport Canada so it doesn't behoove me to tell you what it means.....and if you try to tell me what it means....I'll just go glassy eyed because it involves legal speak...not biology! Now if you'd like to discuss the cellular stress responses to microbial disease processes in salmonid fishes...I could happily discuss that with you for hours.... ;)

Last growth spurt on September 2, 2008

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