piloting tips and techniques 93
- Label the range arcs. As in the illustration, label the range arcs on both
sides of the bold central trackline. To save chart wear, tape over your grid.
Th at’s it! Now you’re ready to plot any position off your GPS in less than
5 seconds with just a pencil. - Use the waypoint bearing and range function. Set the GPS menu onto the
waypoint bearing and range function. As you steam toward your waypoint,
read the bearing and range from the GPS. Place a dot on your grid where
bearing and range intersect. If you lose the GPS, you’ll instantly know how
to get to your destination.
Sail a Tacking Cone to a Windward Destination
You’ve been reaching on a beauty of a westerly breeze, heading for Cape Landfall
dead ahead to the north. But the wind seems determined to continue veering,
and you soon fi nd yourself on a close reach. You have 6 miles to go, sunset is
in 3 hours, and you are averaging 4 knots. Your 1845 ETA may be hard to make
if this wind keeps shift ing. If it clocks a few more degrees to the right you’ll be
hard on the wind, tacking and adding more mileage. Better prepare now for
sailing those last few miles close-hauled.
A tacking cone helps you zero in on your destination and makes naviga-
tion less stressful. Before we delve into the strategy for using a tacking cone,
we need to understand the concept of lifts and headers.
A lift occurs when the wind direction moves away from the bow. When
lift ed, you can point your boat closer to your windward destination. A header
occurs when the wind direction moves toward the bow. When headed, you can
no longer point as close to your windward destination as you could before, and
you will need to alter your course or tack. Take advantage of lift s and headers
to reach your destination sooner. When going to windward, tack on a header
(because a header on one tack is a lift on the other) and point higher on a lift.
Now, review the strategies you’ll need to make the best progress toward
any windward goal.
Q Start on the tack that takes you closest to your destination.
Q Sail the longest leg toward the mark fi rst.
Q Tack on headers; point higher on lift s. Th is keeps you near the TR and
progressing toward the windward destination.Find a prominent charted landmark or land feature in line with your desti-
nation, and draw a straight line back from the object to represent your TR.
Next, draw two bearings from the object to form a narrow cone on each side
of the TR. Make your tacking cone between 10 and 20 degrees on each side
of the TR, depending on the wind. In steady winds, use 10 degrees; in gusty,