GL: Talking to tows

[Tommy Terrific]

SORRY ABOUT THE "CAPS" LOCK BEING ON.
////////////////////
Hi Guys,

I have a reasonable amount of experience with tows on the rivers and it has 
been my experience that they don't use mile markers, only referring to their 
location as "hatch bend" or "hawks bill island", so having an open, paper 
chart is a big help on the rivers.  I have never heard any reference to mile 
markers, period.  As far as announcing your presence, they already know you 
are there and know every pleasure boater (their terminology for "us") 100 
miles in both directions, but they may not know your exact location.  At a 
blind bend, I usually call out on the radio "this is the red roofed pleasure 
boat, downstream at Bald Eagle island....does any upstream tow want me to be 
in any special location?"  This usually helps a great amount.

Although it is too late for this years loopers, future loopers should 
consider adding an AIS system to their vessel.  This essentially is an 
identification system of all commercial boats over "x-feet".  It tells the 
name of the vessel, it's direction, it's speed, and a lot of other data.  It 
is wonderful for loopers to know that a BIG commercial BOAT IS ON THE OTHER 
SIDE OF THE APPROACHING BEND, OR ISLAND, OR JUST SIMPLY, WHAT IS IN THE 
AREA.
tt


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Coleen Barger" <coleen at calypsopoet.net>
To: <great-loop at lists.samurai.com>
Sent: Sunday, September 02, 2007 9:35 PM
Subject: GL: Talking to tows


2. If you cannot see the tow's name before you call it (common for an 
oncoming pass situation), describe it by location to the best degree 
possible when you hail. E.g., "Northbound tow at Mile 220" or "Southbound 
tow departing from Pickwick Lock".

3. The second part of your hail is your own identification. Here it is 
pretty
useless to use your boat's name. Rather than say "Calypso Poet," I prefer to 
describe myself by vessel type and location. E.g., "This is the southbound
pleasurecraft at Mile 221," or "This is the northbound motoryacht waiting to 
enter the lock."

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Coleen Barger" <coleen at calypsopoet.net>
To: <great-loop at lists.samurai.com>
Sent: Sunday, September 02, 2007 9:35 PM
Subject: GL: Talking to tows


> Although it wasn't me who said that the tows record all VHF transmissions 
> (and
> I don't know if that's true or not), I do agree with John Esch that it's 
> smart
> to announce your intentions, as his examples showed, when you have 
> attempted
> to contact a tow (or anyone) to arrange a pass and you have received no
> response.
>
> It's been the experience of the Calypso Poet crew that the places where 
> tows
> tend not to answer our hails are places where there isn't a lot of
> recreational traffic. The Cal-Sag is certainly one of those areas; the 
> lower
> Mississippi River is another (although we had excellent levels of response
> when we went down the Lower Miss in August this year).
>
> Gary thinks it helps for a female voice to do the radio calling. I don't 
> know
> if that is true, but I do usually get the tow captains to talk back to me.
> There are some key aspects to getting a response, however:
>
> 1. Do not call the tow a barge. The barges do not have VHF radios on them.
>
> 2. If you cannot see the tow's name before you call it (common for an 
> oncoming
> pass situation), describe it by location to the best degree possible when 
> you
> hail. E.g., "Northbound tow at Mile 220" or "Southbound tow departing from
> Pickwick Lock".
>
> 3. The second part of your hail is your own identification. Here it is 
> pretty
> useless to use your boat's name. Rather than say "Calypso Poet," I prefer 
> to
> describe myself by vessel type and location. E.g., "This is the southbound
> pleasurecraft at Mile 221," or "This is the northbound motoryacht waiting 
> to
> enter the lock."
>
> I have often heard boat operators call a tow without this kind of
> identification, and the tows typically remain silent, as they don't know 
> where
> you are, which boat you are (if there are two or more in the area), which 
> tow
> you are trying to hail, or whether you are anywhere close to them.
>
> 4. On wide open stretches, do not call the tow when you are still a couple 
> of
> miles away. Even though you can see the tow (it's big), the captain may 
> not be
> able to see you yet. Your boat will appear very, very tiny from that 
> distance.
>
> 5. On narrow rivers (like the Tenn-Tom below Columbus, Mississippi), it's 
> a
> good idea to periodically announce your location, particularly if you are
> headed into a blind hairpin turn. E.g., "Southbound pleasurecraft at mile 
> 185,
> any interested traffic." I can't tell you how many times I have gotten a
> response from an as-yet unseen, but very close, tow coming toward us who 
> has
> asked us to hold back until the tow could make the tight bend. Better to 
> slow
> down and wait than to meet the tow in a narrow bend and find yourself 
> forced
> to cross the shoaly water on the inside of the bend (that is a good way to 
> go
> aground).
>
> 6. In any passing situation, do call the tow in plenty of time for you to 
> be
> able to move to the side of the channel that the tow captain designates.
>
> **One other item for those of you getting into the rivers: A tow who is 
> going
> downstream will typically refer to himself as "southbound" no matter what 
> the
> compass says. And a tow heading upstream against the current will refer to 
> the
> vessel as "northbound." This is all fine and good when your rivers are 
> running
> pretty much north and south (like the Illinois or the Mississippi). When 
> you
> get on the Tennessee River from the Ohio, however, you will be headed 
> upstream
> (i.e., "northbound") even though your compass will be showing 180 degrees 
> or
> something not far from that. To avoid confusion, you may want to refer to 
> your
> own vessel as the one headed "upstream" or "downstream," depending on 
> which
> way you are headed.
>
> Coleen Barger
> Calypso Poet
> http://calypsopoet.net
> _______________________________________________
> http://lists.samurai.com/mailman/listinfo/great-loop
>
> To modify your Great-Loop subscription options (change email address,
> unsubscribe, etc.) go to: 
> http://lists.samurai.com/mailman/options/great-loop