Buoy Reminder

Would anyone know where I could buy one of there buoy reminders (it flips around and says up river on the other side)?

Dock edge marker minder

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They only seem to sell through retailers and none of the retailers seem to have it.

Donsan said:

They only seem to sell through retailers and none of the retailers seem to have it.

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Sorry, all I could find. Good luck to you.

Greetings,
Get a bottle of each and switch as necessary...


IF you remember and are able...

Just make one out of a couple of chess pieces or something.

I made something similar just with a printout and laminator. I made up a little "graphic" using excel that has red nun on one side and a green can on the other. Below I put various vital info like water and air drafts, call sign, etc. Then I made another one just like it but with the red and green reversed. Print it out, laminate it, and you have a convenient flip-card reminder. It's worked out really well.

Now now Mr RTF, you know we don't boat while intoxicated!

I have seen a lot of ideas like colored paper binders or paper clips, colored electricians or duck tape, colored bells and that type of thing but I really would like something a little more professional looking....or just something like this made in China.

Have a plastics shop make up a dozen for you. Keep a couple, sell the rest to cover your costs.

I mean your "professional" version is just three pieces of plastic and a suction cup. Not a lot to it.

A friend made me one with teak, a toggle switch and LEDs. Of course it has to be connected to electrical power.

I think colored electrical tape on a Popsicle stick would do the trick.

I think someone just a week or so ago had a couple colored clothespins doing the trick.

Not to be too big of a PIA...but unless using it for an absolute newbie...I would hope most qualified helmsman have a better understanding of red/green as it's never as simple as a couple pegs near the helm.

While I understand...I also tow/unground dozens and dozens of boaters every years that didn't quite get it. Some with some pretty significant damage.

psneeld said:

I think someone just a week or so ago had a couple colored clothespins doing the trick.

Not to be too big of a PIA...but unless using it for an absolute newbie...I would hope most qualified helmsman have a better understanding of red/green as it's never as simple as a couple pegs near the helm.

While I understand...I also tow/unground dozens and dozens of boaters every years that didn't quite get it. Some with some pretty significant damage.

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I hear ya, but for some of us it's a big help. I'm a licensed captain and have been doing this as long as anyone, but I'm also a little bit dyslexic. I find it really helpful, especially in areas where it's changing back and forth as you transit different inlets, etc.

I know they can be help...but I think having seen people keep right on following whatever was told to them...or whatever "colored clothespin" was on the right...is a pretty big gamble with your boat.

Sometimes buoyage changes change faster than the helmsman can be updated by someone else unless they are the ones following the chart (paper or electronic).

But I'm sure like any tool. if it's applied correctly, it can be a help within reasonable limits...

twistedtree said:

I made something similar just with a printout and laminator. I made up a little "graphic" using excel that has red nun on one side and a green can on the other. Below I put various vital info like water and air drafts, call sign, etc. Then I made another one just like it but with the red and green reversed. Print it out, laminate it, and you have a convenient flip-card reminder. It's worked out really well.

Click to expand...

Care to show us a picture. We promise not to plagiarize. ?

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Trawler

psneeld said:

I know they can be help...but I think having seen people keep right on following whatever was told to them...or whatever "colored clothespin" was on the right...is a pretty big gamble with your boat.

Sometimes buoyage changes change faster than the helmsman can be updated by someone else unless they are the ones following the chart (paper or electronic).

But I'm sure like any tool. if it's applied correctly, it can be a help within reasonable limits...

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Yes, like many things, following blindly will only lead to trouble. I use it to record and remind me what the orientation is at any given time. When the situation changes, I flip the card as needed. Works for me, but everyone processes info differently and responds to different queues.

mbevins said:

Care to show us a picture. We promise not to plagiarize. ?

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Trawler

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Plagiarize away.

Its not hard to remember Red right returning. You still have to figure out which way is returning. I find a paper chart covering the whole area(not always so on electronic turned up for detail) is what works for me.

When the numbers are increasing...RRR...not directed at anyone...just for anyone who didn't know....

eyschulman said:

Its not hard to remember Red right returning. You still have to figure out which way is returning. I find a paper chart covering the whole area(not always so on electronic turned up for detail) is what works for me.

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Yup. Except "when easting in a Thorofare" and several other exceptions. Paper chart overview necessary.

Here's a plagiarized, condensed version of Peter's cheat card. Just print, fold in half, trim and laminate.

Thanks, TwistedTree!!

FlyWright said:

Here's a plagiarized, condensed version of Peter's cheat card. Just print, fold in half, trim and laminate.

Thanks, TwistedTree!!

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Thanks, nice modification.

eyschulman said:

Its not hard to remember Red right returning. You still have to figure out which way is returning. I find a paper chart covering the whole area(not always so on electronic turned up for detail) is what works for me.

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Returning? I mostly cruise the AICW. Red is on the right heading south, on the left heading north. An easier way for me to think of it is, the red is on the mainland side, the green is on the ocean side.

The AICW is made up of rivers, creeks, sounds, etc. connected by land cuts. Many times on a river or sound, the ICW uses the shipping channels so the buoy colors are reversed for that section. There are special yellow marks on the buoys for the AICW but they are very small.

I find looking at the chart (my plotter has the buoys on it) helps to sort this out, keeping in mind that buoys may have been moved since the chart was created. Also, most of the time I have pre planned my route and uploaded it to the plotter so I have a route to follow, keeping in mind that what I actually see in front of me supersedes what the plotter indicates.

For me, I think the cheat card would be confusing because I would have to keep flipping it.

I think you have really illustrated the point. RRR is nice and simple, but reality in many places is much more complex. Returning to where? It's often not obvious which direction is "returning" since there are ports in both directions. And there are lots of rivers/channels/canals where the orientation switches midway through the pass. And the ICW example is another good one. Add to that an intersecting river or two, a couple of primary/secondary buoys, etc, etc and it starts to get complex.

Personally, and this is just how my head works, I like to figure all this out for a given situation/location, then use the cheat device to remind me as I pass through. It saves having to figure it all out again over and over. When circumstances change, I figure it out again and reset the cheat device as needed. There are also plenty of places where I don't use it at all, like a simple entrance into a harbor where there are no other channels.

twistedtree said:

I think you have really illustrated the point. RRR is nice and simple, but reality in many places is much more complex. Returning to where? It's often not obvious ...

Personally, and this is just how my head works, I like to figure all this out for a given situation/location, then use the cheat device to remind me as I pass through. It saves having to figure it all out again over and over. When circumstances change, I figure it out again and reset the cheat device as needed. There are also plenty of places where I don't use it at all, like a simple entrance into a harbor where there are no other channels.

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It's not always obvious for me while zigzagging between islands where multiple channels crisscross. My head works similar way ... figure it out, set it, refer to it for quick check, and reset when the circumstances change. This makes me more aware, not less, of the surroundings.

My first mate got really good at checking the charts and resetting the colors as we change direction or channel. Here is my version of the buoy reminder (top center) ...

You could make it fun and use two of these:

Found them

Cindy at Red Wing MN Marina has them, exactly what your picture shows. Apparently she is the distributor for them.
651-388-8995

Found Them, Moving our boat from Stillwater MN. To St. Louis, MO stopped in Red Wing MN Marina. Cindy who runs the marina has the exact thing you are looking for, apparently she is the distributor for them. 651-388-8995

We made this for our first trip and then we forgot it at home. We ended up buying two small round bicycle reflectors in the proper colors at a dollar store along the way.

I made a few of these 30 yrs ago and still using them today. Given a few away as boater gifts.
One at helm and another where admiral has charts out for reference. We coordinate at any change / reversal.
On a previous boat with no good place to lay it I made a 2 color circle around the steering wheel trim that could be rotated as needed.
Finding the colored rope has gotten more difficult... and I've had to resort to flat colored webbing.

Bottle caps do it for me.