Lessons from the Dock: Post Hurricane Hilary (Boating Recreation and Industry Increases)

For those of us who like boats and engage in outdoor water activities we often find interesting situations that create learning opportunities. There are always learning opportunities that we can pay better attention to in the future. Tid bits of knowledge that come from life. In this case it was post Hurricane Hilary and some of the lessons offered by spending time on a dock. As with everything, pay attention and you will pick up a few key ideas to think about next time.

  

1. Beeping Boat: Sometime around 6 or 7 PM on Tuesday, a day after a hurricane, an emergency buzzer was sounding an alarm on a dock at a local boat yard. You could hear the beeping sound at night because there is very little noise in harbors and sound resonates a considerable distance. I called the business I thought owned the dock and left a message. The next morning around 11 AM, I called again and after another hour took the kayak out and hunted the boat down. (Trust me, its hard to listen to that all night and day!)

Interestingly, the boat was found loose without its owner/sailor. It could have came unhooked, as I heard there was a loose boat in the harbor during the storm, or the owner could have fallen overboard with the chaos of the waves. In this case it was at local ship yard that didn't seem to be taking very good care of it (Ask the service department why they ignored the call?) Just fyi. They did eventually come out, inspect the boat, and shut it off. (As a side note these warning buzzers tell you if the boat is taking on water, has issues, something isn't working, etc. They are emergency buzzers so they shouldn't be ignored!)

Lesson: Tie up your boats well and/or harness yourself in while sailing in storms and choppy water. 

2. The Free Floating Boat: This morning I was up early and noticed a boat floating around loose on the water. I already knew the owner and the water was calm and luckily there was no damage I could see. It looked like all of the ropes were inside the boat as though either someone untied it or he forgot to hook it up the night before. Its a work boat and all scratched up anyway so little bumps are not going to make much difference in its aesthetic appeal. I jumped in my kayak and dragged it in. He will probably wonder why it looks tied up differently. I will mention later today If I see him.

Lesson: Double check to ensure your boat is secure. Alternatively, put a cam on your boat if you think someone is playing with it. (I actually ordered a cam for my boat 360 degree. Put it on the mast and you can get a good look at your boat. Also might take good recordings while sailing. When I'm not around I can turn it on and check out what is going on. It has solar panels to keep it powered.)

3.) Wet Floors Post Hurricane. I came back to the boat after the hurricane Hilary (more of a big storm) and found almost everything in place. Water did seep through the hatch because I forgot to seal it properly. The floor was wet in the main hallway. It rained nonstop for a few days and water will leak in that hatch based on some air hole designs. Next time I will tape it. Pumps worked well. Wasn't a major issue.

Lesson: During hurricanes tape up all the hatches and equipment with a large sheet of plastic. 

Interestingly, I also found this research by the National Marine Manufacturing Association in their PR release More than Summer Fun: Americans’ Increased Passion for Boating Creates $230 Billion Wave of U.S. Economic Impact  "The 2023 NMMA study reveals recreational boating saw a 36% increase in annual economic activity from 2018’s $170 billion to $230 billion in 2023 and a 14% jump in recreational marine industry-related jobs from 691,000 in 2018 to 812,000 in 2023."  What we also find is that MI., CA and other areas have budding industries. 

-Michigan: $10.2B, up 60% and 45,000 jobs, up 45% from 2018.

-California: $15B, up 33% and 48,000 jobs, up 18% from 2018.

(As a side note the town of Escanaba has a growing recreational industry with an excellent marina. They also have an underutilized ship building industry that is poised to grow if they can capitalize on the growing ship building market. The industry for military and civilian ships are also growing. If you don't know where that is at, you can click Visit Escanaba. The boats in this case were in San Diego. Consider 'Republicans Call for White House Shipbuilding Boost to Support AUKUS Attack Sub Sale' and To shipbuilders who think they can build more, CNO says: ‘Prove it’. This is in relation to economic cluster theory.)