Good "heads up" for sure.
There is so much tug / barge / ship / & other large vessel traffic on the river.
Always wise to anchor closer to shore out of the shipping lane.
Never forget one guy who did some electrical work on a past boat we owned. ( 3 dif boats in past 9 yrs. ) He said in effect, to stay out of the way of the "big boys".
Lots of fog (as Rod posted)can come out of "no where" this time of year. One minute it's clear & sunny & within minutes fog rolls in & ya can see only 30 ft or so.
Know a guy who got caught in thick fog off of UBC & he had no idea where he was. Literally he was in it for hrs & hrs. Then he saw some shoreline. Turns out to be one of the Howe Sound islands.
Have had 1000's & 1000's of tugs/ships pass by our boat with no problem.
Only once coming up river we got a scare.
A car carrier ship was going westbound & we in an east direction towards Steveston Harbour. Knew our portable was getting low on fuel so I put the fuel line to another full tank.
Forgot to open the air vent/valve on the tank.
Minutes later our outboard stopped !
Not fun when there's 3 foot waves & wind pushing the boat towards the shipping lane that the car carrier ship will be in.
The big ship is cruising at a good speed & I know the pilot must be wondering " what is that little boat doing drifting towards our path " Was expecting a warning blast from the ship, but none came.
Anyways did a lightning check on why the outboard stopped & noticed the fuel tank was "sucked in" abit.
So opened up the air valve , gave a few pumps on the bulb & turned the key.
Engine started immeadiately & I turned the wheel & gave full throttle.
Let's just say if we did not get out of the way as we did, it could of been a very bad day.
Honestly there were so many other dangerous situations we had on this river, wake,waves, fast currents,standing waves,deadheads,stray logs etc so always always put safety first. Check for debris in the water ahead of your boat,the water conditions change quickly,( swells,wake,standing waves) & look in every direction for other boaters,tugs & ships.
Be extra careful of that big long barge(s) that is not pulled but rather pushed from behind by a large tug.
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Topic: Important reminder for Fraser River boat anglers (Read 1700 times)