2020, what a year! Like everyone else around the world, we have been following the impact of the virus and planning to safely get back to our travels. Since we had some extra time this year around the house, I decided to start studying for my Captain’s License.
This has turned our to be quite an adventure. Having ‘captained’ my own vessels for decades I assumed that once I could document my hours and !ll out some forms, I would be adding the Captain pre!x in no time at all.
But with great power…. you know the saying. Today, the role of a Captain of a vessel with may carry passengers for hire is a complex set of responsibilities set up by the U.S. Coast Guard and International Maritime agencies. Captains interact with some of our most critical infrastructure around our ports and waterways and while underway often have to perform roles we expect to call emergency services for when we’re ashore. No matter how good our U.S.C.G response times to mariners in distress become, many problems need to be addressed immediately and that responsibility falls to the captain on their crew.
So in addition to actually knowing how to navigate, dock and perform minor maintenance on your vessel, a Captain must pass a background check with Homeland Security, have a current CPR and First Aid certi!cate and pass a timed in person test on the Rules of the Road, a 226 page USCG manual for how you need to comport yourself while onboard Link.
Here’s to some extra free time, because this is going to take a while.
