TAHOE CITYI provide boating advice for Lake Tahoe today, but it applies to any body of water.
I don’t usually write columns on it. I usually write on politics and governance in California.
However, I’m writing about boating this time since I’ve been giggling after reading and watching news reports about the terrible tragedy on Tahoe that claimed eight lives on June 21.
In addition, the Fourth of July signifies the start of boating season. According to the California Division of Boating and Waterways, there are 4 million recreational boaters in the state. 514 boating incidents occur year on average. The worst month is July.
I’ve been on some water since I was a teenager and have been boating in Tahoe for 55 years.
These are my fundamental guidelines for enjoyment and safety, at least in a boat up to thirty feet. The majority of my Tahoe boats have been between 22 and 24 feet.
First of all, exercise caution if Lake Tahoe winds are already 10 mph and it is not yet midday. Avoid taking a recreational powerboat out. In the afternoon, the water is probably going to get a lot choppier.
Go for shore if you see white caps forming while you’re out there.
You don’t belong on the water with sailboats if there are several of them. Get out.
Additionally, don’t believe the manufacturer when they say a boat can accommodate a certain number of passengers. Boat builders often exaggerate. If it states that ten people can fit, expect no more than eight.
Although ten people might be able to fit on board, the boat rides lower in the water and is more susceptible to taking on water during strong swells because of the additional weight. It may result in capsizing. Additionally, the continually shifting weight balance caused by all those passengers wriggling around makes driving more challenging.
Most importantly, though, before you even approach the ocean, keep an eye on the weather forecast.
At 6,224 feet in the Sierra Mountains, Lake Tahoe is a large and stunning lake that is 22 miles long and 12 miles wide. It has the capacity to store 14 inches of water, which would cover all of California. One third of the lake is in Nevada, and the other two thirds are in California.
Weather trends are not constant. At one end of the lake, there may be thunderstorms and frightful winds, while at the other, there may be calmer waters and clearer skies.
Reports of the multi-fatality disaster and numerous other boating accidents that occurred off the south and west coastlines on Saturday afternoon made me cringe since they were claiming that a sudden, unforeseen storm was to blame for everything.
With north gusts of up to 45 mph and eight-foot waves, the storm’s severity might have been unexpected.However, the National Weather Service had predicted high teens to 20s winds. And it ought to have been sufficient notice to boaters: Avoid the water.
Following the incident, Mary Laub, a retired financial analyst from Minden, Nevada, which is located over the steep hill from South Lake Tahoe, seemed to make the most sense. In the south shore of the Tahoe Keys, she and her spouse maintain a 26-foot Regal cabin cruiser. She also often follows weather forecasts.
When she saw the forecast, she decided against going on the cruise she had booked for that Saturday.
At Tahoe, the afternoon winds get stronger. “I don’t go out if they’re getting close to 10 [mph] before noon,” she said. When I saw that prediction, I responded, “No way.”
I avoid going outside if there is even the slightest hint of wind. We had already been caught out there. I avoid taking chances.
The victims were on an almost brand-new, opulent, 27-foot Chris-Craft Launch, an open-bow vessel. The ship was on the water for the third time. There were ten passengers, most of them in their 60s and 70s. They were celebrating a woman’s 71st birthday and were family and longstanding friends. She was one among the dead.
In the middle of the afternoon, they were attempting to head back to their west side residence from the well-known Emerald Bay when eight-foot waves overloaded the boat, killing the engine and causing it to capsize off the rocky Rubicon Point close to D.L. Bliss State Park. They were flung into the unusually frigid water and most likely drowned, maybe due to hypothermia paralysis.
A team from the Washoe County sheriff’s office rescued a mother and daughter who were both wearing life jackets. As of this writing, it was unknown if the others were wearing life jackets.
Boats were being swamped or torn from their moorings and piled up on rocks or beaches around the southwest shore, frequently colliding with other boats in the process.
In a 24-foot open-bow MasterCraft, a crew of four people snatched up their life jackets, prudently left the boat, and swam to land. In their bare feet, they scrambled to safety over perilous cliffs. The boat was all but destroyed.
I dialed the National Weather Service in Reno and spoke with meteorologist Dawn Johnson.
According to her, winds of up to 20 mph and gusts of up to 25 mph were predicted for that Saturday afternoon.
Additionally, there was a 25% probability of thunderstorms. Johnson advised getting off the water if there are thunderstorms on the lake. On open ocean, you are more likely to be struck by lightning.
She remembered that Friday night’s winds were high, but by 11 a.m. on Saturday, they had decreased to 5 to 10 mph. They then began to pick up as predicted.
Several times a month, usually in the afternoon, we witness wind gusts of that size, she stated. Winds can reach 25 to 30 mph for extended periods.
However, she continued, they often only create waves that are two to four feet in length. We are attempting to determine the precise cause of the incident.
I consider four-foot waves to be a hurricane.
Additionally, Mother Nature is unconcerned with a boater’s weekend plans.
