Anchor light alternative?

[Catigale]

Youz guys make me feel inadequate...
...but I once stayed at a Holiday Inn!!...

...yeah, it was probably in NJ off the turnpike too.......

[kmclemore]

Youz guys make me feel inadequate...
...but I once stayed at a Holiday Inn!!...

...yeah, it was probably in NJ off the turnpike too.......

♩ ♪ ♫ ♬"...Counting the cars on the New Jersey turnpike
They've all gone to look for America..." ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬

[yukonbob]

Sorry you took offense .. do as you like .. as will I.. Have a great day..

It's always in bad taste to say one thing and do another. Please don't PM me anymore anecdotes of how old you are or how young I am. And remember that this is an international board with people from all over the world, not just Florida. I do hope you enjoy your retirement and all the best to you.
Talk sense to a fool and he calls you foolish.

[Ixneigh]

I sail at night often and there are times when standard lighting might need to be augmented with floodlights deck lights or white flares. Used em all and as needed. White flares are more pink jsyk!
It could be raining or the yacht could be heeled so badly your sidelights are obscured.
Those big ships probably can't see your dinky little lights. They sure saw that flare though!
FYI they can't see your aluminum radar reflector most of the time. I called the ships on the radio and asked if they saw me. One said he " saw my yacht from the bridge porthole"
So far as deck lights go, I want em. And I want em on the big ships. More the better. One time I was looking at this odd dark gap between a long string of shore lights. Hmmm wonder why that's there? Must be a park or something. Suddenly I see one dim red light and a faint white one aft. Looked like a star. Ship was all blacked out. Moveing at 20 k didn't even see it. I can assure you they didn't see me. The range lighting on cruise ships is hard to see but at least you know it's there. Tugs and tows are scary. Got too close to those a couple of times. Tugs lit up like a Christmas tree but that barge was pitch black except for a dim light on it.
I honestly can't tell you what the lighting scheme is on all the ships. I stay far way as possible from all of them.
I can tell you that in the Bahamas there is no such thing as standard lighting.
What is visible to me at night the best is flashing lights. Strobes and things.
Another point. The advent of cheap chart plotters makes it likely that there will be more people underway at night. I brought the boat into one of my favorite spots for strong ne winds with pretty much just the gps. Weather was bad at the time. Half these weekend warriors won't know or care of standard lighting. The more light the better for them.
It power were no issue I'd have rope lighting to completely outline the boat. Plus the anchor light and deck lights. Maybe a few light up flamingos on the cabin.

[yukonbob]

Sure, light up your sail, throw out a flare, but to add two extra single white lights…i don't know. Decks lights are very different as well. they light up the entire deck of a boat and are not a singular point in the dark. I think the 'too little information is a dangerous thing' here definitely applies and too much isn't necessarily a bad thing we've gotta look at the whole picture and not just what we're used to.

[RobertB]

Cruising at night now makes me want some "driving lights". Has anyone looked at these https://www.rigidindustries.com/Marine- ... -s/132.htm? I like the idea of the low power draw but am having trouble figuring out what model will give enough light (less $$ the better).

[yukonbob]

My uncle has a single light force light that rotates. Should look into that. Came into a new harbor late one night. Knew there was x2-100 ft floating docks and no one had lights on, at all with no marker no town nothing. Would have been nice to have a flood light.

[vizwhiz]

Since there is all this talk about lighting, I'm wondering - is there any regulation against using a spotlight to look around and just SEE another vessel? If everything is black, can't you use a hand-held spotlight to look around and see what you're coming up on? It almost seems like there are arguments about having to steer the boat in the dark. While I'm not afraid of the dark at all, I just wonder if shedding a little light on things wouldn't keep you from running aground, or running into rocks, or the dock...or another boat...while you're trying to get into that harbor or anchorage?
I've seen "headlights" on powerboats before, perhaps old memory, but rarely see anything like that on a sailboat...does it not seem counterintuitive that we can have two big bright lights on the front of our cars, but can't put a light on the front of our boat to see where we're going?

[RobertB]

I cannot believe spotlights being against the rules. My only concern is that where I would mount them (on the pulpit), they will completely overpower the bicolor lights from ahead. (Back to my previous post of guiding on a "shore light" that turned out to be a Boston Whaler coming directly towards me.)

[yukonbob]

Couldn't see it being at all. CG, police, use them and flashlights are a legally required safety equipment.

[Divecoz]

It's all been settled..... ALL you can have is 1 white light
Mark Twain is ROTFLHAO and so am I ..

[Y.B.Normal]

I use a 2 million CP spotlight all the time when I'm entering the channel going into the river. That's what they're for!
I also use it periodically while on the lake to check for unlit fishing boats. The bottomline is to be safe and use the necessary tools
to accomplish that.

[Ixneigh]

They use spot lights here all the time running the cuts. Only the headpins are lit usually. The rest are unlit. it's not polite to shine it on another yacht at night unless there are people making out on deck

[yukonbob]

Or to catch hippies camped out trying to skinny dip in the ocean lol.

[Crikey]

I use a 2 million CP spotlight all the time when I'm entering the channel going into the river. That's what they're for!
I also use it periodically while on the lake to check for unlit fishing boats. The bottomline is to be safe and use the necessary tools
to accomplish that.

Wow, two million candle-power Is that normal