Ahab when I talked about my head light haveing a bluish tint, its a White Light meant for seeing what your doing. Standard thing. Not Blue lights like the Cops use.
Those little blue lights I was going to hang overside could never be mistaken for the Cops. But you can see them for some distance, even with all the lights in the background.
Navigable waterways or not, you need to be seen.
I've been boating since we arrived in the Pacific Northwest in 46.
That problem of returning to the beach, facing that maze of lights, which obscure your vision of what might be in the water between you and those lights is the most common problem boaters ignore as something they just have to put up with.
One night (some time in the 50's) returning from Salmon fishing in Puget Sound around Alki point, I was returning to a boat house at the end of Harbor island.
Ship yards, etc with those big work lights, lit up the horizon.
Some light reflected on the water in front of me.
The Salmon were in and I've got an eye out for a leaping fish.
I saw something in the water. I thought it was a Log. I adjusted course to go around it and as I passed it I saw a movment.
I had to make a big circle as I was moving about 15 Mph.
I looked back but it was dark and I couldnt see the Log.
As I went around and tried to find it again, finally I saw a movment again and this time I recognized it as an arm.
Some Dingus was out there swimming in the dark, about 500 yards or so from the nearest point of rest. #-o
jeez, of all the dumbest things you never ever thought you'd see.
He was in that cold water, swimming, in the dark, nothing on him reflected light....obviously he'd never faced the back ground lights like a boater had.
I offered him a ride, he refused...? :|
I dont know what might have happend to the guy or if he had a buddy with him. To heck with guys like that.
Can you imagine this: You hit a bump at night coming in. Oh well.
Next day, you come home from work and see the white prop on the outboard has a dark outer edges on it.
A couple days later in the papers, you hear about a guy who was cut up by a boat while swimming. His body was recoverd from under a pier near Downtown Seattle.
Holy cow! That bump and the stain on the white prop come to your mind immediatly.
You begin to shake. Do you get up and go look?
LIGHTS! Gentlemen, dont let anybody talk you out of lights! Not for any reason.