There are a number of ways a fisherman can be in violation of Coast Guard regulations. Not having a life raft, EPIRB or a working radio are some of the things that will get you and your boat escorted back to port by the Coast Guard.

But the Coast Pilot? You know, the nine-volume publication that’s distributed yearly by the Office of Coast Survey and printed by a NOAA certified printer. Each volume is devoted to a part of the U.S. coastline or the Great Lakes. There’s coastal navigation information, tides, currents, harbors, weather you might encounter and a lot of other stuff.

Well, relax, if the Coast Guard boards your boat and the Coast Pilot you have onboard doesn’t meet regulations, or carriage requirements as they say, your fishing trip won’t be terminated, but you will be written up. Then you need to get the correct publication and provide proof to the Coast Guard that it’s onboard.

If you are up for a dockside exam, you won’t get that decal until you get an approved Coast Pilot for your area.

You say, “Hell. I’m not worried. I’ve got mine. It’s right here in the wheelhouse.”

That’s what some Gulf of Mexico fishermen probably told the Coast Guard when they came aboard. Weren’t the fishermen — and the Coast Guard — surprised when their Coast Pilot (That would be volume 5 for the Gulf of Mexico) was opened up and over half the pages were missing.

Yup, Coast Guard inspectors found a number of Volume 5s that lacked about half the book. These were sold on Amazon’s website and were produced by CreateSpace, an Amazon subsidiary. I doubt NOAA approved printers were involved.

So if you have purchased one of these knock-off Coast Pilots you best check to see if everything is there. That doesn’t just mean volume 5. Any of the nine volumes could have the same problem.

That way you will avoid being written up and will also have all the necessary navigation information when it’s needed.