Navigation & Charts - The Complete Guide To Boating on Loch Lomond

Navigation

Charts

For over 150 years the only chart of Loch Lomond was the Admiralty Chart 5077, taken from the first full depth survey of Loch Lomond in 1860. In 2007 the National Park and the British Geographical Survey undertook a new survey and collected new depth information with 21st century technology. Over 1 million soundings were taken every half hour providing the most comprehensive depth data available.

(http://www.bgs.ac.uk/research/highlights/lochLomondCanyon.html)

The new publication (ISBN 978-0-9550049-7-1) will be available from the National Park Authority at a price of £12.

The first release of this chart caused some controversy due the naming of certain features after National Park employees, and was featured on several news shows. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pk9JklDtEvk&feature=player_embedded). The chart had to be withdrawn and pulped and a new version printed.

A video fly through of the new soundings can be viewed on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65Lsd1JXQok&feature=player_embedded)

The Loch Lomond and the Trossachs Park Authority provide "A Guide to Navigation" as part of the registration. This chart although basic is more up to date in terms of buoyage, navigational notes and unmarked hazards, but does not include spot soundings or finer detail.

A number of years ago Cullins Yacht Charters licensed a reprint of Chart 5077 and included cruise and local navigation information this is now out of print.

If you are lucky enough to own an electronic Chart Plotter then C-Map make a cartridge that covers Loch Lomond, the cost of the Chart is @ £76. This is however based on the Admiltary Chart 5077, and is very in inaccurate at the northern end of Loch Lomond.

Chart Numbers / Names
Admiralty Chart No.5077 (now regarded as out of date)
CMAP NT Chart No. M-EW-C091 INNER CLYDE INC. LOCH LOMOND (Based on 5077)
Loch Lomond ISBN 978-0-9550049-7-1, (Latest and most up to date).

A list of the main hazards on Loch Lomond can be found here

Buoyage Types

The Loch Lomond and Trossachs Park Authority maintain the buoyage system on the Loch. There are four types of marks used which adhere to the the IALA System A: Lateral, Cardinal, Isolated Danger, and Special. Special is used to mark restricted areas on the Loch, which refers to restricted area of navigation and signifies the existence of a specific byelaw.

Direction of buoyage

Lateral marks

Cardinal marks

Special marks

Isolated danger marks

Direction of buoyage

The " General Direction" of the buoyage on Loch Lomond is North. That means when traveling North you should keep the Port Cardinal to your Port side and Starboard Cardinal to your Starboard side. When traveling south the opposite is the case.

Lateral marks

These are used to indicate the port (left) and the starboard (right) sides of the channels when traveling in the Direction of Buoyage, that is, into port.

Port-hand marks are coloured red and the basic shape is cylindrical (can) for buoy (and topmark when fitted). Such a mark would be on the port side of a vessel when traveling in the Direction of Buoyage.

Port-hand marks

Colour: Red
Shape (buoys): Cylindrical (can), pillar or spar
Topmark (if any): Single red cylinder (can)

Port hand lights

Starboard-hand marks are coloured green and the basic shape is conical (and topmark when fitted).

Colour: Green
Shape (buoys): Conical (cone), pillar or spar
Topmark (if any): Single green cone point upwards

When marks are numbered, odd numbers will lie on the starboard side, and even numbers on the port when traveling in the Direction of Buoyage. They are numbered from seaward.

Cardinal marks

These are used to indicate the location of the best navigable water; to show the safe side on which to pass danger (rocks, wrecks, shoals, etc) and to draw attention to a feature in a channel.

To understand the meaning of a particular cardinal mark, the navigator must be aware of his geographical directions and, therefore, needs a compass to indicate where the best navigable water lies. The mark is placed in one of the four quadrants: north, south, east or west. If in doubt, consult the chart.

The shape of a cardinal mark is not significant, but in the case of a buoy it will be a pillar or spar. The most important daylight feature of the Cardinal mark is the black double cone topmark and the four different arrangements that indicate the relevant direction from the mark.

Black and yellow horizontal bands are used to colour the Cardinal marks.

North cardinal mark
Has two cones pointing up - Pass on the northern side of this mark.

East cardinal mark
Has two cones pointing away from each other - Pass on the eastern side of this mark.

South cardinal mark
Has two cones pointing down - Pass on the southern side of this mark.

West cardinal mark
Has two cones point to point - Pass on the western side of this mark.

Special marks

These are used to indicate a special area or feature, the nature of which may be found by consulting a chart or sailing directions. Some local examples are the restricted navigational areas such as speed restrictions. (Although remember a spead restriction may start before the navigational restriction as indicated by the special mark, for example around the islands).

The colour of the Special mark is always yellow, and the top mark is a single yellow X.

Isolated danger marks

These are on, or moored above, an isolated danger of limited extent that has navigable water all around it. The colours are red and black horizontal stripes and the mark is, when practicable, fitted with a double sphere, vertically disposed, black topmark.

Some examples of the Isolated Danger Mark are on the rock just of Cameron House Marina and the Rocks off Rob Roy's cave near Inversnaid. Isolated Danger Marks are not always positioned centrally over a danger and it is therefore advisable not to pass too close. Some other examples exist on the Loch such as off Luss which are steek poles.