Before You Launch: Make a Boating Shore Contact Plan
September 9, 2026
Before a boating trip, give someone ashore enough information to recognise a missing return and explain the situation clearly. A social-media location or a casual “back later” message is not a complete plan.
The RNLI’s sailing and motorboating guidance recommends telling someone ashore where you are going and who to call if you do not return on time. It also covers weather and tides, suitable training, lifejackets, communication and an onboard briefing. The worksheet below concentrates on the shore-contact part.
Choose a contact who can take the role
Ask whether the person will be available during your trip. They need the plan, a way to reach you and a clear understanding of the agreed response. A person travelling with you cannot also be your independent shore contact.
If a boating organisation or charter operator has a required procedure, follow it. This worksheet helps organise information; it does not replace local requirements or the skipper’s passage plan.
Describe the actual trip
Use names that someone unfamiliar with your routine could understand.
| Information | Useful detail |
|---|---|
| Vessel | Name, type, colour and relevant identification |
| People | Names and number aboard |
| Departure | Location and intended time |
| Route | Intended area, destination and planned alternatives |
| Return | Expected place and time |
| Contact | Communication methods carried and known limitations |
| Overdue response | Agreed action and local service to contact |
| Completion | Who will confirm that the trip is finished |
Attach a suitable route reference if it makes the place names clearer. Do not put account passwords or unnecessary private documents into the plan.
Make the overdue instruction unambiguous
Distinguish “we expect to return” from “take this action if you have not heard from us”. Agree timings in light of the trip and local advice, not a universal grace period.
The shore contact should not feel responsible for diagnosing an emergency alone. Record the appropriate local authority’s contact route so they can provide facts and follow instructions. A known emergency should be reported immediately; an agreed check-in time is not a reason to wait.
Brief the people onboard
Someone ashore is only part of the communication arrangement. The RNLI advises carrying appropriate ways to call for help, keeping them reachable and knowing how to use them. Mobile coverage can be limited offshore. Review its calling-for-help guidance alongside local requirements.
For each device, the crew should know where it is and who understands its operation. Discuss this before departure, rather than discovering a knowledge gap while the usual operator is occupied.
Update, then close
If plans change before departure, send an updated version and confirm receipt. At the end, send the agreed completion message. Nominate one person for that task so everyone does not assume someone else has done it.
Continue with cold-water awareness before your next trip. Cole Danforth’s When the Sea Won’t Let Go is related reading; this article does not retell or verify the book’s individual survival stories.