From the Boathouse: It’s time for Christmas boat parades
Ahoy!
The time for Holiday and Christmas parades are upon us in Southern California and across the nation. Our local harbors will be awash in decorated boats and almost anything that can float for the next few weekends throughout the world.
You would be surprised at the watercrafts, and I use that term loosely, that I have seen in the parades or buzzing around the parades.
Let’s take a look at when the boat parades are scheduled locally in Orange County’s three harbors. The county’s most northerly harbor is Huntington Harbour, and its parade will be Saturday and Sunday. This year’s theme is “Symphony of Lights” for the 54th annual Huntington Harbour Boat Parade presented by the Huntington Harbour Philharmonic Society of Orange County with the proceeds benefiting the Orange County Philharmonic Society’s music education programs for the children. Huntington Harbour is known for the spectacularly decorated homes, and you can find out how to see the parade and homes at hhboatparade.org or by calling (714) 840-7542.
Now, looking to the county’s most southern harbor, we have the 42nd annual Dana Point Harbor Boat Parade. The parade is held on two consecutive weekends beginning Friday. “Under the Sea” is this year’s theme, and you can plan to enter your boat or watch the parade on Friday and Saturday and Dec. 16 and 17 starting at 7:30 p.m. each night. For details and entry information, go to danapointharbor.com/boat-parade-of-lights or call (949) 496-5794.
Finally, we have one of the top 10 holiday happenings in the nation, the granddaddy of all the parades in the nation with the 108th Annual Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade being held nightly from Dec. 14 through Dec. 18. This parade showcases parade entries as small as kayaks to million-dollar megayachts whose decorations can cost in the tens of thousands of dollars.
The parade cruises around most all of Newport Harbor, and you can watch from numerous bayfront viewing locations or book a cruise on one of the sightseeing charterboats. I always enjoy seeing the very imaginative decorations on land and on the boats.
The parade’s website is christmasboatparade.com with information about the boat parade, the homes decorated for the ring of lights, and the annual awards and dinner auction.
See you at the parades.
Tip of the week
It is time once again when I am always amazed how boaters transform their vessels with decorations ranging from a string of lights on a tender to a completely decked-out yacht including carolers aboard to entertain the crowds on the shore. I do have a few tips that I have learned from decades of participating in parades up and down the Pacific Coast and inland.
As you are planning the decorations, remember to keep safety in the forefront of your mind, with the utmost importance being that the skipper must be able to see and navigate the vessel. The decorations cannot impede the skipper’s view, and many times a bow watch is very helpful.
A high percentage of the collisions or near misses I have witnessed are due to basically the skipper’s lack of visibility all around the vessel and the skipper being distracted from operating the boat. On many larger yachts and commercial boats that I skipper, I have had a few lookouts helping me avoid any problem situations.
Over the years, I have seen some very hazardously decorated boats, and on a couple of occasions, I have been zapped touching the metal railings by a wet extension cord grounding out to the metal. All of the exterior electrical cords should be for outdoors use with all the connections wrapped with electrical tape to prevent grounding. You will experience dew point during any of the parades and, in some years, it has rained, so plan ahead now to prevent electrical hazards.
Referring back to safety, the decorations cannot obstruct or prevent the deployment of any safety devices aboard your vessel, including ring buoys, life rafts, “Mae Wests” and fire extinguishers. For example, do not wrap a string of lights around your throwable ring buoy, making that lifesaving device useless if someone falls overboard.
Furthermore, the decorations cannot interfere with the vessel’s navigational lights. An easy solution is to enhance your navigational lights by putting red-colored bulbs in by the port light and green-colored bulbs in by the starboard light.
Technically, unless you are in a sanctioned parade route, it is not proper to display your Christmas lights if the lights distract from the navigational lights. However, the Harbor Patrols and the Coast Guard units are using their discretion in enforcing this regulation during the month of December, so cruise safely.
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MIKE WHITEHEAD is a boating columnist for the Daily Pilot. Send marine-related thoughts and story suggestions to mike@boathousetv.com or go to boathousetv.com.