NOAA ENCŪ NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION US5MD40M - POTOMAC RIVER INDEX: AUTHORITIES AIDS TO NAVIGATION CAUTION - DREDGED AREAS PUBLIC BOATING INSTRUCTION PROGRAMS NOTE A WARNING - PRUDENT MARINER POLLUTION REPORTS SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION CAUTION - TEMPORARY CHANGES RADAR REFLECTORS CAUTION - SUBMARINE PIPELINES AND CABLES NOAA WEATHER RADIO BROADCASTS MARINE WEATHER FORECASTS CAUTION - WARNINGS CONCERNING LARGE VESSELS CAUTION - LIMITATIONS CAUTION - SMALL CRAFTS CAUTION - ALL CRAFTS RULES OF THE ROAD (ABRIDGED) SMALL CRAFT WARNINGS ADMINISTRATION AREA RACING BUOYS TIDAL INFORMATION OYSTER AQUACULTURE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION NOTES: AUTHORITIES Hydrography and topography by the National Ocean Service, Coast Survey, with additional data from the Corps of Engineers, Geological Survey, U.S. Coast Guard, and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. AIDS TO NAVIGATION Consult U.S. Coast Guard Light List for supplemental information concerning aids to navigation. CAUTION - DREDGED AREAS Improved channels are subject to shoaling, particularly at the edges. PUBLIC BOATING INSTRUCTION PROGRAMS The United States Power Squadrons and U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, national organizations of boatmen, conduct extensive boating instruction programs in communities throughout the United States. For information regarding these educational courses contact the following sources: USPS - Local Squadron Commander or USPS Headquarters, Post Office Box 30423, Raleigh, North Carolina 27612, 919-821-0281. USCGAUX - 5th Coast Guard District, Federal Building, 431 Crawford St., Portsmouth, VA 23704-5004, Tel. 804-398-6208 or USCG Headquarters (G-BAU), Washington, D.C. 20593-0001. NOTE A Navigation regulations are published in Chapter 2, U.S. Coast Pilot 3. Additions or revisions to Chapter 2 are pub- lished in the Notice to Mariners. Information concerning the regulations may be obtained at the Office of the Commander, 5th Coast Guard District in Portsmouth, Virginia or at the Office of the District Engineer, Corps of Engineers in Baltimore, Maryland. Refer to charted regulation section numbers. WARNING - PRUDENT MARINER The prudent mariner will not rely solely on any single aid to navigation, particularly on floating aids. See U.S. Coast Guard Light List and U.S. Coast Pilot for details. POLLUTION REPORTS Report all spills of oil and hazardous sub- stances to the National Response Center via 1-800-424-8802 (toll free), or to the nearest U.S. Coast Guard facility if telephone communication is impossible (33 CFR 153). SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION Consult U.S. Coast Pilot 3 for important supplemental information. CAUTION - TEMPORARY CHANGES Temporary changes or defects in aids to navigation are not indicated. See Local Notice to Mariners. During some winter months or when endan- gered by ice, certain aids to navigation are replaced by other types or removed. For details see U.S. Coast Guard Light List. RADAR REFLECTORS Radar reflectors have been placed on many floating aids to navigation. Individual radar reflector identification on these aids has been omitted from this chart. CAUTION - SUBMARINE PIPELINES AND CABLES Additional uncharted submarine pipelines and submarine cables may exist within the area of this chart. Not all submarine pipelines and sub- marine cables are required to be buried, and those that were originally buried may have become exposed. Mariners should use extreme caution when operating vessels in depths of water comparable to their draft in areas where pipelines and cables may exists, and when anchoring, dragging, or trawling. Covered wells may be marked by lighted or unlighted buoys. NOAA WEATHER RADIO BROADCASTS CITY STATION FREQUENCY BROADCAST TIMES Heathsville, VA WXM-57 162.40 MHz 24 hours daily Salisbury, MD KEC-92 162.475 MHz 24 hours daily Washington, DC KHB-36 162.55 MHz 24 hours daily (Manassas, VA) MARINE WEATHER FORECASTS NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TELEPHONE NUMBER OFFICE HOURS Baltimore, MD/ *(703) 260-0107 24 Hours daily Washington, DC Wakefield, VA *(757) 899-4200 24 Hours daily *Recorded CAUTION - WARNINGS CONCERNING LARGE VESSELS The "Rules of the Road" state that recreational boats shall not impede the passage of a vessel that can navigate only within a narrow channel or fairway. Large vessels may appear to move slowly due to their large size but actually transit at speeds in excess of 12 knots, requiring a great distance in which to maneuver or stop. A large vessel's superstructure may block the wind with the result that sailboats and sailboards may unexpectedly find themselves unable to maneuver. Bow and stern waves can be hazardous to small vessels. Large vessels may not be able to see small craft close to their bows. CAUTION - LIMITATIONS Limitations on the use of radio signals as aids to marine navigation can be found in the U.S. Coast Guard Light Lists and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Publication 117. Radio direction-finder bearings to commercial broadcasting stations are subject to error and should be used with caution. CAUTION - SMALL CRAFTS Small craft should stay clear of large com- mercial and government vessels even if small craft have the right-of-way. CAUTION - ALL CRAFTS All craft should avoid areas where the skin divers flag, a red square with a diagonal white stripe, is displayed. RULES OF THE ROAD (ABRIDGED) Motorless craft have the right-of-way in almost all cases. Sailing vessels and motorboats less than sixty-five feet in length shall not hamper, in a narrow channel, the safe passage of a vessel which can navigate only inside that channel. A motorboat being overtaken has the right-of-way. Motorboats approaching head to head or nearly so should pass port to port. When Motorboats approach each other at right angles or obliquely, the boat on the right has the right-of-way in most cases. Motorboats must keep to the right in narrow channels when safe and practicable. Mariners are urged to become familiar with the complete text of the Rules of the Road in U.S. Coast Guard publication "Navigation Rules". SMALL CRAFT WARNINGS During the boating season small-craft warnings will be displayed from sunrise to sunset on Maryland Marine Police Cruisers while underway in Maryland waters of the Chesapeake Bay and tributaries. ADMINISTRATION AREA The entire extent of this ENC cell falls within the limits of an Administration Area. This area covers land, internal waters, and territorial sea. The territorial sea is a maritime zone which the United States exercises sovereignty extending to the airspace as well as to its bed and subsoil. For more information, please refer to the Coast Pilot. RACING BUOYS Racing buoys within the limits of this chart are not shown hereon. Information may be obtained from the U.S. Coast Guard District Offices as racing and other private buoys are not all listed in the U.S. Coast Guard Light List. TIDAL INFORMATION For tidal information see the NOS Tide Table publication or go to http://co-ops.nos.noaa.gov. OYSTER AQUACULTURE Oyster bed aquaculture leases may exist within the limits of this chart. Mariners are cautioned that numerous markers may exist and watermen may be active in the area. Caution should be exercised when navigating in or near these areas, not to anchor or ground, in order to avoid damage to the beds. Depths may be shallower than the soundings shown. For more information, contact the local department of natural resources. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Additional information can be obtained at www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov END OF FILE