Sunday August 6, 2017 Boating

We’re about halfway through the summer right now. But don’t be sad - we’ve still got a lot of nice weather left. And if the weather continues to be as hot as it has been these last few weeks, this is the perfect time to be out on a boat. If you need some help brushing up on your boating skills, or learning how to maintain a pleasure craft, be sure to stop at the Thunder Bay Public Library (TBPL). We have many resources to help you out!

If you’ve never captained a boat before, we’ve got lots of books to help you out. Both Boating and Sailing by Frank Sargeant and Cruising Under Sail and Power by Tony Meisel are great general overviews of how to boat with either your typical fiberglass boat or a sailboat. Another excellent option is Powerboat Handling Illustrated: How to Make Your Boat Do Exactly What You Want To Do by Robert Sweet. Sweet’s book has tons of illustrations and photos, making it really easy to understand - you’ll be handling your boat like a pro in no time with Sweet’s help!

To operate a pleasure craft in Canada, you need a Pleasure Craft Operator Card. To help you study for the test, which you can take online through an accredited course provider such as BOATsmart, we’ve got the BOATsmart! Pleasure Craft Operator Card Study Guide. If you were planning on using another program, or otherwise need to brush up on boating safety, we have many other books to help you out, such as The Safe Boater Manual: the Canadian Coast Guard Accredited Manual for Pleasure Craft Operators by Andrew Stevenson, or Transport Canada’s Safe Boating Guide.

If you need some help with boat maintenance, you should try the Boatowner’s Mechanical and Electrical Manual: How to Maintain, Repair, and Improve Your Boat’s Essential Systems by Nigel Calder. Calder’s book is a maintenance bible, going into a lot of depth on a wide variety of boat systems. While we also have a couple of older editions of the book, be sure to check out the 2015 edition, which has been heavily updated from older versions. Another option is Boat Mechanical Systems Handbook: How to Design, Install, and Recognize Proper Systems in Boats by Dave Gerr. Gerr will teach you everything you need to know about designing, installing mechanical systems, or retrofitting an existing boat. His book is geared more towards owners of larger craft, but you’ll still find this book valuable if you’re using a smaller craft.

If you need to repair your boat’s engine, you should also check out the Small Engine Repair Reference Center, which is a database available on My Giant Search. This database has detailed instructions on how to repair a wide variety of small engines; it includes all terrain vehicles, generators and other outdoor power equipment along with personal watercraft and boat motors. You can access it with your library card and PIN from home, or come into one of our branches for some help.

Once your boat is on the water, if you’d like to go fishing, TBPL can help you out with that as well. We are a TackleShare Loaner Site for the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters, which means that children and youth ages 16 and under can sign out a rod, reel, and tackle from the Brodie or Waverley Resource Libraries. TackleShare loans go out for a week and are of course free!

So whether you’re learning about boating, needing to fix your boat, or wanting to take your kids out fishing, the Thunder Bay Public Library can help get you out on the lake!

Shauna Kosoris