Paper Charts and Publications
Paper charts don't crash, run out of battery, or lose satellite signal — they are the ultimate backup and often the best primary planning tool you own.
Why Paper Charts Still Matter
In an age of GPS chartplotters and navigation apps on tablets, arguing for paper charts might seem like advocating for the horse and buggy. It is not. Paper charts are the most reliable, power-independent, and comprehensively detailed navigation resource available. They require no electricity, no satellites, no software updates, and no cellular signal. They work in direct sunlight, in the rain, in the cockpit, and on the chart table simultaneously. They do not crash, freeze, or reboot at the worst possible moment. Every commercial vessel in the world carries paper charts or approved electronic equivalents, and there is a reason for that — the consequences of having no navigation capability are unacceptable, and electronic systems fail.
Paper charts contain information that electronic charts often omit or simplify. A large-scale paper chart of a harbor approach shows every depth sounding, every bottom composition symbol, every range and bearing line, every note about local magnetic anomalies, tidal currents, restricted areas, and anchorage regulations. Electronic charts, particularly the lower-cost vector charts used in consumer apps, generalize this data to reduce file sizes — they may show a smooth contour where the paper chart shows an isolated shallow spot that could hole your keel. The paper chart is the source document; the electronic chart is a derivative.
The real value of paper charts emerges during passage planning. Spread a paper chart on the chart table and you see the entire passage at once — the departure, the arrival, every hazard, every potential shelter, every current pattern, the complete picture in one view. You can draw course lines with a pencil, measure distances with dividers, plot danger bearings with a protractor, and annotate the chart with notes from the Coast Pilot. This big-picture planning is difficult to replicate on a 12-inch chartplotter screen that shows only a small portion of the route at a time.
Paper chart skills are perishable — you must practice them to have them when you need them. Plot your position from compass bearings during a daysail when the GPS is working, so that you can do it at night when the GPS is not. Run a dead reckoning track alongside the electronic track and compare the results. Practice measuring distances, calculating set and drift, and identifying charted features from the water. These skills are the backup system for your backup system, and they work only if you keep them sharp.
Even if you navigate primarily by chartplotter, carry paper charts for every area you sail in. At minimum, carry charts that cover your entire route plus reasonable diversion ports. NOAA now offers free print-on-demand charts and PDF chart downloads — you can print them yourself or order them from authorized agents. There is no longer a cost excuse for not having paper charts aboard.
NOAA Charts vs. British Admiralty and Chart Numbering
NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) publishes the official nautical charts for United States waters. These charts cover the US coastline, the Great Lakes, US territories, and portions of the Caribbean. NOAA charts use a five-digit numbering system: the first digit indicates the region (1 for the Atlantic coast, 2 for the Gulf, etc.), and the remaining digits identify the specific chart within that region. Chart scales range from harbor plans (1:5,000 to 1:20,000) to general charts (1:100,000 to 1:600,000) to planning charts covering entire ocean basins. NOAA has transitioned to NOAA Custom Charts (NCC), which are print-on-demand charts generated from the latest electronic navigational chart (ENC) data.
British Admiralty charts, published by the UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO), are the international standard used by most of the world's merchant fleets and many cruising sailors sailing outside US waters. Admiralty charts cover virtually every navigable waterway on Earth, and their quality and accuracy are considered the benchmark. They use a four-digit numbering system organized by geographic region, with a comprehensive catalog (NP131) that indexes every chart available. For any cruising sailor planning to leave US waters — heading to the Caribbean, crossing an ocean, or cruising Central America — British Admiralty charts are essential for areas where NOAA coverage ends.
Chart catalogs are your roadmap to finding the right chart. NOAA publishes free chart catalogs (available online) that show the coverage area of every chart in a region as an index map — you identify your area of interest and read off the chart numbers that cover it. The Admiralty equivalent is the NP131 Catalogue of Admiralty Charts and Publications, which serves the same function for worldwide coverage. Understanding chart scales is essential for selecting the right chart: use the largest scale chart available for the area you are navigating. A large-scale chart (like 1:10,000) shows the most detail for the smallest area; a small-scale chart (like 1:500,000) shows less detail over a wider area.
Other national hydrographic offices produce charts for their own waters — the Canadian Hydrographic Service for Canadian waters, the French SHOM for French waters and former colonies, and so on. When cruising internationally, you often need charts from multiple sources. Cruising guides for specific regions (like the Imray charts for the Mediterranean or the Explorer charts for the Bahamas) can supplement official charts with sailor-specific information, anchorage plans, and waypoints — but they should supplement, not replace, official government charts that carry the authority of hydrographic survey data.
Before a passage, check the edition date and correction status of every chart you plan to use. Charts based on surveys from the 1800s (common in the Caribbean and South Pacific) may have position errors of hundreds of meters relative to GPS positions. The chart will note the survey date — treat positions on old-survey charts with appropriate caution and never rely on GPS coordinates alone in areas with outdated survey data.
Chart Symbols, Corrections, and Essential Publications
Nautical chart symbols are a dense, precise shorthand that packs an enormous amount of information into a small space. The authoritative reference is NOAA Chart No. 1 (published jointly with NGA), a free booklet that catalogs every symbol, abbreviation, and convention used on US nautical charts. Every sailor should have a copy aboard — it decodes bottom composition symbols (S for sand, M for mud, R for rock, Co for coral), navigation aid characteristics (the rhythm, color, and period of every light and buoy), depth contours, danger symbols, restricted areas, and hundreds of other features. The international equivalent is the Admiralty publication NP5011, which covers the symbols used on British Admiralty charts worldwide.
Keeping charts corrected is the critical maintenance task that most recreational sailors neglect. Charts are living documents that change constantly — buoys move, lights change characteristics, channels shift, new obstructions are discovered, and restricted areas are created or modified. The US Coast Guard publishes Local Notices to Mariners weekly, covering chart corrections for each Coast Guard district. The NGA publishes Notice to Mariners weekly for international corrections. Professional mariners correct their charts every week from these notices — a discipline that recreational sailors should emulate at least before every passage.
Essential publications extend the information on charts into narrative form. The Coast Pilot (published by NOAA in nine volumes covering US waters) provides detailed descriptions of harbors, channels, anchorages, currents, weather patterns, pilotage directions, and local regulations that cannot fit on a chart. Tide Tables and Tidal Current Tables (now published commercially after NOAA stopped printing them) give predicted times and heights of tides and the times and velocities of tidal currents. Light Lists (published by the US Coast Guard) provide complete details on every navigation aid in US waters — exact position, light characteristics, structure description, and any discrepancies from charted information.
For international cruising, the equivalent publications are Admiralty Sailing Directions (Pilots), Admiralty Tide Tables, and the Admiralty List of Lights. These cover the entire world in systematic volumes organized by geographic region. Cruising guides published by companies like Imray, Lonely Planet, and regional specialists supplement the official publications with practical sailor-oriented information — anchorage reviews, clearance procedures, provisioning advice, and waypoints — but they do not replace the official publications for navigation safety. Build your ship's library as you expand your cruising range, and keep the publications current.
Download a free PDF copy of NOAA Chart No. 1 and keep it in your chart table. When you encounter an unfamiliar symbol on a chart — and you will — the answer is in that booklet. Guessing at chart symbols while navigating in a confined area is how boats hit rocks.
Chart Storage and Care Aboard
Paper charts are surprisingly fragile in the marine environment if not stored properly. Moisture causes the paper to swell, cockle, and eventually grow mold. Salt spray makes the paper sticky and accelerates deterioration. Folding creates permanent creases that obscure detail at the fold line — and important features have an uncanny tendency to fall right on a fold. UV light fades the colors and degrades the ink. A chart that cost twenty dollars and took thirty minutes to correct is useless if it's a moldy, faded, creased mess when you need it.
The chart table drawer is the traditional and best storage location — a flat drawer under a hinged chart table lid, sized to hold charts unfolded or folded once. If your boat has a proper chart table (increasingly rare as designers sacrifice nav stations for cabin space), keep your current-area charts flat in the drawer, organized so the chart you need next is on top. Charts for distant areas can be rolled (not folded) in a chart tube stored in a dry locker. If your boat lacks a chart table, a flat portfolio case or large ziplock bags keep charts organized and protected.
Handle charts with dry hands and keep food, drinks, and engine oil away from the chart table. This sounds obvious until you're plotting a position at 0200 with a mug of coffee in one hand and the boat heeling at 25 degrees — and the coffee ends up on your harbor approach chart. Use pencil only on charts (never ink), and use a soft eraser to clean off old course lines. A plastic chart overlay or a sheet of clear acetate on top of the chart protects the surface while allowing you to plot courses on the overlay with a grease pencil, then wipe it clean for reuse.
Organize charts by passage and keep them in the order you'll need them. Before a coastal passage, pull every chart you might need, arrange them from departure to destination, and add charts for potential harbors of refuge. Mark each chart's number on a visible edge so you can find it quickly in the stack. A frantic search through forty charts for the right harbor approach while the wind is building and visibility is dropping is a problem you can avoid with ten minutes of pre-passage organization.
Invest in a flat, sealable chart case (dry bag style) for cockpit use. When you need a chart in the cockpit for visual pilotage — matching charted features to what you see — the chart case protects the chart from spray while keeping it visible and readable. The alternative is holding a soggy chart in the wind while the helmsman shouts for course corrections.
Summary
Paper charts provide power-independent, comprehensive navigation capability that serves as both a primary planning tool and the ultimate backup when electronic systems fail.
NOAA charts cover US waters with free print-on-demand and PDF options; British Admiralty charts provide worldwide coverage and are essential for international cruising.
NOAA Chart No. 1 decodes every symbol and abbreviation used on nautical charts — keep a copy aboard and learn the common symbols for safe navigation.
Charts must be kept corrected using weekly Notices to Mariners, and essential publications (Coast Pilot, Tide Tables, Light Lists) extend chart information into detailed narrative form.
Proper chart storage — flat, dry, organized by passage, and protected from moisture, folding, and UV — ensures your charts are readable and usable when you need them.
Key Terms
- Chart Scale
- The ratio between a distance on the chart and the actual distance on Earth's surface. A large-scale chart (e.g., 1:10,000) shows great detail over a small area; a small-scale chart (e.g., 1:500,000) shows less detail over a large area. Always use the largest scale chart available.
- Notices to Mariners
- Weekly publications by the US Coast Guard (Local) and NGA (international) that list corrections to nautical charts, light lists, and sailing directions. The primary means of keeping paper charts current with changes to aids, depths, and hazards.
- Coast Pilot
- A NOAA publication in nine volumes providing detailed narrative descriptions of US coastal waters including harbor approaches, anchorages, currents, weather, regulations, and pilotage information that supplements the information shown on nautical charts.
- NOAA Chart No. 1
- The official reference booklet cataloging every symbol, abbreviation, and convention used on NOAA nautical charts. Published jointly with the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and available as a free PDF download.
- ENC (Electronic Navigational Chart)
- The official vector-format digital chart data produced by national hydrographic offices. ENCs are the source data for chart displays in ECDIS systems and many consumer chartplotters, and are the basis for NOAA's print-on-demand Custom Charts.