Pre-Departure Boat Checklist: Run It Every Time

Most ruined fishing trips don't start offshore. They start at the dock, before the engine turns over. One small thing forgotten — a drain plug left out, a tired battery — turns a full day into an early run home or an hour waiting on the ramp.

Long checklists don't get used. A short, fixed routine does. Five minutes, same order, every time, until it's a habit rather than something you do on the first trip of the season.

Fuel and engine

• Check the fuel level with your eyes, not the gauge. Work out the round trip and add a margin.
• Inspect the fuel line and primer bulb: no cracks, no weeping, and the bulb goes firm when you squeeze it.
• Check engine oil on the dipstick, and coolant level if the engine is closed-circuit cooled.

Once it's running, look at the tell-tale. If there's no steady stream of water, shut down immediately. It's the simplest water pump test there is, and it saves engines every season.

Battery and electrics

• Clean the terminals and check they're tight. A loose terminal gives you starting problems with no obvious cause.
• Confirm the battery is fully charged, especially if the boat has been sitting.
• Test the nav lights and electronics before you leave, not after dark.

The hull: water and drainage

• Drain plug: in and tight. This item alone justifies the whole list.
• Bilge is dry. If there's water in it, find out where it came from before you leave — don't let the pump paper over the problem.
• Run the bilge pump and watch it move water. Thirty seconds now beats finding out offshore.
• Ropes and fenders ready and made off. A line in the water during a manoeuvre finds the prop.

Safety gear: count it, don't assume it

• Count life jackets. One per person, right size, straps and buckles intact. A torn jacket is not a jacket.
• Fire extinguisher in its known place, charged and in date. Plenty of boats haven't had theirs looked at in years.
• Anchor, chain and enough line for the depth you'll be fishing.
• Kill switch lanyard attached to you, not lying in a locker.

Weather and tide — do this at home

This one happens before you load anything. Check sea state, wind, and the tide table while you're still at home. In winter the shamal can change the picture quickly, and a flat morning doesn't promise a flat run back. Tides matter too: some channels and shallow flats become a different place between high and low water.

Tell someone ashore where you're going and when you expect to be back. One name, one time. If you're late, that person knows to start asking. It's a thirty-second habit and it's one of the most valuable items on this list.

Last block: enough water and food, a charged phone or working radio, and a layer for the run home if you're staying out late. Simple things — until you've done a hot afternoon with no water on board.

The old hands at the ramp will tell you the checklist doesn't make you go out. It stops you going out incomplete. On a short trip, that's enough of a difference.

Before each run, B7R gives you tides for Shuwaikh and Shuaiba ports, sea state and seasons, plus an SOS button and navigation tools for planning the day. It's free on Google Play.

Get B7R on Google Play and make the pre-departure check automatic: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.q8dm.b7r