Navionics Route Planning

[Rolan Sacco]

NavionicsPC Navigation Planner - NavPlanner is an easy-to-use software package allowing Navionics charts to be viewed on a computer. Compatible with Navionics Silver, Navionics Gold, Navionics+, and Platinum+ charts.

Navigation Planner is the only PC program specifically designed for marine planning with Navionics charts.

Plan with your PC at home, on board or in the office and transfer routes and waypoints to your chart plotter.

NavigationPLANNER allows you to backup all your waypoints and routes on your PC, import data from other sources and transfer them to your plotter.

Navigation Planner+, has the added benefit of becoming a back-up to the on-board chartplotter by accepting a GPS input to show boat position.

Among the big challenges when planning a long-distance passage can be knowing when to leave, how to take advantage of the best weather windows along the way, and what waypoints to set to get you there the quickest or with the least exposure to unpleasant points of sail or conditions. Thankfully, the cruising navigator has a bevy of tools from which to choose, including weather-routing and passagemaking apps, and software and services that have been developed and refined to take advantage of the computing power found in laptops, smart devices and chart plotters.

While the net result is often similar, each has its upsides. Onboard passagemaking and routing software means that the information and the means to process it are close at hand should outside communications go down, or if users want to run any offline route planning to weigh alternatives. Cloud and website services, on the other hand, usually have access to a range of weather forecasts and GRIBs, so the crew needs to download only the resulting routing information, which can be as simple as a series of waypoints, rather than the significantly bigger weather files. This means less airtime or consumed data for anyone using satellite communications.

In addition to parameters such as vessel polars, destinations and passage dates, some weather-routing services also allow the navigator to stipulate the maximum acceptable windspeed and wave height, as well as maximum time on a particular point of sail that they wish to encounter on their passage.

When I heard of the implementation of auto-routing in Navionics I immediately expressed my view on a Dutch sailing forum: total useless rubbish. You expanded the vocabulary to potential dangerous, rightly so.

Good point that by navigating less, on land and sea, we lose the skills to do so. A year or so ago I read an article suggesting that the use of navigation apps was physically changing our brains to the point that we will no longer be able to properly orient ourselves, even if we want to. Scary stuff.

Hi John,

You yourself mentioned in a previous post that you found it easier to use your chartplotter in heading up mode, this is probably a good example of this. I had previously had mine on North up but changed to your recommendation; it sure is easier to work out where you are going and improves situational awareness on a micro level, but I find it means I lose my sense of bearing on a macro level. On balance I think I prefer North up as I like to know where I am in relation to the bigger picture.

For the same reason nearly never plot a course on the multi system display and let the AP follow it. Exception is when on passage and well off the nearest continental shelf.

Yes I do plot the course on the electronics not on paper but run point to point using the autopilot (actually a bit away from nav aids). Similarly when using the apparent wind feature or under the hydrovane use the electronics to remind me /others when we wander too far off course but only as a visual aid. You look at the screen and can see where you are relative to the course. Do this in part to get crew looking at the screen periodically for AIS or radar targets but also to keep VOG in their minds.

Think such behavior may have saved the Volvo boat some grief. But of course you need to be changing magnification routinely when coastal or near land.

Good point on chart inaccuracies introduced when government data is transferred to recreational charts. That said, we also need to be aware that not all government data is right either: -simple-navigation-and-weather-safety-tip/

Also worth noting that many hydrographic offices only have a mandate to acurately chart for commercial shipping, this is certainly the case in Australia where many areas frequented only by recreational users are completely ignored by the AHO. Navionics and the like are the only available options.

A second use case for autorouting that we found helpful, was for overall trip planning in areas that are new to us. We were in Nova Scotia, for the first time, this past summer. Frequently, we would look at our paper charts and try to figure out, for example, how far is it between the town of Chester and the Rogues Roost anchorage? Yes, we could walk our dividers across the paper and calculate the distance and estimated time. But, entering a starting point, then a finish waypoint, on the iPad is much quicker and yields the information much faster. Knowing the rough time and distance, we then manually create the route we will follow factoring in safety margins along with current and wind direction.

That makes sense and is much in line with the way I use autorouting. That said, I just heard of a boat that ran aground because autorouting missed a buoy, so like you, I would never use it to navigate on, even in the waterway.

My boat is presently in the yard being repaired thanks to this feature on Navionics: but the blame is solely mine. I should have checked the auto course more thoroughly, and I should have been more aware of my position on the water.

Auto-routing is only as useful as the user makes it. I was aware of the risks of using this feature, but not aware enough!

There are other problems with computer generated route legs as well, such as correct TSS handling (even if it is just avoiding the TSS for a small boat) and knowledge of the relevant Notices to Mariners, as well as tides, prevailing wind etc that you have already mentioned.

While I agree that good autorouting is theoretically possible, I doubt very much that we will ever see it. My guess is that the volume will never get to the point that is will support the level of tech needed.

Intellegent autorouting and autonomous vessels are not far away at all, semi-autonomous tugs are almost in service, where the only part done by a human will be the actual docking operations, and that human will be in a control room somewhere on-shore. The cost of having crews at sea is a massive driver for autonomous vessels, and for this, accurate autorouting is an absolute requirement. That technology will eventually trickle down to the charplotters and autopilots fitted to sailboats.

Ben,

Thanks for this article. I think developing routes on a laptop or tablet and transferring to a chart plotter is a very good thing. I teach the USPS Electronic Navigation Systems course and this is one thing that I emphasize to students.

Hi Ben

Nice article on the Navionics App. I have been using it for a number of years on my smartphone as a supplement and back up to my Garmin 3210 plotter (reason for not updating was noted in comment on your discussion about WPx function of Coastal Explorer referenced above).

I have played with the auto-route feature and find it a seemingly great tool. And I used the WebApp Viewer to create routing on my PC and sync with the phone.

However, it is not very useful if I cannot get the route transferred to a GPX file that I can access via computer. I could then use Garmin Homeport (that I like very much for route making and trip planning) for final review and then transfer to the plotter. Think I am in the same boat as many other users that do not have MFDs with wireless connections.

Therefore, my question is one of clarification to the discussion above. Is there is no way to transfer the GPX files from the app without use of a wireless compatible MFD?

Regards

Ron

Garmin announced that Auto Guidance+ technology is now available in the Navionics Boating smart-device app3. Combining the best of Garmin and Navionics automatic routing technologies, the Auto Guidance+ feature delivers faster route calculation speeds with smoother suggested pathways to improve route planning and deliver more clear direction while navigating from point to point.

After adjusting boat settings and selecting a designated shoreline distance in the Navionics Boating app, Auto Guidance+ utilizes an array of chart data and navigation aids to quickly calculate a suggested route for smoother guidance through complex waterways or along the coastline.

The Auto Guidance+ feature is now available in the latest version of the Navionics Boating smart-device app (18.0) with an active subscription. The Navionics Boating app is available for compatible Apple and Android devices with annual subscriptions starting at $24.99. Click here to learn more about the advanced features and content included in the Navionics Boating app.

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