Boating Checklists: Simple Tools to Reduce Mistakes and Improve Safety
In 2009, Harvard Medical School professor Atul Gawande published The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right. His bestselling book highlighted a striking pattern: highly trained professionals make avoidable, sometimes serious mistakes—not because they lack knowledge, but because they fail to apply it consistently. The remedy he recommended was simple: a checklist.
That insight matters for boaters. Checklists aren’t just for weekend chores or grocery lists; they are practical, low-tech tools that prevent oversights at sea. Experience teaches many lessons, but learning the hard way while short on food, water, charts, or essential gear is neither romantic nor acceptable. A well-designed checklist helps you apply what you already know, especially when fatigue, distraction, or complacency set in.
Why Use a Boating Checklist?
A checklist acts as an external memory aid when sequence and detail are critical. Even seasoned sailors have off days—when a routine task gets rushed or forgotten. Standardizing precruise and onboard procedures reduces human error by making key items habitual. That consistency is particularly valuable when the consequences of a missed step are significant.
Checklists can be brief or detailed depending on the boat, voyage length, and risk. They should capture the essentials and be easy to follow. If a checklist grows too long, break it into focused sections (predeparture, underway, approach/arrival, maintenance, and safety) to keep it usable.
Common Checklists to Keep Onboard
Many commercial vessels use a standard predeparture checklist to confirm readiness. Recreational boaters can benefit from the same discipline. Typical items include:
- Fluid levels for engines and generators
- Fuel quantity and range planning
- Battery condition and charge status
- VHF radio operation and antenna connections
- Navigation instruments and chartplotter accuracy
- Running lights, flashlights, and spare bulbs
- Horn and sound-signaling equipment
- Engine cooling water flow and oil pressure
- Propulsion checks: gear ahead and astern
- Steering system inspection
- Provisions and potable water supply
- Current weather reports and forecasts
- Filed float plan or notified contacts ashore
- Shore power connections and shore couplings
Prearrival and Maneuvering Checks
Prearrival checklists are just as important as predeparture lists, particularly after long passages. Equipment that sits idle for days may fail when you most need it. Test transmissions on the VHF, verify that reverse propulsion functions properly, and confirm steering responsiveness before entering tight slips or crowded marinas. One skipper learned this the hard way after attempting to berth without first confirming that the engine would go astern—resulting in a collision narrowly avoided.
Keep your checklists visible and durable—laminated copies resist moisture and wear. A laminated checklist also signals that you treat the procedure seriously.
Maintenance, Spare Parts and Safety Inventories
Checklists work well for less time-sensitive but essential tasks: spare parts inventories, routine maintenance, and safety equipment inspections. Decide minimum stock levels for common items—spare filters, belts, bulbs and fuses—and log when they are used or replenished. Track maintenance intervals for pumps, seacocks, and critical systems.
Safety items require special attention. Flares, fire extinguishers and medications carry expiration dates; PFDs, first-aid kits and liferaft fittings need periodic visual checks. Incorporate these inspections into an annual or seasonal checklist so safety equipment remains reliable when needed.
Designing Effective Checklists
A good checklist focuses on the important items without turning into an exhaustive manual. It should prompt the user to verify key systems and decisions, not replace situational awareness or good judgement. Checklists become counterproductive when they are treated as mere paperwork; they must be practical, concise and integrated into routine practice.
As your cruising profile evolves—longer passages, offshore trips or more complex electronics—your checklists should adapt. Break extensive lists into manageable modules and update them based on experience. The best checklists grow organically from lessons learned on the water.
Checklists cannot foresee every contingency. If your list tries to do that, you’ve probably spent too much time making lists and not enough time cruising. Use checklists to handle the predictable, freeing your attention to think critically about the unpredictable.
This article originally appeared in the May 2018 issue.