Land Avoidance

Land avoidance is the deliberate practice of keeping a vessel a safe distance from coastlines, islands, reefs, shoals and drying areas when planning or following a route. It accounts for charted hazards, position uncertainty, leeway, current set and reduced visibility, so the boat does not unintentionally close the shore or run aground.

For boaters, land avoidance is a core safety margin: it helps prevent grounding, surf-zone entry, breaking-water exposure and last-minute course changes. Check your route on a Chartplotter, verify position with GPS, and allow for Tidal Current that may set the vessel towards a lee shore.

PredictWind routing tools can include land avoidance constraints when calculating practical passages, particularly around headlands, narrow channels and island groups. Combine Weather Routing with updated forecasts, tides and onboard position data, then review the proposed track against official charts and local navigation warnings.