Monday, October 16, 2023

Text a Buoy

Even though we've been at the whole cruising thing for a really long time, every once in awhile I get completely gobsmacked by something I didn't know and this week was one of those. Did you know that if you don't have internet but you do have phone service that you can text a buoy number to the system and they will return the buoy data to your phone? Here's an example:

For buoys in the Southeast:

Text 843-603-8559 with the number of the buoy you want the information for and press send. You can get the list of buoys at this site:

https://secoora.org/text-a-buoy/

Here's an example of the text that I tested the system with:


Here's one from just offshore of Tampa Bay that shows wave height:










For Great Lakes Buoy Reports:

In your message box, enter the buoy ID number from one of the buoys listed below. Only buoys with numeric names can be texted. Example: Ludington Buoy: 45024. Depending on the buoy, some of the information available is as follows:

  • Wind speed
  • Wind location
  • Surface water temperature
  • Water temperature at depth (Certain buoys)
  • Air temperature
  • Wave height

 

LAKE MICHIGAN

 Buoy ID

Location

45002

North Lake Michigan

45007

South Lake Michigan

45013

Milwaukee Atwater Park

45014

South Green Bay

45020

Grand Traverse Bay South

45022

Little Traverse Bay

45024

Ludington

45026

Cook Nuclear Plant

45029

Port Sheldon

45161

Muskegon

45168

South Haven

45170

Michigan City Buoy

45174

Wilmette

45175

Mackinac Straits West

45182

Milwaukee Atwater Park

45183

Sleeping Bear

45184

Green Bay East

45185

Green Bay West

45186

Waukegan

45187

Winthrop

PA-DEP-1538

PA-DEP-1538

SPOT-0648

SPOT-0648 Ludington

SPOT-0700

SPOT-0700 Little Traverse Bay

 

LAKE SUPERIOR

 Buoy ID

Location

45001

Mid Superior

45004

East Superior

45006

West Superior

45023

North Entry

45025

South Entry Buoy

45027

McQuade Harbor

45028

Duluth

45136

Slate Island

45171

Granite Island

45172

Grand Marais

45173

Munising

45179

Stannard Rock

 

LAKE ERIE

 Buoy ID

Location

45005

West Lake Erie

45132

Northern Lake Erie

45142

Port Colborne

45164

Cleveland DO

45165

Toledo Water Intake

45167

Erie Nearshore

45169

Cleveland Wind

45176

Cleveland Intake Crib

BGSUSD2

Sandusky Bay

ESF3

Dunkirk

WE2

Western Erie 2

WE4

Western Erie 4

WE8

Western Erie 8

WE13

Western Erie 13

OSUGI

Gibralter Island

UTLCP

Little Cedar Point

uwss-raeon1

UWSS RAEON Buoy 1

uwss-raeon2

UWSS RAEON Buoy 2

uwraeon1

UWindsor RAEON Buoy 1

uwraeon4

UWindsor RAEON Buoy 4

uwraeon2

UWindsor RAEON Buoy 2

uwraeon3

UWindsor RAEON Buoy 3

 

LAKE HURON

 Buoy ID

Location

45003

North Lake Huron

45008

South Central Lake Huron

45137

Georgian Bay

45143

South Georgian Bay

45149

Southern Lake Huron

45154

North Channel East

45162

Alpena Thunder Bay

 

LAKE ONTARIO

 Buoy ID

Location

45012

East Ontario

45135

Prince Edward Pt

45139

West Lake Ontario

45159

Northwest Ontario

ESF1

Oswego

ESF2

Sodus Bay South

ESF5

Sodus Bay Center

ESF8

Sodus Point Nearshore Monitoring Buoy

ESF9

Oak Ochard Nearshore Monitoring Buoy

OMOECC_O1

Western Ontario

OMOECC_O2

Western Ontario 2

45189

Oswego

 

OTHER LAKES

 Buoy ID

Location

45147

Lake St Clair



If you have phone service you can also call Dial-a-Buoy for a report. Here is an exerpt from the NDBC Site

Dial-A-Buoy

Call Dial-A-Buoy at 888-701-8992 or 301-713-9620

What is Dial-A-Buoy?

Dial-A-Buoy gives mariners an easy way to obtain weather reports when away from a computer/the Internet. Wind and wave measurements taken within the last hour at buoy and coastal weather stations operated by NDBC and a growing number of Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS®) partners can be heard using a cell phone. NDBC, a part of the National Weather Service (NWS), created Dial-A-Buoy in 1997. In 2007, NDBC and the National Ocean Service's Center for Operational Ocean Products and Services (NOS/CO-OPS) jointly implemented a replacement for the original system which had operated well beyond its expected life cycle. The new system is an extension of the Great Lakes Online service that NOS/CO-OPS is expanding to include its National Water Level Observation Network (NWLON) stations.

Large numbers of boaters use the observations, in combination with forecasts, to make decisions on whether it is safe to venture out. Some even claim that the reports have saved lives. Surfers use the reports to see if wave conditions are, or will soon be, promising. Many of these boaters and surfers live well inland, and knowing the conditions has saved them many wasted trips to the coast.

Buoy reports include wind direction, speed, gust, significant wave height, swell and wind-wave heights and periods, air temperature, water temperature, and sea level pressure. Some buoys report wave directions. Coastal weather stations report the winds, air temperature, and pressure; some also report wave information, water temperature, visibility, and dew point.

How do I use Dial-A-Buoy?

To access Dial-A-Buoy, dial 888-701-8992 using any touch tone or cell phone. Assuming you know the identifier of the station whose report you need, press "1". In response to the prompt, enter the five-digit (or character) station identifier. (For coastal stations whose identifiers contain both letter characters and numbers, use the number key containing the letter - for the letter "Q", press "7"; for "Z", press "9"; etc.) The system will ask you to confirm that your entry was correct by pressing "1". After a few seconds, you will hear the latest buoy or C-MAN observation read via computer-generated voice. At the end, the system will prompt you to press "1" to hear the report again, or "2" to continue with other options.

Dial-A-Buoy also can read the latest NWS marine forecast for most station locations. The system will prompt you to press "2" to continue after the observation is read, then "1" to hear the forecast. You can jump to the forecast before the end of the station report by pressing "21" during the reading of the station conditions.

When you are finished with Dial-A-Buoy, press 9 or simply hang-up!

There are several ways to find the station locations and identifiers. For Internet users, maps showing buoy locations are given at the NDBC Website. Telephone users can press "2" at the beginning of the call to be prompted for a latitude and longitude and receive the closest station locations and identifiers.

When you become familiar with the system, you do not have to wait for the prompts. For example, you can press "1420071" as soon as you begin to hear the welcome message to hear the report from station 42007.

How Does Dial-A-Buoy Work?

The Dial-A-Buoy system does not actually dial into a buoy or C-MAN station. The phone calls are answered by a computer that controls the dialog and reads the observations and forecasts from NDBC's web site.

What are some problems with Dial-A-Buoy?

How do I enter characters for a Station Identifier? Characters are entered simply by pressing the key containing the character. For Q, press "7", and for Z, press "9". For example, to enter CHLV2, press the keys 24582.

How do I quit Dial-A-Buoy? Simply hang-up.

How do I hear the observations for another station? When you are finished hearing the observation or forecast, the system will prompt you to press "1" to hear it again or '2' to continue. The second option will be to press "2" to enter a new station identifier. You can jump to the new station prompt before the end of the station report by pressing "221" during the reading of the station conditions.

If you press 22 at most points in the call, Dial-A-Buoy will take you back to the beginning dialog.

The complete list of buoys is on this map.

This is an amazing resource for sailors of all kinds and one I wish I had known about a lot sooner!

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