There have been several reports that retail chart sellers have been selling out-of-date nautical charts to the boating public.

Proper up-to-date nautical charts are the first step in taking any cruise, whether its around the local bay or from San Diego to Catalina Island. Without accurate charts, the boat, its crew and passengers face increased risks from the ever-changing ocean.

Each week, the United States Coast Guard's Navigation Center (www.navcen.uscg.mil) issues nine regional Local Notice to Mariners. These Notices detail specific changes in the waters within the region.

NOAA, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration is charged with producing Nautical Charts. Before purchasing any Nautical Chart, boaters should stop by their website and check on the latest edition of their chart. This page is located at: http://chartmaker.ncd.noaa.gov/mcd/dole.htm.

An educated boater is a safe boater, and the United States Coast Guard, America's Volunteer Lifesavers wants all our boaters, traditional and non-traditional to be safe and enjoy this wonderful sport.

To this end, the USCG Auxiliary provides free Vessel Safety Checks (VSC's) to the boating public (http://www.safetyseal.net/) and a wide variety of Public Boating Education Courses (http://www.cgaux.org/cgauxweb/classes/master.shtml).

The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary is the civilian component of Team Coast Guard. Founded in 1939 by an Act of Congress as the US Coast Guard Reserves and re-designated the Auxiliary in 1941. The 38,000 volunteer members (men and women) donate millions of hours in support of Coast Guard missions.

For more information on the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary, visit us at www.cgaux.org.