Christmas Gifts for Boaters

Do you have a boater on your Christmas gift list? You will never go wrong by focusing on boating safety.

From books to EPIRBS to radios to whistles, there are accessories in every price range to put together a great gift for any boater in your life.

Of course, the ideal is that your family will never need to use emergency or survival equipment, but if an accident happens in the harsh marine environment, these items could become the gift that will never be forgotten.

According to an article on The Press of Atlantic City’s website, three of the top gift choices are also some of the most effective pieces of survival equipment. They are as follows:

• A properly fitting U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket.

• A handheld VHF-FM marine radio is a perfect communication device for our back bays where cell phone service is spotty.

• A 406 MHz Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) or Personal Locator Beacon (PPIRB) is truly a save-your-life piece of equipment. There are some great bargains on PPIRB’s this year in the $200 range.

Other gift ideas include:
• A marine GPS navigation system
• A Coast Guard approved fire extinguisher
• A first aid kit in a watertight container
• A seamanship book
• A signaling kit or enrollment in a boating safety course

If you need a stocking stuffer idea, whistles are a fantastic gift for less than $5. A whistle attached to a life jacket can be a real life saver. Other sound-producing devices, signaling mirrors, flares and neatly rolled nautical charts are all ideal sizes to fit in that stocking.