🇺🇸 Buoyage of Norfolk · Chesapeake Bay: put the harbour's buoys back (United States)
© OpenStreetMap · ODbL · Simplified map, not for navigation.
This chart shows the real buoyage of Norfolk · Chesapeake Bay (United States), taken from OpenStreetMap on 2026-10-03. 4 marks are missing. IALA region B (the Americas): the lateral colours are swapped, green to port and red to starboard as you come in.
What the chart shows
The Norfolk chart, in Virginia, holds only lateral marks: four port-hand (buoys 3, 7, 9 and the wreck buoy WR1) and three starboard-hand (2NN, 8 and 10). Four spots are empty: buoys 3 and 7 of the Elizabeth River Channel, number 8 of the same channel and 2NN of the Newport News channel.
According to the regions map of IALA Recommendation R1001, the United States is in region B: coming from seaward, green is left to port and red to starboard. Numbers rise from seaward, odd on green, even on red, as 3, 7 and 9 on one side and 2NN, 8 and 10 on the other confirm. The wreck buoy WR1 is a port-hand mark here, so green.
NOAA’s U.S. Coast Pilot 3, chapter 9, says two main buoyed federal channels cross Hampton Roads: one runs south along the Norfolk and Portsmouth waterfronts, the other, the Newport News channel, heads west. The harbour stretches about 15 miles up the Elizabeth River, with restricted military areas on both banks.
Revision questions in the spirit of the exam
- In the United States, which side do you leave a red buoy on when coming into harbour?
- Why is buoy 8 a starboard-hand mark while 9 is port-hand?
- What mistake does a region A candidate make by placing red to port on this chart?
Sources
- IALA, Recommendation R1001 (ed. 2.0, June 2023) (facts restated in our own words, text not reproduced)
- OpenStreetMap and OpenSeaMap, survey of 03/10/2026 (ODbL 1.0 licence)
- NOAA, U.S. Coast Pilot 3, chapter 9 (version of 04/10/2026) [work of the U.S. federal government, not protected by copyright in the United States (17 U.S.C. § 105); facts restated in our own words]
For practice only: do not use for navigation. Refer to up-to-date official charts and documents.
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Data: © OpenStreetMap contributors, under the ODbL 1.0, including seamarks from the OpenSeaMap project. The derived database behind these charts is published under the ODbL: real-zones.json (ODbL), ODbL 1.0. Simplified map, not for navigation.