Sea lions basking in the sun on red-and-white buoys are often the first sight of wildlife as boaters set out to the open ocean from harbors dotting California’s coastline. The buoys, however ...

Buoys, beacons and channel markers serve as the traffic signals of the water. They can provide directions or alert boaters if they need to slow down, or if there are hazards in the area such as ...

These buoys also depict areas of “no wake,” or areas that require water vessels to travel at a speed of 6 mph or less as to not create a wake, as well as underwater shallows or other obstacles ...

The U.S. Coast Guard is looking at removing some of the buoys, replacing them with “virtual” navigational aids used with GPS, a system that has some boaters concerned about the proposed change.

Sea lions basking in the sun on red-and-white buoys are often the first sight of wildlife as boaters set out to the open ocean from harbors dotting California’s coastline. The buoys, however, are not ...