THE HARBOR COLUMN:

The Coast Guard Cutter Narwhal aided in blocking Mexican drug runners from making land in the United States. The smugglers were aboard a 25-foot panga with 336 pounds of marijuana destined for the U.S., and they were spotted Sept. 11 only 100 miles south of the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Narwhal was immediately sent to intercept the panga after Customs and Border Protection alerted the Coast Guard and the Mexican Navy about the vessel. A Coast Guard helicopter located the boat and saw the smugglers throwing the bales overboard while the patrol boats were approaching. The smugglers avoided capture by turning toward the Mexican coast, allowing them to disappear in the low-light conditions.

However, the helicopter crew dropped a marker buoy where the bales were dumped that allowed the crew of the Narwhal to recover some of the marijuana. Lt. Kristopher Ensley, the commanding officer of Narwhal, said the success of the interdiction was due to the interagency cooperation from the Mexican Navy, Customs and Border Protection, and multiple Coast Guard units.

Hopefully, the protection of the southern border in the ocean is being increased, as it is not uncommon to find small, abandoned boats on or near shore just north of the border after people slip across the border. I have mentioned for years that when I skipper a yacht across the border northbound, I rarely see any law enforcement vessels out in the ocean. Do not forget that in 2002 10 Chinese nationals swam ashore from a boat at El Morro just south of Corona del Mar. I still wonder if anyone would have called the authorities if they were just dropped off at a public dock instead of swimming ashore, raising suspicion?

Tip of the week is for boaters to keep an extra lookout for any suspicious or unusual boating activity. You know who should be on the docks and boats at your marina, and most of you know when something is not the normal boating pattern.

You might want to use your cellphone to call the authorities in case the other people are listening to the marine band VHF radio.

Tune in at 11 a.m. Saturdays to my boathouse radio show on KLAA-AM (830).

MIKE WHITEHEAD is the Pilot’s boating columnist. Send marine-related thoughts and story suggestions to [email protected] or go to www.boathousetv.com.