Float Plans: What to Leave and With Whom

Your float plan gives a person on shore the information to report you missing if you do not return or check in as planned. The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary’s Float Plan Central form tells you to complete the plan before boating and leave it with a reliable person who can notify the Coast Guard or another rescue agency.¹

This page summarizes published safety guidance. It is not a substitute for instruction, and conditions on your water may differ. Check the current rules for the state and water you paddle.

Who Holds the Plan and When They Act

The form says not to file it with the Coast Guard. Its instructions tell you to notify the holder if your plans change or you will be delayed, then close the plan by telling them you arrived home safely. If they have already reported you overdue, notify all applicable rescue authorities of your safe return.¹

The Auxiliary and American Canoe Association (ACA) joint 2023 A Paddler’s Guide to Safety gives a shorter option on page 45: Who, Where, When and What. That means who is paddling, your put-in, take-out and route, your estimated launch and return times, and what the holder should do if you do not check in. The guide says to agree that no contact by a specified time leads to a specified action. The holder needs to be able to call authorities and know when to call.²

The full form’s Boating Emergency Guide starts with a genuine concern for the people aboard who have not returned or checked in within a reasonable time. It tells the holder to call Contact 1, then Contact 2 if necessary, and then the listed rescue authority if they still have that concern. That is the plan holder’s path through Steps 3, 4 and 6. A person without a plan follows Step 5: write down only what they know, without speculating, and call the local rescue authority. Use that guide with the timing and actions agreed for your trip; it supplies no universal waiting period.¹

What Goes on the Float Plan Central Form

The Auxiliary offers one template: USCG Float Plan, Version 10.2, visibly marked copyright 2015. Its explanation names six major sections; identification, propulsion, communication and navigation are subsections of Vessel.¹³

Section	What the form records
Vessel	Identification and description; propulsion; radio call sign, digital selective calling (DSC) Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI), radio types and monitored channels, cell/satellite and email; navigation equipment such as compass, charts, maps and Global Positioning System (GPS)
Safety & Survival	Visual and audible distress signals, emergency position-indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) identifier, dewatering device, exposure suits, flashlight, food, water and other gear
Persons On Board	Operator and passenger/crew details, personal flotation device (PFD) boxes, personal locator beacon (PLB) identifiers and Note fields; the operator has vessel and boating-area experience boxes
Contacts	Contact 1, Contact 2 and the rescue authority, each with a phone number
Itinerary	Departure and arrival dates/times, locations or waypoints, mode of travel, reason for stop and check-in times
Boating Emergency Guide	Instructions for the holder to contact the listed people and rescue authority

Source: Coast Guard Auxiliary Float Plan Central form and How It Works. The glossary says the Note fields may include medical conditions, disabilities or limitations; that is guidance for those fields, rather than a separate medical-history box. The itinerary records your schedule and check-ins; agree the overdue action with your holder as the joint guide describes.⁴²

Record the Communication Devices You Carry

The form records your equipment. Its radio, cell/satellite and beacon fields do not set a priority among devices. The communication device guide compares their functions and prerequisites.¹

Marine VHF and Digital Selective Calling

A very high frequency (VHF) marine radio can communicate directly with nearby radios. The U.S. Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) Task Force bulletin says the Coast Guard monitors voice Channel 16 through its coastal network and intends to continue indefinitely. The Coast Guard Navigation Center’s Rescue 21 page shows predicted coverage based on line of sight and antenna assumptions. Whether a call reaches a Coast Guard station or another boat depends on range and local coverage; nearby boats receive it directly, not through Rescue 21.⁵⁶

The Task Force describes DSC distress alerts on Channel 70: they include your vessel’s identity and, with a connected GPS receiver, its position. DSC needs an MMSI. The Navigation Center lists BoatUS, United States Power Squadrons and Shine Micro as providers for vessels not required to carry a radio that remain in U.S. waters. Sea Tow no longer registers or maintains MMSIs; its accounts moved to United States Power Squadrons. The MMSI belongs with the vessel, not the user. Radios dedicated to that vessel share it, with exceptions for handhelds not dedicated to the vessel and automatic identification system (AIS) search-and-rescue transmitters.⁵⁷

Personal Locator Beacons

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) describes a PLB as a portable beacon you activate manually. Its 406 megahertz distress signal is relayed by the international Cospas-Sarsat satellite system to search-and-rescue authorities. SARSAT stands for Search and Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking. NOAA requires registration of U.S.-coded beacons, renewal every two years and updates when information changes; registration is free. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) separately requires PLB owners to register with NOAA and update ownership or other registration changes under 47 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) §95.2905.⁸⁹¹⁰¹¹

Guidance for the Setting You Paddle

The joint 2023 guide’s page 44 sample equipment checklist includes a marine radio, PLB and phone in a protective bag, and says to tailor the checklist to your craft, venue and skills. Its open-water recommendations on page 76 list marine radio, cellphone and PLB options. On page 85, its list of other equipment recommends a waterproof marine VHF radio, or a portable VHF in a clear plastic waterproof bag, in coastal waters. A separate item on the same list is a cellphone in a waterproof container as backup. These are equipment recommendations.²

Equipment Rules and Local Conditions

For ordinary recreational canoes and kayaks, Coast Guard regulations in 33 CFR Part 175 require a wearable approved life jacket per person, subject to exceptions including racing craft and sailboards. Required jackets must be readily accessible, serviceable, of the appropriate size and fit, and used under approval-label and referenced manual conditions. The under-13 wear rule applies while underway except below decks or in an enclosed cabin; an applicable state child-wear statute replaces it on waters under that state’s jurisdiction.¹²

On waters governed by the Inland Navigation Rules, vessels under 39.4 feet (12 m) that lack the specified sound appliances must have another means of making an efficient sound signal. At sunset–sunrise, a vessel under oars that does not show sailing-vessel lights must show an all-round white light or have a white torch or lantern ready to exhibit in time to prevent collision. Manually propelled boats also need night visual distress signals at sunset–sunrise on waters covered by Part 175 Subpart C, including U.S. Great Lakes waters, territorial seas and defined connected coastal waters. These are selected requirements; required safety gear for paddling explains their scope and conditions.¹³¹²

For river planning, the joint guide’s page 29 says to identify the appropriate U.S. Geological Survey gauge for your section and obtain enough local knowledge to interpret the level. NOAA’s National Data Buoy Center publishes water-temperature observations; it does not prescribe a paddling check order. The weather and wind guide covers forecasts, observations and their limits.²¹⁴

The solo paddling guide covers planning when you have no partner. The safety guides connect the other parts of your trip planning.

What the Coast Guard’s 2024 Statistics Say About Paddlecraft

According to the U.S. Coast Guard’s 2024 Recreational Boating Statistics, paddlecraft accounted for 26 percent of boating deaths where the vessel type was known.¹⁵

The U.S. Coast Guard’s 2024 report records 556 recreational boating deaths, a 1.4 percent decrease from 2023 (p. 6).

U.S. Coast Guard 2024 Finding	Figure
Paddlecraft share of boating deaths (vessel type known)	26 percent
Drowning victims across all vessel types (life-jacket use known)	Where life-jacket use was known, 87 percent of drowning victims were not wearing one
Fatal victims who drowned (cause of death known)	76 percent

Source: U.S. Coast Guard, Recreational Boating Statistics 2024, pp. 6–7.

https://floatplancentral.cgaux.org/download/USCGFloatPlan.pdf (Coast Guard Auxiliary, USCG Float Plan Version 10.2; visible copyright 2015; pp. 1–3; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵
https://edept.cgaux.org/pdf/PaddlersGuideSafety042023.pdf (Coast Guard Auxiliary with the ACA, A Paddler’s Guide to Safety, 2023; pp. 29, 44–45, 76, 85; accessed September 19, 2026.) ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴
https://floatplancentral.cgaux.org/classroom/how_it_works.htm (Coast Guard Auxiliary, How It Works; undated; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://floatplancentral.cgaux.org/classroom/glossary.htm (Coast Guard Auxiliary, Glossary, Note; undated; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/gmdss/taskForce/RVIB_3_022023.pdf (U.S. GMDSS Task Force, GMDSS for Recreational Vessels Using VHF Radio; file name indicates February 2023, no printed issue date; pp. 1–3; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩ ↩²
https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/rescue-21-distress-system-coverage (Coast Guard Navigation Center; revised December 16, 2025; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/mmsis-for-recreational-vessels (Coast Guard Navigation Center; undated; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://www.sarsat.noaa.gov/emergency-406-beacons/ (NOAA, 406 MHz Emergency Distress Beacons; undated; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://www.sarsat.noaa.gov/faqs/ (NOAA SARSAT, Frequently Asked Questions; undated; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://www.sarsat.noaa.gov/register-your-beacon/ (NOAA SARSAT, Register Your Beacon; undated; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-D/part-95/subpart-K/section-95.2905 (FCC, PLB registration; eCFR October 1, 2026 version; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-33/chapter-I/subchapter-S/part-175 (Coast Guard regulations, §§175.11, 175.15–175.25, 175.101–175.115; eCFR October 1, 2026 version; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩ ↩²
https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-33/chapter-I/subchapter-E/part-83 (Inland Navigation Rules, §§83.01, 83.20, 83.25(d)(ii), 83.33(b); eCFR October 1, 2026 version; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/measdes.shtml (NOAA National Data Buoy Center, Measurement Descriptions; undated; accessed October 2, 2026.) ↩
https://www.uscgboating.org/library/accident-statistics/Recreational-Boating-Statistics-2024.pdf (U.S. Coast Guard, Recreational Boating Statistics 2024; pp. 6–7.) ↩