Shadowing Practice: Lateral Marks Explained for Passage Planning | IALA Region A vs B Made Simple - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Creating a passage plan in areas where various types of navigational marks are present, such as lateral marks, cardinal marks,
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isolated danger marks, safe water marks, and special marks, can sometimes be challenging.
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This is particularly true for lateral marks, as they are the only type that differ between voyage regions,
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while all other marks are common to both regions.
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In this video, we will focus on lateral marks and their practical application in passage planning.
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Lateral marks defines a channel and indicate the port
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and starboard side of the navigational route to be followed when approaching a harbor, river, estuary, or other waterway from seaward.
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As early as 1976, there were more than 30 different buoyage systems in use worldwide.
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This lack of standardization often led to confusion among mariners.
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To address this, the IALA or IALA Maritime Voyage System,
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known by its full form as the International Association and Lighthouse Authorities, or the International Association of Maritime Aids and Lighthouse Authorities,
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established a unified system to provide a safe navigation globally.
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IALA introduced a system divided into two regions, Regions A and Region B.
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Region A includes Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, the Gulf region, and some Asian countries.
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Region B includes
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North, Central, and South America, as well as Japan, Korea, and Philippines.
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These regions differ only in the use of lateral marks.
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All other navigational marks mentioned earlier are common in both regions.
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With reference to the conventional direction of voyage approaching a harbor, river, estuary, or other waterway from seaward,
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In Region A, the red lateral mark, known as the port hand mark, must be kept on the port side of the vessel's track.
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The green lateral mark, known as the starboard hand mark, must be kept on the starboard side of the vessel's track.
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In Region B, these colors are reversed.
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Red lateral marks to starboard, while green to port.
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Again, it is with reference to the conventional direction of buoyage approaching a harbor, river, estuary, or other waterway from seaward.
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Before proceeding to the application of lateral marks in passage planning, it is important to understand some key characteristics of these marks.
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Lateral marks may be either buoys or fixed structures such as beacons.
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Buoys can take several forms, including cylindrical or can -shaped, conical or nun -shaped, pillar or spar.
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Fixed structures, on the other hand, may appear as piles, a post or a tower.
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In terms of color and with reference to the buoyage regions established by Ayala,
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region A uses red for port hand marks and green for starboard hand marks.
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In region B, these colors are reversed, green for port hand marks, and red for starboard hand marks.
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Regardless of shape and regions, the top mark remains consistent in form.
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A port hand mark is fitted with a single cylinder or can top mark,
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while a starboard hand mark is fitted with a single cone pointing upward.
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The only difference between regions is the color, not the shape.
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Due to this consistency, a simple and effective mnemonic can be used.
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Can to port, cone to starboard.
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Again, can to port, cone to starboard.
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It is also important to note that some lateral buoys or beacons may not carry top marks.
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In such cases, the shape of the buoy or beacon itself serves as the identifier.
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When lateral marks are fitted with lights, the color of the light corresponds to the color of the mark.
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These lights may exhibit various phase characteristics, such as quick flashing, flashing, long flashing, or group flashing.
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However, composite group flashing 2 plus 1 is not used for standard lateral marks,
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as this characteristic is specifically reserved for preferred channel marks which are a modified form of lateral marks.
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This will be discussed later in the video.
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Let us examine this chart.
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This section lies within Region A.
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Assume we are planning a passage as an eastbound vessel approaching the Elbe River bound for Hamburg, Germany.
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When laying down the planned track, the red lateral marks must be kept on the port side,
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while the green lateral marks must be kept on the starboard side.
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Where top marks are fitted, we can clearly observe the principle.
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Can to port, cone to starboard.
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Now, let's consider another chart.
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This section is located in the United States, which belongs to region B.
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A vessel is approaching the harbor.
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The planned track must again be laid between the lateral marks.
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However, in this region, the color system is reversed.
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Red marks indicate the starboard side, while green marks indicate the port side.
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Despite this difference in color, the shapes of the top marks remain the same.
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A can -shaped top mark indicates the port side, and a cone -shaped top mark indicates the starboard side.
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This reinforces the same mnemonic, can to port, cone to starboard, regardless of regions.
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However, consider a different scenario.
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This chart section is from China, which is within region A.
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Assume we are preparing a passage plan is a westbound vessel approaching a river.
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Let's take a closer look at this section.
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When laying down the track, red marks to port and green marks to starboard relative to the direction of voyage,
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if any uncertainty arises, always refer to the top marks and recall the mnemonic can to port, cone to starboard.
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This rule applies consistently regardless of whether you are navigating in region A or region B.
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Let us examine this chart section in Singapore, which falls under region A.
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Assume we are preparing a passage plan from this point toward the port.
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The first leg of the planned track may be laid as shown.
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Here we observe a conical lateral mark.
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Applying the mnemonic, cone to starboard, this mark must be kept on the starboard side of the vessel.
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Now the question may arise, can we lay the track in this manner for the next leg,
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considering that this is a starboard hand mark in region A?
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The answer is no. This is because there is a north cardinal mark in the vicinity.
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By definition, safe water lies to the north of a north cardinal mark.
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Therefore, the planned track must pass to the north of this mark.
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However, if we adjust the track accordingly, we must also ensure consistency with the lateral marks.
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In this case, the starboard hand mark would then lie on the port side of the track, which contradicts the rule cone to starboard.
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Therefore, this track is not acceptable.
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To resolve this, we must extend and adjust the planned track.
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When establishing the next leg, the lateral mark must correctly lie on the starboard side,
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in accordance with the mnemonic CAN to port, CON to starboard.
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At the same time, the track must pass to the south of this south cardinal mark, ensuring compliance with both lateral and cardinal mark requirements.
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If you are not yet familiar with cardinal marks, a separate video covering this topic in detail is available.
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You may check the link provided in the description for the full tutorial.
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At the point where the channel divides, a modified lateral mark, known as a preferred channel mark, is used to indicate the recommended route.
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The alternative route is considered the secondary channel.
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In region A, preferred channel marks follow the same basic color scheme as lateral marks, with the addition of a single broad horizontal band.
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A preferred channel to starboard is red with a broad green horizontal band.
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A preferred channel to port is green with a broad red horizontal band.
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In Region B, the colors are reversed.
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A preferred channel to starboard is green with a broad red horizontal band.
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A preferred channel to port is red with a broad green horizontal band.
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When fitted with a light, the color of the light corresponds to the color of the mark,
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and it exhibits a composite group flashing 2 plus 1.
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This light pattern is the same for both port and starboard preferred channels, only the color differs.
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Although preferred channel marks may initially appear more complex than standard lateral marks, their top marks remain consistent.
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A cylindrical can top mark indicates the port side.
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while a conical top mark indicates the starboard side.
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Therefore, when creating a passage plan, with reference to the conventional direction of voyage approaching a harbor, river, estuary, or other waterway from seaward,
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the same reliable mnemonic can be applied for preferred channels.
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Can to port, cone to starboard.
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If any confusion arises, particularly with color differences between regions, always refer to the top mark,
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as this principle applies consistently in both region A and region B.
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That concludes this discussion.
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I hope you found this video helpful.
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Thank you for watching, and see you in the next one.
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Bye.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Lateral Marks Explained for Passage Planning”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: mark, region, starboard, lateral, port. This video has 110 sentences and 1457 words to shadow. The speech runs for 10:41. The speaker talks at a steady 136 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 75% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| lateral adjective | /ˈlætəɹəl/ | Situated on one side or other of the body or of an organ, especially in the region furthest from the median plane. |
| cone noun | /ˈkoʊn/ | A surface of revolution formed by rotating a segment of a line around another line that intersects the first line. |
| indicate verb | /ˈɪndɪˌkeɪt/ | To point out; to discover; to direct to a knowledge of; to show; to make known. |
| passage noun | /ˈpæsɪd͡ʒ/ | A paragraph or section of text or music with particular meaning. |
| flash verb | /flæʃ/ | To cause to shine briefly or intermittently. |
| cardinal noun | /ˈkɑːd(ɪ)nəl/ | One of the officials appointed by the pope in the Roman Catholic Church, ranking only below the pope, equal to the patriarchs, constituting the special college… |
| bind verb | /ˈbaɪ̯nd/ | To tie; to confine by any ligature. |
| harbor noun | /ˈhɑːbə/ | Any place of shelter. |
| horizontal adjective | /ˌhoɹəˈzɑn.təl/ | Perpendicular to the vertical; parallel to the plane of the horizon; level, flat. |
| voyage noun | /ˈvɔɪ.ɪd͡ʒ/ | A long journey, especially by ship. |
| chart noun | /t͡ʃɑɹt/ | A map illustrating the geography of a specific phenomenon. |
| reverse noun | /ɹɪˈvɝs/ | The opposite of something. |
| vessel noun | /ˈvɛsəl/ | Any craft designed for transportation on or in water, such as a ship, boat, or submarine. |
| regardless adverb | /ɹɪˈɡɑɹd.lɪs/ | Without attention to warnings or indications of bad consequences. |
| establish verb | /ɪˈstæb.lɪʃ/ | To make stable or firm; to confirm. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| lay down verb | To give up, surrender, or yield (e.g. a weapon), usually by placing it on the ground. |
| fall under verb | To belong to for purposes of categorization. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | be followed · must be kept · are reversed |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | marks which are · China, which is |
Pronunciation to watch
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: flash /flæʃ/, establish /ɪˈstæb.lɪʃ/, conventional /kənˈvɛnʃənl̩/, confusion /kənˈfjuːʒən/, navigation /nævɪˈɡeɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: horizontal /ˌhoɹəˈzɑn.təl/, characteristic /ˌkæɹ(ə)ktəˈɹɪstɪk/, consistently /kənˈsɪstəntli/, consistency /kənˈsɪs.tən.si/, acceptable /əkˈsɛp.tə.bəl/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like lateral, cone, indicate.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.