What does leeward mean on a boat?
How it works
On a normally trimmed fore-and-aft sailing boat, the mainsail and boom are carried on the leeward side. If the wind comes over port, the sails lie mainly to starboard, which is then leeward.
For two sailing vessels on the same tack with risk of collision, Rule 12 requires the windward vessel to keep out of the way of the leeward vessel. That rule does not create a universal priority for anything downwind.
The sheltered, downwind side
A lee is shelter from the wind, which is why leeward names the side away from its source. The same idea explains “lee shore”: a shore lying downwind of the vessel, toward which wind and sea may set her.
On the water
- The mainsail is eased toward the leeward side.
- A boat may drift or make leeway toward the downwind side.
- A lee shore deserves extra sea room because the weather can set the vessel toward it.
Common mistake
Leeward is not another word for port, and the leeward vessel is not universally stand-on. The same-tack Rule 12 case must actually apply.
Remember it
A LEE gives shelter; LEEWARD is away from the wind.