The question we are asked most frequently at the Seattle Boat Show is: “What about vector charts for Canada?” Our answer has always been that some Canadian vector charts are available from CHS, but that they are expensive and hard to come by and most people just use raster charts. With Coastal Explorer 2009 we finally have a much better answer!

Navionics S-57/S-63 Charts from ChartWorld

Coastal Explorer 2009 has support for a new chart format called “S-63”. An S-63 chart is really just an S-57 (ENC) chart that has a special copy-protection mechanism to prevent unauthorized use. The entire Navionics chart portfolio has been converted to the S-63 format and a company called ChartWorld sells them online at a very reasonable price. This means Coastal Explorer 2009 users have access to charts for the entire world in vector format. In fact, Navionics has the largest privately owned database of its kind in the world. With the addition of these charts, Coastal Explorer 2009 supports more charts than any other recreational charting product! (Please note: the Navionics S-57/S-63 charts contain the same detail as the Navionics chips, but are in a different format. Coastal Explorer 2009 cannot use any Navionics chart chips.) Below is a map of the coverage available for Western Canada. This chart region, like most other Navionics S-57 regions, costs about $200.

How to Purchase and Install Navionics S-57/S-63 Charts from ChartWorld

Using your web browser, visit www.chartworld.com and register an account by clicking on the “Sign In” button in the “Account Log In” box in the top-right corner of the page. Once you have an account and are logged in, you need to add what they call an “installation” to your account. (Their system was really designed for fleets that have a single person purchasing charts for multiple vessels and each vessel is an “installation”.) When creating your ChartWorld installation, you will need to provide what they call an “ENC user permit”. Use the User Permit found in Coastal Explorer’s Tools > Download/Install Charts > Install S-63 charts window for this. Leave the “Hardware Id”, “ARCS user permit”, and “ARCS PIN” fields blank on the ChartWorld installation form. After saving your installation, click on SHOP and select “Navionics S-57″ from the menu on the left side of the page. You can then use the “Selection of Charts” portion of the page to select the charts you want. First select the Navionics Zone that covers the area you are interested in. Here is a map of the zones:

Next look down the list for the specific region of charts you want. The list may include multiple pages, so you might need to skip ahead a few pages. For example, to get the charts for Western Canada, select Navionics Zone 7 and look for “1I07006 Pacific Ocean – Coast of British Columbia”. Click the green circle in the right column of that row to add these charts to your shopping cart. If needed, continue shopping for charts in the same way. When you’re done, click the orange shopping chart near the top of the page and review what’s in your cart. Make any final adjustments and click the “CHECK OUT” button. You will then see a “Purchase Details” page where you can add a CD-ROM option (for a price), see your total cost, and enter your credit card info. Once you’re satisfied with this page, click SUBMIT to place the order.

Downloading and Installing Your ChartWorld Navionics S-57/S-63 Charts

After placing your order, you will get the opportunity to download the “chart key file” and the “chart units” as well as an email that provides links to these files. You can also use the myACCOUNT button on ChartWorld to review all of your purchases and you can download them again if necessary. The “chart key file” is a small file that provides the keys necessary to unlock the charts. You should download this file to your computer and then use Coastal Explorer’s Tools > Download/Install Charts > Install S-63 charts > Install S-63 Permits command to load these keys into Coastal Explorer. The “chart units” are bigger files that contain the actual charts you ordered. Download these to your computer and then use the Tools > Download/Install Charts > Install S-63 charts > Install ChartWorld Charts command to install them into your Coastal Explorer Chart Portfolio.
After that your charts will appear in Coastal Explorer with the rest of your vector charts!