I realize Maine takes the prize, but even in LIS or BI Sound it's rare to sail more than a half hour without having to change course at least twice (or more) to avoid lobster floats. We don't worry much about snagging under sail because the boat's underwater design tends to shed lines, but under power I prefer not to test the line cutter that's installed.

We keep a fairly constant watch, and I wear a vibrating timer that reminds me to check ahead every two minutes. That might seem like a lot but floats often submerge due to current and are hidden by waves, and they seem to appear out of nowhere really close sometimes.

A few years ago we were sailing along the coast between Westport MA and the Sakonnet River, when we suddenly encountered a row of buoys marking a fish trap that extended maybe a mile in each direction. We were only about a 150 yards away when we saw it, and had to tack and detour to avoid it. If it was at night we would have run right into it.