Quote:
Originally Posted by OCDACTIVE
Sorry, I disagree. Anyone who uses the lake has an equal voice and equal rights to use the lake. They also are under the protection of the dept. of safety. By paying a useage fee it only seems fair. It takes just as much energy, time, and resources to save a kayaker in the middle of the lake as it does a powerboater. One could argue that the powerboater may even be more prepared due to the amount of safety gear required to be on board.
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Lower impact uses of the lake need to be encouraged. Quadruple the number of kayaks on the lake and the difference would be hardly perceptable. Quadruple the number of power boats and the difference would be insane (see acres per second utilized). My power boat is used probably 20 hours per season. The 3 kayaks and one canoe are used probably 5 hours between the four of them. And when is the last time a kayak crashed into an island at some ungodly hour of the early morning (and the maximum damage most likely would be a small scratch to the kayak)? And when was the last complaint against one kayak not giving into the right of way of the other kayak?
Yes we know occasionally a kayak blown away from a beach in the wind could be responsible for a massive search and rescue but I suspect wayward kayaks are responsible for a tiny fraction of the the MP's time and efforts.