Quote:
Originally Posted by Seaplane Pilot
I used the highway comparison/analogy strictly from a common sense point of view. Obviously someone at some bureaucratic level felt it necessary to restrict bikes, horses and the like from these roadways for specific reasons, but the fundamental reason was that they felt it was dangerous. Which is exactly my point. What is so wrong with requiring a kayak to have a flag for visibility? Same reason that lights are required by any vessel (motorized or non-motorized) at night - so they can be seen by other boaters. These kayaks are difficult to see on sunny days and/or in choppy water. Therefore, they should be required to do something that improves their visibility to other boaters.
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The restriction was necessary because the highways were built specifically for high speed travel. In most cases even for the vehicles that ARE allowed on the highway there is a minimum speed as well. Those roadways are purpose-built.
The lake is not purpose built. It's not safe or logical to assume that some or all portions of it are restricted to only certain kinds of traffic. Part of operating on this lake is the understanding that you could come across power boats, sail boats, kayaks, swimmers, etc. essentially anywhere.
If you can't maneuver your boat around kayaks and keep a lookout for them, you probably shouldn't be boating. As BI pointed out, the kayakers should also take care to not accidentally dress in what is essentially water camouflage.
ALL users of the lake should consider it a basic duty to watch out for other users, but that doesn't mean imposing oddball safety requirements.