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Originally Posted by bilproject
. . . While I am not an advocate of government involvement in any part of my life, a seed limit on some parts of the lake may be a good idea, along with a ban on kayaks canoes and other small boats on other parts of the lake. Small non power boats should be restricted to 150' from shore period. They have no ability to avoid a collision and are in danger any time the leave the shoreline.
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Kayaks are very maneuverable and have all sorts of ability to avoid a collision; the only danger for me is the powerboats. If the operator of a powerboat is paying attention and is going slow enough to stay 150 feet from us, we are in no danger of a collision.
Just like others on this forum, you’re lumping all paddle boats and paddlers together. That’s like saying that all boats with a motor are equally sea worthy. A sea kayak is very different from a recreational kayak – they are long and narrow, with a very small cockpit, with thigh braces. You sit in a recreational kayak, but you wear a sea kayak. Sea kayaks are designed for large bodies of water, and most sea kayakers have no trouble handling fairly large waves. My sea kayak even has a rudder, which I steer with my feet. And I happen to enjoy paddling in large waves and swells. Believe it or not, my sea kayak can handle conditions that would be too rough for many small powerboats.
And my sea kayak is powered – by me. What happens when a power boat’s motor dies? I even carry an extra paddle. And I can do self rescues. I also carry a bilge pump, and use a spray skirt in rough weather. I don’t kayak at night, but if a paddler is out on the water at night their boat is required by law to have a 360 degree light.
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Face it, lake Winnipesaukee is a big lake and is not paddler friendly which is why it is not a favorite of paddlers. There is nothing fun about kayaking in the broads or in the middle of the area between Bear and Browns yet we see this happening.
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Just because you can’t see the fun in paddling out on the main lake, doesn’t mean that we don’t enjoy it – I enjoy paddling out in the middle of a lake way more than I do huggin the shore . You guys keep representing Winnipesaukee as such a huge lake. It is large, but it has so many islands that there’s only about 2 square miles of the entire lake where you are ever more than 1 mile from shore. Under normal conditions, I can paddle 1 mile in 10 to 12 minutes. I don’t consider being 12 minutes off shore all that far. I can paddle 20 miles in an afternoon, so I need a large lake, or I’m just going around in circles. The only reason that Winni is not a favorite with paddlers is not because of its size, but because of its reputation for high speed boats.