New to the lake

[jayhawk_nation]

Hey everyone. I am a boater who has been boating on Cape Cod and the ocean for a few years now. We have found a spot for our boat, and we are moving it up there soon. Do you have any tips to start off? Also, where should we visit first? We also like tubing and skiing, so any good places for that? Thanks in advance for everyone's help!

[garysanfran]

"Red-right-returning" does not apply...

[thinkxingu]

Welcome to the lake (and forum)!

Step #1: Winni is rocky, so get a chart. Bizer makes the most popular one, and it can be found at most marinas in the area.

Step #2: Winni is big. Let us know where you'll be keeping the boat, and we'll send some suggestions your way.

Cheers!

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[Descant]

Welcome to the Forum. Yes, geography is important. Helpful to put locations on your profile so it shows up with every post. Congratulations on finding a place for your boat. This can be very difficult. If you will need it in 2025, sign up now.

NH requires a safe boater certificate; we recognize ones issued by other states as well as the Coast Guard and Power Squadron.

Unique to NH is the 150' rule. This requires headway speed boat to boat as well as the more common headway speed from shore and docks. You will see some violations, especially from folks who we refer to here as Captain Bonehead.

Go north or east of a black top buoy and south or west of a red stripe buoy. (The stripe is so color blind folks can tell the difference between red and black.) But not always. For example there is a black top buoy south of Welch Island (#76, almost exactly in the middle of the chart) You go east of this one, as the instructions imply, but if you go north, you're too close to Welch Island. Follow the dotted line on the chart.

Have fun.

[NHskier]

Coming from the coast, this is a big one!

Originally Posted by garysanfran

"Red-right-returning" does not apply...

Here’s a quick overview of NH markers.

Pay close attention to your chart, and don’t assume the boater in front of you is taking the correct path around a marker. Whenever in doubt, slow down and refer to your chart.

Pay attention to the weather, including the wind. The lake can get very choppy particularly out in the Broads and more open areas. Traffic in some areas like the Weirs on a weekend will create heavy chop as well.

[jayhawk_nation]

Thanks for all of the info so far. We are keeping our 27 foot boat in North Water Marine, near Weirs beach. It used to be called Thurston I think?
Few questions, first how choppy will it get on a bad day? Our boat has been out in the ocean plenty of times, does it compare? I have heard bad things about weirs channel, any tips on navigating it? I have also purchased myself a map and have been reviewing it closely. The last thing I would want is to hit some rocks, so I will make sure to stay far away from any rocks, like the witches.
Lastly, the 150 rule is confusing. If I understand it correctly go at idle speed if I am 150 feet your shore or another boat? Thanks for everyone’s help!

[thinkxingu]

Originally Posted by jayhawk_nation

Thanks for all of the info so far. We are keeping our 27 foot boat in North Water Marine, near Weirs beach. It used to be called Thurston I think?

Few questions, first how choppy will it get on a bad day? Our boat has been out in the ocean plenty of times, does it compare? I have heard bad things about weirs channel, any tips on navigating it? I have also purchased myself a map and have been reviewing it closely. The last thing I would want is to hit some rocks, so I will make sure to stay far away from any rocks, like the witches.

Lastly, the 150 rule is confusing. If I understand it correctly go at idle speed if I am 150 feet your shore or another boat? Thanks for everyone’s help!

Honestly, I think the area just outside the Weirs Channel is the absolute worst on the lake—usually busy, super choppy (especially on imperfect weather days), tight, and full of boneheads. Outside of that ~1/2 mile changes things a lot, and Paugus Bay can be pretty chill.

Your interpretation of the 150' rule is correct, though there are also a significant number of no-wake and no-rafting zones you'll want to familiarize yourself with.

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[8gv]

Ocean... is where all waves are coming from the same direction.

Winni... is sometimes like a blender set to 11

Welcome!

[jayhawk_nation]

Originally Posted by thinkxingu

Honestly, I think the area just outside the Weirs Channel is the absolute worst on the lake—usually busy, super choppy (especially on imperfect weather days), tight, and full of boneheads. Outside of that ~1/2 mile changes things a lot, and Paugus Bay can be pretty chill.

Your interpretation of the 150' rule is correct, though there are also a significant number of no-wake and no-rafting zones you'll want to familiarize yourself with.

Sent from my SM-S911U using Tapatalk

Thanks for that. I plan on going out on the weekdays in the coming weeks so I can get used to getting around this area. The whole area, just looking at it from land, looks sketchy for the boat. I will be sure to be very comfortable before venturing out on busy weekends. One quick question, my 14-year-old son has a boating license/certificate from Massachusetts. Does it work in NH? I read that the law to operate is higher, so is he allowed to? I also own one. Do I need an NH one? Thanks