Safe Boating

The Memorial Day holiday weekend has come and gone. After a busy boating weekend the Wyoming Game and Fish Department is reminding everyone to boat smart. Game and Fish Wardens Grant Gerharter, Duane Kerr, and Dustin Kirsch have been working local reservoirs to promote boating safety. Gerharter checked many boaters and anglers this past holiday weekend and he says not all of the people were safe or legal. “Despite the windy and cool weather this past holiday weekend there were a lot of people boating and fishing on Flaming Gorge Reservoir,” said Gerharter. “In addition to the regular holiday boating and angling crowd there were also anglers arriving to participate in the upcoming bass fishing tournament. There were plenty of Wyoming residents and folks from out of town who were not up to par on Wyoming boating or fishing regulations.” “There were a variety of boating and fishing violations this past weekend,” Gerharter said. “Common boating violations included no throwable flotation device, no fire extinguisher, and no aquatic invasive species (AIS) decal. We have seen some people boating without personal flotation devices, (life jackets) as well. Some of the fishing violations we are seeing this year are fishing without a license, over limit, and fishing with more than two poles.” Gerharter said the goals of watercraft enforcement officers include providing watercraft education and emphasizing safe boating practices. Wyoming watercraft officers are also on the lookout for boating under the influence (BUI) and misuse of personal watercraft (PWC). “ 2012-2013 Wyoming Watercraft Regulations are available free of charge at any Game and Fish regional office, license vendors, or on-line at the department website http://wgfd.wyo.gov For more information on safe boating contact the Green River Office at 1-800-843-8096 or access the volunteer boating safety course at http://wgfd.wyo.gov