Crowded Bays

While there are obviously some rude boaters, I can’t let myself believe that it’s a high number. I firmly believe that a lot of it stems from ignorance, and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way at all. My belief is there are lots of new boaters each year that simply don’t know the “rules of the road” while doing what we all enjoy so much, and that’s being on the water.

Let me attempt to paint a picture for you, in most situations in life we are surrounded by people, at the mall, in theatres, during rush hour traffic, an evening out to dinner, at work, and even Church on Sundays. Most times we’re at arms length or less with complete and total strangers, and for the most part we don’t have an issue with it. Now put those very people in a boat and send them out in the bay with no sort of education or training on operating a vessel, with basically no experience, and I can understand why it’s perfectly acceptable for them to move in on others and do the things we all dread. They are simply doing what they do on a daily basis.

But here’s another scenario. We all know someone that is nice enough that they would give us the shirt off their back, the kind of person you know you can count on when you need them. But you put that caring compassionate person behind the wheel and it’s like Jekyll and Hyde. You can almost see there temperature rise due to “everyone else” getting in their way.

You mix those two types of people together and you can imagine the outcome. So with tensions at all time high, and the digital age in hyper drive creating instant gratification for those that choose to belittle others “online”. There are some things we can do to avoid being frustrated while doing what brings us peace.

First of all, if you’re new to the boating world, do yourself and your passengers a favor by taking a safety course. There is even an online version that will help you pick up some basic “rules of the road” that may prevent you from getting a ticket, and most importantly, might even save a life one day.

Second, bare with me here, this is a pretty profound and original statement I’m about to make. So rare in today’s society that historian’s across the globe are starting to catalogue its rare occurrence when witnessed. What is it you ask? COURTESY! Yea I said it. But in all seriousness, a little courtesy can go a long way, as anglers it’s in our unwritten code of conduct that we all try to follow. Maybe that’s why it’s so upsetting for some of us when it happens. Granted some situations are unavoidable with the number of boats on the water these days, but most are, and they should be.
Below is a list of rules that I’d bet a some boaters have never read, not because they don't want to, but for whatever reason.

With the number of boats on the water today, a lot of us would agree that there needs to be a few added to that list. But the truth is, there are a limited number of officers and wardens to enforce the rules that we have now. So where does that leave us? I'm glad you ask. We as individual boaters have to make the decision to be the bigger person, change starts with us as individuals Someone cutting off my drift is wrong, dead wrong, but my yelling expletives at them is no better, its just as wrong or worse. At some point we can either choose to be the bigger person, or start working on real solutions with laws and such.

Make a choice, either choose to be stressed out while pursuing our passion, or get back to enjoying what precious time we have on the water.