Possible wake restrictions in Michigan

[MalibuNation]

Sent to me from @ajeep4u

https://www.mlive.com/news/2022/09/michigan-dnr-eyes-inland-lake-restrictions-on-wakesurfing-boats.html

[Sparky450]

Do 40’ yachts frequent these same waters? 
IDK

[Bluefishcay]

Honestly, I think there will have to be some regulation on where you can surf as self policing isn’t working. This may not be a popular opinion, but I know on the lake I live on, some areas are narrow and/or shallow and shouldn’t be surfed.  Throwing huge wakes close to shore pisses off property owners and they complain.   
 

Is it really appropriate to surf on a 300 ft wide channel with houses, docks, and lifts on both sides?   Not sure what’s a reasonable spec, but 500 ft from shore and 15 ft deep would probably eliminate surfing on our lake.  There are few spots that could meet that criteria.  Even 400 ft and 10 ft deep would limit it to less than half the lake. 

[RyanB]

5 hours ago, Sparky450 said:

Do 40’ yachts frequent these same waters? 
IDK

I really don't think that is a fair comparison.  Sure a 40' cruiser will throw a bigger wake than any of the surf boats, but it goes by once, vs the back and forth that many of the surf boat operators do.

To me, the bigger question is enforcement.  If there was adequate enforcement of many of the current laws this wouldn't be nearly as big of an issue.

[The Hulk]

If your surfing in 15ft of water you probably can't surf and need a rope anyway 😂

Shorelines/waves. maybe there hope for more lift sales during the downturn! 

[MalibuNation]

2 popular lakes in my area are Austin Lake over a 1, 000 acres and Gun Lake 2,600 acres both very popular shallow lakes.  Wondering if my 2003 20' 10" Sunscape LSV diamond hull, MLS, wedge will be affected?  I Iive on a small deep lake.

 

Maybe it's time for that 25' toon with a Merc 450 HP Verado.

[gahvey]

My concern with this proposal isn't so much with the distance from shore, it is the depth of the lake.  It is entirely possible that people go on lakes and don't accurately know the depth of the lake they are in, and many lakes change depth a lot.  I am wondering what happens when you are going and you hit an area less that 15'?  Also, at least one of the lakes that I am on a lot has a ton of weeds, so even though I know that the depth is more than 15', the depth finder can say as low as 2 ft.

I just think something like this is going to be hard to enforce.

[oldjeep]

Probably have to use the publicly available DNR depth charts as the guide

[Slayer]

This is a bunch of crap, IMO.  In my area, there are a lot of smaller lakes under 1,000 acres.  They're relatively deep.  Where we are, the lake is 700 acres and the area in which we surf averages between 40-60' deep.  Keeping 500' from shore isn't possible in all areas due to the area of the lake that's deep enough to surf.  Several of our local lakes are like this where the area that has water suitable for surfing may not always have the additional couple hundred feet from short.

Edited September 26, 2022 by Slayer

[justgary]

11 hours ago, The Hulk said:

Shorelines/waves. maybe there hope for more lift sales during the downturn! 

All paid for by the surfers who wrecked the old ones?

[roeboat]

11 hours ago, RyanB said:

To me, the bigger question is enforcement.

From my experience Michigan doesn't enforce the laws on smaller lakes where this law will apply to. The sheriff shows up once a year, takes a few laps and leaves.  They'll show up if they get calls about dangerous drivers, but if they don't catch you in the act they can't do anything. Just operate respectfully and you should be able to get away with it.

[MalibuNation]

7 hours ago, oldjeep said:

Probably have to use the publicly available DNR depth charts as the guide

I think all of our lake maps are very old and done the old way with a weight and string.

[The Hulk]

9 hours ago, justgary said:

All paid for by the surfers who wrecked the old ones?

Most likely already the case via lake house taxes anyways.. 😂

[Hemmy]

On 9/26/2022 at 9:48 AM, roeboat said:

From my experience Michigan doesn't enforce the laws on smaller lakes where this law will apply to. The sheriff shows up once a year, takes a few laps and leaves.  They'll show up if they get calls about dangerous drivers, but if they don't catch you in the act they can't do anything. Just operate respectfully and you should be able to get away with it.

That is exactly what happens on my lake.  They do a couple laps and mostly target the jet skiers and then leave.  Mostly local police and sometimes DNR.

[MalibuNation]

On my lake they both sit at the launch watching boaters usually they don't even launch.  Wonder if this will change IF this law goes into affect.

[psiedtsi]

On 9/25/2022 at 7:37 PM, Bluefishcay said:

Honestly, I think there will have to be some regulation on where you can surf as self policing isn’t working. This may not be a popular opinion, but I know on the lake I live on, some areas are narrow and/or shallow and shouldn’t be surfed.  Throwing huge wakes close to shore pisses off property owners and they complain.   
 

Is it really appropriate to surf on a 300 ft wide channel with houses, docks, and lifts on both sides?   Not sure what’s a reasonable spec, but 500 ft from shore and 15 ft deep would probably eliminate surfing on our lake.  There are few spots that could meet that criteria.  Even 400 ft and 10 ft deep would limit it to less than half the lake. 

I'm in Minnesota, but this would kill surfing on my lake. It's almost 4000 acres, but the deepest point is supposedly 21', though I do see 20'+ on my depth finder in the supposedly shallower bay. We mostly surf in >10', but generally 13-15', of water, but we might run over a flat area that is <10' to link with another "deep" spot. Doesn't seem to hurt the wave too much, and my lake is sparsely populated for the relative size, so we are usually one of two or three out doing watersports at the most busy times. 

I know regulations are popping up on certain lakes in Minnesota, likely because of overuse, but I hope this doesn't catch on statewide.  

[Bozboat]

Anti rafting petition denied

The No Rafting Movement

 

 

Edited September 30, 2022 by Bozboat

[mxmark4]

People who live on the water have a different expectation of how it should be used than people who use the water. Kind of like folks who live on a golf course but lose their minds if the house gets struck by a golf ball. Living on an attraction or the lake involves dealing with others who have a righ to use it. It may not be ideal but it goes with the territory if you ask me. Just the cost of living there. 

[wakedncsu]

It looks like Smith Mountain Lake tried and failed.  VA DNR basically said it's an all or nothing thing.

 

https://smithmountainlake.com/news/local/no-wakesurfing-zone-denied-by-dwr/article_a35af60a-3a7d-11ed-987c-734f40cdcbc9.html

[Slayer]

On 9/30/2022 at 9:54 PM, mxmark4 said:

People who live on the water have a different expectation of how it should be used than people who use the water. Kind of like folks who live on a golf course but lose their minds if the house gets struck by a golf ball. Living on an attraction or the lake involves dealing with others who have a righ to use it. It may not be ideal but it goes with the territory if you ask me. Just the cost of living there. 

The irony in this is that those of us who do live on a lake and enjoy what it has to offer find that most of the offenders, or those who don't know the rules of the water, are often those who come to the lake to use it.  

 

I see more people come to our home lake that don't live there and have zero clue on the rules of navigation nor respect for fellow boaters and their property.  I also see many lake front owners that use the lake that feel as though they can what they wish because the pay the price of entry.  They're equally wrong.