I need AIS Inspection stories

OK, I got one for you.
Coming of Minnetonka we were checked no big deal. Well while checking things over mouse popped out of the gunnel. Had a laugh over transporting AIS and he said that was new one for him. Then we went to lower the motor then the battery died so the motor would not go up but luckily we had one of those battery boosters in the vehicle. What a life saver that was. Non eventful as for inspectors go. The youngster asked about the live well but did not ask to look into it. He helped pull a few weeds off and that was about it.

Crawler I apologize for coming off brash. Thanks for your efforts in this AIS thing we got going here. We just need to clean up the rules on this matter so we can have some constancy and clearness.

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I asked for actual boat ramps stories that we could use to make changes.

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The only problem is, there will be some human error on the part of inspectors and boaters alike. And one small error by either, could lead to a costly citation. And this is not good, especially if the ispector OK’s your boat/trailer, and you get tagged. The inspectors, as well as boaters let a lot slip by.
Overall they seem to be doing a good job, as crappy of a job as it is, as I’m sure the weed police take more than their fair share of grief daily.

All the inspectors i’ve encountered have been courteous and friendly and the checks have been painless. Except for one chick around the metro, she wears mirrored aviator glasses and is a real hard-a$$, and cannot take a joke!! I look forward to seeing her again!

No problems guys, I know there’s parts to the laws I could less for myself, but I have to try and enforce them since that is my job. Most people have been great. I was on Pepin this past weekend working, there are a couple different crews that work down there.

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I find it wrong that the DNR or inspectors can look in compartments without probable cause. Very wrong. Especially when you are talking about inspecting for AIS. What exactly do they expect to find, a jar full of zeebs?

It also appears that the inspections and application of the law is not consistent in all parts of the state. Sponge out the livewell? The most we have had to do is answer a couple questions and let them walk around the boat. I don’t have a problem with that.

At some point this is going to the courts. I can see a inspector or CO demanding entry into a boat and then breaking something or finding contraband in a compartment.

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X2

One quick story when I was leaving Mille Lacs.

I allowed the inspectors to take a look whereever they wanted in my boat and found no issues. I asked them about the water in my leech container and they said that it must be drained. I had no real problem with this regardless of how ridiculous it was. I just replaced it with a bottle of water.

For the most part the AIS laws that I have experienced I don’t have any problems with. The one thing I am extremely concerned about is draining of your cooling system on motors 75 hp and above. If water drains out in front of a CO, you will be ticketed.

I got checked at the entrance to French Regional on the way in to fish Medicine the other night. The nice young lady took my $5 for parking, asked where the boat had been last… I said the Mississippi. She asked if it was less than 5 days ago. I said no, more’n that, or just that anyway.

She says “Do you know about invasive species?” I said yes. OK, she says, gonna check your boat for weeds and you can head on into the park. She walked around the boat and waved me on into the park.

30 seconds, reasonable questions and a generally good attitude. If she’d tried to climb into the boat I’d have had something to say… but I can’t really complain, especially since she did the weed check BEFORE we put in to the lake.

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I got checked at the entrance to French Regional on the way in to fish Medicine the other night. The nice young lady took my $5 for parking, asked where the boat had been last… I said the Mississippi. She asked if it was less than 5 days ago. I said no, more’n that, or just that anyway.

She says “Do you know about invasive species?” I said yes. OK, she says, gonna check your boat for weeds and you can head on into the park. She walked around the boat and waved me on into the park.

30 seconds, reasonable questions and a generally good attitude. If she’d tried to climb into the boat I’d have had something to say… but I can’t really complain, especially since she did the weed check BEFORE we put in to the lake.

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I’ve seen that question before about 5 days or less. Has anyone ever had to answer yes to that? If it had only been 2 days I wonder what the response would be. Would you still be permitted to launch?

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I got checked at the entrance to French Regional on the way in to fish Medicine the other night. The nice young lady took my $5 for parking, asked where the boat had been last… I said the Mississippi. She asked if it was less than 5 days ago. I said no, more’n that, or just that anyway.

She says “Do you know about invasive species?” I said yes. OK, she says, gonna check your boat for weeds and you can head on into the park. She walked around the boat and waved me on into the park.

30 seconds, reasonable questions and a generally good attitude. If she’d tried to climb into the boat I’d have had something to say… but I can’t really complain, especially since she did the weed check BEFORE we put in to the lake.

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You paid to be inspected? This was not just a parking fee!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The boat launch at Medicine has always been $5… for as long as I’ve been using it, which is 3 years.

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I’ve seen that question before about 5 days or less. Has anyone ever had to answer yes to that? If it had only been 2 days I wonder what the response would be. Would you still be permitted to launch?

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My guess is the inspection and/or questions would be more thorough.

There lies the line.
To accept payment that person is an employee of said district or lake. This contradicts inspector status.

Three Rivers Parks charges a boat trailer parking fee of 5 bucks to use their ramps and parking. It is a user fee for people using the ramps, it has been charged (in one amount or another) as long as I have been launching boats at their parks (the early 1990’s to now)

Ran into a couple of inspectors last weekend at Wabasha. Young guy came over looked around the boat asked where we had been last and I said right here. No more questions. Was entering data into a hand held computer, I suppose my license #. Interesting thing was when we came back in to load same young guy was in the water next to one of the docks with a plastic rake in hand. I said something to the guy standing on the dock and he said thats what happens when you throw your computer in the water. So funny, in the end that he had probably lost all info he had collected for the day.

Talked to the inspectors at 494 landing on the 26th. He wanted to know if I put my pug in in the parking lot. I told him yes, that where you need to prep the boats at this landing. He tells me if the warden was down there I might get a ticket for that.

They had the wash station set up there. Didnt sound like they washed any boats that day. Said they only wash them if there are a lot of weeds on them. There are no weeds at 494 landing. Well at-least none I have seen in the 10+ years fishing there. Mentioned to him about a private marina down river a little ways that is choked full of weeds and thick on trailer when loaded. He tells me they dont work that area and dont work private marinas.

Goes on to tell me they only work three landings in Dakota county. Sounds like they will be at 494 a fair amount this summer. For what Im not really sure.

We loaded up the boat right before dark. No one there checking at that time which is usually one of the busier times at the launch.

Here are a few of my concerns. They did not inspect my boat before it went in the water. They are at a landing on a body of water that is listed as impaired but I have never seen a Zeb, water flea, milfoil, or asian carp on. I had to question if they where trying to prevent stuff from being put in the water or taken out. They do not seem to patrol the landing at the busiest times or maybe patrol a landing that might have higher risk of something being transported. Im just guessing here but many private marina landings are not only weed choked but load boats that have been sitting at docks for extend periods of time.

In the end this is all kinda frustrating but in no way would i suggest taking out on those guys working these inspection stations. They look to me like just working Joes, low man on the pole, doing what they are told to do. Hopefully in a couple of years some of this mess will be straightened out.

Rest assured, there’s plenty of Zebra Mussels and E. Milfoil in Pool 2.

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He wanted to know if I put my pug in in the parking lot.

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Rest assured, there’s plenty of Zebra Mussels and E. Milfoil in Pool 2.

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Where? Have never seen either one. Have hooked my fair share of stuff off the bottom on that pool and never seen any attached.

Milfoil in my opinion, doesn’t seem to be much of a problem in rivers. The problem is that it is carried into backwaters and other slower moving bodies of water connected to them.

Personally I think that inspecting people going into the river is a waste of time. Too many ways for invasives to get in there already. However since Zeebs are most prevalent on on rivers, they still need to waste money inspecting boats on the way out.

Talk about backwaters….Any duck hunters on this site? You want to talk about covered with weeds and stuff, what are they going to do about that. I’ve been at landing in the swamp, that when you pull out you can’t hardly see your trailer….now what?

I met those same two inspectors at the 494 Access on Pool 2 last week. Nice kids. I had heard about the boat washing station set up and asked the kid what the procedure was. He seemed surprised by that, I just told him I wanted to get in and out of there with the least amount of hassle so what would he need me to do? Apparently you pull up over the yellow mat and they squirt your rig off, said it takes less than 10 minutes. I told him adding 10 minutes per boat to normal ramp times would turn that place into a real zoo during busy times. Maybe that’s why they weren’t there on the weekend. He told me it’s just hot water, no chemicals.

As a big Bayliner was pulling up the ramp, spewing water in every direction, I asked him if his power sprayer gets inside of the trailer too. Otherwise it’s a waste of time, right? He didn’t have an answer for that.

Then I asked him what he was inspecting for, he said Zeeb larvae. I asked him how he inspects for something that is basically invisible to the naked eye. He then told me they were mainly looking for boats that had been in the water for at least three days, and weren’t going to bother washing boats that had only been out for a few hours. I’d be willing to bet that 99% of the boats using the public access at 494 aren’t left in the water for three days. So now you have to wonder what it costs to pay these two volunteers, pay for the wash equipment, and pay to haul it around Dakota County…..when they aren’t going to use the washer anyway!

He also said he was looking for weeds. I told him that everyone who fished Pool 2 would like to find some weeds too. I don’t think he understood that.

I asked him about the residual water in the bilge and livewell. He said we’re required to drain things out but his understanding is that it would be unreasonable to expect us to dry everything bone dry. That suggests there isn’t consistent training or education amongst DNR inspectors.

There was a CO running around down there while I was talking to the inspectors, he ignored me but did bust a shore fisherman for using two lines.

Rootski

Sure makes you shake your head seeing those people sitting all day at the landing. Wonder how long before they start offering to wash boats just for something to do. Do you think they have washed any there yet? My guess would be no or maybe one or two just to try the equipment out.

Hopefully phase two of boat inspections includes a little more common sense.

I find it interesting that the courts allow for non LEO to inspect my boat and write citations. I as a Police Reserve Officer can not even search a car or person. If I find something then it is inadmissable in court. So I am working for the police department find contraband and it cant be entered as evidence but these individuals can cite people for AIS???? I think the Courts are not consistant with their rulings.

The inspectors at 494 can not write tickets.

I found this also. So it looks like another contradictory law.

2011 Minnesota Statutes
Resources
Topics

Boats and Boating
Conservation Officers
Sheriffs

86B.801 ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY.
Subdivision 1.Authority.

(a) A sheriff or conservation officer may stop, inspect, and detain for a reasonable time a watercraft observed in violation of Minnesota Statutes or rules, and is empowered to issue a summons and complaint for violations of this chapter in the same manner as for violations of game and fish laws.
(b) As used in this subdivision, “inspect” does not mean the authority to board a watercraft.

Subd. 2.Enforcement duties.

The sheriff of each county and conservation officers shall enforce the provisions of this chapter.
History:

1990 c 391 art 9 s 37

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Rest assured, there’s plenty of Zebra Mussels and E. Milfoil in Pool 2.

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Where? Have never seen either one. Have hooked my fair share of stuff off the bottom on that pool and never seen any attached.

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I can’t tell you that. They’re good fishing areas.

I told the Inspector kid at 494 the same thing, that of all the crap I’ve ever dragged up off the bottom of Pool 2…including a car tire….I have never seen a Zeeb. he said they were prevalent up towards St. Paul.

I was told by a bass guy on this site that he get his braid cut frequently by all the zebs on a certain wing dam.

I’ve offered to take him out with the camera. Offer still stands as long as I don’t have to fish bass!

What will the camera do? Prevent his line from breaking?

Show what is actually breaking his line…the rocky wing dam.

Maybe it’s true.