I will try to respond to Earl’s remarks. I will do it in Red embedded into his original text.
One of my new year’s resolutions was to become more involved in and speak out more publicly about issues that affect me. This one would certainly fall into that category.
I posted early on in this thread. My position was and still is that some regulations are either necessary now or will be in the future in order to maintain a somewhat safe and sane place for an increasing number of people to enjoy. I agree that there are regulations that need to be in place to assure the safety of all, but my contention is that they are already in place and just need to be enforced. The fact that the St. Croix is such a beautiful resource is reflected in its popularity and the passion that people show for it regarding issues such as this.
I would guess that Mr. Ehlers is a pretty decent guy and I commend him in the efforts he is making in getting his position heard. The article that appeared in the Pioneer Press stated the position of the Power Boaters Association quite clearly. That is the how the system should work. The “Guest Editorial” written in January’s Scuttlebutt Magazine on page 6 much better reflects the position of the Minnesota Power Boaters Association.
I do believe strongly however that Bruce’s presumption that these proposed rules are not in the interest of fishermen is a flawed one. I don’t recall presuming anything about the rules being in the best interests of the fishermen. I have said, and will continue to say, that the proposed NEW rules affect us all. My intentions are not to start a fight and I don’t think that all the proposed regulations are warranted – banning anchoring in any part of the river is one. I also believe it is a mistake to think that the interests of fishermen are necessarily aligned with those of the group that Bruce heads up. Here is my reasoning. Fishermen are already effectively shut out of the river during the times when they would like to use it the most – weekends between Memorial day and Labor day. Think about it. This is not because there are too many fishermen out there in huge boats going really fast. It’s because there are so many large cruising boats making fishing a much more difficult endeavor. I can’t tell you how many people respond along these lines when I tell them that I fish the St. Croix – “Is there good fishing out there? I couldn’t imagine trying to fish out in that zoo – way too many boats flying around.” Then I proceed to tell them that the fishing can be quite good and that if you get out there early in the morning or on week days or after work it isn’t so bad. I actually believe the St. Croix may even be underfished. This is unfortunate. I include myself as one of those people who actually have to work Monday through Friday, making weekends the time when I have available to fish. Here is whre your thinking is “flawed”, the real problem that you describe above isn’t speed, it’s WAKES. Placing a speed limit of 40 mph on the River between Stillwater and Prescott will increase the wakes not lower them. Most of the “large cruising boats” between th size of 28 feet and 38 feet (which is most of them) will not fully plane at 40 mph and therefore create a much larger wake than if they were at plane. Secondly, I believe that most of the “good fishing” places are not in the middle of the river but in the places that are already controlled by No Wake Zones (Hudson, Kinney, Catfish, etc.) I live on the river and have seen many “fishermen” fly down the river early in the morning enroute to their favorite fishing spot at speeds far greater than 40 mph. The new laws will limit that also, it will take longer to get between spots and limit the amount of fishing time.
Is this wrong or should it be changed? I don’t pretend to think that we should limit the number of any type of boat on the river. But certain regulations do make sense including a reasonable speed limit. Here is a quote from the Pioneer Press article:
Jack Swanson, a boater who lives along the river in Prescott, Wis., compares the St. Croix to an “interstate highway” with room for multiple lanes in each direction. “Why would non-boaters want to subject boaters with speed rules akin to that of busy city streets?” he asked. “If ever a waterway held the potential to be a natural and safe waterway where faster boats could utilize the speed designed into their boats, the St. Croix is it.”
I disagree. I don’t want to see the St. Croix be compared to or managed as an “interstate highway” and I certainly don’t want my favorite fishing spot to become one. I really do not think that Jack was referring to the St. Croix as a freeway in it’s truest sense. I do believe that he was using the metaphor for the way the boats flow down the unrestricted river versus the way they tend to flow on an enclosed lake.
As I said in the beginning of this post I do hope to find the time to become more involved in the process of deciding issues such as this so that my interests as a fisherman are presented by me – a fisherman rather than Bruce who thinks he knows what is important to me and what my interests are. I do not pretend to know how anyone feels or thinks on this subject. I also do not believe that my opinion is the only opinion. I also do not have a boat that will go over 30 mph so the speed limits won’t affect me except in creating more wakes. I have spent a bunch of time and my own money trying to educate the public on this issue because it really does affect us all. The more people that know of the issue the better it will ultimately turn out. I have loosely formed a group of informed individuals to bring this issue out of the smokey back rooms into the light of day for all to comment on. It was being ram-roded through by a few individuals with special interests. Today there is discussion and information flowing. The Minnesota Power Boaters Association feels that there is already enough rules on the St. Croix River between Stillwater & Prescott to effectively manage the river so it is safe for all to use. What’s necessary is for the government agencies to actively enforce all of the rules currently on the books. For example, there is already law regarding the excessive wake problem. Everyone is responsible for their wake and any damage or injury it causes. There are already laws reagrding careless and unsafe boating, or noise, or alcohol usage, they just need to be enforced. You should have also quoted from Mary Divine’s article where the Washington County Sheriff ststes, “Once you have speed limits, you have some expectation of enforcement,” said Washington County Sheriff Jim Frank. “They would be virtually impossible to enforce, but yet the expectation is that we are going to do it.” What the Sheriff doesn’t tell you is that there is really no good way to detect speed on a river due to the “doppler effect” on radar and the fact that radar needs to be used at 180 degree angles to be effective. The long and the short of it is that there is no way to enforce a speed limit.
In the interest of full disclosure, I am just a working stiff who can’t even afford a boat that can go over 40 mph (got young kids). But I hope to some day. If you saw my boat you would laugh – until I showed you all the slob walleye and muskie that have been outwitted by the Warrior and the Fisherman soon to be known again as Muskie Earl.
P.S. Don’t let anyone tell you what color the sky is – decide for yourself.
My intention is to make sure that you have all of the facts before you need to decide what color the sky is.
Bruce Ehlers
[email protected]
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