As a general principle, I prefer minimum government interference in my life, but if a good case can be made for it, I'll accept regulation for the greatest good for the greatest number (a proper Canadian attitude:-)!). When I go kayak touring now, I already need some permits: The license for my VHF and my personal operators certificate for it. A few years ago here in Vancouver, we had problems with large numbers of immigrant fishermen yammering away on channel 16 in their native tongue, tying it up for hours, and not seeming to understand repeated pleas to free up the emergency/hailing channel. So I can see the case for regulation and some proof of competency here, so the radio can serve its primary emergency/traffic control purposes. My fishing license. Again, I can see the case for this. We're doing so very belatedly as far as West Coast salmon go, but we have to try and save the fish stocks. So, licensing for boats? Actually, it's struck me for years as odd that you have to have a license to move a couple of tons of metal around on a road, but, as long as you weren't doing it for commercial purposes, on the water you could blast around in tons and tons of metal and fibreglass, with thousands of horsepower, without ever having to prove you had the slightest clue what you were doing. Again, the situation in Vancouver suggests the time has come for licensing as far as motorised boats are concerned. There are a number of companies that rent powercraft to tourists who, whether through ignorance or just an I-don't-give-a-damn attitude, break local speed limits, and violate the "rules of the road" in interacting with other traffic. There are several "bottlenecks" under local bridges where this is a particular hazard. (Of course there are also companies that send tourists out unescorted in rented kayaks!) I'm glad to see the Canadian Coast Guard is making some exceptions to license requirements for the Northwest Territories, where you can often travel for days without seeing another boat, and boats are part of the way of life. Licensing for kayaks and canoes? My initial reaction is that this should be the lowest priority, since if we screw up we are more likely to hurt ourselves or be hurt by other boats than vice-versa, but this is not entirely true. We do have the potential to cause accidents that we ourselves are not involved in, in the same way that a cyclist dodging and weaving through traffic may cause cars to collide with one another. So maybe paddlecraft licenses should be required only in high-traffic ports, but not in the backcountry. In any case, since I already have my Coastal Cruising Certification from the Canadian Yachting Association, I would expect to either be "grandfathered" or to be able to "challenge" the test without the need for further instruction if licenses were required for paddlecraft. What thoughts from my fellow Canucks, and from America, the land of rugged individualism? Philip T. N49°16' W123°08' "The opinions expressed in this posting are not necessarily those of my employer, or indeed, of any sentient being." *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
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