Boat Trailering and Invasive Species

Roger, I disagree. I believe the prior inspections I received in Montana and Idaho were more appropriate. The inspector continued to insinuate that I might have to be directed to a Fish & Game office for a more complete inspection and to be decontaminated. .. This was on a Sunday. You know of many government offices open on a weekend? His demeanor from the beginning indicated he was kind of excited to have a Wisconsin boat at his lone check station in pretty much the middle of nowhere. Barney Fife kind of comes to mind. Pure and simple, this inspector was just a little overzealous. I didn't really have a problem with his tiny mirror and looking in the intakes, drain holes and trim tabs. What I had a problem with is that it seemed he wasn't going to be satisfied until he found something....
Bob, here is the link to the Wyoming F&G website, one of the Invasive Species Pages, but you can click around to learn more.
http://wgfd.wyo.gov/web2011/fishing-1000218.aspx
The seal was just a wire and plastic "snap" that was attached between the boat and trailer, that had to be cut off before it could be launched. After going thru his inspection, I inquired if he could give me a report or something showing I had been inspected...I didn't want to do this again and wasn't going to be launching the boat until I got home. None of the other inspections gave me any kind of report, something if I were to travel again, I'd demand. So that took him another 5 minutes to fill out the paperwork and attach the seal.
D.D. I routinely wash my boat, using a pressure washer and soap. (Also flush the motor).
Colby
 
While I sat in a public stall, in the 'thinking' position, a thought occurred to me on
this subject. I wonder if all this chest pounding and jestering about having a clean
(boat) bottom is a prelude for the bureaucrats to require Certificates of Inspection,
at nominal expense of course? These would have to be obtained as your vessel is
hauled anywhere before going anyplace.

As always, the clamps are put to the little guy while the big boys (commercial)
continue to seed our lakes and waterways with invasive species from foreign ports
as has been happening for decades.

Aye?
 
Foggy":spsjq63h said:
While I sat in a public stall, in the 'thinking' position, a thought occurred to me on
this subject. I wonder if all this chest pounding and jestering about having a clean
(boat) bottom is a prelude for the bureaucrats to require Certificates of Inspection,
at nominal expense of course? These would have to be obtained as your vessel is
hauled anywhere before going anyplace.

As always, the clamps are put to the little guy while the big boys (commercial)
continue to seed our lakes and waterways with invasive species from foreign ports
as has been happening for decades.

Aye?
Click to expand...

Absolutely probable as suggested in the first paragraph, and definitely true as stated in the second.

Wouldn't it be a great, wonderful, and logical world if we could make the commercial perpetrators of these messes pay for their clean up and eradication (were that even possible)?

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
Staying completely out of the reason for this thread, Zebra and Quagga mussels are serious business. You only have to look at how they spread, the virtual impossibility of getting rid of them once in place, and their economic impact ($9+ billion in just 1995-1999) in places where they are found. They were first found in North America in 1986 at two Lake Erie locations, coming in the ballast water of foreign vessels. Now they are found in most states and are about impossible to eradicate once they are there. They are quite small as adults, usually smaller than your thumbnail, but spread as a very tiny organism small enough to be in cooling lines, small crevices, even in the twists of three strand. For us salt water boaters they are not so much of an issue as they live in fresh water but...they can live out of the water for more than a week and so can be transported from place to place even over a long road trip. We have been inspected three times when traveling to out of state freshwater locations and in each case the inspection was easy because we are a salt water boat and the critters will die in salt water. States and the feds are serious about them.
 
thataway":129pmyvh said:
What "seal" was applied--and were you given any instructions about launching the boat in Wyoming waters?
Click to expand...

I had my boat inspected, and a "seal" applied in Wyoming in June of 2012 when I drove through towing my C-Dory. It was a white plastic tag with a flat plastic section of about 2" square, and then round "beads" on the long part so that it would go on but not come off without cutting (sort of like an electrical zip tie). They put it through the bow towing eye, plus something else that was part of the trailer (maybe the winch strap hook). This so you would have to cut it off upon launching. I don't remember any instructions about launching in Wyoming, but then I had already mentioned that I was just passing through, with no intention to boat in Wyoming at that time.
 
In my former life as a "bureaucrat" I was given the "honor" to put together a program to deal with invasive weeds on a National Forest= Think "Weed-Free Hay." You start out with the objective of stopping the entry of the little seeds hidden in a bale of hay, which is darn hard to do. Then you assemble a team of somewhat enthusiastic enforcers (would you want those who don't care?). After spending a lot of time, energy and money you find some inspectors have gone wild, others lax, and the commercial folks are complaining the recreationists are getting a free ride and the "free" recreation folks are complaining about the commercial people hogging all the sites and getting away free. Some complain they never saw and inspector so why bother, and other complain about over-zealous enforcement.

Regarding our boats, after several encounters with Idaho, Washington, California, Lake Powell, and other state inspectors I think we have a pretty balanced program. You will find "wing-nuts" in any program. It takes letters about the problems for the mangers to know about and deal with the problems. I think we are on track.

Chuck
 
They must have changed seals a bit. Mine was just a stranded wire, with a black plastic "clip" like device that was pinched together. But placed in the same location. I was not given any information either, but also stated I was just passing through. As for the comments on the zebra mussels, that's also kind of my point. I doubt the last few states will stop them without completely disallowing boats that have cruised in other waters. And even then there are probably a lot of other naturistic ways for the species to travel. It seems kind of pointless to me all the money the government spends trying to stop various bugs, insects and species from spreading, rather than just learning to live with them. At the very least, governments have the technology to not waste time on boaters not entering their waters! Colby
 
Chuck, did it work? (Keeping the bad seeds out of the hay?

One of the side benefits of these kind of programs is public awareness that there is a problem. I think that "awareness" is doing more than the inspectors in this case. I sure look my boat over more carefully than I would if "no one cared". In the case of hay it made hay growers learn they could make more money growing "certified" weed free hay than weeded hay. Suddenly everyone was in love with weed free hay and the horse men became their own enforcers.

However you don't want to look at that kind of thing too much. Sort of like food labeled organic - it sounds good, just don't look too close or ask what Organic means.

Chuck
 
Bringing this thread back to life. On my recent trip out to the PNW and back, all inspections went pretty smooth. Out I90, back I94. Two inspections in Montana going out, 1 just before I90 merges into I94 right before Billings, the other just west of Butte. One each shortly after entering the states of Idaho and Washington. (Nothing going into Canada.) Coming back, nothing in Washington, one shortly after entering Idaho, (but they did not have "seals" and said Montana would seal the boat. I had to beg for a record of their inspection. My belief being if they are going to take the time to inspect me, and I'm being required to stop, then I want proof of the inspection!), and one on the west side of Montana. That was it. All inspectors friendly and quick in doing their business.

Looks like Washington is now going to charge an invasive species tax, as Idaho has been doing.
https://waggonerguide.com/aquatic-i...il&utm_term=0_ef6b3dfd1a-32cf2f9ac8-120273145

Colby
 
This is what our experience was:

We pulled over in the boat inspection station in Idaho to have our boat checked for zebra mussels and other invasive species. The station was run by a couple very friendly college kids who said the power washer wasn’t working so they couldn’t do anything and besides, since we had just pulled out of the ocean and were going direct to Ohio and putting the boat into storage so the risk to Idaho’s streams and lakes (or anywhere else, for that matter) was 0. We were not inspected by the Idaho station on the way west in May either since the boat hadn’t been in the water for 3 months prior (they believed us).

Montana was a different story. They didn’t even have an inspection station when we headed west. They did inspect the boat and found this.
(pictures of some dead shells no shown but you can see them at https://mightywench.blogspot.com/2016/ down near the bottom of the page)
Stuck in the crack between the hull and the trim tabs.

The boat had spent over 6 months on its trailer inside and then launched in salt water. These suckers were dead. The inspectors at the station, however, couldn’t be trusted to make that call and had to check with their supervisor. This meant that they had to hop in their truck and go see him because, they said, cell phones (and even satellite phones!) didn’t work here. I guess their supervisor couldn’t determine that they were dead so he told them to clean the boat bottom which they attempted to do. Either they didn’t know how to work the washer or it was broken, so they let us go after we promised to power wash the boat when we got home. The supervisor should have been at the station if he didn’t trust his inspectors to make decisions like this. This cost us about an hour and accomplished absolutely nothing.

I don’t think Montana is very serious about attempting to stop the threat to their lakes and streams. If we had just driven past the station, the inspectors couldn’t have even notified anyone so there was no possibility of enforcing any of this. The guy running the program has, from all indications, serious competency and work ethic issues. Political appointee?

In Montana’s defense, I am not sure quarantines work other than slowing the rate of spread a bit, so maybe this was all on purpose to appease some constituents.

---

My problem with all this is that we could, if asked and they were not interested when I tried to tell them, demonstrate (prove) that we had pulled the boat out of salt water in a time frame that showed the boat had not been "plunked" in any fresh water for months. Also, the inspections are a seasonal thing so spreading these varmits around is permitted during certain times of the year.

The second year, the inspectors were more accommodating (the boat did have fresh bottom paint) but some stations were closed or not attended.

John
 
Might as well post it here. Maybe you've noticed, maybe not. Not only it's here,
it's going to get much worse (my 6th sense, see below).

It's a sequel of the "post-truth" era where facts, per se, don't matter, only feelings,
emotions and even identity. It's called 'metacognition' (sort of a 6th sense;
thinking - or not - about thinking) where a boat captain 'knows' he's off course
without looking at the GPS, compass or chart plotter, a singer 'knows' they're
slightly off key not noticed by others, a director 'knows' the scene isn't just right, etc.
It's good to have it. Some do, some don't. Those without metacognition
don't 'know' they don't 'know' and no amount of brow beating (or other) with facts
and/or data will change their mind. Rather than admit they don't know and they're
over their heads, they'll BS, make stuff up or, yup, lie. Totally clueless. And this
segment is growing and fast and is everywhere.

It's a human 'invasive species' of our own.

Aye.
Grandpa used to say, "It's difficult to win an argument with a smart person and
impossible to with a stupid person."
 
A bit off topic. But shows how gatekeepers work. I entered the country from Europe once with some cured horse meat. At the border I dutifully told them I had the horse meat. They confiscated it because of mad cow disease. :shock:

There is no discussion or logic to be had with these people. Another time, at my office where I was second in command a lady would not let me take a proctored test (long story) because I didn't have two forms of ID and would not let me bring back a document from the house later in the afternoon - I had worked with this women for 10+ years.... (The day I fired her was a personal victory and I don't like letting people go)

Sometimes rules seem to trump logic. I think for some its a power trip or the limited authority they have or are given somehow gives them meaning.

As to arguing with stupid or smart people, I think its less about stupid or smart rather the danger of dogmatic beliefs people have.
 
Know conflict is inevitable and arguing always optional. Since I've almost stopped
arguing and taking things personally, I feel much less like a puppet with another
holding the strings watching me dance around to their words.

Aye.

Aristotle used to say, "The mark of an educated mind is the ability to entertain a
thought without accepting it."
 
I wish they would do reciprocity with Oregon and Idaho other than shared waters.

colbysmith":2x5ccokv said:
Bringing this thread back to life. On my recent trip out to the PNW and back, all inspections went pretty smooth. Out I90, back I94. Two inspections in Montana going out, 1 just before I90 merges into I94 right before Billings, the other just west of Butte. One each shortly after entering the states of Idaho and Washington. (Nothing going into Canada.) Coming back, nothing in Washington, one shortly after entering Idaho, (but they did not have "seals" and said Montana would seal the boat. I had to beg for a record of their inspection. My belief being if they are going to take the time to inspect me, and I'm being required to stop, then I want proof of the inspection!), and one on the west side of Montana. That was it. All inspectors friendly and quick in doing their business.

Looks like Washington is now going to charge an invasive species tax, as Idaho has been doing.
https://waggonerguide.com/aquatic-i...il&utm_term=0_ef6b3dfd1a-32cf2f9ac8-120273145

Colby
Click to expand...
 
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