Kayak traffic on rise while motorboats decline

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July 4, 2009

BY JOE GORDEN The Tribune-Democrat Sat Jul 04, 2009, 11:57 PM EDT

Boating activity seems to be off this year, something Tom Qualters of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission’s Southwest Region office attributes to the unusually cool and wet weather.

But there is something else Qualters has noticed that indicates boaters in this area are following a trend.

“We’ve noticed boat traffic has been down but, on the other hand, there’s been a big increase in non-powered watercraft

- canoes, kayaks and that,” Qualters said. “We’ve been selling a lot of launch permits. It seems a lot of people come in here and want those permits for the Quemahoning Dam.”

The fish commission requires all motorized boats to be registered, whether they are powered by gasoline or electricity. Boats without motors can also be registered, but do not have to be.

However, they must either be registered or display a launch or use permit issued by the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources or the fish commission to use state park lakes, fish commission launches and many other public access areas, including those at the Quemahoning, Wilmore and Hinckston Run reservoirs.

“We’ve been selling a bunch of those permits,” Qualters said. “I don’t know if it’s a fad or if people just want to boat and don’t want to pay the gas prices, but that seems to be the big thing now – canoes and kayaks.”

Well, kayaks at least. Fish commission statistics show the number of registered kayaks in the state grew by 4,105 from 2003 to 2008 while the number of registered canoes fell by 3,602. And, the number of registered motorboats less than 16 feet in length fell during the same period by 18,660.

“Our indications are that the number of registered motorboats has not gone down this year yet, but it has gone down slowly since 2000,” said Dan Martin, the fish commission’s director of boating and access. “We’ve seen the biggest decrease in boat registrations in one class of boats – those less than 16 feet. Those are small, open motorboats like fishing boats. There’s been a decline in angling, too, and my belief is that it is commensurate with that.”

But, there has been a boom in the sale and use of kayaks and it extends far beyond the Southwest Region.

“Kayaks are now outselling canoes,” Martin said. “It’s the fastest-growing outdoor sport in the United States, we’ve been told, and it’s especially relevant in Pennsylvania because we’ve got all this moving water. Pennsylvania is a state full of rivers, which is where more of our boating takes place. And, we have a very rural population, which makes it convenient.”

Even so, various state agencies and local governments have taken steps to make paddling even more convenient.

“There are about 1,000 free public accesses in Pennsylvania, and that’s very unusual,” Martin said. “In most places, you have to pay for access. Here, there are a lot of DCNR, fish commission and local government accesses you can use at no charge. Plus, we have 20 established water trails in Pennsylvania that tell you where to put in, where to take out and what you will see along the way. There is new signage going up all over the state.

“A lot of good stuff is going on, and a lot of new accesses are going in as a result of our efforts, those by DCNR – even the Game Commission is working with us on accesses,” Martin said.

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