Spending Summer Outdoors
by Joe Wilkinson

It's hard to beat families fishing and boats on the water, when you think of spending time outdoors in the summer. And there's been plenty of both in the past couple weeks.

Summer activities got a prolonged jumpstart, with free fishing days, the Memorial Day weekend a week earlier and Iowa's free camping weekend in state parks, prior to that. From here, the momentum should last through Labor Day.

Hundreds of Iowans-young and old were exposed to fishing; through organized fishing clinics at Kent Park, Lake Macbride or elsewhere through the state...or by just grabbing a pole and bait and trying it themselves. On June 4, Lake Macbride's beach lodge and adjacent picnic area turned into an outdoor classroom...and kitchen...as participants learned how to identify fish, cast a line, select the right tackle and even eat deep-fried fish prepared on the spot. "The idea was to pass along the basic knowledge of fishing; to show families that it's pretty easy," explained Department of Natural Resources aquatic educator Holly Thyer Schulte. "When these kids do catch a fish, their parents can see the look on their face and realize how much fun fishing can be."

Fishing was available from the lake shoreline for the dozens of families who stopped by. Some didn't even have to go down to the water for their dose of fishing fun. For 4-year-old Aaron Thompson, the big draw was turtles in a tank at the fishing ID station. "They look like trees," he insisted, pointing to the small painted and snapping turtles. Our best guess was that he meant they were generally colored and shaped like leaves, especially the serrated shell edges on the little snapper.

Macbride organizers want it to become an annual event. "We hope the families that gave fishing a try last weekend will pursue it," said Schulte. "It's a great way to enjoy the outdoors, pick up a lifetime hobby and understand our environment."

Judging by the ramp parking lots around Coralville Reservoir, the sunburns and the crowded water, just about everybody who wasn't fishing, must have been boating over the last couple weekends. I rode along with DNR conservation officer Shawn Meier for a few hours and got a splash of 'fun in the sun.'

More than a few times, that splash was a hard jolt as he throttled up the DNR's new 225 horsepower patrol boat to catch up with a violator. Problem #1? Ignoring Iowa's speed and distance laws. At fault are boaters who go whipping by another craft that is stopped or moving slowly through the water. If within 100 feet of that boat, you have to power down, or at least bank wide to reduce the wave that will soon hit them. Even overtaking a boat that is up to cruising speed, you need to maintain a 50-foot buffer.

It was an equal opportunity ticket distribution. One went to a 40-ish guy with his family, in a 30-foot, twin-engine inboard. He blew by us-and a disabled craft-at 60 feet. As he was signing the ticket, a shiny, new personal watercraft whipped by just a few yards off his bow; prompting him to ask why she could get away with it. She didn't. The 18-year-old had her ticket in hand as soon as we caught up with her. "It's something we see just about every time we turn around," admitted Meier. "The big thing is, if somebody would put their boat into gear, not paying attention, they are going to have an accident, for sure. It's perhaps the leading cause of boat accidents out there."

Given the sheer numbers of boats on the water, though, for the most part it was business as usual. Every boat we checked had enough lifejackets. Many, though, were stowed out of reach including some still in their plastic wrappers. Makes you wonder how soon any non-swimmers or potentially injured passengers could get into them, if an accident sent them into the lake.

There's still a lot of summer ahead. With more than 200,000 boats registered in Iowa, though, it's going to be crowded. Stay safe.