Castanet

Kayakers scare nesting birds. Ban ALL human activity on the lake!

bcpaul wrote:Kayakers scare nesting birds. Ban ALL human activity on the lake!

i would have to concur, would not these pesky kayakers possibly be the biggest threat and risk as they are the ones who go very very close to the shoreline and into the actual nesting area's with the phoney belief they are harmless birdwatchers.
i have never personally seen skiers nor wakerboarders going through the reeds and nesting area's.
i have seen small boats and kayaks do it often.
makes you wonder, whats worse a wave (which can be caused by nature also) or a kayak going over a nest with newborns or eggs in it?
seems the experts say both should be banned.

Exactly. These people are the ones trying to ban those pesky power boats so they can kayak and bother the birds all to themselves.

bcpaul wrote:Exactly. These people are the ones trying to ban those pesky power boats so they can kayak and bother the birds all to themselves.

Like I said in an earlier post I believe that paddlers or anyone were amongst nesting sites bothering the wildlife on Swan Lake or anywhere then they need to be stopped. This is true to any ecosystem and there are many laws set up to protect wildlife for a reason. I do believe wildlife can be watched from a distance without being disruptive. Power boats can do damage from a much greater distance because of their wake, water and noise pollution. A few power boats can do more damage and effect more wildlife then a hundred paddlers.

Just wanted to add that I don't paddle on Swan Lake and if I did I would never paddle near enough to the wildlife to bother them. I try not to cause damage to any areas I'm in.

Like I said in an earlier post I believe that paddlers or anyone were amongst nesting sites bothering the wildlife on Swan Lake or anywhere then they need to be stopped. This is true to any ecosystem and there are many laws set up to protect wildlife for a reason. I do believe wildlife can be watched from from a distance without being disruptive. Power boats can do damage from a much greater distance because of their wake, water and noise pollution. A few power boats can do more damage and effect more wildlife then a hundred paddlers.

Just wanted to add that I don't paddle on Swan Lake and if I did I would never paddle near enough to the wildlife to bother them. I try not to cause damage to any areas I'm in.[/quote]


the truth of the matter is one good average weekly windy day with whitecaps on the lake will create more waves than 30 boats on the lake.
on any given time if you see 2-3 powerboats (not small fishing) on the lake thats a high number.
in general most tourists and locals choose on their own to avoid taking powerboats on swan for their own preferences.
we dont need dictator society forcing more rules and laws for no real reason.
if enviroment canada and fisheries and conservation saw issues and problems on the lake they would place restrictions on.
whats next move the highway that goes right along the lake so we dont create exhaust pollution that bothers the birds?
people appear to be creating a problem that does not really exist at this time.
nobody can or will show any facts showing a decline in water fowl due to boat traffic.
if anything the amount of wildlife is increasing in the area with it being a larger habitat on the south end.
if the wildlife arent being effected in a way that demands the lake be restricted why bother?
i can tell you why, the kayakers simply want the lake to themselves so they can paddle in peace.
we have hundreds of restricted lakes in the area many with full restriction on all gasoline engines, why dont the kayakers go and enjoy the peace there?
the boat launches in the summer can become packed early and unfortunatly then other lakes are a viable option to use for powerboats.
if the government wants to restrict a lake available for powerboat use they should then be required to build more launches at other lakes for users to compensate.
this is a tourism area and our stores and hotels etc rely on it.