• Happy Weed Appreciation Day! 🌱🌿🌻

legal requirements

Joined
Dec 6, 2018
Messages
7
Reaction score
0
I'm curious, in Ohio and WV can anyone tell me what the minimum legal requirements on canoe equipment is? obviously paddles and life jackets, but do I have to wear them when out, do I need lights, anchors, flares, etc.
 
Seth I urge you to get a good comfy PFD and wear it.. I don't mean to nanny but imagine how busy you will be in event of capsize.. One hand on boat and one hand on paddle.. I don't know of anyone who has free hands to even get a hold of a stowed PFD much less put it on. ( and they are tricky buggers to get on in the water!)

Just think ahead of where you will paddle.. Sometimes I leave mine off in mangrove tunnels with four inches of water( branches tend to snag it) but I do think about "can I stand up without getting mired in quicksand? or not?

Hey still waiting on pix of canoe!
 
Dang, another thing to check when trip planning. When on multi-day trips with a boat on the truck, I stop and paddle along the way. Such stops were made at a reservoir in Bucks Creek SP in west-central Ohio and East Harbor SP on Lake Erie. The East Harbor stop was in 2012. I didn't know there were any registration requirements and maybe there weren't at that time. I was counseled by law enforcement at East Harbor due to my use of a restricted beach (who knew?), and it seems like they would have brought up a registration requirement if there was one. So, I guess I need to check registration requirements before unloading the boat in unfamiliar areas I may be passing through.

I don't know why I never thought of this. I certainly check requirements at my destination, but never thought about it at stops along the way, which are most often impromptu. I wonder if staff at state-line welcome centers know what's required in their states.
 
Chip
you are the optimist about info center personnel

Canoes have had to be registered in OH for at least 20 years but I'm glad there are LEO's with a little understanding for out of staters
 
It's been a lot longer than 20 years.
I bought my first canoe while I was stationed in OH in 1973. It was an awful location for assignment in a terrible state for canoeing and the outdoors in general. I still have that Grumman canoe and it still bears the offensive outline of the OH registration numbers that I ripped off as soon as I returned to my homeland in the Adirondacks.
 
It would be nice if someone (ACA?) kept a list of states requiring registration of paddlecraft. I searched around but couldn't find anything both complete and current. I know the northeastern states don't, but it seems to be hit or miss in the midwest.
 
I think most states have reciprocity for out of state watercraft. as per recped's link (toward the bottom):
[h=2]Can I register my boat in multiple states?[/h]


Boats can only be registered in one state at a time. Most states allow vessels registered in another state to operate for a period of 60 consecutive days before having to register with that state.

I know I used to take my grandfather fishing in Ohio w/ my PA registered bass boat. I needed an OH license to fish but not to launch.

Always safest to check the DNR website for the state you're in but I've often found it easier to gain forgiveness than permission.
 
I think most states have reciprocity for out of state watercraft. as per recped's link (toward the bottom):

I know I used to take my grandfather fishing in Ohio w/ my PA registered bass boat. I needed an OH license to fish but not to launch.

Always safest to check the DNR website for the state you're in but I've often found it easier to gain forgiveness than permission.

But what about if you are from a state that does not require registration at all (NY in my case)?
 
But what about if you are from a state that does not require registration at all (NY in my case)?

In MN for example if you want to go to the BWCA you do NOT need to register your craft ( This is a new regulation for 2018 .. For years you have had to register no matter what state you came from with your boat)

Otherwise you have to register.. PA makes out of state registration fairly easy and cheap.. I just got the permit.( go to un-powered). That satisfies the other states requirements too. https://www.fishandboat.com/Boat/RegisterTitle/Pages/default.aspx
 
But what about if you are from a state that does not require registration at all (NY in my case)?

That's a tricky issue. Illinois does not require human powered vessels to be titled or licensed. They do require a water use stamp, which costs $6.00 and fades in the sunlight. If I were to use an outboard motor with my canoe, it would require title and license. If I want to get title and license, I need my certificate of origin for the canoe and have to pay 6-1/4% sales tax to the department of revenue. If I buy a used canoe that wasn't titled. it may be impossible to get a title, since I'm not the original purchaser and don't have a certificate of origin. If I take my canoe out of state, I just have a 2" X 3" faded water use stamp on one side of the bow. I don't know whether that would attract the attention of the authorities or not. Titled and licensed boats are usually treated like automobiles. As long as you display a valid license, you won't normally be bothered. When you don't have a license displayed, the local authorities may take exception, even if the agency with authority over this says it's OK. Some states require a boating safety certificate for the operator of the vessel. This is one of the things that they will ask for after they have stopped you for some other reason. It's not a bad idea to get a boating safety certificate, since they are generally recognized by all states that require them.
 
Amazing. For all the high tax complaints in NY State, there is no such requirement for human powered craft. Not title is required or given upon purchase of a canoe. And no registration required if there is no motor attached. Nobody ever heard of getting a stamp or any such thing here to paddle any state waterway. Most waterways that are not completely surrounded by private land are free to paddle without any kind of state permission or sticker. I think I was given a title for my grumman when I bought it in Ohio and had to register it in Ohio at the time in 1973, but I'd never find it now.
 
Last edited:
Stupid law - registering canoes. A tax to cover costs that should be covered by a 100 other taxes and fees I pay. And yes, they check. I'm now only registering my non-tripping boats.

Law says you need a PFD in the boat, but I wear mine, so do the dogs.
 
Here Transport Canada requires all paddle craft to have on board a safety kit that includes :
- a bailing device ( cup, pump, sponge)
- a 50' floating recovery rope
- an audible signaling device (whistle, or other)
- a visual signaling device (flashlight, or other)
a paddle craft operating after dark must display a white light with a 360° visual.
a properly sized PFD must be available for every person on board ( not sure if this is " a must wear" command tho)
They also strongly recommend a first aid kit, compas, signal flares and a vhf radio if lake travel is in your plans.
No paper registration is required here for paddle craft as far as I know.
 
No law in Canada yet forcing one to wear lifejacket just have to have it in boat. I just found out though that for any boat pushed by a motor, even a canoe with a 1.5 kicker, the operator must have a boat license.
 
Here Transport Canada requires all paddle craft to have on board a safety kit that includes :
- a bailing device ( cup, pump, sponge)
- a 50' floating recovery rope
- an audible signaling device (whistle, or other)
- a visual signaling device (flashlight, or other)
a paddle craft operating after dark must display a white light with a 360° visual.
a properly sized PFD must be available for every person on board ( not sure if this is " a must wear" command tho)
They also strongly recommend a first aid kit, compas, signal flares and a vhf radio if lake travel is in your plans.
No paper registration is required here for paddle craft as far as I know.

50’ of rope is a lot of rope, if that is a continuous length, is that typically in the form of a throw bag? Or is two painters now and stern meeting that requirement?
 
In PA, Life Jackets...
A U.S. Coast Guard approved wearable life jacket is required for each person on board. In addition, one throwable device is required on boats 16 feet in length or longer. • Life jackets must be the appropriate size for the persons wearing them. • Life jackets must be appropriate for the activity for which they are worn. See the U.S. Coast Guard approval label for information. • Children 12 years of age and younger must wear an approved life jacket on Commonwealth waters when underway on any boat 20 feet or less in length and in all canoes and kayaks. • All water skiers and anyone towed behind vessels, personal watercraft operators and passengers and sailboarders must wear a life jacket. Inflatable life jackets are not acceptable for these activities. • Wearable life jackets must be “readily accessible” or in the open where they can be easily reached. Throwable devices must be “immediately available” or within arm’s reach. A PFD that is stored in a protective covering or sealed in its original packaging is not readily accessible or immediately available.

MANDATORY COLD WEATHER LIFE JACKET WEAR • From November 1 through April 30, boaters are required by law to wear life jackets on boats less than 16 feet in length or any canoe or kayak. This regulation went into effect in 2012 and is intended to protect boaters from the dangers of cold water shock if they fall into the water. Recreational boating fatalities that occur in Pennsylvania from November through April are primarily due to the effects of cold water immersion. When water temperatures are less than 70 degrees F, cold water shock is a major factor in boating fatalities. Victims who wear a life jacket when exposed to cold water have potentially life-saving advantages such as insulation from the cold, buoyancy for victims who are unable to tread water and reduced risk of aspiration of water. In an effort to reduce the number of fatalities related to cold water immersion, PFBC has amended regulations to require life jackets to be worn on small and unstable boats during the period most noted for cold water temperatures.


I did not know about the winter mandatory life jacket. I always were mine

See: Reference
 
Last edited:
Back
Top