# Kayak Regulations



## SpeckWrecker (Aug 4, 2011)

What are the laws here in pensacola florida on kayaking at night do you only need a white light like a stern light? Do you need a red and green bow light? What safety equipment do you need during the day and night such as whistles and flares and stuff? Does a 10 foot non motor kayak need to be registered? And last do you have to have a pfd on at all times while kayaking even if ur anchored fishing?




Thanks Guys


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## sureicanfish (Sep 30, 2007)

http://www.trails.com/facts_14662_florida-kayaking-regulations-laws-safety.html

you need a whistle or horn i guess, a pfd on board and a white light on board. the light can be a flashlight or a headlight. no registration required:thumbup:


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## SpeckWrecker (Aug 4, 2011)

ok ill go with the whistle haha cheaper and so u dont have to have the pfd on ? and good thts why i bought a kayak is so i wouldnt have to deal with registration and gas haha and its way more fun than fishing from a boat.


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## bbarton13 (May 4, 2009)

Wirelessly posted (Iphone )

I'm pretty sure a flashlight or headlight won't work, it needs to be a 360 degree white light.


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## Bonsaifishrman (Mar 17, 2009)

360 night lite for sure. Walmart has a clip on boat light, takes 2 D cells for 12.00. Works great.


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## keperry1182 (Oct 6, 2010)

a white flashlight or headlight will work, i was told this by marine fisheries when my buddy got a ticket for not being able to reach his life vest


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## sureicanfish (Sep 30, 2007)

regs state a white light for gaining attention of potential on-coming traffic. flashlight will suffice, per the coast guard. there are many portable all around light options, LED's will last forever on cheap batteries. I however usually fish where a boat would either be beached or crashing into structure, so i use the headlight.


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## Framerguy (Oct 2, 2007)

keperry1182 said:


> a white flashlight or headlight will work, i was told this by marine fisheries when my buddy got a ticket for not being able to reach his life vest


That was what I was told by FWC officers who have pulled up to my kayak on different occasions. I carry my PFD under the bungee cords in the aft of my kayak and have never had to verify that I could _reach_ it for any reason. I was told you had to have one on board and "available", nothing more. 

The whistle, the loudest you can find, or a compressed air "can horn" is just common sense in addition to being part of the law. I found a dayglow orange boat whistle at Bass Pro a few years ago and, not wanting to buy a wimpy whistle, I hauled off and blew a healthy blast on it inside the building. I guess everyone but the fake shark outside looked around to see what the heck was happening!! (I never realized that there was an echo in that Destin Bass Pro building.)

That was good enough for my needs.


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## Synovis (Oct 3, 2007)

a quick side note....
If you have an inflatable life vest, it DOES have to be worn.
Regular vest only need to be within reach.


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## Yaksquatch (Mar 23, 2009)

If you are anchored at night then you MUST have a white light visible 360 degrees. I have one that I keep on at ALL TIMES when I'm out at night as well as a headlamp, a spare flashlight, and spare batteries.

Technically, you're life jacket only has to be on board and available. However, I wear mine AT ALL TIMES because when (not if) it hits the fan, you'll have needed it on 5 minutes ago and won't be able to get it back on in time. Mine's comfortable and has all sorts of pockets for tackle and attachment points for my VHF radio, pliers/cutters, knife, and whistle.

DO NOT KEEP YOUR PFD IN A HATCH!!! It will be useless to you and you will receive a ticket from FWC.

Good luck,
Alex


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## SpeckWrecker (Aug 4, 2011)

thanks guyssss


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## Foulhook (Apr 26, 2010)

Ditto to everything Alex says. Im NEVER on the water without my PFD on. Period.


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## traqem (Mar 10, 2009)

I admire you guys for wearing your pfd, but I'd rather not go at all than wear one. I would quit quickly if the law was changed to having to wear it. It does make a pretty good back rest. If I turn over (and as you stated, I have) it's floating right there by me, even in the surf.


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## sureicanfish (Sep 30, 2007)

let say for instance, and God forbid. you're in bigger water and the stars align and an almost unheard of sequence of events has you unconscious in the water... just sayin, crazy things happen.


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## FLSalomon (Oct 3, 2007)

The question was what is legal regarding PFD's - the fact is you have to have one, but you don't have to wear it. It must be "readily accessible". If it is an inflatable, then you have to wear it. That's the legal stuff.

I am not going to tell anyone what to do. Do what you want. Personally, I wear my PFD all the time I am on the water. When you need it is not the time to put it on. You should think through the possible scenarios and what you can do to mitigate the risks. Wearing a PFD mitigates a lot of risk. Same for having more than one light, or a whistle or a phone - VHF radio if offshore, fishing with a buddy, having a float plan, etc.


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## Team Hobie (Oct 9, 2007)

A few years ago a guy fishing the Gulf out of Texas did not know his line had wrapped around his rod tip. A shark hits, rolls him out of the yak and tows it away.

He ended up swimming for shore which was a long, long ways away.

I don't remember if he had his PFD on or not, but this is just one example of how things can happen faster and worse that expected.

I'll add a few thoughts on safety.
1. Wear the PFD
2. More lights are better than less -- It's about being seen not the minimum regulations. Get a 360 white light and be seen out there even if not required
3. Your kayak is your most important safety device. If you are fishing alone, consider tethering yourself to it. If you roll and there is a current the yak, paddle and you could go different directions (It happened to a buddy in Destin Pass, he could not catch the yak. I had to retrieve it for him)
4. Buddy up.

Ted


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## Caddy Yakker (May 21, 2011)

keperry1182 said:


> a white flashlight or headlight will work, i was told this by marine fisheries when my buddy got a ticket for not being able to reach his life vest


Yeah was told the same by a FWC officer last year at 17th ave.


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## Robin (Mar 22, 2011)

Post# 15,16 are very true.Wear it,tie everything to the Kayak including yourself.
You can't swim fast enough or think that fast when you get in the water.
Better safe than sorry....................

Robin


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## keperry1182 (Oct 6, 2010)

I was practicing self rescue out at johnson beach one day and the stars lined up just right and I hit myself in the head with the kayak when I rolled it over. It knocked me out for 30 seconds or so best I can figure and if i hadn't been wearin my pfd i'd have drowned for sure.
I was also looking for this light issue and all I can see in the state statute is that you're required to display navigational lights at night, with no emphasis on color or type. Can anyone point me to the place it's written? I've checked coast guard and fwc websites.


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## Flatspro (Oct 3, 2007)

I agree if fishing deeper water I will always wear my pfd however 99% of my fishing happens in less than 3ft so I do not wear it as I can stand up. But I do carry all saftey devices needed as well as a first aid kit and fire starting equipment if I get stranded somewhere. Just be safe and use good judgement and most dissasters can be avoided.

Chad


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## Robin (Mar 22, 2011)

True in shallow water,Gulf or the bay it's on my back.

Robin


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## It'll Fish (Oct 2, 2007)

*http://www.boat-ed.com/florida/handbook/index.html*



keperry1182 said:


> I was also looking for this light issue and all I can see in the state statute is that you're required to display navigational lights at night, with no emphasis on color or type. Can anyone point me to the place it's written? I've checked coast guard and fwc websites.


I looked everywhere also this is what I found on page 20


http://www.boat-ed.com/florida/handbook/index.html


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## bbarton13 (May 4, 2009)

It'll Fish said:


> I looked everywhere also this is what I found on page 20
> 
> 
> http://www.boat-ed.com/florida/handbook/index.html


it says try to follow less than 65.6 feet long lights which is red/green on front and white on back but if not practical, have on hand at least one lantern or flashlight shining a white light as to be displayed in time to avoid a collision BUT
All vessels are required to display a white light visible in all directions whenever they are moored or anchored away from dock between sunset and sunrise and/or during periods of restricted visibility.


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## It'll Fish (Oct 2, 2007)

*Scroll down*

If less than 23.0 feet long, these vessels should:

#If practical, exhibit the same lights as required for unpowered vessels less than 65.6 feet in length.
#If not practical, have on hand at least one lantern or flashlight shining a white light as in figure 3, to be displayed in time to avoid a collision.

All Vessels When Not Underway

All vessels are required to display a white light visible in all directions whenever they are moored or anchored away from dock between sunset and sunrise and/or during periods of restricted visibility.


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## sureicanfish (Sep 30, 2007)

seems like lawyer speak to me. i am satisfied with a headlight. i have anchored once and that was at daytime. IF i ever anchor at night, it will be in front of a docklight most likely in water too shallow for practical boat travel.


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## bbarton13 (May 4, 2009)

just to let everyone know i would recommend a 360 degree white light, cuz ive heard boats flying down the icw at night with no lights on, and with just a headlight by the time u turn around to shine ur headlight that way might be to late!


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## FLSalomon (Oct 3, 2007)

The lighting question comes up frequently, so I have done some research on the subject and saved it. Here it is again - hopefully the links are still good. It depends on whether you are reading Florida law, the Florida Boating Guide or USCG regulations - you didn't think they would all say the same thing, did you? 

What you are referring to is from the Florida Boater’s Guide. Here is the link to the online version is people want to read it. 
*http://www.boat-ed.com/florida/handbook/index.html*

Here is the link to the USCG regulations from 33 CFR (Code of Federal Regulations), Title 33 -Navigation and Navigable Waters, Chapter I--Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security, Subchapter E--Inland Navigation Rules, Part 83—rules, Subpart C—Lights and Shapes. Section 83.025 is the section applying to lighting 

http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=f0b1a7f1a8f56c520ce175ad806580db&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title33/33cfr83_main_02.tpl 

I don’t see anything in there that requires a 360 degree white light, although I think it is a really good idea. It does not look like a USCG requirement. If it is, I can’t find the source law. However, it may be a state requirement. I would refer to the section from the Florida Boater’s Guide that states, referring to Unpowered Vessels, “If less than 65.6 feet long, these vessels must exhibit” a “stern light visible from a distance of at least two miles away.” 

If that is not practical, “have on hand at least one lantern or flashlight shining a white light as shown in Figure 3, to be displayed in time to avoid a collision”. Here is a link to the FWCC Boating Regulations site – which shows a summary of boating regulations derived from Ch. 327 and Ch. 328, Florida Statutes. http://myfwc.com/RULESANDREGS/Rules_Boat.htm#equip 

I looked up Ch. 327.50 of the Florida Statutes – the applicable law – it basically says do what the USCG says. So we go back to the Florida Boaters Course. 

It can be confusing, but I would defer to the strictest interpretation - it will avoid arguing with an FWCC officer, which is a losing proposition. Bring a white light that is visible for 360 degrees and 2 miles during the hours of darkness. That's the legal stuff. 

If the idea is to avoid collision with a heavier, faster boat - which is another losing proposition - why would you skimp on lighting? Makes little sense to me...


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## Wilbur (Jan 17, 2011)

IIt can be confusing, but I would defer to the strictest interpretation - it will avoid arguing with an FWCC officer, which is a losing proposition. Bring a white light that is visible for 360 degrees and 2 miles during the hours of darkness. That's the legal stuff. 

If the idea is to avoid collision with a heavier, faster boat - which is another losing proposition - why would you skimp on lighting? Makes little sense to me...

[/QUOTE]

Thanks for all the great info Ferd. Can anyone recommend a good mounted 360 light? My son and I would like to try out night fishing Sat after the rigging clinic. We have an Outback and a Pescador. Thanks!


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## bbarton13 (May 4, 2009)

if you dont want to dish out the money for a nice 360 degree light just go buy a solar driveway light at walmart and put on a pole and your set, no batterys. might not be waterproof and not sure if it can be seen for a 2 miles away(im the more expensive ones are though) but i got one the other day for a dollar!


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## Synovis (Oct 3, 2007)

I use an LED "clamp on" from West Marine that I have modified for use on my yak.
I'll be at the rigging clinic with it for an idea to steal if you like the setup.
Its probably the brightest of the lights I have seen so far honestly.
I mounted it to some PVC pipe and a threaded deck fitting.
You can check out the pics on page 16 of the kayak pics thread.....
http://www.pensacolafishingforum.com/f49/show-us-your-yaks-38/index16/


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