The Memorial Day weekend is the jumpstart to the busy boating season in Illinois and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources is gearing up for a busy boating and camping weekend.
DNR Conservation Police Captain John Williamson encourages boaters to get those boats out and do a once-over of maintenance. He indicates one of the biggest issues they encounter is boats that break down or are not ready for the water and then experience problems on the water.
Capt. Williamson says a bad combination is when you start to involve alcohol in your on-the-water activities. While you can have open alcohol containers on a boat, you do need a sober operator.
DNR authorities are very active in monitoring life jackets. Capt. Williamson stresses you need to have a life jacket that fits each occupant on the boat at a given time.
The veteran game warden has seen many dangerous maneuvers by boaters on the water over the years. Fortunately, most go executed without incident but he cautions boaters because those boats do not have breaks.
The busy Memorial Day weekend impacts more than just state waterways. Campgrounds on state grounds are busy as well. We'll hear more from Capt. Williamson on that later this week on Regional Radio.