I just might buy a boat

[Roert42]

In PA you have to have a boating license to operate a personal watercraft but you don’t need one to operate a boat.

There is a cut off for that too. If you were born after a certain date, you need one to operate a boat as well.

Also, it's a safety certificate not a license. It's way more work to get then a drivers license too.

"Boat operators of boats with greater than 25 horsepower and born on or after Jan. 1, 1982, may not operate unless they have obtained and have in possession a Boating Safety Education Certificate. "

 

[snoranger]

In PA you have to have a boating license to operate a personal watercraft but you don’t need one to operate a boat.

That makes sense.

 

[JohnnyO]

There is a cut off for that too. If you were born after a certain date, you need one to operate a boat as well.

Also, it's a safety certificate not a license. It's way more work to get then a drivers license too.

"Boat operators of boats with greater than 25 horsepower and born on or after Jan. 1, 1982, may not operate unless they have obtained and have in possession a Boating Safety Education Certificate. "

That changed since I got mine I think.

 

[Roert42]

That changed since I got mine I think.

Everyone needs it for a PWC, the age thing is just for boats.

 

[Dirtman]

Here you need a safety certification in order to get a license but you only need a license in fresh water. In saltwater you only need the safety certification. So I can run around the ocean with a 26 foot boat and no license, but if I put a trolling motor on a canoe to go play in a pond I need a license....

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Here you need a safety certification in order to get a license but you only need a license in fresh water. In saltwater you only need the safety certification. So I can run around the ocean with a 26 foot boat and no license, but if I put a trolling motor on a canoe to go play in a pond I need a license....

Are lakes more congested than oceans?

I have no license and never driven a boat aside from a pontoon rental but I have read the Chapmans Piloting book. There is a lot more to it than a person thinks.

 

[Dirtman]

Oceans may be huge but when you're dealing with barrier island areas like the NJ coast you have miles and miles of bays that only open into the ocean through rather small inlets. These are basically massive traffic jams on nice weekends. Plus while the ocean may be a big, the parts of it that are of interest are few and far between. A good fishing spot can become a floating island of idiots. Add to that main navigation channels are used by everything from a 12 foot skiff to 800 foot oil tankers. And you've got a lovely mix of nonsense. Once you leave an inlet they are largely unpatrolled so the idiots are in charge of the show. Unless someone calls the coast guard you can just do whatever the hell you want out there.

The ocean can be a rediculous place and I'd totally support a driver's license style test to be able to operate a boat in saltwater.

 

[Roert42]

The ocean can be a rediculous place and I'd totally support a driver's license style test to be able to operate a boat in saltwater.

That is a very low bar....

 

[Dirtman]

That is a very low bar....

Low bar indeed, but any bar is better than none...