Beer and boating? Bad idea

COEUR d'ALENE - "There's plenty of knuckleheads out on the water already," Kootenai County Sheriff's Deputy Josh Stearns said as he pulled the patrol boat from the Third Street Pier on Thursday.

Stearns, who is in his sixth season with the Marine Division, and his partner, Deputy Chris Nogle, are tasked with patrolling Lake Coeur d'Alene. Nogle said he enjoys the job because the focus is often on public safety.

"It's education-based," Nogle said. "Obviously enforcement is a huge part of it, but there's a huge community awareness emphasis that's part of it. A lot of people will go out and buy boats and not even know how to use them."

"A lot of people think we're the fun police. We aren't that," Stearns added. "If we just let mayhem happen out here, the state would come down and say 'nope' and not let anyone recreate."

On Thursday afternoon, the deputies didn't even make it out of the pier area before encountering a boater committing a wake violation, one of the most common violations they see while on patrol.

After pulling the man over, Nogle asked him for his driver's license and boat registration. While Stearns checked the information, Nogle began a safety check to ensure the man had all of the necessary gear onboard.

The man showed Nogle his life jackets, which must be Coast Guard approved, a fire extinguisher made for boats, and other floatation and safety devices. When the check was completed, the man was given a warning for producing a wake bigger than 4 inches.

"I thought I was going slow enough, but I guess I wasn't paying attention," the man told Nogle.

"A lot of people don't even realize that they're producing a wake," Nogle said once the patrol boat continued out of the pier area. "It's actually a misdemeanor in Idaho and you pretty much have to idle in, in order not to make one in the restricted areas."

In his seasons with the Marine Division, Stearns said he has seen how a day of recreating and enjoying the lake can have deadly consequences. One common denominator in fatalities on the lake is alcohol, Stearns said.

"You go out for a drowning incident and a lot of the time you find the guy is missing his shorts because he was drunk and peeing off the back of the boat," Stearns said. "Then there's the accidents, with people getting drunk and running into land or another boat and being killed. There's a lot of subtleties associated with boating that people get drunk and forget."

During the Fourth of July weekend, the deputies' shifts will go from the usual 10 hours to around 12.

"This weekend will be ... long," Stearns said.

With the newly arrived heat, Stearns added that he thinks "environmental issues" will be a major concern while patrolling. The issues caused by people not being used to the heat, and drinking alcohol, make for a "dangerous combination" that could result in overheating, dehydration and many other problems.

"Be safe and think smart," Stearns said to those who will be on the lake during the holiday weekend. "We are going to be out here and there's going to be a lot of others here as well. It becomes a very crowded place during the fireworks show. Having a sober driver is important just in order to navigate in the dark."