Water Safety, Responsibility, and Courtesy Guidelines

General

1. Be courteous. We can’t all use the lake at the same time; especially powerboats.  You may have to wait your turn, or take a break so someone else can go.
2. Use common sense. It’s probably not a good idea to swim across the lake on a busy Saturday afternoon.   
3. Wear a life jacket, especially when being towed, riding a jet ski, or enjoying a paddle sport.
4. Have all required safety gear on board. Christmas Lake does not have water patrol to come to your immediate aid in an emergency.
5. Powered watercraft must give way to swimmers, paddlers and sailboats. Give them a wide berth.
6. Sound travels astonishingly well over water, and not everyone likes your music as much as you do. Remember that when playing music from your boat.  Keep it at a reasonable volume.
7. You are responsible for your wake (there’s more on wakes below).
8. Be mindful of your neighbors. Tubing, jet skiing, or wake surfing in front of the same shoreline houses for hours on end can be an annoyance. Others are probably trying to enjoy the lake too.
9. Towed watersports (e.g. waterskiing, tubing and wake surfing) are only allowed between sunrise and 30 minutes after sunset.
10. Do not ride on the bow of a boat or pontoon with legs hanging over the front. Mostly seen on pontoon boats, this is extremely dangerous.  One small wave or slip can lead to tragedy.
11. If launching a boat that recently has been in another body of water make sure it is decontaminated for aquatic invasive species at the public landing before dropping into Christmas Lake.

Wildlife

1. Be on the lookout for wildlife, especially our loons. All wildlife has the right-of-way.  Loon chicks are particularly vulnerable.  They cannot dive to avoid oncoming watercraft. 
2. Stay at least 100’ away from a loon nest. Adult loons may abandon a nest if a boat approaches too closely, exposing the eggs to predators.
3. Anyone who knowingly or recklessly harasses a loon, eagle or trumpeter swan is required to sell their family’s Christmas Lake property to a land trust for a pittance.

Public Landing

1. All watercraft and their trailers entering the lake must be inspected by the DNR-certified AIS inspectors at the landing before entering the lake. Watercraft or trailers that show signs of AIS contamination or which are arriving from high AIS risks lakes will be required to be decontaminated before launching.
2. Please maintain a zero wake (dead slow) within 500 feet of the boat landing.
3. The public landing is a City of Shorewood park. A city ordinance prohibits any watercraft from launching into the lake if all of the available parking spots are full.  This applies to all watercraft, even those that intend to launch and take their trailer to their home.
4. Minimize the use of your motor to power on or off your trailer. Prop wash creates a large depression at the end of the boat ramp.  The rocks and sediment is then deposited slightly farther out into the lake.  The depression has damaged trailers, and the pile of deposited rocks and sediment can damage props.

Motorized Watercraft – General

1. Boat operators need to operate the boat, which includes always looking ahead. You can’t both operate a watercraft and watch a skier, tuber or surfer. 
2. Please maintain a zero wake (dead slow) within 500 feet of the boat landing.
3. Please maintain zero wake when close to shore, and maintain a reasonable distance from docks and swim rafts.
4. Give a wide berth to swimmers, stand up paddle boarders, sailboats, kayakers, canoes, and anglers. They all have the right-of-way over powered watercraft.

Personal Watercraft (Jet Skis)

1. Minnesota has certain rules that apply to personal watercraft (PWC). These include:
   1. May only travel at a no wake speed within 150’ of shore, docks, swimming rafts, or any anchored watercraft.
   2. May only operate between 9:30 am and one hour before sunset.
   3. There are significant restrictions on 13 year olds operating PWC’s. 14-17 year olds must either have a watercraft operator’s permit or have someone 21 or older on board.
   4. May not jump the wake of another boat within 150’ of that boat. That’s ½ a football field.
2. Move around the lake. Don’t concentrate your driving in front of the same lakeshore.  It can get old for those on the shore.  Remember, be courteous.

Swimmers

1. Be visible. Wear a high visibility float or have a spotter alongside you. 
2. Hug the shoreline. You are far less likely to encounter watercraft close to shore, and if you do they will be moving slowly. 

Waterskiing

1. Slalom skiers (those making the big sprays) can only operate in relatively calm water and need the boat to pull them in a straight line. Small waves, including mild boat wakes, can make skiing difficult or even dangerous for slalom skiers.  The calmest water and straightest line generally is along the “ridge” on the southeast side of the lake or the western shore.  That’s why historically and today you will see water skiers going back and forth along these shorelines, and you are most likely to see them in the early morning or evening.
2. From time to time slalom skiers will put a portable water ski course in the lake. It places several green, yellow and orange buoys in the water for the boat to follow and the skier to try to turn around.  The buoys are held in place by cables and ropes about 4’ under the surface.  If you see buoys, you will also likely soon see a water ski boat.  The course is completely removed when they are done skiing.  If you need to paddle or operate a motorized boat near the buoys please talk to the skiers.  They are accommodating and used to taking turns.  And if you want to give the course a try, just ask the skiers.  They would love to help you do that.
3. It’s usually best to take turns. Feel free to talk, courteously of course, to others enjoying towed water sports on the lake.

Wake Sports including Tubing

1. Big wakes and small lakes can be a tough fit as wakes have little time to dissipate. Large wakes can erode the shoreline, damage watercraft tied to docks, wash over docks, and stir up the lake bottom damaging near-shore fisheries, and re-suspending sediment and algae-producing phosphorus.
2. Boat operators are responsible for the wakes they create. This is Minnesota law, and follows from responsible boating.  Once you make the wake it does not become everyone else’s problem.
3. A constant supply of large wakes tends to “consume” the lake. i.e. make others stop or delay their use of the lake, especially those trying to enjoy paddle sports. If you plan to be making wakes for an extended period take a break from time to time, and be open to those asking you to take a break so they can also enjoy the lake.
4. Boats create the largest wakes at their transition speed, i.e. when the bow is highest in the air before it planes. For most boats this is 10-15 mph.  It is also the speed at which the boat is least efficient and consumes the most gas for its speed.  If you are not trying to make a large wake for wake surfing or wake boarding, minimize your time travel at the transition speed.  In other words, just putt along, or get up on plane.
5. If using ballast tanks to make bigger wakes, empty them when you are not wake surfing or wake boarding.
6. Boats making large wakes should stay in the middle of the lake, i.e. more than 500’ from shore. That includes the point at which the boat makes its turn.   500’ is about 1.5 football fields.  If you see a boat using the middle of the lake this way, try to stay out of their way so that they don’t feel forced to operate closer to shore. 
7. “Power turns” can be fun but they just throw a large wake down the lake. These turns occur when boaters give their boat additional throttle and turn hard to return to fallen tubers, skiers or wake surfers.  The alternative is to drop the throttle as you keep the boat going straight, wait for the nose of the boat drop down, turn around at a slow speed, and then, if necessary, accelerate back to those that were being towed.  It works.
8. Take a break. The size of wakes from wake surf boats can make it difficult or unsafe for paddlers, especially those on SUP’s, and water skiers.  These users therefore tend to stay off the lake while people are wake surfing.   It is common courtesy to take a break every so often to allow others to enjoy the lake without the waves. 

Boating at Night

1. DNR regulations (and common sense) require that all motorboats operating after sunset and before sundown have red (port) and green (starboard) running lights, as well as a white light in the stern. Non-motorized boats must also carry at least a flashlight which is displayed in sufficient time to avoid an accident. 
2. Motorized boats should move at a low or no-wake speed to give the operator time to maneuver or stop with little warning.
3. Be aware that wildlife can be out in the water including our loons.
4. Docking lights, those bright lights on the bows of some boats, are just that; lights to help with docking a boat at night. They are not intended to be used while not maneuvering around or near docks or trailers. They can create unsafe conditions on the water by “blinding” oncoming watercraft.
5. Towed watersports (water skiing, wake surfing and tubing) after prohibited 30 minutes after sundown until sunrise.
6. Swimming at night is fun and refreshing, though it is still smart to stay close to shore or a dock or platform just in case a watercraft may go by.