Visiting a boating museum can be a fun winter activity

Winter in the northern states can be a tough time of year for boaters. With the snow, ice, and freezing temperatures, it is not ideal to spend time on a boat, but that doesn’t mean that all boating activities have to end. And, even in a warmer weather state, a bad weather day can still ruin plans for a boating trip. On days like that, take a trip to a local boating museum near you!

The Sea Tow Foundation staff had the chance to visit the Finger Lakes Boating Museum this winter. Located in Hammondsport, NY just a couple of hours from Buffalo, Rochester or Syracuse, this museum focuses on the education and preservation of the boating activities and boat building heritage of the Finger Lakes region.

Sea Tow Foundation's Michael Wesolowski and Gail Kulp met with Andrew Tompkins at the Finger Lakes Boating Museum.

The Finger Lakes Boating Museum has over 200 boats on display representing over 40 commercial builders who built boats in the region within the last century. The museum’s campus is the site of the former Taylor Wine Company and includes 19 buildings across 14 acres. While the museum exhibits currently occupy the main building, plans are underway to renovate and move into additional buildings over the coming years to expand the boats on display.

Andrew Tompkins, Executive Director, provided the Sea Tow Foundation with a personal tour and showed off just some of the hundreds of canoes, rowboats, inboards, runabouts and sailboats on display as well as the enormous mural on display downstairs. Andrew noted, “The Finger Lakes Boating Museum sees over 5,000 visitors each year from around the country and we also host a number of school field trips as well.”

So if being on the water is not an option because of the weather, look into visiting a local boating museum like the Sea Tow Foundation staff did this winter. You’re guaranteed to have a good time and you may even learn something!

Did you know that your chances of dying from going overboard are five times greater in winter months than in the summer? If you were to become immersed in cold water for even a short period of time, manual dexterity will be lost within 10 minutes. This will impeded your ability to swim or put on a life jacket, which could lead to drowning long before hypothermia even begins to set in. For that reason, the Sea Tow Foundation wants to remind boaters to always wear their life jackets once the temperatures begin to drop.

A total of 7 northern states have laws requiring life jackets to be worn by boaters during typically cold weather months. Many of these requirements specifically mention that the life jackets must be USCG-approved and mention specfic types of Personal Flotation Devices (PFD) that must be worn. While each state's policy may differ, it is important to follow these laws. 

Connecticut: USCG-approved life jackets must be worn by anyone in a manually propelled vessel from October 1 through May 31 (must be a Type I, II, III, V or V-hybrid PFD).

Maine: All boaters canoeing or kayaking on the Saco River between Hiram Dam and the Atlantic Ocean between January 1 and June 1 must wear a life jacket (Type I, II or III PFD).

Maryland: A person aboard a boat, raft or tube shall wear a USCG-approved life jacket (Type I, II, III or V PFD) at all times while underways on the Upper Potomac River and its tributaries, during the period beginning each November 15 and ending each May 15. 

Massachusetts: All boaters canoeing or kayaking from September 15 - May 15 are requied to wear a USCG-approved life jacket (Type I, II or III PFD).

New York: The mandatory life jacket requirement applies to everyone aboard boats less than 21 feet in length, including rowboats, canoes and kayaks, between November 1 and May 1.

Pennsylvania: Boaters are required to wear USCG-approved life jackets on boats less than 16 feet in length or any cane or kayak during the cold weather months from November 1 through April 30.

West Virginia: A person aboard a boat, raft or tube must wear a USCG-approved life jacket (Type I, II, III or V PFD) at all times while underway on the Shenandoah River within the boundaries of West Virginia during the period beginning each November 15 and ending each May 15.

Even if your state doesn’t have a cold weather life jacket wear requirement, it is a smart and safe idea to wear a life jacket any time the water temperature drops below 60 degrees. It is also important to ensure that the life jacket you are wearing is appropriate for the type of activity that you will be participating in. Life jackets save lives, but only if they are worn.