Colorado over run with mussel infested boats

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I pulled my SUP's out of the water today to put away after being in the water for a couple of weeks. There were several well-formed mussels on the bottom fin area where the parts are metal. I can't imagine Colorado waters will stay mussel free for too much longer with these little buggers clinging to everything that is in Lake Powell water, not just boat hulls.
 
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Yes I agree I can't imagine Colorado Waters staying muscle free much longer. Unfortunately I have watched the inspectors of in and out Colorado Waters. I'm assuming they have proper training, but I have little faith after observing. I promise to have a conversation with my local officers to make sure that we stop the STDs from happening in western Colorado and elsewhere.
 
Has there been any observations of the 30 day impound for 'mussels attached' rule? [at Lake Powell]
 
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On July 7th I waited maybe 5-10 minutes to get inspected at Wahweap, it was around 10am . Even though I was cleared in AZ I still need to get inspected here in New Mexico.

Boating Rules

New Mexico Department of Game and Fish has adopted new rules to combat the spread of zebra mussels, quagga mussels and other AIS.

  • Mandatory watercraft inspection and, if necessary, decontamination of out-of-state registered watercraft or watercraft re-entering New Mexico
  • Mandatory watercraft inspection required any time an inspection station is set up and in operation
  • Fourteen (14) day advanced notification of intent to transport watercraft 26 ft. or longer into New Mexico
  • All watercraft are required to “pull the plug” and drain watercraft when transporting in New Mexico
  • Implementation of a voluntary watercraft seal program to expedite boater access to a waterbody with limited need for inspection
 
"Boats are supposed to be inspected as they leave Lake Powell, but inspection stations there are overwhelmed, officials said. "

Hmm, I've been to Bullfrog 4 times this year and have never seen the inspection station actually manned.
 
BreteThomas said:
"Boats are supposed to be inspected as they leave Lake Powell, but inspection stations there are overwhelmed, officials said. "

Hmm, I've been to Bullfrog 4 times this year and have never seen the inspection station actually manned.
Click to expand...

Living here in Hanksville and going to help customers frequently at the lake, I have never seen the inspection station not having someone there to inspect boats. Are you leaving the lake before/after their operating hours? During this time of year, there is usually 3-4 inspectors and during the winter there is at least one during normal business hours. I usually stop in to see if Jim is there.

People would be surprised how many times the DNR sets up an inspection station just outside Hanksville. And every time they catch people who don't comply with the mandatory inspection before they leave the lake. The key to stopping the spread is not inspection stations but rather boat owners being responsible enough in their own actions to know how to prevent transporting them.
 
Talk about sensational "journalism".

First, the photo. How long was that boat in infested water without moving in order to look that bad? I've seen the bottom of our houseboat after sitting unused for months, and it isn't 1/10th that bad.

And journalists should know that words mean things. "Completely over-run" is laughable, considering that Colorado has inspections at basically every ramp in the state. Even if you condense the boating season down to the last 60 days, that is less than one infected boat per day.

Since I just came back from the lake, I'll see Robert Walters later this week to decon my Malibu. Will be interesting to see what he has to say in person.

As for the Bullfrog decontamination/inspection station, we went through it on Saturday at about 10 am. Three boats waiting for decontamination (yes, they were in fact doing it this time through) and four boats just going through the inspection (including mine). I told them that my boat will be decontaminated later this week, and I feel they were still reasonably thorough - listening to my ballast pumps, checking that all plugs were out, and looking at my fenders and ropes. They did not inspect my life jackets or my wife's SUP.

Friends of ours left the lake with one of those huge floating inflatables as well as two SUPs and were not required to be inspected. We pulled out using the Executive Services Ramp. There were two other boats that pulled out the same time we did that were not at the inspection station when we went through.
 
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