Boaters at bridge should take more care

I take great pride and enjoyment in fishing on Rainy Lake and when I am away from the Falls, I dream about the lake. My father Vernon Holen guided on Rainy Lake for 30 years and taught me to fish, grouse hunt, duck hunt and deer hunt. He told me to always be careful and be a good sportsman. When he taught me to drive a boat, he told me to make a wide turn about other boaters and not to create a wake to disturb other fishermen.

I have been here for the past week fishing at many locations. Growing up, I would ride my bike to Ranier and fish off the docks. Now that I am a retired and disabled Vietnam veteran, I have been lucky enough to have my own boat, a small 16 foot Lund, much like most working class people have in northern Minnesota. It is not fancy, but it is a good walleye boat.

Since I know how to fish in Ranier, I find great pleasure in fishing in and around the Ranier Bridge. Seeing that the lake moves water down to the Rainy River, it is a great place to hook some nice sized walleye. Humans have fished this area for a thousand years; it is a time honored tradition.

The bridge has warning signs that are very clearly marked: slow down while driving under the bridge. Very few people slow down there and have very little concern for the safety of the anglers fishing in this area.

My father would have taken away my boat privileges if I had used his boat in this fashion. It seems to be a right for anyone to drive their boats as they see fit, without any concern for anyone else.

Many boats pass at top speed and very close to fishing boats creating large wakes which causes the boat to rock. This is very disturbing to anyone who wants to enjoy a day of fishing.

I was injured in Vietnam and have had both my knees removed. If I was pulling in a walleye and standing at the time a boat was passing at stop speed, I could fall out of my boat from the large wake and small children could be tossed into the rapids in the blink of an eye.

What has happened in our country, that our fellow citizens have no concern for anyone else but themselves? It is a sad state of affairs. Contact your local Department of Natural Resources and other agencies and ask for more enforcement so that the safety of all of us lovers of Rainy Lake and Rainy River can enjoy the beauty in safety and peace. The wakes you make in your life have a greater impact on others.

Richard D. Holen

Bloomington, IN