Note: The information presented below was researched by Madison Leeman, J.D. Candidate 2025 from the University of Idaho College of Law. Madison completed a Summer 2024 externship with the Henry’s Fork Foundation.
Idaho law requires the owner of any boat or non-motorized vessel to buy and display an Idaho Invasive Species Fund sticker to legally launch and operate the vessel within the state of Idaho. This requirement includes motorboats, jet boats, canoes, kayaks, rafts, and drift boats. Inflatable, non-motorized vessels less than 10-ft in length are exempt. These laws apply to resident and non-resident boaters. Non-compliance could result in penalties listed in I.C. § 67-7033.
You can purchase Invasive Species Fund stickers online, at any Idaho State Park, and at select retail locations. More information available at: https://invasivespecies.idaho.gov/invasive-species-sticker-faqs
The Invasive Species Fund is managed by the Idaho Dept. of Agriculture. The Invasive Species Fund stickers are administered by the Idaho Dept. of Parks and Recreation. Invasive Species Fund sticker compliance is enforced by county law enforcement officers.
Idaho residents are required to register boats in Idaho within 15 days of purchase. Water vessels with a motor of any kind and any vessel that is being financed must be titled with a registration number. Titling is optional for vessels acquired before January 1, 2000. Vessels that are not powered by motor and cannot be titled are exempt. These include rowboats, canoes, kayaks, drift boats, rafts, sailboats, inflatables, and others.
Boat registration from other states is valid in Idaho for 60 consecutive days. Out-of-state boaters are required to purchase an Invasive Species Fund sticker and all boaters entering Idaho and passing a boat inspection station must stop for inspection.
Boat registration is outlined in the Idaho Safe Boating Act (Title 67 Chapter 70). Compliance is enforced by county sheriffs and any other law enforcement officer within Idaho, such as state or national park officers within their parks of jurisdiction.
In the Henry’s Fork region, there are 8 river and lake sections that outfitters have licenses to operate on. Each river section is further separated into individual river reaches. For the Henry’s Fork alone, there are three river sections. They are licensed as follows:
Commercial fishing guides and outfitter licenses are regulated by the Idaho Outfitters and Guides Licensing Board.
In Fremont County, river access sites have various jurisdictions—including the U.S. Forest Service, Fremont County, and Harriman State Park. In terms of river use, the Safe Boating Act provides authority to local counties to regulate waterways within their territorial limits (I.C. § 67-7031). Counties in Idaho can regulate those launching on their waterways through ordinances and county code.
For example, Franklin County Code § 93.02 restricts all types of watercrafts and fishing from Winder Reservoir. In Bonneville County, Ordinance No. 240-21 sets no wake zones on its waterways and two of its main reservoirs. In Teton County, Code Title 14 limits group size, requires parking passes for river-adjacent parking lots, and controls commercial watercraft rental companies via permitting. In Fremont County, Ordinance 2011 created restricted geographic zones that limit or entirely ban motorized watercraft.
I know my last blog post left you on the edge of your seat. Today I’m going to answer the question that has doubtlessly been on everyone’s minds: did I catch a fish? Let me tell you, it was getting down to the wire. I’d been out many times with the incredibly patient Claude, to no avail. Not even a bite. Claude’s patience was really commendable as I stubbornly, astoundingly refused to improve.
As my time here at the foundation wraps up, I have been doing a lot of reflection. As such, I have concluded that the amount you can learn in one summer internship is unrivaled. It can range from scientific technical skills to office interpersonal skills, and anywhere in between. Some things are self-explanatory, and some are learned through trial and error. This range is what makes internships so valuable. I’ve compiled a list of the
Putting in the hours. Credit: Estelle Edwards Fish are omnipresent. Whether Claude’s talking about his latest catch, an angler is asking me what fly to use (I don’t know), or I’m taking Utah suckers out of gillnets, I am drowning in fish… but I have never caught one. I have yet to be blessed with a bite on a Parachute Adams, Zebra Midge, or Montreal Whore, but thanks to fishing-adjacent research experiences, I’ve gotten a
I grew up fishing on the North Carolina coast. From flounder and speckled trout (not actually in the trout family) deep in the creeks to Spanish mackerel and bull redfish right off the beach, all the way out to what feels like the middle of the ocean trolling for king mackerel and cobia, I loved the wide variety of fish. One sunny July morning a few summers back, my dad and I headed offshore in
