To everyone visiting the Tobacco Valley this summer:
We’re glad you came to experience one of the most beautiful places in Montana. But being a visitor doesn’t exempt you from respecting our lakes, our families, or our laws.
These are not your personal race tracks.
Montana law requires boats on lakes in the Western Fishing District that are larger than 35 acres to operate at no-wake speed within 200 feet of the shoreline. Those rules exist to protect people, property, wildlife, and the shoreline itself.
Today, someone chose to ignore them.
The result?
Toddlers were being knocked off their feet by waves that never should have reached the beach. Parents were grabbing frightened children. Kayakers and paddleboarders were being thrown around by wake that can capsize small watercraft in seconds. Crystal-clear water was churned into mud. Families who came to enjoy a peaceful Montana lake instead got a front-row seat to someone else’s complete disregard for everyone around them.
Those waves don’t just disappear.
• They erode shorelines.
• They stir up sediment and muddy the water.
• They damage fish habitat.
• They make swimming dangerous.
• They put children and paddlers at unnecessary risk.
Lake Koocanusa is literally just down the road. If your goal is to run a large wake boat at speed, there is an enormous reservoir built to accommodate that kind of recreation.
So why come to one of our smaller community lakes and treat it like your personal proving ground?
Would you appreciate it if we came to your hometown, ignored your local laws, endangered your children, tore up your favorite recreation area, and then shrugged our shoulders because we were “just having fun?”
Neither do we.
Respect the families.
Respect the children.
Respect the wildlife.
Respect the shoreline.
Respect the people who call this valley home.
And here’s another question:
Where is the enforcement?
Montana has boating laws for a reason. If dangerous operation repeatedly occurs without consequence, people naturally begin asking where the patrols are and whether enough enforcement resources are available on our smaller lakes. These rules exist to protect lives, not simply to sit in a statute book.
I don’t care whether you’re a local, from another state, or another country. The law applies equally to everyone, and so should basic courtesy.
If you witness reckless boating, document it if it’s safe to do so. Record the boat registration number, the location, and the time. Take photos or video when possible and report dangerous operation to Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks or the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office.
Our lakes are one of the Tobacco Valley’s greatest treasures.
Don’t love them to death.
Protect them.
Respect them.
And leave them just as beautiful—and just as safe—as you found them.
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