Town: Kayaking Off Kings Park Bluffs is Dangerous

This weekend's rescue of a 23-year-old kayaker off the Kings Park Bluffs only raises further issues about the town's decision to allow individual small boats to launch in the area. 

Smithtown Parks Director Charles Barrett said it's a "sticky situation" to allow individual kayakers and canoeists to continue to launch boats off the bluffs, after the town decided to not issue 2013 permits for annual rental companies. 

"You don't want to tell residents you can't do something, the government does that so often to people. Naturally, some of the residents are upset when you try to restrict their access to the water," Barrett said. "Honestly, it's in their best interest and for their own good." 

The town board's decision to stop issuing permits to kayak and canoe rental businesses who draw summer tourists to the area drew criticism from Patch readers. 

"As an experienced kayaker and boater of 30+ years I have witnessed inexperienced people in a kayak or canoe who got into trouble at the bluff with the current and wind. But I have also witnessed small boat operators have the same problems. So what will you do next, eliminate boating," wrote Bob Israel.

Barrett said the speed of the Nissequogue River's current significantly increased after the state and regional agencies finished dredging the river in January 2012, and further sped up after erosion damage from hurricanes Irene and Sandy.  

Kings Park Fire Department started reporting a signficant increase in the number of small boat rescues, according to Barrett.

He also pointed to the floating docks along the Kings Park Bluff as evidence of the changes in the river's current. He said the Town of Smithtown has used the same type of floating docks for 30 years and was recently forced to replace them. 

"With this new river current, with the incoming and outgoing tides, our floats had too much resistance against them," Barrett said. 

In 2012, the town brought in a dock building company to have new floats constructed that would allow more water to pass underneath with less resistance, to prevent the floating docks from twisting up and getting damaged.

"One of the problems with these new floats, is small crafts like canoes and kayaks can get stuck underneath the float," the park director said. 

Due to the combination of the changes in the Nissequogue River's current and the resulting new floats, Barrett said the town has attempted to put up new signage to guide kayakers and canoeists to the safest possible place to launch.

However, the town board and town attorney have found it simply too risky to grant permits for commercial boat rentals. 

Barrett said unfortunately he believes the town's new restrictions on small watercrafts launching from the bluff are likely to be long term. 

"Unless the current changes and goes back to it's old ways, it's probably permanent," he said. "It was Mother Nature who did this." 

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