Idaho SUP Laws
- PFD Requirement: One life jacket on board per person. Idaho law requires kids 14 years and younger to wear their life jacket on all boats 19′ and under.
- Approved life jackets: USCG-approved Type I, II, or III, or Type V
- Alcohol Law Idaho has Boating Under the Influence (BUI) laws—0.08% BAL is considered “under the influence”. 0.02% BAL if you’re under 21.
- Lights: If a vessel is less than 23 feet long, and underway at night or during periods of reduced visibility, kayaks must carry a 360 degree white light visible for 2 miles.
- Sounding Devices – Carrying a whistle is recommended
- Registration – Manually propelled vessels, like SUP, kayaks and canoes, are exempted from registration.
- Operator Licensing – In Idaho, there’s no state law specifying a minimum age or education requirement to operate a vessel. But there are county laws that designate age regulations for operating vessels. (check with individual county laws in Idaho)
- Visual Distress Signaling- All vessels are required to carry night signaling devices. Manually propelled vessels are exempt from carrying day signaling devices. On federally controlled waters (coastline), all vessels are required to carry U.S. Coast Guard-approved night VDS devices.