- hey, i have spearfished occassionally for years on kauai, currently vacationing on maui. was told offhandedly that i need a flag buoy to do so legally. i have never used one before and never had trouble ftom anyone. i fish for small fish near the surface rarely diving deep or for long intervals. in essense i dont do anything very different from a snorkeler, and i dont see anyone making them drag around flags. also from what ive read, flag seems to be relevant for safety when diving in "navigable waters", and to call shallow reef areas and rocky outcrops "navigable" seems ambiguouus at best. the law just references "spearfishers and other divers", but what if you are spearfisjing but arent diving? law also says flag should be put awat when diving is not in progress--so then is it aactually a violation to tow a buoy if im staying on the surface primarily?? the law doesnt really define "diving", unless i missed something...
can anyone shed any light on this or is hawaii law simply fuzzy on this area and leaves you vulnerable to citations depending on how some random official feels towards you or chooses to interpret your activities?
would love some clarity! would hate to upset anyone or get fined needlessly, but dont care to drag a float around all the time and dont consider it worth it purely for safety reasons (if anything, less safe because i have gotten tied to a rock by accident using a float line once and almost got into trouble).
māhalo nui!