I’d be happy to have lots more put-ins just like it; it’s just not suitable for handicapped people like the only parking spot.
I went upstream and immediately ran into all kinds of downfall so had a short paddle. As I was loading my boat I saw a sign that was hidden by overgrown plants that said something like “put-in for downstream float”. 
. No big deal, you win some and lose some when scouting for new put-ins.
The parents of Marc Ma, the UN football player who drowned in Lake Tahoe while SUPing, have made it a point to publicize the importance of PFDs and to increase awareness of the dangers of cold water shock. His body was not found until a year later, by a robot sub which located him at 240’ below the surface. Due to the Lake being so cold and devoid of animal and plant life, bodies sink to the bottom and don’t decompose.
It’s a deceptive lake – when we did a day paddle there in early Spring, the strong sunshine on the clearwater shallows with their white sand and rocky bottoms had heated up so much that you could have been comfortable in just a swimsuit when immersed 50 feet from shore (where we stayed during our short outing on a rented tandem SOT). But the temps 20 feet down just a couple 100’ from shore were below 40F.
I had a sailboat at Lake Tahoe for 6 years. It is deep, cold and with nowhere to hide. The winds can be ferocious. I have put canoes on it only a couple of times and surfed waves into the beach. There is a surf club at the lake and people surf the storm waves.
It has its share of fatalities. The cold water is relentless. Many years the surface temp does not make 70 degrees near shore even in August.
Another deep, cold, preservative lake is Crescent Lake, in Olympic NP.
Decades ago a man murdered a woman and dumped her into deep water there. Much later her body was found. It had saponified.
And Seneca Lake, NY. Max depth 618’.
Yes I get it.
If I try a black diamond slope and fall, I might die.
It’s been over 2 months since you posted (and I missed reading) this query about “test driving” drysuits, so maybe you’ve already worked it out,
The answer is, yes, you can try on and then return a drysuit if you don’t like the fit. It’s really no different than any other item of outerwear and trying it on doesn’t damage it (unless you tear a gasket, which is unlikely to happen if the person donning it is sober, non-hangry and removes their jewelry and/or any face piercings before tugging over head and extremities). The only clothing I am aware of that can’t legally be returned after purchase is supposed to be swimsuits (at least in my prissy state. Pennsylvania) but I don’t think that has ever been enforced.
I mail ordered a Palm drysuit last year and when it arrived it was gigantic (despite my having studied the sizing chart scrupulously). I could have shared it with a friend. They did not have a smaller size stocked so the outfitter gave me zero hassle about calling for an RGA (returned goods authorization) and issued a full refund once they got it back. Cost me about $18 to mail it but that beats keeping something that absolutely didn’t work.
I’ve had great experiences with easy returns and exchanges with many outfitters including Backcountry and OutdoorPlay.
I’ve been both, a kayak launcher and big truck launching a boat at the ramp. The problem is usually taking too long at launching. Both are supposed to be ready when they arrive at the ramp and launch . Either boat getting ready blocking traffic is bad.
Law is different in HI. Racing canoes, surf skis, etc., aren’t required to carry life jackets. SUP aren’t required if used in the surf zone.
Concerning the original post, we have some silly rules here in Okinawa Japan, as well. Resort beaches and city public beaches prohibit snorkel gear in supervised swim areas. On the surface (no pun) is seems smart, as you don’t really want people face-down in the water.
But what’s happened due to that rule, in part, is that inexperienced people (largely tourists) seek out non-guarded places (99% of the coastline), and somewhere between 30 and 50 people die every year. The water is always moving, and everything is reef here. Much with large lagoons. Even on a windless, dead-flat day, on a dropping tide, people get sucked out in rip currents. If there’s wind and waves pushing water across the reef, the rips are really moving. The inner lagoon areas can appear calm and safe, but the water is always moving towards the exit…
I lived there eight years and owned a boat (Glacier Bay) so I realize that but there are a lot of attitudes from outsiders that are problematic. For example: divers and swimmers think canoes have to look out for them and the truth is, they will get their skulls cracked. We accompanied races inter-island.
There are two sets of “laws” and one needs to know them both IMO.
The USCG makes an exception for PFD requirements for manually propelled vessels in a swim or surf zones. They are also generally not required in competitive events like racing. The thought here is likely to do with the risk of overheating and the fact that most races are supervised with on-water support. However, the organizers of many of these events may require PFDs regardless.
States and localities in non-coastal waters generally follow USCG regulations, but may be more or less restrictive.
There are no specific USCG rules specifically regarding swimmers that I am aware of, although the overarching concept that a mariner must do whatever possible to avoid a collision would seem to apply. A swimmer would probably be considered less maneuverable than a canoe, kayak, or SUP, and therefore constrained in navigation. States and localities may have specific regulations.
In Maryland an example of an action that may constitute negligent or grossly negligent operation includes but is not limited to: 1. Operating in a swimming area.
Totally off topic question here. Are the dogs in your photo Akitas?
Japanese Akitas, yes. The one on my right (Lilly) passed January 2022 at 12yo. The one on my left (Bella) is 13 and still ticking. My best friends. Possibly only friends 
Beautiful dogs, both yours and the breed in general. But hooboy, they can blow coat!