Thanks for the advice... I had no idea even tubers needed a whistle. That's good to know.
I ended up taking my kayak down the Sandy yesterday (without a whistle
) and as far as I can tell, I was legal to drink a beer on the beach half way down the float.
And yes, I packed it in, packed it out, as I always do. I am pretty religious about leaving a place cleaner than I found it - whether out hiking in the woods or floating down the river, I always look for some piece(s) of garbage left behind by some piece of garbage and pack it out for them, and then I know I left it cleaner than I found it.
Anyway, safe boating everyone