Terms & Conditions
All activities proceed rain or shine unless otherwise stated by The Forge Whalon Lake staff, via email, text, or phone-based communication, or on our website. In the event of severely adverse weather, activities may be unavailable. Please check weather conditions prior to purchasing an activity pass. All purchases are non-refundable and non-transferable. The Forge Whalon Lake reserves the right to amend these Terms at any time at its sole discretion.
Guest Safety
All participants MUST sign a liability waiver before beginning any activities at Whalon Lake. You must be 18 years or older to sign legally. Guests under 18 must have a legal guardian over 18 present to sign the waiver form on their behalf. We reserve the right to ask for ID, no matter how old the individual in question looks.
All guests must always wear a Personal Flotation Device (PFD) when on the floating dock or in one of our kayaks. Guests who remove their PFD at any time will immediately incur a $50 surcharge and be subject to removal from the water.
Before getting into a boat, all participants must witness and acknowledge their understanding of a Paddle Lesson and Safety Orientation. Instructions are tailored to paddlers navigating Whalon Lake. Failure to follow the rules and guidelines may put paddlers in direct danger and create risk for other boaters on the lake. Negligent use of our boats could put you at risk of a fine, in accordance with 46 USC §2302(a):
"A person operating a vessel in a negligent manner or interfering with the safe operation of a vessel, so as to endanger the life, limb, or property of a person is liable to the United States Government for a civil penalty of not more than $5,000 in the case of a recreational vessel, or $25,000 in the case of any other vessel."
If there is a language barrier that may impede a guest's ability to fully understand the content of the Safety Orientation and Paddling Lesson, you may need to allow extra time to ensure comprehension. We will try our best to communicate the necessary information, but we do not speak multiple languages fluently enough to make easy comprehension possible for everyone.
We reserve the right to remove any guest from the water or deny them service without a refund if we observe them acting in a way that is detrimental to the safety or experience of themselves, other guests, or other boaters on the lake.
All boats must have at least one person 14 years or older. To take a single kayak, you must be 14. In a double, at least one of the participants must be 14 years old.
Parties with more individuals under 14 than participants over 18 should speak with our team before coming to the lake to ensure their arrangement will work and be safe.
Children under 5 years old can sit in the middle of a 2+1 or double kayak between two adults at no additional charge.
Guests cannot exit the boat at any point while in the lake. Guests are only permitted to get in the water in an actual emergency. Guests who violate this rule will be subject to a $100 surcharge.
No alcohol (or illicit drugs) is allowed on the boats. Visibly inebriated people will not be allowed to rent a boat, and no refund will be given to guests with a pre-existing reservation. Consuming alcohol before or while paddling is an intolerable severe safety hazard. Any evidence of alcohol in a boat upon return will incur a $100 surcharge per guest on the reservation of the offending party.
Equipment & Belongings
Guests who abuse, damage, destroy, or lose our equipment due to misuse or gross negligence are responsible for the replacement cost. You break or lose it; you buy it! This rule applies to essential equipment (kayaks, paddles, PFDs, etc.) and other add-on items, including fishing equipment. Incidental damage happens and will not be subject to a surcharge.
We cannot guarantee we'll have a boat for you unless you book in advance. We will try our best to accommodate walk-ups, but we cannot guarantee boats will always be available.
We are not responsible for any lost or damaged personal belongings. Use extreme caution when bringing your valuables onto the water.
Time-Based Rentals
All guests must leave a credit card with us as collateral while using our kayaks.
All rentals have a minimum charge of one hour. Guests who keep their boat for more than one hour (or three hours, based on reservation type) will incur an additional charge of $5 per person per 15-minute increment over the reservation time. If we have excess capacity, guests can upgrade their reservation to a three-hour rental and pay the difference at the end of their experience.
Due to the non-exact nature of the timing of rentals, all guests are credited with one 14-minute grace period after their reservation ends, during which we do not charge for the additional time.
We do not rent boats within 60 minutes of sunset or after dark.