Eric Brady | The Roanoke Times

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries conservation police Officers Karl Martin (left) and Nick Farmer tow a stranded boat Sunday near Bridgewater Plaza at Smith Mountain Lake.

PENHOOK -- After a cold and rainy spring, boaters took advantage of higher water levels and warm weather this Memorial Day weekend, the traditional opening of the season at Smith Mountain Lake.

Sunday boat traffic was light to moderate under overcast skies. Still, it was heavy enough to keep 14 Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries conservation police officers busy nearly round the clock, said Karl Martin, district police supervisor.

While many boaters own year-round or vacation homes on the lake, it's more and more becoming a tourist destination.

"People fall in love with it because it has water and mountains and four seasons," Martin said. "Just about anything you can do in the Bahamas, you can do here -- for six months."

Consequently, "the number of people on the water increases every year," he said.

Franklin County recreation and tourism officials have worked hard to provide services for them.

Last year, Smith Mountain Lake Community Park opened an acre of waterfront property to the public, adding a second public-access beach at the lake. The other is just across the lake at Smith Mountain Lake State Park in Bedford County.

Despite low water levels, the Franklin County beach drew about 15,000 people over 10 months last year, said Scott Martin, director of leisure and commerce services for Franklin County.

More are expected this year, although the county has instituted a $3.50 per person, per day entry fee.

"We think that park is already near capacity," Scott Martin said.

So, officials are working to identify other shore areas that might be converted to public-access beaches.

The recent Bassmaster tournament drew record crowds to the lake, Franklin County tourism director Debra Weir said.

AAA expects a marked increase in travel this summer, particularly for vacationers traveling 50 miles or more.

"And we're hoping to get that local traffic to come to the lake," Weir said.

Once there, DGIF Conservation Police, volunteer fire and rescue boats and local and state Coast Guard officers look out for their safety.

"It's amazing how many times you see people in trouble, and they're right there," lake resident Jeanette Riggan said.

Riggan and her 4-year-old niece, Ginger Umstadter, were on the lake with family members and stopped at Penhook to fuel up their pontoon boat.

"If you get in trouble on the lake, they'll help you," Riggan told Ginger, who struck a shy pose and scuffed the dock with her right foot.

Patrolling more than 20,000 acres of water and 500 linear miles of shoreline is no easy task. Unlike vehicles on streets and highways, boats on the water have no specific speed limits, no turn signals and no lane markers.

Traffic ranges from homemade sailboats to personal watercraft to $300,000 vessels capable of speeds above 100 mph, Karl Martin said.

Officers must enforce state boating regulations and routinely help stranded boaters, such as the Hollen-Prieur family, whose tow rope became tangled in the boat's propeller Sunday afternoon.

But DGIF police also deal with drunken and reckless driving, boat crashes and even fires.

On Sunday, Martin said his officers had handled three alcohol-related arrests, several reckless-driving citations, one boat fire and at least three crashes, one resulting in a serious injury.

But as busy as it is, Memorial Day weekend is just a prelude to July 4, when thousands of boats and other craft take to the lake day and night, Martin said.

Read up on boating safety and regulations, including a new safety requirement for personal watercraft operators 20 years old and under, at www.dgif.virginia.gov/boating