FOR Peter Wong and his family, the spirit of good will didn't expire on Christmas Day.
The four family members were out on two jet skis in Swansea Channel, enjoying the flawless weather on Boxing Day morning, when they were stopped by NSW Maritime boating safety officer Nicola Waller for a registration and licence check.
Then came the news that could have deflated the Wongs' festive cheer. Their jet skis' registration had expired back in February. They were staring at two $500 fines.
"Double whammy," as Nicola Waller put it.
After Peter Wong explained the family had recently moved home, the boating safety officer presented them with a post-Christmas gift. If he made a call and registered the jet skis immediately, then he would be let off with an official caution.
Thanking her profusely, Peter Wong took off for the shore to make a phone call.
This was one of four official cautions Mrs Waller handed out as she patrolled Lake Macquarie's eastern shoreline on Thursday. Not everyone was let off the hook. The officer issued four penalty notices - in other words, fines - for infringements ranging from driving without a licence to safety equipment defects.
Just as the armada of pleasure seekers taking to the lake is a Boxing Day ritual, so too is the presence of NSW Maritime officers.
"Boxing Day is one of the busiest public holidays on the lake," Nicola Waller said. And around the northern end of the channel, near Pelican and the Sand Islands where she was patrolling, was among the busiest locations on the lake.
"There'd be hundreds and hundreds of vessels. Some years, you could almost walk across [the channel] to Coon Island, it's that dense."
Threading her way through the traffic in NSW Maritime's 8.5-metre Noosa Cat, Nicola Waller routinely stopped boaties for a check.
She cautioned James, from Cliftleigh, who was out fishing with his mate, because he was missing safety equipment. As she answered a jet skier's question about speed limits in the channel (four knots), a pillion passenger suddenly appeared. It was a salty bulldog.
"She's got a lifejacket on," the jet skier pointed out.
The dog's lifejacket seemed to be in better condition than those worn by a couple of two-legged boaties who were stopped.
"You've got to take care of them, otherwise they're absolutely useless and they won't save your life," Nicola Waller warned.
The officer said in summer there were not just more people but more potential problems on the water, as many boats "might have been in storage or the garage for 10 months; that catches a lot of people out".
Nicola Waller also had to retrieve a Lake Macquarie Yacht Club marker, which was drifting south along the lake. There's rarely a dull moment on the water.
"I think I have the best office in the world," she said.
As the holidays roll on, so do the safety campaigns. NSW Maritime is planning an operation focusing on jet skiers at the lake and Port Stephens on January 4 and 5.
"Everyone's been pretty good," Nicola Waller said of the Boxing Day patrol. "No huge dramas.
"At the end of the day, we're here to offer advice, education, and make sure everyone is safe on the water."
