11:37 a.m. - Although the afternoon easily could have posed as an idyllic cruise on the Missouri River, Jeff Violett and Ryan Tunge were hard at work.

The North Dakota Game and Fish Department game wardens were patrolling on the river, slowly cruising up and down and checking out boats and boaters and even stopping a few folks for questions and closer looks.

As Violett steered the 20-foot craft, Tunge kept binoculars close at hand to take a closer look, if one were needed. Both men were constantly scanning oncoming and passing boats or personal watercraft.

The wardens were making sure young children were wearing life jackets and everyone on a personal watercraft was similarly attired. They also were scoping out current boat registration tags -- green ones valid, red ones expired -- and they always were on the lookout for boaters driving recklessly or behaving negligently.

Whether it was the strong wind out of the south or the pull of the McQuade Softball Tournament, fewer boaters than usual were on the water for this Saturday afternoon.

"It's more like a Wednesday afternoon," noted Violett, who is based out of Mandan.

And the majority of the craft they came across were built more for pleasure than fishing.

Anglers generally travel farther north or south than the Bismarck-Mandan vicinity, said Violett, who has been a game warden for 18 years.

Tunge, who is based out of Bismarck, is the primary game warden for the river patrols. A NDGFD game warden since March, Tunge usually is on the river every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and "evenings when it's nice," he said.

Patrol duty is split among game wardens on both sides of the river. Sheriff's deputies from Burleigh and Morton counties also pull river patrol, Violett said.

And when holidays roll around -- such as the upcoming Fourth of July weekend -- more wardens and deputies are out on the river.

Violett and Tunge made several U-turns on this patrol, first stopping alongside angler Don Schick's boat to check his fishing license and chat about his morning of fishing. Everything was in order, including a valid fishing license and a life jacket, and Schick went on his way.

They don't check every angler, Violett said, and just as often they will stop to merely see how an angler is doing.

Game wardens generally work in pairs, "one to control the boat in the current; the other to do the checking," Tunge said.

"It's a lot safer with two people," Violett added.

The boat was pointed upstream when a personal watercraft operator and his passenger caught their attention.

Violett turned the boat again and caught up with the two, hailing the driver and asking how old he was.

"Fourteen," came the answer.

The game wardens moved within arm's length and asked to see his boater safety card, something required of all kids between 12 and 15 who are running a boat powered by a motor bigger than 10 horsepower.

With Violett maneuvering the boat and Tunge keeping the vessels from bumping, the young driver showed his card. The wardens thanked him and sent them their way.

"It's been a successful program," Violett said of the boating safety course. "If there is an accident, it's usually a lack of experience. The course makes them better operators."

Another personal watercraft operator, this one riding a craft with an nonrenewed tag, wasn't as lucky. He was given a citation.

"We ran a check, and he had an expired tag," Tunge explained.

Like the officer who pulls you over on the highway and runs a check on your license plate number, game wardens send boat identification numbers through state radio.

That's why a pontoon operator got only a warning. He had renewed, the wardens were told by state radio.

When they pulled along side him to remind him about putting on the new tag, he admitted that it was lying, forgotten, on kitchen table.

The new tags generally arrive in January or February, a time when most boats are in storage or tightly covered up, and open water isn't on people's minds, Violett said.

Throughout the afternoon ride, most passing boaters waved. Tunge and Violett returned their waves.

"The majority of people are glad we are here," Violett explained.

"They like to see us out on a boat," Tunge added.

Now the wardens were checking out a passing pontoon, specifically to see if two small children were wearing life vests.

Tunge looks through the 7X50 binoculars as Violett turned the boat.

"Yeah, they both do," Tunge tells him. Violett resumes his original course.

Wardens are writing fewer life jacket citations than they once did, Violett said, and they often find more life vests than boat passengers aboard.

Their boat, new this season, is powered by a 150-horsepower, four-stroke motor.

"It's quiet and there's no smoke," Tunge said. "We can have a conversation."

The pilothouse is tall enough to allow the wardens to stand and watch while steering the boat. Or they could sit on the bench seat. A canvas overhead protects them from the afternoon sun. The pilothouse contains not only the radio, but a depth finder and global positioning system unit, as well. The boat also is equipped with siren, lights, a top-mounted searchlight and a first-aid kit, as well as a spare life jacket for a passenger. The alarm occasionally chirped a shallow-water warning, even though the boat is capable of running in water as shallow as a foot.

As the afternoon wore on, boating traffic picked up a bit, especially between Fox Island and the Interstate bridge. But it was nothing compared to what they see on a busy weekend.

"Five boats will go by for every one that passed us today," Tunge said.

The more congestion, the trickier the river can be.

"It can be a nightmare if you don't know the area," Violett said. "It can be a hazardous place to operate."

Common courtesy should be the priority among boaters, Violett emphasized.

Without that courtesy, accidents are more likely to happen.

"And when you mix in alcohol, it compounds the probability," he said.

"The river can be unforgiving," Tunge added.

(Reach reporter Richard Hinton at 250-8256 or outdoors@bismarcktribune.net.)