Last year, the lake and its nearby tributaries claimed three lives. In May, two men -- a city alderman and local cable TV producer -- were drowned on the Cayuga Inlet when hazardous turbulence near a dam capsized their canoe. In December, a 27-year-old fisherman in a motorized canoe fell into the 50-degree water off Myers Point. His body has never been recovered.

Two of last year's three victims might have survived had they been wearing life jackets.

"The majority of drownings in the state could have been prevented by some kind of Personal Flotation Device (PFD)," said Sgt. Richard Smith of the Finger Lakes State Parks Commission.

Smith's remark was supported by a chilling statistic from Albany. Of the 15 people who drowned in New York lakes last year, only two were wearing a PFD; of the 25 who drowned in 1997, only one had a PFD.

"In summer, we're writing tickets for that every weekend," said Smith. "Every watercraft should have a life jacket in good condition available for every person aboard, but we consistently find there are not enough, or they're the wrong size or are badly worn. And children who are 12 or under must have them on at all times, not merely at hand."

While it's unlikely you'll simply fall overboard your first time on the water, the unexpected happens all too often, as Tompkins County sheriff's deputy Greg Vestal can attest.

Vestal, who patrols the southern part of the lake four days a week in summer, says he typically has to help at least 50 people whose sailboats have capsized, dumping them into the water, after a gust of wind tipped their sails into the lake.

Safety devices aside, most marine safety officials here agree that the biggest hazard on Cayuga Lake is also its newest.

"In the last few years, there's been a dramatic increase in the number of Personal Water Craft (PWC) on this lake," Smith said. PWCs -- more popularly known as Jet Skis -- come in one- and two-person models and are capable of speeds up to 65 miles-per-hour.

"It's one of the growing problems in marine safety," said Smith, whose department has had to buy its own Jet Skis to pursue reckless operators into shallow waters where other motorized craft with a deeper draft cannot follow.

While there is no speed limit on the open lake, there is a 5 mph limit within 100 feet of shore or a marina as well as in the Inlet, where a wake can throw anchored craft against a dock or another boat.

Until this year, Smith said, Jet Skis have been virtually unregulated, but beginning this summer, the state has mandated that all users between the ages of 10 and 18 -- as is the case with other boats -- have a Young Boater's Safety Certificate.

The age limit for that certificate will go up until the year 2004, when it's expected that all Jet Ski users will have to have one.

Keep in mind, as well, the other rules that have been in force on Cayuga for some time: