It’s the high point of summer, and that means a lot of activity on the water. It also means that things can go wrong.

Melissa McGrath, a boating safety officer with Transport Canada, wants people to focus on being “water smart” when out in their watercraft.

Rule number one is to always make sure to wear your life jacket.

“The most important thing to do is make sure you’re prepared. The best thing you can do is always always wear your life jacket,” she said. Make sure everyone else is wearing a properly fitted lifejacket or PFD on the boat as well.

“If you’re wearing your lifejacket or your PFD, that’s the best chance you have of survival if you end up in the water,” said McGrath

McGrath also says to make sure someone on land knows where you are.

“In an event of an emergency and search and rescue personnel need to find you, make sure there is a responsible person ashore that knows where you’re going from, what time you’re going, a description of your boat and the number of people with you, the area where you’ll be boating and what time you’ll be back.” Doing so will ensure that if you’re not back by the planned time, the person on shore can contact search and rescue if needed.