Joseph Berkovitz Posted August 13, 2019 Share Posted August 13, 2019 Thursday August 1, 2019: NSPN Bold Coast Pre-Trip Dinner We all arrived in Lubec Thursday afternoon, and set out for a group dinner at Cohill's Pub to come up with a rough plan, charts and ideas in tow. It looked like Saturday would be the windiest day, so we reserved it for playing in Cobscook at Reversing Falls. It looked as though the timing would work out to arrive mid-flood, play as it wound down to slack, then play some more in the ebb as it built. In a break from last year, rather than save Canada for the last day, we decided to go to Canada on the first day. This was driven by a tidal consideration: we would hopefully view whales feeding at high tide around midday near White Island, then continue our paddle north towards Passamaquoddy Bay to investigate the edge of this westernmost Fundy island chain. The idea was to make it sort of a warmup-with-whales kind of trip. The thinking at this dinner was to save the Bold Coast for the last two days, doing a shorter section as a warmup on Sunday and a longer shuttle on Monday through the Lubec Narrows. We did wind up modifying Monday's plan later, though... Friday August 2, 2019 NSPN Bold Coast Day 1: Fundy Whale Watch and Passamaquoddy Bay People: Joe Berkovitz, Peter Brady, Dan Carr, Mike Habich, Kate Hartland, Sue Hriciga, Bob Levine, Jim Snyder Route: Campobello I. NB/Head Harbor -> White I. -> Macs I. -> return Conditions: sunny, air 60-70 F, water 54 F, wind 5 kt variable, calm seas HT: 12.32p @ 25.8' EDT; LT: 6.44p @ 2.5' (St John NB) Start: 9.00a; End: 3.45p Length: 14 nm Track (partial): https://www.gaiagps.com/datasummary/track/3b089880e421a76671b663f3e3611993/?layer=gaianoaarnc As planned, we got a bright and early start driving into Canada, to launch from Campobello's Head Harbor. The plan was to follow the harbor out to the bay, shoot through a small tide race behind the iconic lighthouse, and then get a look at Head Harbor Passage to see what the current and conditions looked like. The weather was forecast to be perfect, and indeed it was. Kate surfing the Head Harbor Light tiderace At Head Harbor Passage conditions looked calm and the flood was certainly still running strong. Boat traffic was light. We ferried across to Spruce Island, with its strange conglomerate rocks that look so different from every other rock island in the vicinity. The current might have been 2-3 knots in places during the crossing, but we crossed a number of eddies and counter-eddies along the way with the water switching directions several times. Certainly once we were up against Spruce Island, only a very narrow strip of quieter water was available next to the island. Anywhere else was a fight up-current. We got to the end of Spruce around 10.00a. Rounding the corner of Spruce Island By 10.30a or so we were roosting between White and Nubble Islands, in the company of a number of both commercial and homespun whale watchers, hearing whales spouting from many directions. Numerous porpoises were also skipping through the water around us. (This seems to be a prime spot for the whales to feed, perhaps because it's a patch of fairly quiet water surrounded by shifting currents.) Soon, whales started surfacing repeatedly, many quite close to us. The rest of the group dubbed Kate the "whale whisperer" since she seemed to have some mysterious sense of where they would come up next. We saw mostly finbacks, but at least one humpback that lolled on its side. Finback whale surfacing near our group They were a spectacular sight and we remained in this spot for almost half an hour, watching whale after whale break the surface. Kate whispering to a humpback From here, we continued to follow the island chain north, beginning with a lunch stop on Barnes Island. Then we made our way up to the narrow Little Letete Passage that links the Bay of Fundy with Passamaquoddy Bay to the north. By now the tide had turned and there was a substantial ebb beginning to run. We decided that we'd reached our turnaround point when we rounded the point of Macs Island. Passamaquoddy Bay as seen from cave on Macs Island Then back south again to ply a different route through the chain, stopping this time on a narrow tombolo at the south end of Parker Island, a long crossing to Simpsons and another one to Spruce. On this final crossing we heard and saw whales once again, but not in the numbers we'd seen them before. On Spruce, Bob was interested in checking out a passage that he felt should exist at high water between two rows of the strange tooth-like rocks. So on the way back we spent some time looking for "Bob's Slot". Alas, it only seemed to exist in theory, and the water had subsided enough that we weren't getting quite the high water viewing experience we had hoped for in this location! Finally the day came to an end back at Head Harbor. The water was glittering with millions of iridescent particles flowing out from the harbor with the ebb. Alas, despite their colorful charms these turned out to be fish scales, probably a byproduct of the intensive fish farming operations in that area. Yuck! We washed our gear with extra gusto that evening. And... it hadn't been such a light day after all. Our "warmup" was a 14 nm paddle. Oh, well! Sometimes exploring is just too much fun! Saturday August 3, 2019 NSPN Bold Coast Day 2: Pembroke Reversing Falls in Cobscook Bay Conditions: sunny, air 70-80 F, water 60 F, wind 12-15 kt W Slack before ebb at the falls: ~2.00p (Cutler HW: about 1.10p) Distance: a few miles Track: https://www.gaiagps.com/datasummary/track/cf03f528a5d0063694c84d1c1b1992e2/?layer=gaianoaarnc Our day of fun in currents began with strong breezes on the campground that quickly dispelled any fog or dew. The decision to stay away from the coast today seemed to be clinched - the forecast had coastal winds gusting to 18 kt from the SW - and we headed off to Reversing Falls, about a 45 minute drive. This was another change from last year, when we had paddled all the way to the falls from the campground's private beach. Although it's a fun paddle with a high-speed tidal assist, this didn't really leave enough time (or energy) to enjoy the unique paddling environment of the falls. So with some helpful prompting from Sue, we elected this year to launch from Leighton Point right near the falls and focus specifically on that area only. Mike also pointed out that we would benefit from first going to the nearby overlook, to survey the whole area from above before launching. Here's a video of what the falls looked like at this point: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TDGC4l7Zz02VXgCxB_udi0dnV3Ctyg4w/view?usp=sharing The route from Leighton Point around the back of Falls Island to the flooding side of the falls was our first nut to crack. We benefited hugely from Dan's familiarity with the place; the back of Falls is actually a no-kidding kind of place with some swift currents to cross, but there are plenty of eddies for parking and hugging the shore. Dan's plan of ferrying from the SW of Fox Island to Falls Island, and then hugging the shore all the way to Reversing Falls was a good strategy in the flood that gets all the current out of the way with one move. Then there's a nice eddy at the destination to rest and check out the situation. What the situation was when we arrived around 12.40p: big, big, big. It was after max flood but even though the current speed was about the same as when we'd observed things before, the water was so much higher that the picture had changed very substantially. A big ledge that had stuck up above the rushing water like a mountain before (with a potential play spot in front of it), was now a nasty waterfall fronted by a killer hole. We climbed out and had a look and a bit of a wait for things to get calmer before people started going out to play. After a while Bob had worked his way to the far side and downcurrent, positioning himself with an eye to someone possibly going for a swim and drifting up towards him. Peter and Jim were slowly cruising back and forth near the closest branch of the main current, and most of the rest of us were observing the falls from the rocks on the shore. (I was getting back into my boat in a small cove, and so I personally missed all of what happened next – others will have more of a first-person take on events.) A large whirlpool suddenly formed around the eddy line very close to – or around – Peter. People on the rocks saw it materialize in real time; by the time Peter could see it, though, he was already in it. It grabbed his boat; while he wasn't completely submerged nonstop, the water surface was steeply inclined and rolling or self-rescuing wasn't an option. Peter later said the water surface outside the vortex was above his eye level and he could see he was in a depression, even if he wasn't being sucked completely down and under. At some point he came out of his boat, after which the vortex broke up leaving him pretty close to Bob, who rescued him in fairly short order. By the time the rescue was over, they had drifted far out of sight of the main group and we reestablished contact by VHF as they slowly eddy-hopped their way back to the falls. The flood was now beginning to wind down, and most of the group collected on the other side of the falls for lunch (with occasional apprehension about whirlpools along the way). The wind picked up very considerably during this time and boat handling began to be a matter of managing moving air as well as moving water. After a surprisingly short pause, the ebb began to build and we all played with the "reversed" flavor of Reversing Falls for maybe another 45 minutes to an hour. Bob and Dan and I tried to hunt in the current for some sign of the previously seen mountain or ledge which was now underwater, but presumably causing some action at the surface. Maybe we found it, maybe not; what is for sure is that we did find some rough water! Eventually it started to feel late and time to head back, so we just cruised downcurrent to our put-in which was considerably hotter and more sultry than the falls. A good day, with with no small measure of excitement. And some learning to take away: substantial whirlpools form around the eddy lines here with little warning! Sunday August 4, 2019 NSPN Bold Coast Day 3: Bailey's Mistake to Moose Cove and back Conditions: fog dispersing to sun, air 60 F, water 50 F, light SW winds with developing sea breeze, 1-2 ft. swell HT: 2.06p @ 15.6'; LT: 8.19p @ -1.0' (Cutler) Distance: 10.4 nm Track: https://www.gaiagps.com/datasummary/track/f07d9f80b5a821f8033e60b23af6b1b9/?layer=gaianoaarnc The winds had died down and it seemed like a perfect ocean day. Mist around the campground shrouded the view of nearby Lubec, turning a small-town skyline into something resembling a distant big city. We headed off to Bailey's Mistake to launch shortly after breakfast. The megalopolis of Lubec in the early morning fog The Bold Coast was as majestic as I've ever seen it. Crossing Bailey's towards Eastern Head, big fog banks occasionally drifted in and out of our view. But on the whole, the trend was towards clearing. It was nice to feel some swell again, as we approached the headlands. It was not a big day in terms of conditions, but there was plenty of interest generated by what we had and lots of nooks and crannies to play in among the large-scale scenery. There were a few nice pourovers and mini-surfing spots. Jims Head from Bailey's Mistake Just an everyday Bold Coast moment As we've noted before, the famed Grand Manan Channel current is just not that big of a deal near the coast. Somewhere well away from the coastline, the flood was running full tilt from SW to NE (against our direction of travel) at maybe 4 knots, but where we were, there were just occasional small tide rips and eddy lines near some of the headlands. At lunchtime we enjoyed the superb spot at the SW end of Moose Cove. Some napped on the beach; others snacked on the excellent blueberries growing on the promontory above. Not the worst Down East lunch spot ever Then we wound our way back to Bailey's along the same rocks, but thanks to the tide change, a very different landscape. We stopped at Haycock Harbor for "second lunch" and a view of the ruined sailboat, then a final session at Jims Head where Bob and Peter somewhat... um... impulsively... attempted to land on the rocks in some bouncy water and climb up the cliff face to a spectacular sloping ledge 50 feet above the water. The landing part of this plan was realized, but the climbing part was aborted when it became clear how much longer the entire operation was going to take (by now it was late afternoon). To be clear, no one wimped out, but discretion may have been the better part of valor on this occasion. And now, ladies and gentlemen, watch as we defy death by climbing to the top of... uh... wait a minute... We paddled back to our landing. Damn - another great day on the water with perfect weather and conditions! Monday August 5, 2019 NSPN Bold Coast Day 4: Canada Again People: everyone minus Peter Route: Herring Cove Beach (Campobello I) to Whiterock Cliffs and back Conditions: sunny, air 65 F, water 50 F, light winds, calm seas LT: 8.58a @ 1.4'; HT: 3.10p @ 26.1' (St John NB) Distance: 8.8 nm Track: https://www.gaiagps.com/datasummary/track/29517257bd9f4cd3b5d415290dafbe22/?layer=gaianoaarnc On our last day, people were not into a big shuttle of running the Lubec Narrows and then potentially dealing with max flood around W Quoddy Head. Whatever the situation might have been over there, the clear vote was for another day in Canada, this time exploring the Campobello coastline on the Fundy side which we had ignored the previous day. So that was our plan. Disgustingly perfect weather again greeted us this morning. We launched near dead low at Herring Cove. With a tidal range of over 20 feet, it was a long, long walk to the bay. From there, a serene experience of cruising through slots and huge seaweed-covered cliffs unfolded. In the calm waters we dawdled by rocks while looking at many small iridiscent comb jellies (colloquially known as "sea walnuts") and both tiny and huge jellyfish. There was a strong current running in our favor from 50 to 100 feet offshore, a kind of "mini-escalator" that we generally ignored, but finally used as lunch approached, when we wanted to get to our chosen spot quickly. Dan Carr at Campobello A "sea walnut" (Mnemiopsis leidyi) with iridescent cilia and 2 feeding tentacles Eventually we had lunch at a beach next to white rocks in a startling contrast to the black cliffs that predominate here -- unsurprisingly named Whiterock Cliffs. Whiterock Cliffs Then another relaxed cruise back to the beach, trying to stay out of the developing breeze at our bows. We chased a set (family?) of mature and immature bald eagles that continually stayed one step ahead of us as we paddled. Eventually we wound up back at the beach, but with a 5-foot ascent to the parking lot instead of 25 feet! This year was hard to top. Many thanks to everyone in the group, and to the forces of nature for being so kind to us all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph Berkovitz Posted August 13, 2019 Author Share Posted August 13, 2019 Lots more pictures can be found here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Ax3bLYPgrVpHmAyJA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Snyder Posted August 13, 2019 Share Posted August 13, 2019 Nice report, Joe. I have some additional pictures, charts and satellite images here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/1k4dru8kwpw8hsx/AADBiysGJipVeNSV8yYBjLRva?dl=0 The .kml files can be opened in google earth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Carr Posted August 20, 2019 Share Posted August 20, 2019 (edited) All. I may have mentioned a video shot on the Ottawa River in Canada of kayakers in whirlpools. I paddled that river in the summer in the mid 1980s and experienced the big wave and whirlpool action, friends and their boats disappearing the reappearing 30 to 40 feet downstream with/without helmets and paddles. Amazing and scary power of a real big river flow. The key is to keep some momentum up and keep padding through them. Watch to the end of the film clip for a very long submersion. Hold your nose to avoid testosterone poisoning if you have to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uZ903SrdBA Edited August 20, 2019 by Daniel Carr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kate Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 On 8/20/2019 at 7:22 PM, Daniel Carr said: All. I may have mentioned a video shot on the Ottawa River in Canada of kayakers in whirlpools. "...NEVER exit your kayak in a whirlpool. Things will get much much worse...." This video in no way allays my concerns about those whirlpools! I'm curious, though, about the specific currents/riverbed topography that create this Ottawa whirlpool, as they are so unusual in rivers. I've been on some big rivers but can't recall seeing one. Ottawa River is a beast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prudenceb Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 (edited) Boys will be boys. I guess this is demo of why all serious white water kayakers know someone who has died doing the sport. I’ll pass on a trip down the Ottawa River, thank you very much. Edited August 23, 2019 by prudenceb Inserted “white water” before kayaker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kate Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 10 minutes ago, prudenceb said: Boys will be boys. I guess this is demo of why all serious kayakers know someone who has died doing the sport. I’ll pass on a trip down the Ottawa River, thank you very much. I know of people who died on class 2 rivers (foot entrapment), and one who died on flat water (inadvertently tucked in the sprayskirt handle while practicing rolls alone and couldn't get out of the capsized boat - you can bet I double check every single time I snap on the skirt). But yeah, why tempt the gods? And yet, we all do - women and men. The Excitement:Fear ratio is an indistinct and wavering line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prudenceb Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 38 minutes ago, kate said: I know of people who died on class 2 rivers (foot entrapment), and one who died on flat water (inadvertently tucked in the sprayskirt handle while practicing rolls alone and couldn't get out of the capsized boat - you can bet I double check every single time I snap on the skirt). But yeah, why tempt the gods? And yet, we all do - women and men. The Excitement:Fear ratio is an indistinct and wavering line. I meant “all serious WHITE WATER kayakers know someone who has died etc”. Not so much ocean kayakers. And I think more men than women tempt the gods. I sure try not to, although the awful story of the drowned roller (which I’d heard before) is scary and sobering. (Sorry, Joe, for hijacking your nice trip report...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billvoss Posted August 23, 2019 Share Posted August 23, 2019 Since we are hijacking Joe's trip report today. I'll tell a personal scary rolling experience that I always relate to my beginning rolling students. Back when I was trying to get my pool roll to work on the river, I took a rolling on the river training class. Most of the class was spent peeling out into a play spot, capsizing, rolling up. Below the play spot the current quickly smoothed out, and there were rescue paddlers standing by to assist. I missed my 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and perhaps 4th roll attempt before deciding I was out of air. From my laid back position I tried to sit up and reach the grab loop. Instead of reaching the loop my helmet hit the now shallow sandy bottom. The current was still fast, but the water was too shallow for me to reach the loop. I tried a second time, then switched to plan B. I grabbed the side of my spray skirt and got the skirt off the edge of the coaming. No air left to be fancy, I pushed down on the kayak with both hands like I was pulling off a pair of pants and felt myself leaving the kayak. My feet felt tangled in something, and I flutter kicked them until I was free and breathing that wonderful air. A rescue kayaker reached my kayak, righted it, and declared that my skirt was still on the kayak, which was news to both of us. I have never again worn a skirt with suspenders. I always make sure my beginner rolling students demonstrate they can pop their skirt without the grab loop, and I make sure they know it is possible to leave their skirt behind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph Berkovitz Posted August 23, 2019 Author Share Posted August 23, 2019 I'll help hijack my own thread. The side-of-the-skirt release should really be a standard alternate wet exit technique (and at least some coaches teach wet exiting to new kayakers with this as a feature). It could be needed for all kinds of reasons -- loop tucked in, bottom too shallow, something else in the way. (I for one have tucked in the Snapdragon grab loop at least once because it is black and doesn't stand out like the bright orange Seals ones.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Sylvester Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 On 8/20/2019 at 7:22 PM, Daniel Carr said: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uZ903SrdBA In the video he says "have a sick week" and there is a lot of laughter when the friend is getting sucked under. A bit of psychopathy? I'll stick to the whirlpools that form on the ebb on the Piscataqua. They are flat ,maybe 30 feet across and just force you into some boat control. But they do get fun when the boat wakes come through them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave M. Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 My grab loop episode was in a pool in Biddeford. There were only two others at the shallow end while I was practicing rolling at the opposite end. After a couple of attempts to roll up , I went for the grab loop which to my surprise and horror, wasn't there. I did finally free myself by the side skirt technique as I remember (it's been awhile). As far as I can remember haven't done that again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Carr Posted August 26, 2019 Share Posted August 26, 2019 Kate, from my perspective the primary difference about the Ottowa River is huge flows. The average flow is over 64,000 cubic feet per second and can be 120,000 cfs. My recollection is that when I paddled the Ottawa with friends back in the late 1980s, the flow was about 25,000 cfs which was scary big and pushy. For comparison the average flow for the Kennebec River is on the order of 9,000 cfs. Rafting dam releases on the Kennebec are on the order of 4,000 and 8.000 cfs. You see whirlpools like that on the Grand Canyon also. We rafted the GC in Sept 2016 at about 10,000 cfs and witnessed a guy fall of a SUP board in a minor rapid and get sucked under twice by relatively small whirlpools. All that said, those testosterone laden whitewater boaters are intentionally sticking their small volume boats into the whirlpools and with a little forward momentum, they could probably blow through them. The key is to keep paddling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kate Posted August 26, 2019 Share Posted August 26, 2019 35 minutes ago, Daniel Carr said: Kate, from my perspective the primary difference about the Ottowa River is huge flows. The average flow is over 64,000 cubic feet per second and can be 120,000 cfs. My recollection is that when I paddled the Ottawa with friends back in the late 1980s, the flow was about 25,000 cfs which was scary big and pushy. For comparison the average flow for the Kennebec River is on the order of 9,000 cfs. Rafting dam releases on the Kennebec are on the order of 4,000 and 8.000 cfs. You see whirlpools like that on the Grand Canyon also. We rafted the GC in Sept 2016 at about 10,000 cfs and witnessed a guy fall of a SUP board in a minor rapid and get sucked under twice by relatively small whirlpools. Okay, those are huge flows. My prior experience on the Cheat, Gauley, New, and Tygart Rivers come nowhere close to that. Potomac River extreme flooding has hit 175K but when I've been on it it's more like 6-10K. Never been on the Kennebec or the GC. If I ever am, I will keep paddling! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BethS Posted August 27, 2019 Share Posted August 27, 2019 On 8/20/2019 at 7:22 PM, Daniel Carr said: All. I may have mentioned a video shot on the Ottawa River in Canada of kayakers in whirlpools. I paddled that river in the summer in the mid 1980s and experienced the big wave and whirlpool action, friends and their boats disappearing the reappearing 30 to 40 feet downstream with/without helmets and paddles. Amazing and scary power of a real big river flow. The key is to keep some momentum up and keep padding through them. Watch to the end of the film clip for a very long submersion. Hold your nose to avoid testosterone poisoning if you have to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uZ903SrdBA Whoa.. I like the part at the end where they crash into a small iceberg which is careening down the river... Glad you survived! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inverseyourself Posted August 27, 2019 Share Posted August 27, 2019 On 8/24/2019 at 11:24 AM, Dave M. said: My grab loop episode was in a pool in Biddeford. There were only two others at the shallow end while I was practicing rolling at the opposite end. After a couple of attempts to roll up , I went for the grab loop which to my surprise and horror, wasn't there. I did finally free myself by the side skirt technique as I remember (it's been awhile). As far as I can remember haven't done that again Since Joe gave permission for hijacking: Had a similar experience in the pool. Ran out of air after several futile attempts to get the skirt off, banged at the sides of my kayak, then made one more desperate attempt and somehow just pulled the spray skirt off the rim with sheer panic-fueled force. People in the pool looked at me curiously :-) and I just pretended that I did it on purpose. I practiced alternative sprayskirt removal techniques after that, including with thick winter gloves. I have since then also tightly wrapped my grab loops with yellow electrical tape. This makes it very stiff, easy to feel under water and hard to accidentally tuck in. Testosterone-driven dudes will be testosterone-driven dudes! The guys in this video....doomed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BethS Posted December 24, 2019 Share Posted December 24, 2019 OK one more spray skirt hijack, since I have a w/water friend who recently told about how he almost drowned (as in passed out, was rescued, and had to be revived) during a strainer and too-tight spray skirt entrapment.. It's not a bad idea to have a small but sharp knife with a point on the end very handy; I haven't tried it but I imagine in a pinch you could poke a hole in your sprayskirt and either grab and pull, or cut your way out. Hope I never have to try! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kate Posted December 25, 2019 Share Posted December 25, 2019 20 hours ago, BethS said: It's not a bad idea to have a small but sharp knife with a point on the end very handy; I haven't tried it but I imagine in a pinch you could poke a hole in your sprayskirt and either grab and pull, or cut your way out. At risk of really making everyone wince, here is why you do NOT want to use a knife with a sharp point to cut yourself (or someone else) out of a sprayskirt. This incident was a major safety discussion topic in the whitewater world at the time. A tragedy where the rescue became the cause of death. Seriously, check that spray skirt loop every time. https://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/Accident/detail/accidentid/465 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inverseyourself Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 (edited) . Edited December 27, 2019 by Inverseyourself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BethS Posted December 27, 2019 Share Posted December 27, 2019 On 12/25/2019 at 10:37 AM, kate said: At risk of really making everyone wince, here is why you do NOT want to use a knife with a sharp point to cut yourself (or someone else) out of a sprayskirt. This incident was a major safety discussion topic in the whitewater world at the time. A tragedy where the rescue became the cause of death. Seriously, check that spray skirt loop every time. https://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/Accident/detail/accidentid/465 Eww... thanks for sharing that Kate! Yes, obviously the answer is to have the grab loop easily grab-able, nothing else is a substitute for that. And don't use a spray skirt that is too tight!!! Also most kayak knives do have blunt tips, just to help prevent this kind of injury. It's especially sad that when the injury happened the guy was already stable; being rafted by another paddler and being supported head above water, so cutting the spray skirt was not even needed anyway, they could have just waited to get him out when they reached shore. I would never try to use a knife on another person/boat in that kind of chaotic situation, and I certainly hope I never have to use one to get myself out of a jamb either. Hopefully there would always be a better way! After reading all this I do think it is worth practicing (in a safe place) different ways of getting a spray skirt loose without using the grab loop, just in case... I've had MANY wet exits, and I've never had my grab loop be unavailable, and yes I always always check it, but there is always a first time for everything, including every mistake... and definitely better safe than sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph Berkovitz Posted January 10, 2020 Author Share Posted January 10, 2020 On another relevant side topic, since this trip featured some close kayak encounters with whales, folks may be interested in this recent PBS Nature episode. It kicks off with a near-fatal episode in which a humpback breached and almost landed directly on the narrator’s kayak, clobbering it with a pectoral fin. A few inches difference would have resulted in death. While this piece is more about whales and their behavior, not about how dangerous they are, perhaps we should consider being more circumspect in future years? https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/the-whale-detective-5nsii3/20808/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Snyder Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 Worth watching although the narrator came off as somewhat naive to me. I still maintain we were statistically safer paddling among whales than we were on the long drive up to the Bold Coast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inverseyourself Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 (edited) I didn't know that humpbacks fight back and Fin- and blue whales run! Interesting. I guess it's all about having long, powerful pectoral fins! Edited January 16, 2020 by Inverseyourself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.