It would be great to meet you. We have a tradition of sitting by the tree and listening to Christmas music. Now she is putting the candy away and I’m off to finish wrapping presents.
What was that about old, cranky rednecks? I qualify for that in some circumstances.
Old and cranky are stereotypes , sort of. Depends on the day and the stressors. Like obnoxious Yankees, idiot drivers, 3 little boys non-stop in my house , and gun freaks who argue that weapons of war are normal sporting equipment.
But, Yankee as I used it is also a stereotype.
Happy New Year!
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This site beats the safety horse regularly, I’m confused where the soap box comes from…
Your ideas of safety and risk sound reeeeeeeeeeally lame to me.
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In 2013, there were 505 deaths in the US due to accidental or negligent discharge of a firearm.
Were there also 505 deaths due to winter kayaking? I guess the number is a lot lower.
Now you will probably claim that those 505 victims didn’t take proper safety precautions before entering into their shooting activity. And I will make exactly the same claim about any winter kayaking fatalities, so that will get us nowhere.
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CA139
If you think reloading is done strictly for cost savings, you don’t get it, also you don’t get 1000 yard accurate ammo for 50 cents a round. That is cheaper than the brass most F-class shooters use. Also “rednecks” aren’t found on a range often, especially a city one. I assume you are a city dweller by the indoor range availability and the use of the term redneck as a derogatory term. You will find a guy from small towns typically do their shooting out in the woods. Rednecks would be from small town America for your info.
It seems that reloading, kayaking outside of bluebird days or anything else with a risk to it are off limits to you. That’s fine but please keep your self righteous better and smarter than the rest crap to yourself. Some people understand that kayaking any day has a degree of risk. Getting into your car has risk. You feel these are reasonable risks that you have educated yourself for and have taken appropriate precautions for. Redneck is not a term interchangeable with an ass from the city.
Some people do the same prep and do things that scare you. Get over it. I would bet more people die in mountain bike accidents every year than from exposure during winter kayaking.
Some of us want to live life and enjoy what it has to offer. Beats getting fat waiting for summer. Beats finding activities in town around crowds of people. Beats the hell out of going on the internet, finding a group of people who enjoy an activity and saying they deserve to die for how they choose to enjoy the day.
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Awful to say, but hang around this site long enough and you will see most of the water-related fatalities. Here is the latest in my area.
This one is particularly sad, but not unusual. From my experience, it is extremely rare to see a weather-related fatality involving an experienced paddler with a PFD and proper cold water gear. The only one I can think of recently is Douglas Tompkins, the founder of the North Face and Esprit clothing brands, who died in a kayaking accident in the Patagonia region of Chile. I’m sure there are others, but it doesn’t happen very often. In fact it almost never happens.
I agree that we should not be encouraging inexperienced boaters without proper gear to go out in difficult conditions, but I don’t think anyone here does that.
By far the most dangerous thing that we do every day is getting in the car and driving somewhere. I am much more likely to get hurt driving to the put-in than I am paddling in winter.
My wife always tells me to be careful when I’m going paddling. I sometimes remind her that I-85 is far more dangerous than any river or lake.
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The kid with The Gray Thing was at least civil.
And a lot more entertaining.
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I think about doing that too, but I’m not sure it would help.
It doesn’t. My wife’s brother drowned in the lake I paddle the most. He was scuba diving and never came up so her concern is normal. It was 60 years ago.
Or (with a lack of obedience for posted ordinances), unleashed animals!
Release the hounds into the frost,
they bound through rapids that rocks have tossed.
These dryly suited mad-dogged fellows,
trace keels cross snowbanks sometime they’ve yellowed.
Sumer is icumen in.
Loudly sing, “Canoe!”
The water’s flowin’
And the algae’s blooming,
And the strainer comes into view.
Sing, “Canoe!”
The paddle dips gaily anew,
The bow is rounding the bend,
The water is prancing,
The minnows are darting,
Sing merrily, “Canoe!”
Kookoo canoe!
You sing well, tis true.
Never stop now.
The ice is gone, woohoo!
Sing, “Canoe,” sing, you, too!
The
Well some ice on water and Solstice when returning. Paddled into some slushy salt water. Did not like the feeling of being trapped. Only way out was in reverse and it was not easy even 8’ in.
Time to partner up and buy a “sports bar”, eh, Sing?
Hmmm… That or take up “e-sports!” I might still have a chance at becoming a champion in Pokemon! Nah… LOL!
sing
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I’ve only ever seen the salt frozen one winter on the Washington coast. Port at Nahcotta on the Willapa bay was frozen over, ice on the high tide line of the ocean surf.
I don’t believe I could be hard core enough to paddle in that kind of cold! Not sure I could paddle by the time I had enough layers!
Nothing wrong with winter paddles per se. Depends on where an how you do it. Experience, immersion gear and being level-headed is what you need. Hand-railing shore in a protected area on a mild winter day can be perfectly safe. Wreckless paddling beyond one’s ability can be dangerous on a warm summer day.
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Good gear and I’m warm and comfortable. Don’t feel my paddling is impair at all. Was out one day with temps low 30* F air and near 20+ mph wind and my back felt a little chill in it.
From our National Weather Service this morning:
"This doesn’t happen very often:
8 AM temperatures (January 22):
Traverse City, MI : 32°
Sault Ste. Marie, MI: 33°
"Ocala, FL (~60 mi NW of Orlando): 30°
This may be our coldest week of the year. Beautiful out though. Great hiking weather.