^^says the guy living downstream^^
And write your phone number in the boat. The Coast Guard appreciates it
http://www.annapoliscgaux.org/Paddlecraft/PaddleSmart.pdf
All of the above
Hold on to your paddle, grab the boat or painter (but never wrap painter around your hand), stay upstream of the boat, swim toward shore when you can. It’s also good to have a few friends along who can help get you and your boat to shore.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eckilson/11612013465/in/set-72157639126510466/
As far my opinion…
– Last Updated: Oct-20-14 7:31 AM EST –
As for my opinion goes; I think eckilson pretty well nailed it.
Based on experience.........
I allowed myself to get swept downstream of my boat by the current on a whitewater river once. I can verify the importance of staying upstream of your boat.
You never want your boat to catch up with you, at the base of a waterfall. My boat almost knocked me out as I was struggling to free myself from the spin cycle at the base of the waterfall. The boat then joined me in the spin cycle. It kept me from freeing myself twice when I surfaced underneath it.
Luckily, one of my paddling buddies was aware of my situation & got a throw rope to me quickly.
BOB
I’ve seen canoes lost downstream . . .
. . . on whitewater runs.
My most intimate experience was when the Mad River in New Hampshire, a class 3-4 run, was rising fast while a group of us were on it. A boater dumped in class 4 water. I went after him in my Whitesell to rescue but I dumped, and my boat disappeared downstream.
Blindly swimming, I popped up next to famous Boston AMC paddler Mell Noll, who, because of knee problems, paddled whitewater standing up in a customized composite DYI canoe. He dumped trying to rescue me, and his canoe disappeared down the river.
One of the few kayakers who stayed on the river rescued my Whitesell about a half mile downstream. But Mel and I could not find his canoe even though we drove the entire river down to the dam lake. We assumed it ended up pinned under the water. I also lost a nice Mitchell paddle, which I couldn’t find in the lake the next day.
Another time on the Ashuelot River in New Hampshire, our group decided to pull off the river, again because of rapidly rising water levels in the hard sections. One tandem team, using a borrowed canoe and a borrowed Harmony paddle from me, lost control, couldn’t make the emergency take-out, dumped, and permanently lost both the canoe and paddle in the class 4+ gorge. They ended up paying me for the paddle, which I discounted and could never replace, and eventually buying a new boat for its owners.
knife, and/or surgical bandage scissors
… clip a knife to a carabiner and clip it to your pfd. Or have a pair of plastic handled bandage scissors (they are lightweight, have a blunted end, but sharp) in your pfd pocket. I also taped some foam around the end so it doesn’t poke thru the pocket. This way you can cut rope if you have to, or cut somebody else loose.
While you’re adding pfd accessories, a whistle is also a good idea.
Ixnay on the anchor- kay, for all the above reasons… you REALLY do not want to be fouled up in a fallen canoe, speaking from personal experience.
anchoring a boat in current
tends to pull the boat underwater.
This reminds me of a time
– Last Updated: Oct-25-14 9:32 AM EST –
when I was on an Allagash trip camped at Chisholm (sp?) Brook campsite for a layover. Chisholm is at the end of the one white water section on the Allagash - generally a class 2+ type of run and often a bit on the boney side. We were taking a nice leisurely trip and we had been out for about 5 nights by then. We were in the groove. On our layover day I was lounging in my chair on the bank of the river having a cup of tea and I saw an empty canoe floating by. I snagged it and pulled it up on the "beach." Later that day a group of boy scouts from New Jersey with two Dad's leading them stumbled into camp very wet and cold. The canoe was their canoe. The leader told me this was a real adventure for the group and that they had no whitewater experience at all in the group. He said that every one of their canoes capsized in Chase Rapids. Fortunately no one was injured. They lost some gear and food etc. We gave them a hand getting a tarp up and a fire going in the site next to ours and they warmed up. I don't think the scouts or their leaders were prepared to be on that trip. But, by pure force of luck, they made it through the worst of it relatively unscathed. We were concerned for them. They were oblivious to some of the dangers/risks.