No surprises, but nice to have the details. Too bad the next person to die probably won’t have known about it.
The photo of the kayak they used was upsetting. A freakin SunDolphin. On Lake Superior. In a previous thread I wrote about an informal survey I made about box store kayaks, checking to see if any safety labels were posted. SunDolphin was the only brand that had no safety warnings. They’re made in Michigan and will be getting a letter from me soon about that omission, with copies to Michigan media outlets.
@roym said:
I seriously doubt that the water was actually 65 degrees between those 2 islands. When there is any wave action, the cold comes up. More likely closer to 40 degrees.
She never would have lasted in 40° water 6 hr.
@roym
Yeah, PaddleDog has it. The survivor would not have still been conscious by the time they got to her unless she was in far warmer water than 40 degrees. I am surprised that she was able to hang onto the boat as long as this report indicates even at 65 degrees. Maybe she got herself partly out of the water and it is a detail less important than the rest.
the way the water gets between those 2 islands…it has been known to not be all the same temp. where she was could have been way different in temp from where the rest went. This isn’t a swimming pool.
The temps around the different islands vary a lot depending on currents and depth…just my personal experience…The buoy reported temps are not reflective of many areas and not to be used seriously only as a possible temp. This is truer in the outer island chain than in the inner islands. The temps around Michigan island are almost always cold on the southern tip, worse on the east side.
BMI also plays a part.
The salient point here, is that the water doesn’t have to be all that cold to suffer hypothermia.
Bingo Steve! That’s the point. I agree.
Vertigo sucks the life out of yo> @roym said:
The temps around the different islands vary a lot depending on currents and depth…just my personal experience…The buoy reported temps are not reflective of many areas
My observation last summer too.
@Rookie said:
The photo of the kayak they used was upsetting. A freakin SunDolphin. On Lake Superior. In a previous thread I wrote about an informal survey I made about box store kayaks, checking to see if any safety labels were posted. SunDolphin was the only brand that had no safety warnings. They’re made in Michigan and will be getting a letter from me soon about that omission, with copies to Michigan media outlets.
I don’t think we can expect manufacturers to predict and prevent all the ingenious ways their products can be misused. A label would do little except protect them from liability for something I don’t think they should be liable for in the first place. The parties involved were uneducated in a lot more than just boat choice. Even if they had a nominal awareness of the dangers from a boat label, the water was probably a tepid 70 degrees where they launched. They didn’t understand the lake, they didn’t understand the marine wind and weather, they didn’t understand hypothermia, they didn’t understand how far Michigan Island was or what their own abilities were, and so on. I just don’t think a boat label would have done a thing to prevent this tragedy.
But a label would never do any harm. It may make some people think twice.
Like the warnings on cigarettes.
@PaddleDog52 said:
But a label would never do any harm. It may make some people think twice.
It may make people think it makes people think twice, or that they even read it. The problem is way bigger than a label. The problem is an entire industry that de-emphasizes the dangers of kayaking in favor of selling fun. Even the nominal self-rescue instruction given to people before renting or going on a guided trip is scarcely better than useless.
You give industry too much credit. People happily line up and pay for the privilege of putting themselves in harms way. It’s all about the adventure. Minimize the risk and it just isn’t fun anymore.
@string said:
Like the warnings on cigarettes.
I know people it worked for or helped. Criminal to say nothing.
@qajaqman said:
@PaddleDog52 said:
But a label would never do any harm. It may make some people think twice.It may make people think it makes people think twice, or that they even read it. The problem is way bigger than a label. The problem is an entire industry that de-emphasizes the dangers of kayaking in favor of selling fun. Even the nominal self-rescue instruction given to people before renting or going on a guided trip is scarcely better than useless.
Never saw a rental place give or say anything about rescue. Did see people loading kids 4 years old even less in rentals when water is 55-60 °. May 1st. Sure it’s tiny bay even a lagoon but they can still capsize and or venture out of sight around the bend.