kayak safety -- excellent article

http://www.kayakfishingmagazine.net/19/Kayak_Fishing_Safety.html?utm_source=streamsend&utm_medium=email&utm_content=3975212&utm_campaign=Kayak%20Fishing%20Magazine%20May%202009%20-%20Sponsored%20By%20Hobie%20Fishing

Excellent article on safety.  There are so many layers to this subject--we should all be serious students here 

Rob.

Thanks for sharing, that is indeed an excellent article.   I particularly like the emphasis on being in shape at the beginning.  

So before you start kayak fishing you need to figure out if you’re up to the physical requirements for the excursion.  

This is a great point, while kayaking is a great way to get in shape, one shouldn't bite off more then they can chew when planning a trip.  If you can't easily circumnavigate your local pond without getting winded you don't belong on the ocean.

However, the one thing I haven't figure out is why nobody (not even this article) ever mentions that you should be a proficient swimmer.   Back in my childhood at camp, we couldn't go out on a canoe, kayak, or sailboat unless we could prove that we could swim couple hundred yards.

I imagine the emphasis on the "buddy plan" is going to ruffle some scales on the old guard here, but I'm all for it.

Another EXTREMELY important aspect of kayak fishing safety is following the buddy plan. This means never enter the water alone and always have a partner. A good partner is crucial. Besides having a life jacket on, a good partner is probably the second best chance at surviving some kind of emergency. Choose your partners wisely as they are the one who will be there for you. At all cost never leave your partner. Just the presence of another person during a crisis can be so relieving it is unbelievable. Your partners need to be of comparable strengths and abilities. If fishing partners are not of equal ability you must only go out in circumstances and on a trip the weakest member of the group can handle. You don’t want to jeopardize a beginning kayak angler by getting them involved in something they can’t handle.

good article. thanks

Brian.. I agree with you on the ability to swim. My mom wouldnt let me take my life vest off when i was younger and we were just playing around the shore untill i could prove to her i could swim so far and float.

and yes a buddy to go with is great as a safety factor. plus someone to talk to besides yourself.

marilyn

I'm always bewildered by the number of morbidly obese, chain smoking, no-way-in-hell-you're-gonna-be-able-to-swim types that float the local recreational paddling waters around here.  I'm glad this article brought it up.  Seem like a certain recipe for disaster.

I feel like I've just been yelled at by the teacher...  Really though, Boogie makes some good points but like the disclaimer says, a lot of it applies to Hawaii-type blue water kayak fishing.

Not to harp too much but since we're talking safety he needs a better PFD. It looks low volume, dark colored, w/ no reflective trim. And all those lanyards Boogie??


I always liked this photo of NCKA Mooch's PFD.

Z

I've fished with Boogie-D a couple of times in Hawaii and count him as a friend.  I'd like to share a story with you that in no way is meant to slight him, rather it is told to make you think.  I'm sure he won't mind.

Boogie's level of safety consciousness was not always at the level that it is today.  It took a recent tragic accident involving a friend of his to shake him up and make him really take a good look at safety.  He now carries the safety message with a passion.  If you have some feedback for him, let him know.  He'll take the feedback with an open mind if the end result is to improve his safety.

-Allen

The article to which Kallitype linked states, "Weather is the single most important thing that can turn a fun day of fishing into a fatal event."  I suppose that is as true or more true here than in Hawaii. 

"The Weather of the Pacific Northwest" by Cliff Mass. He is a professor of atmospheric science at the UW.  This popped up on a local PNW pilot's forum last fall.  I have a copy and I recommend it.  If you understand the way the PNW geography affects the weather, it gives you a better understanding of that for which you need to prepare.  It is also an interesting read in its own right.

The book (ISBN 9780295988474) is available from the usual online and bricks-and-mortar sources.

Cliff maintains a blog. 

http://www.washington.edu/uwpress/search/books/MASWEA.html
http://cliffmass.blogspot.com/
http://blog.oregonlive.com/books/2008/12/nonfiction_review_the_weather.html
http://www.amazon.com/Weather-Pacific-Northwest-Cliff-Mass/dp/0295988479

Back in the fall it was available at a number of area Costcos.

"The Pacific Northwest experiences the most varied and fascinating weather in the United States, including world-record winter snows, the strongest non-tropical storms in the nation, and shifts from desert to rain forest in a matter of miles. Local weather features dominate the meteorological landscape, from the Puget Sound convergence zone and wind surges along the Washington Coast, to gap winds through the Columbia Gorge and the "Banana Belt" of southern Oregon. This book is the first comprehensive and authoritative guide to Northwest weather that is directed to the general reader; helpful to boaters, hikers, and skiers; and valuable to expert meteorologists."

I like reading Cliff, too.

For the NW, especially in the Sound, I think the combination of weather and tides/currents has to be constantly evaluated. A breeze in the same direction as the current may produce 1-2' waves, but when the tide changes and opposes the current there may be 4-5' standing waves.

Not to harp too much but since we're talking safety he needs a better PFD. It looks low volume, dark colored, w/ no reflective trim.

I have the same vest.    I purchased it because it was red.  Or at least I thought it was.  The back is black.  It actually has a lot of flotation.  The entire front and back from waist to shoulders (if you have the proper size).  One reason I purchased it is that it has leg straps as well which make it impossible for it to come off. Unless, of course, you get bit in half by something big.   However, it appears he has removed these straps.  It also has a removable fleece collar for cold weather, which is probably more valuable in a boat than on a kayak.  Thus far I have found it to be very comfortable, but I have only used it a few times last summer. 

I totally agree that it should have reflective trim.  That should be standard on all PFDs.

I'm always bewildered by the number of morbidly obese, chain smoking, no-way-in-hell-you're-gonna-be-able-to-swim types that float the local recreational paddling waters around here.  I'm glad this article brought it up.  Seem like a certain recipe for disaster.

Are you kidding? The morbidly obese float like corks and come with their own wetsuits and the chain smoking makes them easy to find. Both by sight and smell.

Fishing with them is really safe. If your boat sinks, you can use their body to get back to land.



face down though, I don't really like second hand smoke.

Actually, I'd encourage folk like that to paddle as it'd encourage them to change some of those habits. My BIG concern is when they show up to paddle in flannel shirts and jeans with no PFD. 

Sobering thread, and lots of good information. Man, he calls for a lot of electronics! I have a ways to go to get my PFD fully rigged.
Demonick: That's a great book. It's on the way from Amazon.

Hey FFTW - What do you think that truck tire inner tube is for? -

Alan

I just had a guy come in the shop telling me how he was yak fishing devils punchbowl for lings this weekend in his blue jeans and t-shirt and asked me if anyone else does that.......no one that's still alive was my reply.

As far as visible colors go, i actually think black is the most visible. I have on an orange helmet, and yellow pfd, but what stands out is the black drysuit and paddle:

Also-

It is possible to overload a pfd and sink....There's a reason most of them don't have allot of pockets.