River Drifting Safety

nice collection of boats.. your personal quiver?>

those pictures are from a few years back and my quiver is kind of ever changing.
these are my current rides

Lovin that sticker on the 140 Terry. OC's caper is a good model with an arched hull.I was doing some research on the caper after seeing Bsteves river trip earlier this year and hr turned me on yo the link to Jim Sammons river adventures in BC. The 2 white water guys he was with were both riding capers to fish so that kind of sold me right there.Thanks for the input here. I have been on the blue for quite a few years but not the rivers so much. I think I better put my ego aside and take a whitewater class this summer. When diving from the kayak i throw myself off all the time. Wih an additional 20 pounds strapped on.

Well it was an Ocean Kayak sponsored movie. You're not going to see anything but OK's. The Caper is ok for rivers, but it's not designed for rivers, and it is the only thing relatively close that OK makes.

Those two guys are not your equals. Ken Whiting is a multiple world WW champion.
He could paddle a garbage can down class V and make it look good. You saw what happened to Jim on the same stretch in an OK right? (pants around the ankles, PFD around the ears, stuck in a hole in the water waiting for Ken to rescue him)

 It's not the boat, and it just goes to show you that you can be the baddest fisherman in the world, but that doesn't make you an awesome KAYAK angler. Just a bad a*s angler on a kayak. And how bad a*s are you if you need to hitch a ride on a power boat, or have a power boat assist in your catch and/or release? I think that's piss poor and totally defeats the purpose of kayak fishing.  OK morning rant complete! (coffee kicked in, I've edited for PG rating )

Ever see anyone else doing cartwheels (playboating) in an OK Caper?

There's a reason.....It's not the boat, it's the paddler.

I've seen guys in 18ft sea kayaks rocking WW, SOT's, SUP's, WW boats, Rec boats, inflatables, ..all have on thing in common; They're all really good paddlers, they can make any boat work.

If you don't have Ken Whiting skills, and are looking at class 3+ WW, I'd look at a WW specific boat to make things a little easier.

That being said, the caper is fine for "moving water" for normal people, and for Ken Whiting for class 4.

Is anybody here really looking at WW or are we just talking "moving water" by WW I mean class III +, moving I mean the Columbia on a bad day <class III

Because with moving water, just about anything is fine, but WW you need real rocker.

My advice is to take classes before buying a new boat. I think with the right skills, the boats you guys already have will be fine for what you want to do.

Unless we're really talking about WW class 3+, then you might need a new boat.

If you are a newbie to moving water, please don't push class III.  As Nanook says, it is doable, but a newbie to moving water on a 15 foot kayak in class III is not a good thing.  Start small, get comfortable, work your way up.  I hope I am stating the obvious.

-Allen

OK, so the obvious question is:  Does anyone offer an SOT specific whitewater class? 

-Mark-

There is no such thing. a WW SOT is the same as a WW SIK. only diff is you don't roll in a SOT.

There is no such thing. a WW SOT is the same as a WW SIK. only diff is you don't roll in a SOT.

Does that mean that a student can have access to a SOT for participation in the training classes and not have to deal with a sink?
holt

Lovin that sticker on the 140 Terry.

this picture was taken prior to my exodus from the NCKA and the sticker has since been removed.

great rant NANOOK


I think/hope that most folks will be trying to paddle and fish class II- water and portaging anything greater, BUT that doesnt mean that "soft whitewater" cant hurt you dead.
Here is a example of that concept in effect.
Still in my early 20s and I was trying to drop into a small wave to surf and got wrapped on a rock at the top of the rapid. Just goes to show you that if youre not very smart or not very good you better be very lucky.
Awareness and respect are essential to coming home at the end of a day on the rivers no matter the class.
Both of those qualities come from education and time in the water. WW classes, whether designed for SOT or not, are still providing education and experience in moving water.

Those two guys are not your equals.


Never said they were. How did you come around to that impression. I was impressed by thier skill on the rivers, not mine. I have no skills on the rivers to speak of. None. So with the info and recommendations made here I believe its now a neccesity for safetys sake.


 Good luck paddling down to Cedros on your kayak from San Diego.

There is no such thing. a WW SOT is the same as a WW SIK. only diff is you don't roll in a SOT.

Does that mean that a student can have access to a SOT for participation in the training classes and not have to deal with a sink?
holt

yes, it would need to be WW specific like the torrent or AIRE Tomcat, but it's fine.

We could also set up a special class like we did with SOT's in the surf last summer and make it specific to the SOT's you already have if you would like. That way it wouldn't detract from the students in the regular WW class in any way.

I would guess we'd need 4 people to make it run, and a little time to set up the sylabus. If you guys would like a class just for anglers, feel free to suggest specifics you would like to address. Let me know what exactly you're interested in learning so I can figure one day or multiple.

Also will have to be after the holidays, as Paul, our WW instructor is on vacation and I don't have the WW cert. to lead it.

Those two guys are not your equals.


Never said they were. How did you come around to that impression. I was impressed by thier skill on the rivers, not mine. I have no skills on the rivers to speak of. None. So with the info and recommendations made here I believe its now a neccesity for safetys sake.


 Good luck paddling down to Cedros on your kayak from San Diego.

I'm sorry, I didn't mean "you" as you, I meant you as in everyone including me except Ken Whiting, because he is like superman.

Once again I need to shake off the morning crud before I post.

If you are a newbie to moving water, please don't push class III.  As Nanook says, it is doable, but a newbie to moving water on a 15 foot kayak in class III is not a good thing.  Start small, get comfortable, work your way up.  I hope I am stating the obvious.

-Allen

You're right. A better limit to "moving water" would be class II. Class III is definitely hairier than "moving water"

those pictures are from a few years back and my quiver is kind of ever changing.
these are my current rides

spider, looks like a great versatile selection regardless of rotation.

i'm liking the lines on that liquid logic remix that Nanook posted. and it even has the ability to carry my fat azz.... plus it's got the small boat size i've been looking for too.  have also been looking at the old town vapor angler which is roughly the same size but i;m not sure if it has the same bottom contours ....

not going to discount it, but i am kind of leery of the mini x. it doesn't appeal to me for some reason.

going way back to over a year ago , we had a similar discussion regarding the john day river floats, and our man three weight stood adamantly fast on using rafts for the trip, but also mentioned, ( i believe it was him) that a good inflatable yak or canoe was also an asset. i think now, i understand why he stood so firmly on the flexibility factor.

still, nothing like having your own boat and independence on a trip.

those pictures are from a few years back and my quiver is kind of ever changing.
these are my current rides

spider, looks like a great versatile selection regardless of rotation.
 

Versatile was/is the plan. I really need to get out on that Kaos more.
Im hoping to add a SUP to the mix in 2010 for site fishing and the alternate workout.

going way back to over a year ago , we had a similar discussion regarding the john day river floats, and our man three weight stood adamantly fast on using rafts for the trip, but also mentioned, ( i believe it was him) that a good inflatable yak or canoe was also an asset. i think now, i understand why he stood so firmly on the flexibility factor.

still, nothing like having your own boat and independence on a trip. [/size][/font][/color]

I wasnt able to catch that thread but I believe in rafts as well. The team factor of a raft trip can be a GREAT time, as long as your team is strong and has a good energy. When wanting to experience some bigger water, that is beyond your kayaking skills, a raft is perfect. The areas between the bigger rapids usually hold unpressured fishing holes due to the lack of easy access.
I have some pictures from a WW rafting trip from this year and they show some classIII+ water. They are a nice reminder that I wouldnt really want to experience this kind of water in a SOT set up for drift fishing even with leg straps.

just looked over this thread and it has some great info. anyone have experience how a Cogra navigator may handle in these type waters.I've been on slow easy rivers with no problemds but more concerned with class 2 & 3 water. Is a drift anchor essential?