C-Forum

Found this over on CCR. Guy flips just upstream of a manky V+ rapid, solo, five days out.

http://paddlpics.blogspot.com/

Kinda like it. That ain't no pool and drop with a throw rope waiting at the bottom.
Of course he pulled the "satellite rip cord" but as a Canuck i'm o.k. paying for that.
Pretty good description of a big water underwater trashing.

This guy was very fortunate to have a SPOT on his person (note to self, don't keep this in my pack anymore).

I love wilderness trips.

rule 1 - 3 canoes a minimum
rule 2 - Know the river and water level and make sure it matches your skills
rule 3 - Be well geared up for the type of trip

And then it gets really boring.

I also do break a rule or two on an occasion or another, sure. Or bring along some booze when I don't just to crank it up somehow but to see an apparently experienced canoeist go alone on a near flooded river heading for some hard rapids in a 15 feeter solo canoe with very low rocker and pointy ends (me grandpa's fishing ride) gets me thinking. I can roll my ME pretty smooth and even all bagged up with an electric pump I wouldn't take it down alone in such conditions.

If I was to break up all three basic rules above all at once then I might as well carry a SPOT on me you bet.

Still it ain't coming close to the real thing: the one and only tommy fullgnarlz seems at least to bring a buddy with a camera along when he's about to eat it with style. This dude's long readings are half useless without pictures or vid!

I personally have no problem with solo trips. You just need to reevaluate the risks you might take on a day trip.

Tenzing wrote:I personally have no problem with solo trips. You just need to reevaluate the risks you might take on a day trip.

I would also go solo, sure. But again reinforcing the other basic rules somehow: well geared on a familiar or easy enough run. If you swim and can't just go back in the water to swim after your boat or gears because the river is too dangerous for that you're toasted.

And a SPOT shouldn't be seens as plan B to me rather somewhere like plan E or F, as in FAIL!

Agreed completely. I think this guy really didn't have his head wrapped around a potential self rescue. I know (from bountiful experience) that a short painter is a real PITA for swimming the boat to shore.

I've heard of one technique, which is clipping a long throwbag into the stern of boat, and then clipping the sharp end to the ring on a rescue PFD. If you flip, get the boat turned right side up and then swim to shore as the rope pays out. When you get to shore, pull the boat in. If the rope pays out, pull the ripcord on the PFD and come free of the boat. This way you can swim to shore unencumbered and still be able to pull the boat in.

I know this is a bit sketchy because of having a rope in moving water, but we aren't talking about a town run here. Midway through an extended wilderness trip, if you lose your boat you are in big trouble.

Tenzing wrote:If the rope pays out, pull the ripcord on the PFD and come free of the boat. This way you can swim to shore unencumbered and still be able to pull the boat in.

The problem with this, and with ever being tethered to a boat, is that once you are in the drink, you are moving at the speed as the tethered boat and there isn't really sufficient force to release you smoothly. Rescue vests are designed to release when the force of the current is pulling your body away from a static anchor. If you just pull the tab without that kind of force present, the release can be pretty iffy. (In my experience, this is worst with modern designs like Astral vests, where the belt is narrower, stiffer and routed internally.) At best, you'll have to find the rope with your hands and pull it free. At worst, you're stuck waiting for the rope to tangle on something and the current to start acting on you.

This is just an observation I've made while learning and teaching, that's turned into a bit of a pet peeve. I think a rescue vest is a great investment and always wear one. I also avoid tethering myself to gear, but eventually everyone needs to make their own calculations of risk. So to bring this back on topic . . . I don't think I agree with all of the risk decisions made in this anecdote, but can't really put myself in the subject's place. There is something about the allure of a solitary wilderness run that makes might make me think I might break a few rules, too. Glad he lived to keep paddling.

I would have let the boat go immediately. The Kat is a pool and drop river. Even in high water the likelyhood of catching up with the boat would be high. We don't know how his mind calculated the situation, or if it would have even made a difference in the end. However, I know that I swim much more efficient with two hands, and this I know from similar experiences!

The practice described by Tenzig is a popular one. I'm glad Walsh pointed out the danger of this technique as it's something I've never considered.

As far as rescue belts not opening, I think the problem is that most people always thread the belt through the backing blate before routing it through the quick release.
The only time this is necessary IMHO and when I do this is when doing a thethered swim. My default thread of the belt is simply through the quick release. This offers sufficient holding power for just about any situation apart from a thethered swim in munchy water and releases very easily.

TGG!