Cold Water Canoeing Thoughts -

[marko]

1. The largest smallmouth I ever caught - Jan. 28, 1999,
canoed below Violettes lock, set up shop on an island and a minnow caught this huge smallie.
2. A father was canoeing in BeaverDam Reservoir, near Ashburn, my friend knew him.
No PFD. The dog and the kid (PFD) swam to shore. Father drowned.
Outside temp was 70 degrees - water was about 45.
3. The lady last year jumping in the canoe to get a ball during super windy conditions off of South River (?) last year.
4. If you were that lady, in high winds, alone in a canoe, -
MOVE UP. Move the weight forward, the wind whips your
stern around a bit, but that is how to do it. Weight forward, bow into wind, you will be switching paddling sides alot.
5. Oct.9 like 1992 or so. Friend and I paddled from Brunswick to Point of Rocks and listened to a Redskins game on a portable radio.
When we got out there was a family who had tipped over and were soaking wet and
really cold. I can't remember helping them.
6. 1996 ish -I pulled my canoe out at Harper's Ferry and a FAMILY is soaking wet, in the rain, at the pullout. September time frame - getting toward night -
young children with BLUE LIPS - they LOST THEIR KEYS!!
They were Wet and Freezing. The parents said "No" to my pushing the kids in the car - until they realized they were screwed over, freezing and I was the lifeline. I fired up my car and the heat and piled them all in there..
tied the canoe to the top, and drove them home.

5. Don't Be the Hero -
Once young and almost dumb I came to the bottom of the Shenandoah Staircase and I asked other boaters "How is the Potomac?"
You see, I parked near that gas station/ fireworks place river right.
They said the Potomac was running high. I was worried.
Carrying and walking all that way was not happening - so
I got down to the bottom of the Staircase, the end of the Shenandoah as it meets the Potomac, indeed, was running super fast -
I was freaked out, did the proper thing, Front Ferry to the Maryland Shore, then front ferry back over the river again over to the bridge area where my car was parked.
I was solo, alone, and chose the correct, safe way to GTFO.
You see, the shorter way was simply to sneak on river right, after all, my car was on that side - HOWEVER -
my experience was on the far side, been through all the whitewater, surfed Whitehorse Rapid, etc., on that side. So I know that side.
River right is usually shallow, so I have no idea of that side.

6. Wear your PFD. Wear your PFD.

7. Wear your PFD.

[MaxVO2]

*****Admittedly, these are indeed deep thoughts. My takeaway from all of this is to apparently wear your PFD over another PFD in #6, and then yet another PFD over the other two in #6, as written in #7? Seems sort of reasonable I guess in case one of the three you are wearing doesn't work, or you need to quickly pass one or two of the three to others nearby who didn't heed the original PFD recommendation.

Thank you for the PSA on the PFD's. Drowning is indeed one of my greatest fears in terms of dying - at about the same level as my fear of being shot to death by an inferior grade AR platform like a PSA or Del-Ton, instead of something nicer like a pre-2013 Noveske, or current LaRue or LWRC. I would rather live than be shot dead by an improperly assembled or spec'd AR.

I'm impressed by this PSA, as it came out before 9pm. Safety should never take a back seat in a canoe, nor anywhere else!

[marko]

Drowning is indeed one of my greatest fears in terms of dying - at about the same level as my fear of being shot to death by an inferior grade AR platform like a PSA or Del-Ton,

That is funny, I have a Del-Ton lower ...

[marko]

8. I forgot, I was to talking to a guy as we looked over Great Falls in MD, we talked about canoeing, and how he was a Trip Leader and one guy died due to no PFD.
My mouth was agape.

is to apparently wear your PFD over another PFD in

you think you are funny - you should get the Italian sub at Gemelli's and get back to me - the bread is killer....

[snallygaster]

Sage advice. I always take my PFD with me when hitting the river.

[llkoolkeg]

My biggest smallmouth ever was caught is the spillway just AFTER that very same Beaverdam Reservoir that becomes Beaverdam & Goose Creek and then flows adjacent to the old Goose Creek golf course toward the Potomac. I used to wade fish that section of water all Summer long throughout my misspent youth catching big smallies on 3/16oz Rebel Craw crankbaits and 4" wacky-rigged creme worms.

[nedsurf]

If ya'll are experienced paddlers I'm sure you already know all this but typing it up to spread the water safety gospel. Also have a dunk kit at the ready and paddle with friends when the water + temp equation aren't above 120F.

Dunk kit is the following in a dry bag: Sleeping bag, a tarp, towels to dry someone off, EMT shears to cut iced over clothes, zippers and shoelaces, a ton of chemical hand warmers, empty water bottles that don't leak, old clean socks, and a cheap backpacking stove with a pot. A Jetboil of other fast stove is just the ticket for this sort of thing.

procedure: Lay the tarp on the ground with everything else on it, strip and dry the hypothermia victim and stuff them in the sleeping bag, throw a bunch hand warmers in the bag, wrap the tarp around the bag like a burrito, start boiling water, when water is boiled put it in the bottles and cover the bottles with socks and put them in the sleeping bag with the person. If they can, doing sit ups while in the sleeping bag makes them warmer also.

[JamesDong]

No thanks, this was my front yard Christmas... it looked COLD! Water level down, not worth fishing ..... to me for now.

[marko]

Dunk kit is the following in a dry bag: Sleeping bag, a tarp, towels to dry someone off, EMT shears to cut iced over clothes, zippers and shoelaces, a ton of chemical hand warmers, empty water bottles that don't leak, old clean socks, and a cheap backpacking stove with a pot. A Jetboil of other fast stove is just the ticket for this sort of thing.

procedure: Lay the tarp on the ground with everything else on it, strip and dry the hypothermia victim and stuff them in the sleeping bag, throw a bunch hand warmers in the bag, wrap the tarp around the bag like a burrito, start boiling water, when water is boiled put it in the bottles and cover the bottles with socks and put them in the sleeping bag with the person. If they can, doing sit ups while in the sleeping bag makes them warmer also.

I can see that on an overnight or weeklong passage. Good advice. I like the burrito part! I would think legs raised as well??
Then rub the crap out of the feet..
Hot thermos of soup will help alot!! Burritos and soup!

[marko]

James, looks like a nice river, what's the name of it?