The participants were Paul B, JoeS, MA, RickTj, BillR, CatR, BobH, CaroleC, and CarleenM. The wind was forecast to freshen from the north and the tide was ebbing so we decided to paddle up bay instead of out to the ocean. The cold morning temperatures and the breeze had most of us complaining and all of us dressing warm. I find that my hands are the first thing to get cold on a day like this but still I always forget to bring gloves to wear while packing the boat for launch. The result is I start paddling with fingers already numb.
We started by crossing the West Passage and passing around Dutch Island. Cat pointed out some very interesting undulations in the rock beside the lighthouse. I had never noticed this before. It’s funny how you can explore the same area multiple times and always discover something new.
The body heat I built while crossing and the wind protection of the lee shore of Jamestown allowed my fingers to warm up in the pogies. From Dutch we headed straight to the base of the new bridge and hugged the Jamestown shore. A few of us, MA excluded, spotted a couple of seals.
The next crossing was back towards Fox I. We made this as a long 2+ mile diagonal and passed the number 10 nun which was a mere 4 miles off station. Based on last weeks extended radio conversation, Joe decided there was no good reason to report this to the GC. We made numerous attempts to keep the herd of 9 kayaks together with limited success. One of the pleasures of paddling at this time of the year is the lack of boat traffic. The largest concern being the fast ferry. We stayed paired up and were always within shouting distance.
We stopped for lunch on Fox. We were escorted to shore by a pair of curious seals. Rick had already rolled about a dozen times starting at the launch point so I felt a compelling need to roll myself. Normally I would pass on a lunch time roll in cold water but my confidence in a “prepared” roll is building. I accepted the risk that it would be a chilly lunch if I had to bail out of my boat and set up for a roll. 2 for 2, lets do lunch!
Again I regretted not having cloth gloves to put on on shore. I wore some dry Sealskinz out of my hatch. While eating lunch we were entertained by seals leaping through the air 300 yards away by a pile of rocks known as The Clump off Rome Point. I had never seen this behavior before. I don’t know why they do it but I’ll choose to think they were just playing. 
Carleen was the first to launch after lunch and let herself drift between the rocks and Rome. She had a seal surface near and swim right under her kayak. The rest of us had to settle for distant leaping and a plethora of curious seal heads popping up.We were all hoping that a forecast snow squall and 20 knot tail wind would materialize. Instead the wind just died and our bodies heated up. At least the ebbing tide performed as predicted!
Back at the launch rolling-Rick made a surprisingly quick exit. I set up and made 4 rolls in succession and found myself dizzy and a bit disoriented. I paddled around a bit expecting the feeling to pass but it didn’t so I went ashore. When I mentioned this later MA yelled at me (in a “nice” way) for not informing someone. She was right.
Meanwhile Bill attempted a roll and found himself in the water. He experienced the same dizzy disorientation and had some difficulty getting back in his boat. Joe pointed out that this is a common effect of cold water in the ears.
Both Bill and I were wearing neoprene head wear. While both of us were fine in the controlled circumstances we were in, both of us would have had difficulty if we happened to be doing this while bobbing around by Whale Rock. It’s another example of why we choose to winter paddle with friends who are skilled, cautious, and prepared. Why do Eric and I share these little stories of cold water difficulty? I think we want to share, through our perspective, the risk we accept and the risk we choose to mitigate while extending our kayak season to year round.
4/7/07 36-40 degree air, 10mph N wind, 42 degree water
No comments:
Post a Comment