Hello all, if you have any information about the disappearance of the Polish sea kayaker on Lake Michigan a few weeks back, could you forward it to me. Thanks! -Patrick Patrick.Maun_at_duffy.com *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
I went out of town right after I posted that clip, and havent seen anything else in the news. I did hear by word of mouth in Michigan that he was following the Chicago-Mackinac boat race and that he drowned, but I dont know if thats a presumption or if his body was actually found. The thing that struck me was that winds were only about 15 knots the day he apparently capsized. I can only assume that he wasnt fully prepared for what the great lakes can dish out, because normally, 15 knots isnt going to kill anyone unless they are very unprepared. I hate to say it and hope I'm wrong, but with the massive increase of kayak activity I've observed this year, I'm afraid more people are going to find that out. Wayne At 02:14 PM 8/10/98 +0000, Patrick Maun wrote: >Hello all, > >if you have any information about the disappearance of the Polish sea kayaker on Lake Michigan a few weeks back, could you forward it to me. Thanks! > >-Patrick >Patrick.Maun_at_duffy.com > >*************************************************************************** >PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List >Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net >Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net >Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ >*************************************************************************** > > *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
I was on vacation in Michigan the last 2 weeks and saw an article about the Polish kayaker in the Detroit News. I believe the article indicated his boat and PFD were found and that his last point of contact was about 150 miles north of Chicago. The article would have been in the paper sometime during the week of July 26-Aug 1. Larry Mills Purchase, NY *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
>From the Detroit Free Press online: Supporters hold out hope for missing kayaker But officials say chance of survival is slim despite skill August 5, 1998 BY JOHN FLESHER Associated Press TRAVERSE CITY -- To his fans, Polish national Andrzej Czechowicz is no ordinary sportsman. Not only has he crossed the Baltic Sea in a kayak, he once spent 12 days in a cave, subsisting on water. So they aren't giving up on Czechowicz two weeks after his overturned kayak was found in Lake Michigan, although U.S. officials say chances he survived are slim. He embarked July 16 from Chicago, headed for Mackinac Island in Lake Huron. About 30 Chicago-area Polish Americans searched last weekend in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, where some of Czechowicz's belongings washed ashore July 22, the day after his boat was found. "We believe we will find him. Andrzej was very well prepared for such situations," Wieslaw Gogacz, who led the search, told the Polish news agency PAP on Saturday. PAP said people in Chicago considered the 43-year-old Czechowicz a daredevil and dubbed him Rambo. The search yielded no fresh clues, said Pawel Pietrasienski of the Polish consulate in Chicago. The group distributed leaflets in and around the national park asking residents and tourists to be on the lookout for Czechowicz, who speaks no English. "Yes, yes, of course there is still hope," Pietrasienski said Tuesday. "We were told by his doctor in Poland that he was a natural-born winner." Czechowicz is a firefighter and sea rescuer at the famed Gdansk Shipyard, birthplace of the Solidarity labor union in 1980. He taught survival skills and is an avid outdoor sportsman. He made the Baltic Sea crossing last year and immediately began preparing for the Lake Michigan trip, Pietrasienski said. He hoped to reach Mackinac Island in 100 to 110 hours, paddling along the western shore. He wanted no escort, according to PAP. Bad weather forced Czechowicz to stop July 18 in Two Rivers, Wis., said Lt. Lee Petty of the Coast Guard district headquarters in Cleveland. He apparently left the next day and has not been seen since. After the kayak was found, the Coast Guard spent a day on an aerial search, and then another after some of Czechowicz's belongings were found on beaches near Empire and farther north. Among the items: a cellular telephone, a life jacket, a baseball cap, a hand-held global positioning system and a photocopy of Czechowicz's passport in a plastic bag. Members of a Polish sailing club in Chicago that had sponsored his trip identified some of the items, Petty said. High winds had kicked up 6-foot waves before the kayak was found, but the water was calm once the search got under way, Petty said. Water temperatures were around 70 degrees, warm enough to survive indefinitely, but the discovery of Czechowicz's life jacket diminished his prospects, Petty said. Because of his good physical condition and survivalist background, Czechowicz had a chance of swimming to shore, Pietrasienski said. Supporters hope he wandered inland or perhaps landed on an island. The National Park Service searched the Manitou Islands north of Empire, said Roger Moder, chief ranger at Sleeping Bear Dunes. He said with all the campers and residents in the area, it's unlikely Czechowicz would have been ashore this long without being spotted. "As each day goes by, it looks less and less likely that he'll be found alive," Moder said. Staff writer Joe Swickard contributed to this report *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
It would be interesting to know exactly where he crossed the Baltic Sea, maybe from Poland to Sweden? Whatever happened I'm sure that conditions in Lake Michigan easily worsen beyond even experienced paddler's skills. The waves tend to be steeper in lakes. Survival attitude may help overcome hard situations, but it can also lead to more risky behavior by the paddler. I wonder why he departed from his kayak, it is the basic rule #1 to stick to your boat in case of a capsize. Even paddling a kayak with a load of water is easier than swimming - everyone should practise it. Well, let's hope he is alive and will learn from this event. There was a similar kind of casualty in Finland few weeks ago, a man from Porvoo was paddling in the Turku archipelago, wanting to visit some lighthouses on outer sea. His kayak was later found by a swedish sailboat skipper, capsized and loaded with gear. He was not found despite the intensive search of the area. -----Original Message----- From: A Burton [SMTP:aburton1_at_maine.rr.com] Sent: Tuesday, August 11, 1998 4:16 PM To: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subject: RE: [Paddlewise] Seeking Information on Polish Boater >From the Detroit Free Press online: He made the Baltic Sea crossing last year and immediately began preparing for the Lake Michigan trip, Pietrasienski said. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
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