Re: [Paddlewise] Bulkheads

My copy of _Deep_Trouble_ has many accidents in which the bulkhead
lids poped out, which made the kayaks unrecoverable (Cleopatra's neddle).

In fact, one of the grey sections of the book specifically states
that there is too much hype regarding bulkheads, and that bulkhead
compartments should carry floatbags in them.

Some other accidents described in the same book are about floatbags
that poped out of the boat through the cockpit. Floatbags must be
tied, or retained by other mechanism, to prevent them from floating
out of the boat. See the wavelength archive two years back, when
we talk extensively about this.

If floatbags are properly installed in a kayak, the boat is much safer
than the ones which have bulkheads, unless the paddler installs 
floatbags inside the bulkhead compartments.

Yes, floatbags add a lot of weight. They make my canvas boat weigh
as much as a fiberglass boat when they are in. But I do not have
to worry about not being able to bail water out of bulkhead compartment,
as it does not have bulkheads.

This is a religious subject, and comes up as often as the PFD thing.
The brits defend bulkheads very strongly.

The best article I have seen
about the subject was a letter in Sea Kayaker about some group of
brits archeologists who found a burial in Greenland. The burial
had kayaks with bulheads, and the mummies had an enlarged upper lip,
which shows that they must have a stiff upper lip. The conclusion
was that the mummies were british, and they were the british who
brought kayaks to Greenland in ancient times. Of course, the original
true kayaks have bulkheads.

- Julio

> 
> In _Deep Trouble_ many of the accidents involved kayaks without
> bulkheads. Can anyone give me a good reason NOT to have bulkheads in
> a rigid kayak?
> 
> Chuck Holst
> 

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