Re: [Paddlewise] Vertigo?

My wife and I  have occasionally  had this experience (especially Wendy  who
is always the bow paddler). It usually occurs on relatively "flatwater", or
calm water when the sky is reflected very strongly on the water's
surface.(But can also occur with a solid overcast, and light swells)  If
there is no nearby point to focus your eyes upon there is a sense of being
"suspended" between sky and water, and a sensation of "unrealness".  It
affects me a bit less, since I can focus on her back and the movement of her
paddle.

It makes you feel "dizzy".  It also feels (in my subjective opinion)
intensely pleasurable. There is a sensation of no longer being "apart"  (on)
from the water and  (under) the sky, instead there is  an intense feeling of
"oneness and inseparability"  from the environment. Euphoria, almost. But
even as a young child I remember the same sensation lying on my back looking
at the cumulus clouds drifting across the deep blue summer sky, on a hot
afternoon, and a belief that I was "falling" somehow upwards.

Now , I must confess, I did do a lot of "acid" in my youth...so I guess I
have always percieved this type of "disorientation" as proof that I was
getting  my moneys worth!  The same feeling I have today, when "it occurs in
the middle of a canoe trip.  "It" disappears  almost immediately when  a
strong external  stimulus occurs.

 I do believe that such a state might be dangerous for a fatigued paddle.
Similar to "falling asleep at the wheel".  Though , otherwise I guess I feel
it is an "achievement" rather than a "disordered state". Wendy has taken
photographs of the scene when she has felt this way. (She calls it
exhilarating...the photo's are disorientating also, as your eye searches for
an "upside"  and a "gravity side")

Just my experience.
Rich

----- Original Message -----
From: <JSpinner_at_aol.com>
To: <bkossy_at_igc.org>; <PaddleWise_at_paddlewise.net>
Sent: Monday, November 06, 2000 3:09 PM
Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Vertigo?


> <<If I  looked over my left shoulder, and out into the empty flat gray
bay, I
> had a
>  sensation that could only be compared with looking into a deep elevator
> shaft, or over a sheer cliff into infinity. I felt I was loosing my
balance.>>
>
> I know EXACTLY what you mean. I've got this kind of agoriphobia (I think
> that's the term) over open water too. It used to hit me as I drove. If I
came
> on open water all of the sudden I'd just about panic with the feeling of
> suddenly falling. I'd look away to clear my head. If I knew it was coing
I'd
> be a bit fearful as it came up but as soon as I was there I was okay.
Being
> around it more has made it easier over time.
>     I'm not so effeced when I'm in my boat because I can see shore, even
if
> it is far way. I've never been far enough from land that I couldn't see
it. I
> hope you get a good answer because this is one of the things that keeps me
> from even considering real sea kayaking. I can go out on the Chesapeake
Bay
> but that isn't wide enough that I can't see land in the places we paddle.
>
> Joan Spinner
>



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