Re: [Paddlewise] Staying with the kayak

Mike, I have and do swim with my kayak. I use my boat-to-person tether. Any 
other tow line/deck painter will work, but a quick release is probably 
wiser. I find swimming my boat to not really inhibit swimming in general. 
Once tired, especially in a PFD swimming, I often revert to the back stroke 
which keeps the waves from smashing in my face. I don't think I'd ever leave 
my boat and swim without it for any reason. I've talked with the Coat Guard 
fellows and they agree one should never normally abandon their kayak. 
Routine,none-extremis swimming of my kayak usually is done to clear rough 
hydraulics after tossing my boat into the sea from a none-seal launchable 
site, or if I'm practicing self re-entries and blow it and need to get to a 
bit calmer water. I've often toyed with the idea of swim fins being carried 
on my back deck, readily available. With my decreased swimming endurance as 
I age, the proposition is looking better at outfitting myself thusly.

Good to hear you talk openly about your prudent period of pupilage working 
up to your first 100 hours.

A lot of kayaking is premised on going out and figuring it out yourself. 
That's just how I got the archives to the digest list. :-)

Doug Lloyd

Mike said (snip):

>I just posted about finding the archives. What I am hoping the recent 
>thread about "swim for it" will answer is simply:
>
>  Is there a time one would abandon their boat when all else has failed? 
> You are wearing your wet/dry suit, PFD, properly dressed for water temp, 
> but for some reason you cannot get back in.
>
>  Logic, w/o experience, says to me to stay with the boat, it is larger, 
> therefore easier for the rescuers to see..
>
>  I think I'd use the line I carry with me to tie myself to the boat if I 
> felt there was a chance of separation. What is the error in this thinking?
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