Re: [Paddlewise] Whirlpool advice on Paddling.Net

From: Rich Kulawiec <rsk_at_rockandwater.net>
Date: Thu, 20 Dec 2007 09:44:46 -0500
On Wed, Dec 19, 2007 at 09:03:02AM -0800, Craig Jungers wrote:
> It takes a pretty big movement of water to produce a whirlpool sea
> kayakers are likely to encounter but some areas (Deception Pass north
> of Seattle is one) are more prone to them than others.

Whirlpools are occasionally found on high-volume/flood-stage rivers -- one
of the more notable examples being the Niagara River below the falls, where
they're powerful enough to suck canoes/kayaks completely underwater.  I've
seen them below Greyhound Bus Stopper in the New River Gorge (WV) in an area
that whitewater author William Nealy called "ZFW" -- "Zone of Funny Water" --
one of those places populated by boils, moving eddylines, and other weird
phenomena.  They can be abrupt enough to flip boaters who were good enough
to make it down all the preceding rapids upright, but happily (at normal
flow levels) they're nowhere near strong or persistent enough to consitute
a serious hazard.

---Rsk
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Received on Thu Dec 20 2007 - 07:58:50 PST

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