How many times have you ended up in the drink?

[lowangle al]

I read in another post that Glen M. hasn't flipped a canoe on flat water since 1984 and was wondering what other people have experienced. I'm not talking about when doing WW or when pushing the limits when we know flipping is a possibility, but the unexpected flip in calm water.

There were only three times that I ended up in the water unexpectedly. The first time was in 76' before I had any paddling experience or training when my loaded canoe ran broadside to a tree in moving water, I don't really count this one. The second time was in a loaded canoe in rapids with a new bow partner and I don't count this one either. The third time I was fishing with my son when he switched sides of the boat unexpectedly and I fell out, but the boat stayed upright.

Of those three times I would say I only ended up in the water once in 40 years on flat water. I do own a solo boat but most of my paddling is done in wide tandems. I was wondering what others have experienced.

 

[Odyssey]

Does falling into the lake at a take-out/put-in count? (Please say no.)

 

[frozentripper]

I really can't recall even one instance of totally falling out in flatwater, tandem or solo, since starting about 1970... the first time I tried the new and tippy Huron stripper, I partially swamped, and came close once or twice while fishing with the fish causing problems.

Paddling in cold water is a great motivator for not falling out, don't even think about letting your attention wander if you're far from shore. Sort of like driving on a two-lane highway with the approaching traffic closing at certain-death speed if you stray into the oncoming lane, that isn't going to happen.

 

[Canotrouge]

I think last time was maybe 16 years ago wile paddling a Clipper version of a J-193... That thing was so tipi even compared to a real J-193 or the Crozier I got after. I wasn't far from shore, but it was a cold day and I remember that it was a tough swim to shore... I got rid of that boat and got a used Crozier and it was great boat that I regret selling!!

 

[yellowcanoe]

Sure. Squall. Also outflow on Lake Superior and several times at the put in or getting out
No shame.
Most common though is flipping when looking backwards

I'm a kayaker too. Learning to kayak entails learning to flip and recover.
Cancers would rather avoid the whole thing. That I think is unwise. Do some practice flips at the beach

 

[Sweetfancymoses]

Once, about 5 years ago in a too small for my weight racing canoe 30' from the put-in.

 

[BWCA66]

Twice I rolled 1st use solos as I was getting in. In hindsight probably because I was somewhat unfamiliar with the boat and probably didn't have it loaded correctly. Can't recall ever dumping or falling out on anything else other than whitewater.

 

[dougd]

Once 20 odd years ago on the Baker River with friends. I was in the lead and they said I just tipped and flipped the boat! I swear the adult beverages had nothing to do with that!! Then another time with McCrea on the Gunpowder River, I think, after a very short portage, while trying to get back in the boat! I believe McCrea has a picture of that somewhere! Boy, did I ever catch some grief from that crew!

 

[gumpus]

Twice. Once while test paddling a tandem many years ago when a big set of waves came in (maybe from a far away powerboat) and hit us broadside at the put-in. Once on a New Year's Day paddle in a Flashfire when I let a guy go in front of me on a fast and narrow section of river and he decided to immediately stop and play right in front of me and I swamped the boat when I slammed on the brakes. Good lesson for me.

 

[snapper]

Years ago I was leading a trip for another college. About 2/3 of the way up the lake we had a student just lean over the bow of her canoe and heave everything. This young woman was so sick she essentially became too weak to paddle. We did a mid-lake transfer of my bow partner into her canoe and her into mine. We finished up the lake with me paddling solo; which was fine with me. When we got to the carry we pulled up to shore. It was a narrow opening so I had another canoe unload first so there would be someone there to help her out of our canoe. Long story short, she was so weak that when she tried getting out of the canoe her foot caught on the gunwale, dropping the side of the canoe and flipping me into about 4' of water. I really felt badly for her because she was so apologetic. I knew she didn't mean it and eventually we were able to get her to laugh about it.

Honestly, the whole thing happened so fast I didn't even realize what had gone on until I came up for air. Being May, it was quite "refreshing" to say the least!

That's all for now. Take care and until next time...be well.

snapper

 

[Guest]

I read in another post that Glen M. hasn't flipped a canoe on flat water since 1984 and was wondering what other people have experienced. I'm not talking about when doing WW or when pushing the limits when we know flipping is a possibility, but the unexpected flip in calm water.

Of those three times I would say I only ended up in the water once in 40 years on flat water

Careful what you say Glenn. DougD proclaimed that he had not swum from a canoe in 15 years before a gentlewaters trip and proceeded to perform an ungainly flat water wet exit for a crowd of witnesses.

I do not consider 90% of what I paddle to constitute “whitewater”. I do paddle moving water Class 1 and low 2, but the water is not yet frothy white. I have yet to swim in those low class waters, probably because I am paying attention. I don’t want to recount every swim, but I can ascribe the causes of most.

The most common cause has always been inattention, always coupled with other factor(s). The most common result was been me wet, sometimes sputtering surprised in knee high water, with the canoe remaining upright and largely dry.

The “other factors”. Round or elliptically bottomed canoes, with no foot brace, back band or knee bumpers to help hold me in place, and/or a too-high seat position to keep my inattentive noggin inside the gunwale confines.

In three of the more surprising swims I was using a cheap plastic “seat back”. One of these awful things:

https://www.google.com/search?q=can...i=xveeWdHyNoaxmQHm-K6gAQ#imgrc=OptpjjrCY1ILhM:

Those seat backs are not held in lateral position on the seat frame, so when the canoe tilts sideways / the seat back slides to one side. As, ever so briefly, does the paddler. That abrupt tilt dislodgement saw me depart the canoe on multiple oops occasions; once on an eddy line, once when sideways in open water chop and once when I ran one edge of the canoe bottom up on a barely submerged root.

I got rid of those awful seat backs. Really awful; beside the side slippage factor the plastic notches that hold the seatback (not very well) in place can poke up and bust cane seats. Terrible design, not even worth the $10 cost. And yeah, we used them for far too long.

I have not swum (as often) since discovering my test paddle criteria for canoe primary stability. If I cannot turn my head and (not-so-limber and not-so-small) torso to look 180 degrees behind me without a brace, or cannot reach behind the seat, grab a day bag of gear and swing it over the gunwales and up front (no one hand brace possible) that isn’t the canoe for inattentive me.

 

[riverstrider]

I've gone swimming about a dozen times in whitewater, while kayaking difficult water, but that doesn't count.

Plenty of times over the side horsing around in the boyscouts. One memorable trip down the narrow, muddy Chipuxet River there were no survivors...we all went over at least twice or more while trying to tip each other over. Good times.

I've "stepped out" a couple times while poling, so of course those do not count as swims.

One time I flipped in some funny water on a flood stage river (yes, I know it was stupid) and nearly got flushed into a mega-strainer. That was as close to getting killed on the water as I ever want to be. My boat required major repairs, but I was fine after a half dozen beers.

My most memorable spill occurred when Mrs. Riverstrider and I had recovered someone's neoprene glove from the water of a spring trip down the Willimantic River in CT. We pulled into an eddy to transfer the glove to its owner, both grabbed a shrub on the bank, seemed stable, and then somehow, in a flash, we tipped towards the bank and were in! Hoo man that was cold! Fortunately we had a dry bag of clothes so we streaked into the woods to change.

Finally, after one embarrassing flip on a local river, I adopted Doug D's bailer-method of getting rid of excess body water while in a boat.

-rs

 

[pblanc]

Paddling whitewater I have come out of boats more times than I can remember, certainly numbering in the hundreds of times. I'm sure that I have slipped and fallen, or tipped over getting into, or out of a boat in the past, but I can't recall a specific incident.

On flat water or relatively easy (Class I) moving water I can recollect three instances in which I fell in quite unexpectedly. Once back around 1991 on a lake in totally calm water, I reached behind me rather quickly for a rain jacket when it started to drizzle and found myself in the water before I could react.

On another instance a couple of years ago, I was paddling away from the bank in Class I water in a whitewater canoe that was known for a considerable degree of instability that had a very high pedestal as well. I had not yet settled down into the pedestal so my center of gravity was quite high. I intended to back (set) into an eddy and wait until my friend had gotten into his boat and launched. Again, when I looked behind me I fell in.

On another instance I was trying out a friend's canoe that was a bit unfamiliar to me and crossing some eddy lines on the Class I Current River in Missouri. I will admit to having rather more Foster's Lager during the lunch break, and sampling perhaps a bit more Irish Whisky than might have been prudent under the circumstances. I crossed an eddy line and lifted a knee thinking that there was a set of thigh straps in the boat. There were no straps and the knee kept on coming up as I fell over the gunwale into the eddy.

 

[Guest]

OK, segue on this thread. Most memorable swim. We have heard a few true confessions already.

Not counting a funny lettuce brain fart when I managed to capsize the Sockeye, mere minutes after saying “I could fall over dead in this thing and stay dry” (again, watch what you say, and beware the overproof whole body Indica strains), my first ever swim remains the most memorable, and that was more than 50 years ago. It was directed, not inadvertent, and I have told this tale before.

1965 or ‘66, paddling bow in a Grumman with my father in the stern. Ed was fond of running small rivers and creeks with nothing more than a State Highway map from the Esso station. We ran Deer Creek. Through the Piedmont Fall Line, which guidebooks now describe as “A short, violent series of narrow chutes. Considering the strong potential for broaching. . . . .”

(BTW, Ed soon after bought his first paddling guidebook. I still own it, a 21 page “Guide to Maryland Canoe Trips”. More helpful than an Esso map, but just barely. Still has a price sticker; $1)

We ran the fall line. Well, Ed ran it. We broached on a rock at the top of the chutes, Ed snapped his paddle trying to pry us free and issued the still memorable command “Toss me your paddle and get out!”.

I obeyed instantly. The bow popped free and Ed ran the chutes. I swam them in my orange horsecollar PFD. We were both successful; he was dry.

There is a road on river right, close beside the river, a popular pull off for sightseers and picnickers. One of us, I still believe it was me, received a round of applause from the hillside spectators. And I know for a memorable fact that Ed gave me a bag of M&M’s when I exited the pool at the bottom as a reward. heck, I still remember how the candy coating melted in my wet hands.

The slender guidebook purchase was actually a mistake; Ed found within a couple of (poorly described) rivers he hadn’t considered, and proceeded to pin and wrap a series of Grummans and Ward’s Sea Kings. One of those bent Sea Kings was with me for years.

I doubt I’ve had my last memorable swim, but that one will be hard to beat.

 

[sweeper]

Does falling into the lake at a take-out/put-in count? (Please say no.)

With inexperienced women involved (Please say no.)

 

[saltandsky]

A few unexpected swim lessons.

Fit The First: Working my way up a swollen river, I caught the bow on a low hanging branch while exiting an eddy creating a wrong way lean and instant swim.

Fit The Second: Misjudged the force of a side stream feeding into a narrow river. Got pushed into a small strainer in only about a foot of water and performed a wet exit from the Wildfire.

Fit The Third: Getting into the canoe while trying to keep my feet clean at a muddy landing I leapt off a rock a little too vigorously, had a brief moment in the canoe before proceeding into the water on the far side.

 

[Odyssey]

Officially, no capsizes so far. Tho' we've come close. Our canoe paddled empty is a tightrope beyond twitchy. Maybe our seats are too high. Or maybe we're just old newbs struggling to remember and relearn how to keep high and dry. Problem with lowering our seats is they'd likely feel too low when we're loaded for a trip, which is how and when we paddle 90% of the time. The twitchiness is tamed by our tripping load but never disappears entirely. Nervous newbs?
Unofficially I've wetted my bum too many times to count. Where is that candid camera? Oops and stumble getting in or out amongst waves and slippery rocks, but only one full emersion that I can remember. Complete plunge up to the eyeball kinda thing; in the rain with raincoat and hat. The absurdity made me laugh, being wetter under the coat than outside of it, and having to drain my clothes and totally wring myself out. Her on the other hand only one full dunking trying to climb aboard from a high grassy bank. I should've kept the canoe steadier I know. I've learned that lesson and have been paying for that ever since. And I've also learned to keep the camera closer at hand, you never know when that candid shot will happen.

ps . The slip and slide into Marshall doesn't count.

 

[Canotrouge]

Like other said, I did a lot of swimming wile paddling ww and I still do lol... And if you don'T it's because you don'T try to get better... Different story for flat water.

 

[JackL]

A few times here and there, but the most memorable was about five or six years ago in the Adirondack 90 miler in Browns Tract which is a very narrow twisty waterway. I was in our Jensen 17 tandem with the best bow paddler in the world, (my wife).
We were flying and kept passing boats, and on one turn where she was leaning way over doing a post, for some unexplained reason except for my stupidity, I leaned over on the same side, and we were over in a heart beat. As we headed for the bank, one by one all the boats that we passed came easing by, offering to help and naturally each paddler had a grin on.

Jack L

 

[Odyssey]

I was in our Jensen 17 tandem with the best bow paddler in the world, (my wife).
Jack L

Well played my friend.