PLEASE READ - Do a risk assessment!
Jan 4, 2010 12:58:14 GMT -1
Post by seaapprentice on Jan 4, 2010 12:58:14 GMT -1
I have posted my response to a thread / topic on anglersafloat website ' Two yakkers off Rossall Point'. PLEASE READ IT AND THINK ABOUT YOUR KAYAK FISHING. I love my fishing but over the past few days I have seriously re thought the risks I am willing to take for my passion.
Thank you all for your concern regarding are safety, Karen and I are safe and sound. As the report from the MDAC website indicated it was a very dangerous situation and we are very grateful for the assistant received from the Morecambe fishing boats.
Thankfully, the safety drills we had practiced (it's nothing like the real situation but it helps the brain function on the important things you need to do) and the safety equipment we had prevented TWO DEATHS. The leashes that attached us too our kayak SAVED OUR LIVES! Without these we would have been seperated from our kayak and well who knows. I did not use my radio because I knew we were within clear sight of one of the fishing boats and the seconds count when you are in freezing cold winter seas. I made the decision to scramble onto the kayak to make raise the alarm. The fact that I had the radio attached to my PFD was a massive reassurance that I am sure prevented any panic setting in. Unfortunately my leash had come off whilst scrambling onto the kayak so again a made an important decision not to right the kayak, if I would have lost my grip on the kayak during this operation I would have been washed away. Its a tough call to make when you have a loved one still in the freezing sea, but fortunately it was the right call. I don't know how long we were in the water but our clothing did its job.
I don't want to go into the in's and out's or the why and how right now. Nor be subject to a discussion of the wisdom of being out on the sea trying to fish at that time and place. I can answer them right now in hindsight. In short NO! We should not have tried anchoring that far offshore in that tide! Was I reckless, NO! I knew the sea was lumpy with a wind against tide, however I have successfully anchored before in these conditions? My safety vision was blurred by the cod catches that had been coming out off this mark, just enough to place us in danger - ANGLERS BEWARE!
Just to wind it up, I cannot tell you how quickly our situation changed to that of peril. I have run it through my mind thousands of times the seconds leading upto the accident - YES SECONDS! It happened that quickly. No time to cut the anchor rope, that gut wrenching feeling that you are in trouble and need to react - Over you go as quick as it as taken me to write this sentence.
A BIG THANK YOU TO THE FLEETWOOD COASTGUARD! We may have been brought to safety by the fishing boat but without there help once on land we may have been in bed right now with a fever or flu. Once on the beach we were a mile from our car in sub zero wind chill, we needed there help.
Cheers Andrew - Stay safe and a Happy New Year.
There are many comments made on this thread / topic on the website that are well worth reading, many great opinions on the safety of kayak fishing. This is my final comment that I have just entered to summarise my feelings regarding the incident and kayak fishing.
Thanks everybody again for the comments made. You will be glad to know that we will not be selling our kayak on ebay. However, we will not be fishing at anchor on the sea again. We have anchored fishing propably 30 times, only once have we had a little scare on retrieval. I don't want to scare new comers to the sport because we have enjoyed some really good fishing catching Rays over 11lb at anchor. There are many other people who are far more qualified to talk about the in' and out's of anchoring at sea than me, I am only giving my perspective.
In my opinion, kayak fishing has quite a lot of risks associated with it. Fishing in winter sea's increases the risk add to that anchoring and you have increased the risks substancially. Karen and I talked about these risks before every winter trip and also what we would do should we capsize. A kind of 'What if ?' game and what would we do. In our eyes the risks associated with winter sea fishing are to high, therefore our fishing will be restricted to drift fishing between the months of May and September on neap to medium tides. This reduces the risk factor considerably.
1) If you capsize in higher water temperatures you have more time too regain control of the situation and it is a lot easier to right your kayak and re enter in less clothing ( less bulkier and heavy ).
2) Lower risk of capsizing without using an anchor.
3) Avioding spring tides uses less of your energy fighting the flow whilst carrying out your safety procedure.
It severely resticts our sea fishing but I am looking forward to exploring the coarse fishing possibilities. Would I use an anchor on a lake or river? I think, Yes in time. It was the combination of the strength of the tide and sea swell that capsized us. Neither of which are present to anywhere near the severity that are encounted at sea!
Our sport has a risk factor, it makes you feel alive! But it is a controlled risk that individual anglers need to assess and fish in the environment they feel safe in. I am off to the newagents now to buy a pike & perch fishing magazine. Life goes on and need to go fishing. Once you have got the kayak fishing bug its very difficult to go back to fishing from the shore.
Cheers Andrew & Karen
Thank you all for your concern regarding are safety, Karen and I are safe and sound. As the report from the MDAC website indicated it was a very dangerous situation and we are very grateful for the assistant received from the Morecambe fishing boats.
Thankfully, the safety drills we had practiced (it's nothing like the real situation but it helps the brain function on the important things you need to do) and the safety equipment we had prevented TWO DEATHS. The leashes that attached us too our kayak SAVED OUR LIVES! Without these we would have been seperated from our kayak and well who knows. I did not use my radio because I knew we were within clear sight of one of the fishing boats and the seconds count when you are in freezing cold winter seas. I made the decision to scramble onto the kayak to make raise the alarm. The fact that I had the radio attached to my PFD was a massive reassurance that I am sure prevented any panic setting in. Unfortunately my leash had come off whilst scrambling onto the kayak so again a made an important decision not to right the kayak, if I would have lost my grip on the kayak during this operation I would have been washed away. Its a tough call to make when you have a loved one still in the freezing sea, but fortunately it was the right call. I don't know how long we were in the water but our clothing did its job.
I don't want to go into the in's and out's or the why and how right now. Nor be subject to a discussion of the wisdom of being out on the sea trying to fish at that time and place. I can answer them right now in hindsight. In short NO! We should not have tried anchoring that far offshore in that tide! Was I reckless, NO! I knew the sea was lumpy with a wind against tide, however I have successfully anchored before in these conditions? My safety vision was blurred by the cod catches that had been coming out off this mark, just enough to place us in danger - ANGLERS BEWARE!
Just to wind it up, I cannot tell you how quickly our situation changed to that of peril. I have run it through my mind thousands of times the seconds leading upto the accident - YES SECONDS! It happened that quickly. No time to cut the anchor rope, that gut wrenching feeling that you are in trouble and need to react - Over you go as quick as it as taken me to write this sentence.
A BIG THANK YOU TO THE FLEETWOOD COASTGUARD! We may have been brought to safety by the fishing boat but without there help once on land we may have been in bed right now with a fever or flu. Once on the beach we were a mile from our car in sub zero wind chill, we needed there help.
Cheers Andrew - Stay safe and a Happy New Year.
There are many comments made on this thread / topic on the website that are well worth reading, many great opinions on the safety of kayak fishing. This is my final comment that I have just entered to summarise my feelings regarding the incident and kayak fishing.
Thanks everybody again for the comments made. You will be glad to know that we will not be selling our kayak on ebay. However, we will not be fishing at anchor on the sea again. We have anchored fishing propably 30 times, only once have we had a little scare on retrieval. I don't want to scare new comers to the sport because we have enjoyed some really good fishing catching Rays over 11lb at anchor. There are many other people who are far more qualified to talk about the in' and out's of anchoring at sea than me, I am only giving my perspective.
In my opinion, kayak fishing has quite a lot of risks associated with it. Fishing in winter sea's increases the risk add to that anchoring and you have increased the risks substancially. Karen and I talked about these risks before every winter trip and also what we would do should we capsize. A kind of 'What if ?' game and what would we do. In our eyes the risks associated with winter sea fishing are to high, therefore our fishing will be restricted to drift fishing between the months of May and September on neap to medium tides. This reduces the risk factor considerably.
1) If you capsize in higher water temperatures you have more time too regain control of the situation and it is a lot easier to right your kayak and re enter in less clothing ( less bulkier and heavy ).
2) Lower risk of capsizing without using an anchor.
3) Avioding spring tides uses less of your energy fighting the flow whilst carrying out your safety procedure.
It severely resticts our sea fishing but I am looking forward to exploring the coarse fishing possibilities. Would I use an anchor on a lake or river? I think, Yes in time. It was the combination of the strength of the tide and sea swell that capsized us. Neither of which are present to anywhere near the severity that are encounted at sea!
Our sport has a risk factor, it makes you feel alive! But it is a controlled risk that individual anglers need to assess and fish in the environment they feel safe in. I am off to the newagents now to buy a pike & perch fishing magazine. Life goes on and need to go fishing. Once you have got the kayak fishing bug its very difficult to go back to fishing from the shore.
Cheers Andrew & Karen
