: I am still reading SEA KAYAKER-DEEP TROUBLE, and most kayak deaths seems to
: be indirectly caused by hypothermia from cold water, leading to drowning
: or heart attact. So oviously the more time you have for self rescue or
: outside rescue before hypothermia sets in can be a life saver. What got my
: attention, was the story about two almost identical kayaking accidents
: that happened within a week of each other in 1991 at Kalaloch Beach on
: Washington's pacific coast. The two kayakers were spilled into the water
: that was in the low 50 degrees, and were in the water about the same
: amount of time. One was wearing a 1/8" farmer john wet suit while the
: other one was wearing a 1/4" diving wet suit, booties and diving
: hood. The wearer of the thinner wet suit was near hypothermia when
: reaching the beach while the other thicker wet suit kept this kayaker so
: warm that he had to take it off after reaching the beach. I think the
: diving hood was really important since we are told that most heat loss is
: from the head. I would also think that kayakers should carry a chocolate
: bar with them to eat while in the water for quick energy and the heat it
: would create.
: This is a good book.

I'm reading the same book and agree that protection against hypothermia, strong self rescue skills and a way of signalling distress (flares and/or radio)would have saved most of the kayakers profiled. I was also struck by the fact that very few incidents occured due to boat damage or failure (with the exception of the poor chap who had a run-in with a Great White.) As a builder, i find myself worrying about a strong enough glass/epoxy layup but would probably be better off improving my self-rescue techniques.

Jim