: My thoughts are that
: if swamped, I can easily craw back into the boat over the side without
: rolling and paddle a very stabe boat filled with water quickly to shore
: and build a fire for warmth or to get help. Not every one has a boat as
: wide as mine and can not build in the side floation but maybe the long
: narrow kayaks could put foam flotation along the upper inside length of
: the kayaks.

John,

I hate to be a nay-sayer, but I don't think your floatation is going to do what you expect. Since it's on the inside of the hull, it probably won't offer much, if any, additional stability for re-entering after a capsize, except in the case that the cockpit is completely swamped (which is rarely the case). It WILL reduce the amount of water that the cockpit can hold, which is certainly beneficial, and as you say, it will provide additional dry storage.

Also, I've paddled a swamped boat and unless you get most of the water out, you don't go anywhere quickly. I suspect that this is the reason that most rescues emphasize getting back into the boat quickly and getting it bailed out ASAP. There's also the hypothermia causing effect of sitting in cold water. It's certainly not as bad as swimming, but it's not as good as being in a dry boat, either. Overall, I would suggest that paddling a swamped boat should be a last resort, not a planned part of a self-rescue technique.