Sea kayaking is a wonderful way of journeying on a wild element into remote and remarkable places, some of them far away, many of them right under our noses. The sea is always impressive, often dangerous and always to be respected. It is engaging with this that makes our sport so fascinating, right from the get go from the earliest stages. A difficult river always looks difficult – the sea hides its secrets; an offshore wind can entice anyone literally out of their comfort zone to certain hazard.
There are 4 elements to keeping yourself safe: knowledge, skill, equipment and communication.
- Know where you are going- Do your homework- information- wind direction and strength, coast nature and orientation, tides, features….forecast …decisions- fitness and skill…who you are with…what they can do. Have a look at the list below and form a list habit-‘ WWLOG’-weather, water, land, other, group
- Skill – know what level you are at, practise skills, be as fit as you can manage and rehearse rescue techniques. If you have not paddled with someone before it is best to assume they can do less than you until you see otherwise (talk is cheap).
- The above will need kit- properly outfitted boats to allow you to paddle, wearing clothing for the swim not the paddle, food to fuel your efforts, kit to cope with events, to call for help when you can’t. If it isn’t to hand then it doesn’t exist. A day hatch is a beach hatch- the stuff you need when things get lively needs to be on you or within reach, using one hand.
- Talk to people about what you plan to do, get advice, talk and listen to each other. Always pitch the plan to the least able. The most common problem on the water is people not staying close enough together to talk, especially when situations begin to evolve. Tell the right people where you are going and when you expect to return- I always tell the coastguard. Carry at least 3 different means of calling for help- across electronic, pyrotechnic and physical means (whistle, mobile phone in bag, flares, strobe, torch, vhf, plb, spot, mirror…there’s plenty!!).
Paddling alone has a much smaller safety margin than in a group. It’s not wrong, just has more risk. Paddling in a group who are out of their comfort zone (or contact) is the same as paddling alone. Pay real attention to group cohesion- eye contact with other members every 2 minutes!
In the early stages matching your skill to the conditions requires judgement (even after 30+ years I still wonder if I have that much…). It is such fun finding out, and you learn it fastest by getting out with others.
Here are a few links to help you:
- Knowledge – Body, boat, blade International do a good checklist for risk assessment- it tells you what you need to have thought about, I carry it on my deck to remind me of what I might forget to think about. The checklist can be found here Body Boat Blade Risk Assessment Checklist.
- Skill – here’s a video link to help you begin to get a frame of reference on conditions. (Put far too simply-Force 2-3 give sea state 2, F4 gives sea state 3, F 5 gives sea state 4). Sea States for Sea Kayakers
Tony Hammock does a great description of skill levels- this helps you fit yourself to the conditions in the above video. Skill Levels - Equipment – there is an army of people posting videos to make you buy or get stuff. Here is a link for a good solid list from Zoe Newsam Sea Kayak Expedition Packing List
- Communication – here’s a link to an article which talks about lots of aspects of paddling including groups and independence Multi-day Trips by Sea Kayak
I have paddled for a long time, in many places and occasionally in some challenging conditions. It was never the serious stuff that was the problem, it was not knowing what I didn’t know (or had failed to notice) that led to the epics….!
Hope this whets your appetite – ours is such a fascinating sport!!
David Simpson