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Anchoring/Tying Off |
On the deck of my kayak, I have 2 12' lengths of 3/8" bungee cord with snap clips at each end. These are used to tie off to kelp or attach to my anchor line take up reel. Bungee is much more forgiving than regular rope when brought taunt by a passing swell. I always use both bungee lines whether tying off or anchoring. In the case of tying off, I have had occasions where one line has worked it's way loose but never both lines.
For an anchor, I carry a lead/stainless steel anchor that's commonly available at north coast dive shops. To that, I've added about 6' of anchor chain to which the anchor line is tied off. If this arrangement hits the bottom, it aint going anywhere. That said, I hate anchoring. About 1 in 10 times, the anchor hangs up and takes a lot of effort to work free. This is true even though I ALWAYS check the anchor at the beginning of my diving to make certain it's well placed and not stuck down some hole.
Given my druthers, I tie off to kelp.
On a related note, I always put out one of those Diver Down flags. There have been occasions (particularly in Monterey Bay) when a tied off kayak without the Diver Down flag was "rescued" because someone thought the kayak was abandoned. For this reason alone, a Diver Down flag is worth flying. An equally good reason is that it's often difficult to find your kayak when you come up from a dive. A Diver Down flag can help on occasion to shorten the process.
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Getting Back On |
Getting off a kayak and into the water never seems to raise nearly the level of concern from the uninitiated as the question of how to get back on the boat. For what it's worth, getting back on one of these boats is a piece of cake. There are couple of ways it can be done but the most reliable in all conditions is as follows:
- Grasp the edge of the boat about where your calves are located when you're sitting on the boat in paddling position.
- Floating your entire body on the surface, stretch completely out so that you're perpendicular and at arm's length to the boat .
- Using one strong kick while simultaneously pulling the boat to and under you, propel yourself over the top of the boat far enough so that you're draped half way across the boat. At this point, your head should be fully on one side of the boat and your knees on the other. This arrangement is extremely stable though somewhat dopey looking.
- The last move is to roll toward the rear of the boat. You should find that your butt will roll directly into the butt depression of the boat.
- Sit up. You'll be sitting on the kayak like you would a park bench.
That's it. Try it on land the first time. Then try it in shallow water a few times. When the light bulb clicks on that tells you "Hey, this is easy", you've got it.
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Righting an Overturned Boat |
When (not if) you get knocked off your boat and it ends upside-down, you'll soon begin wondering how to get it right side back up. This wondering becomes more intense with loaded boats that you've tried pushing back over a couple of times (hint: pushing it over doesn't work). Here's the trick to remember. From the middle of the boat, go over the top, grab the far edge of the boat and pull it back toward you. This "pulling" of the an overturned boat over is a few orders of magnitude easier than pushing it back over. I know because I've completed inadvertent but extensive field-testing of the miserable pushing style.
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Dive Gear |
The tank and BC are assembled on shore and strapped into one of the equipment wells. If you have no significant internal storage (Scrambler, Big Kahuna, etc.) then the rest of your gear is stowed in a bag and strapped down in the other equipment well. With the Scrambler style kayak, you'll probably only carry one tank at a time so there's no worry about changing tanks. With the Scupper Pro-/Prism-style kayaks, you might carry a 2nd tank (or even a 3rd in the Scupper Pro) that has to be changed out on the kayak between dives.
The problems changing out a tank are the same as those encountered by divers using Scupper Pro style boats without any equipment wells. Basically, the tank, BC, and regulator are assembled within the space provided by opening a hatch. Obviously, you're pretty vulnerable during this process, it's recommended that you have your fins on to increase stability and control. It's not recommended that you do this in rough conditions.
If you have internal storage for gear (Scupper Pro, Prism), my suggestion is that you remove one or two pieces of gear at a time, resecure the hatch, put the pieces on, reopen the hatch, get the next piece, ... It is kind of tedious but beats losing all your dive gear if the boat should roll. Note that most of the times I've fallen off my kayak have been while it is anchored and a swell comes through. Funny things can happen that turn out not to be very amusing.
As far as my routine, I paddle to a dive site with my dive jacket off. Paddling with a 7mm jacket on is very exhausting. Wearing a lighter wet suit, it's no problem paddling with a jacket on.
At the dive site, my first action is to put the tank overboard. Second, don my fins; with fins on, stability greatly increases. Then I'll go through the process of putting on gloves, hood, weight belt (I do it on the boat though it can be hung over the side and donned once you're in the water), and mask. I hang accessory gear off the side (flashlight, camera). Then I slip into the water. The BC is donned in the water. It's also doffed in the water at the end of a dive and secured to the kayak. I climb back up on the boat, get rid of the weight belt, mask, hood, and gloves. Then, using the leverage provided by my fins, thighs, and upper body, I drag the tank over the side onto the boat. If you have an equipment well (Scrambler, Big Kahuna, Scupper Pro with rear equipment well), this should be no problem for anyone able to pickup their own tank on dry land. Fins provide a surprising amount of leverage.
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Safety Notes |
Here are some safety tips I offer from past, personal lessons.
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Boat
handling in rough conditions should be something you get reasonably proficient
at. The easiest way to do this is to go play in the surf zone with a completely
empty boat. Be sure to remove all deck lines, wear a helmet, and be sure you've
a buddy watching you. With those precautions, kayak surfing (aka, butt surfing)
is a blast. - Life vests are required equipment by the Coast Guard. I always carry one but never ever use it. My wetsuit provides enough buoyancy while still allowing me the option of duck diving under should a boat propelled by a breaking wave be bearing down on me. Carrying the life vest is only to stay legal and avoid a ticket (something that's more commonly issued in places like Monterey than on the north coast).
- Helmets aren't usually necessary unless you're surfing, playing in rock gardens, or checking out sea caverns and tunnels. If you have a kayak but never surf, bang around wash rocks, or enter dank, dark places with booming echoes, you're missing half to three-quarters the fun. Get a helmet :^)
- I always keep my fins accessible on the deck of my kayak. I've needed them once when they were inside the boat and couldn't get to them. I won't ever make that mistake again.
- NEVER get between a loaded kayak and shore. The force of waves propelling a 40# kayak with 20# to 60# of gear can be very dangerous. On a related note, beware of crowded beaches where people are likely to "help" you during a landing. San Carlos Beach/The Breakwater in Monterey is a really good example of a place where everyone is quite friendly and unknowledgable enough to get seriously hurt helping you.
Last Modified: May 20, 2003
© 1998, 1999, 2003 Rocky Daniels
All
Rights Reserved.
