Lost at Sea

Forecast was 25-35 Knots SW (Observations put the wind more at WSW 15 to 22 Knots, apart from North Head which was much stronger). The water temperature was around 17 degrees. This is my version of events and is the write up I submitted to The NSWSKC Magazine in the hope others can learn from our experience.

It is important to note that the forecast was so far outside club trip guidelines that any comparison or parallel to a club trip must be dismissed outright. This trip was in an entirely different category and in no way represents the activities of the NSWSKC as it had absolutely nothing in common with a club trip. We just happen to be club members but that's the only connection.

Mark, Andrew, Matt

We left Clontarf with the intention of using the strong Sou Westerly to paddle and sail to Pittwater, an open sea trip of about 40 km's. Still in the harbour I put up my sail and something failed so we pulled into Cobblers Beach where I used a spare hose clamp to affect a repair. As soon as we rounded North Head I was off, the wind being accelerated around the headland was very strong. A few minutes later I heard a whistle. Marks mast had bent badly. We rafted up and Andrew and I tried to bend it back into shape – it wasn’t going to happen and we discussed going into Shelly Beach for repairs. Mark decided against it and so we agreed to zig zag around him and wait for him periodically as we continued on towards our goal.

It was an excellent day for sailing. We were making good progress and really speeding along. The westerly gusts often had us out wide and after a run eastward I would battle across the wind westward and towards Marks line. We were always within site of one another and I commented to Andrew that we were probably each other’s biggest hazard out there as I often had to put in some big stern rudders to avoid colliding with him as I screamed down a wave behind him. I resolved to keep a bit more distance and give myself a clearer run.

At around 1330, the wind picked up, gusting from the west. I found myself having some exhilarating rides. I was really coming to terms with the boat now and this was the time to push it, to see how much I could control it, under sail in strong conditions. I was totally engaged, and although I knew I needed to head in soon I found it hard to resist staying with the waves and heading further out – I figured slogging back across later would be worth it for a bit more excitement, and after all, Mark had no sail so it would be fair on him too. I had a period of serious sailing, with the bow pearling and water spraying off the bow - I had my camera video rolling and have some spectacular clips. Racing yachts healing hard and flying towards me made for a formidable sight and I suspect fragmented our group even more as we each chose our own course clear of the oncoming behemoths. I headed out even further. Eventually I began heading west, expecting Mark to be over there and Andrew to be somewhere between us both or maybe even further in. I couldn’t see either of them. I put in and paddled across the wind, the sail losing much of its effect. I searched for Andrew behind me as with his sail and speed it was he who was the wild card. I knew Mark, the machine, would be to my left slugging away in a relatively straight line. Andrew could be anywhere, but as always, he should pop up soon. I paddled on anxious to regroup. I eventually spotted Mark, further ahead than where I had expected him to be and paddled hard to try and catch up. As he was still well west of my position, and with the wind coming from the WSW my sail didn’t give me as much help as I would have liked and I dug deep to try and intercept him, increasingly worried now that Andrew was not with him. I got to within a hundred metres or so and blew my whistle and yelled but on this rough and windy day Mark didn’t hear or see me and paddled on. I got my marine radio and called “Baidarka” which is Andrew’s call sign and after no response I tried calling Mark but he too had not turned on his VHF.

I laboured a 180 degree turn, took off my sun glasses and scanned the sea – the dread rose inside me as I came to the realisation that what I had been suspecting for the last five minutes or so was now a distinct reality – Andrew was lost, and it had been a long time since I’d last seen him. I made a frenzied attempt to paddle into the wind.

At 1413, I radioed Marine Rescue. In strong terms I relayed the situation and made it clear that there was a missing kayaker, probably in the water and that a call should be put out immediately to all boats in the area, especially those yachts that had recently passed us in a race. This call was made on CH 16 as much to go out to local traffic as to go to Marine Rescue. I paddled hard into the wind, making little progress and seeing nothing in my field of view. A call came through to me from the rescue vessel and I explained that as they head south from Barrenjoey Head they should come across two kayakers, if there is only one, as I suspected, the missing person is confirmed. They called me back soon afterwards and indicated that there was only one kayaker. I was now very worried, knowing that Andrew was indeed lost and probably in a perilous situation. Another call came through to me from Marine Rescue Vessel Cottage Point indicating that “a kayaker had been taken on board a yacht”. I was mightily relieved. They asked for my position and as I turned north I could see them stopped, probably next to Mark. My mobile rang, I dug it out of the day hatch and it was Rob Mercer, confirming that Andrew had been rescued by a yacht. Apparently Andrew had called Rob using one of the crew’s phones. With sail up I sped toward the rescue vessel and they confirmed that a kayaker had been picked up. They offered mark and I a tow but we politely refused. We saw a large shark off Barrenjoey but oddly enough we didn’t take much notice. The two of us then paddled back to our finish point within Pittwater. I logged Mark and me off with Marine Rescue Sydney at 1634.

As Rob had told me that Andrew called him I assumed Andrew had his phone (and boat) with him. We were shocked later when I again spoke to Rob, and learned that Andrew’s boat had been abandoned at sea.

Lessons learned (My perspective)

These are peer group paddles conducted completely informally and run in conditions exceeding what is generally accepted as safe conditions for sea kayaking. I have always seen these as being completely different from club paddles – I don’t anymore and will use what I have learned within the club for all my paddles, club or private. We have managed incidents on exactly the same route in even rougher conditions before and may have gotten a bit complacent. Andrew is a competent paddler and is generally looked upon as the one who is looking out for the group rather than the one to be watched – It is a mistake to think anyone is beyond needing help.

We carry a full suite of safety equipment. On this occasion we all had VHF radios, mobile phones, flares and PLB’s. We need to have a procedure put in place so that the minute anyone is out of sight VHF’s are turned on. This simple act could have alerted us to Andrew’s position, possibly with the help of a flare, and we could have dealt with the situation ourselves.

Sails can make boats move very fast in strong winds. Sails are supercharging the risks. Where normally group spread happens gradually and even predictably, sailing in strong following conditions can have kayaks move hundreds of metres apart in minutes. When one does capsize with a sail, self rescues are made much more complex. We will need to practice our self rescue procedures in the rough stuff, with the sails.

Andrew had his helmet cam going throughout his capsize and rescue. It is sobering viewing, watching a man struggle into hypothermia as he gallantly tries and fails over and over to re-enter his kayak. If it wasn’t for the yacht Andrew could have died. I am going to now adopt a strict 5 minute rule for all these situations:

1. Immediately on losing sight of a colleague out comes the VHF radio

2. If I can’t find my colleagues within 5 minutes I’ll call for help

3. If its me in the water, I’ll attempt to renter for 5 minutes or three times before I activate the VHF and call assistance from my fellow kayakers. Only once my position is relayed, possibly by flare, will I continue to attempt a self rescue

4. If the VHF fails, I’d use the mobile, if that failed I’d use a flare and finally the PLB followed by more flares

5. I’d only continue attempting self rescue once contact with colleagues, rescue agencies or other vessels were notified of my position or all efforts to contact them had been exhausted.

After watching Andrew’s struggle through his helmet cam, it becomes clear that the chances of successful self rescue will be diminished as time goes by. Its better to get the communications done early because as Andrews situation demonstrates, you might simply not have the presence of mind to even use your equipment if you struggle in the water for too long. If this sounds like overkill, you should see Andrews forty minute video!

PS Offshore winds continued for the next couple of weeks so the prospect of Andrews kayak washing ashore (at least in Australia) has become less likley.

Trashed off Killcare

Have you ever paddled past one of those big breaking Bomboras and wondered what would happen if you got caught up in one? On a recent trip from Brooklyn to Maitland Bay three of us found out - the hard way.

Joanne & Mark, Paul, Kate and I left Parsley Bay at Brooklyn with the aim of going to Maitland Bay and back, a trip of about 40 KM. The day was overcast with a few showers and the wind, while predicted to be up to 25 Knots (Seal Rocks to Broken Bay) was between 10 and 20 and blowing from the South East. The Sea was white capped and there was a solid 3 metre swell. We paddled through bumpy conditions to Maitland Bay where there were some good rides to be had on the swell entering the bay. Logically we would have landed in the Southern corner but as we approached the beach it looked as if it was the Northern end that would offer the easiest landing, probably because there is a big reef just off shore that was a maelstrom of whitewater and seemed to be taking most of the power out of the waves which were hitting the beach in a nasty little shore dump.

We landed uneventfully in good spirits and a sunny break in the weather to have lunch.

Launching was not exactly elegant for most of us and Kate got broached just as she hit the water and ended up in the sand wash. A sore shoulder ensued. We paddled out into a rough ocean. I took a nice wake up drenching as a breaker hit me from the side. Being in unfamiliar waters I decided to follow Mark who was leading his first grade three ocean trip. There are quite a few bomboras scattered about this section of coast but as the swell was big they were obvious - huge crashing waves rising high above the surrounding ocean. We were taking a route through the middle of two of these, which Paul wasn't comfortable with. He had stated earlier that we should go right around the outside, well clear of the lot of them. Turns out he was right. We paddled along in a close group, Paul out front followed by Kate, with me on the inside and Mark less than two metres to my port side. Joanne, I think, was trailing behind Mark.

The wave appeared suddenly. It was coming broad side and I pointed out to Mark that we needed to turn into it - fast. At this stage I thought it was just a big swell wave, as we had been experiencing a few big ones since leaving Maitland Bay but this just kept steepening, so much so that Marks boat simply fell onto mine and we both tumbled down the face of this huge wave.
It broke and we got chundered. It was not possible to know if I was being hit by Marks boat or not as the breaking wave unleashed its force on top of us. It finally passed and I tried to roll but the water was turbulent and my paddle leash was now next to the blade. I was running out of air and tried one more roll but simply found myself under the next breaking wave. Although not as powerful as the first this was far more scary as I was now past my breath holding comfort zone. The wave passed and I popped out holding onto my boat for dear life. There was another Bommie further in and I wasn't sure if I was now heading for that. Joanne, having avoided the initial wave went to rescue her husband who was also in the water. Another big breaker came through and cleaned up Joanne too. Mark let go of his boat to help her and they ended up in the water together.

There was a lonely silence as I tried to work out where everyone was and what the damage was. I saw Mark & Joanne in front of me, on the sea side and then got hit by another wave. When I came up from that one Mark & Joanne were behind me, probably because I still had a death grip on my kayak and they were on their own. I didn't know if we were clear or if there was still more to come. Kate was now paddling towards me. I found myself yelling at her to "watch out behind" as there were the ever present breaking waves behind her. The last thing we wanted at this stage was for her to get knocked in too. I then saw Paul in the distance who unbeknown to me had paddled clear and let off a flare. Kate came over to me and attached her tow rope. Mark and Joanne were in the water behind us and the plan was to get me back in my boat so that together Kate and I could go and tow Mark and Joanne which is what we did. Kate had Joanne hold her Stern and I had Mark hold mine. Just then a surf rescue IRB (Inflatable Rescue Boat) appeared and took Mark & Joanne on board. We were out of the danger zone. I saw the bow of Marks boat and went over to see if I could retrieve it but it was completly flooded and immovable.

We regrouped and talked to the Surf Rescue guys. It was decided that the IRB take Joanne and Mark in to Putty Beach and Kate, Paul and I paddle in. The three of us paddled in to the north side of the beach as suggested by Surf Rescue and witnessed a monstrous set come through. No discussion was needed as the three of us turned around and headed back out to sea.

Paul's hand held smoke flare had definitely worked . It turns out that calls were made to the Police, the Coastguard and Surf Rescue and now we had boats from all three agencies on the scene. The police launch stayed back a bit and coordinated the coastguard boat by radio, wary of coming in too close. It was decided to escort the three remaining kayakers back into Broken Bay so we headed back.

As we neared Broken Bay and conditions became calmer the Police and The Coastguard decided to take us aboard. The Police loaded Paul and his boat and the Coast Guard took Kate and her boat. They clipped a line on to my bow and towed me - as if I hadn't already had enough excitement for one day. Once I realised I could lean on to a low brace onto the back of my paddle for support they took off and we were at Little Patonga Beach in no time, Paul having already been dropped off was waiting for us on the beach.

The three of us wasted no time in paddling the last few kilometers back to Parsley Bay.

We loaded our kayaks and drove to Putty Beach to meet Joanne and Mark. Once there it was hand shakes and hugs all around. We had quite an ordeal but we did what we could for each other and all came out of it OK. Mine and Marks Boats were quite badly damaged, Marks severely.

It seems the force of the initial wave was so powerful that the kayaks couldn't take it. My boat has two vertical splits on the hull, one on either side almost in the centre of the boat which suggests it was almost folded. Marks has a split seam and snapped towards the stern. What actually broke the boats I'm not entirely sure. I could still paddle mine as although it was taking water it was only entering the cockpit and I could pump & sponge it out. Remarkably the bow and stern hatches of my boat were bone dry!

The worst thing about the whole incident is that I lost my favorite hat. Joanne & Mark may not entirely agree but then again they still make Mirages while the new version of my hat is nowhere near as good as the original. If anyone out there finds a ragged looking hat with a foam brim that has a bit of fluro cloth tied on please let me know!

P.S. There are a few points regarding the damaged boats that need to be made. I don't think any boat would have fared any better than our Mirage Sea Kayaks in this incident. My boat, a Fibreglass Mirage 530, collided with Marks 580 (Kevlar Hull) in the wave and I suspect this is what caused most of the initial damage to that boat. The fatal blow to Marks Mirage 580 was made by a dumping wave as it washed up on to the beach - full of water. This was also how the other boat was (slightly) damaged. My Mirage 530, having survived the initial two waves and a cartwheel maintained its integrity and its solid buoyancy was very reassuring. Its also worth remembering that I paddled back to Broken Bay with it.

It has been pointed out that we were very lucky. A quick search has revealed an astounding history of wrecks on West Reef with more than 100 lives lost. For any of our kayaks to have survived at all is testament to the quality of their construction. I am also grateful to Mirage Sea Kayaks for fixing my boat within a few days at very reasonable cost.

The good people at Gurney Gears sent me another hat the same as the original so all is good!

The dumbed down and sanitised version as it appeared in The NSWSKC Magazine can be seen HERE. Whilst the lessons learned bit is good I do wonder what happened to the good old adventure tale that made the club magazine such a good read in the past.