Tippecanoe and me too
May. 17th, 2006 05:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
icepixieOnce I get my waterproof disposable camera film developed, I'll have pictures from this afternoon's canoe trip.
I say "I'll have" rather than "I took" because it was actually Brian and Peter who took the pictures.
Because they found the camera floating downstream and fished it out.
Because my canoe flipped over less than twenty-five feet from the put-in point.
First of all, let me just say that the place we were at gets a completely crap safety rating from me. There was no instruction on how to chose a paddle or lifejacket, absolutely no instruction on HOW TO STEER (and I was definitely not the only one who'd never done this before), no safety instructions, nothing. They led us through a house with paddles and life jackets, then stuck in boats and pushed us into the river. The river which, I might add, was unusually high and swift because of all the rain we've been getting.
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laserhead and I shared a canoe. Kate was steering, and I was in the front providing the forward momentum. Neither of us knew much about steering (no thanks to the canoe company, grrrrrr), though Kate was doing the best she could, and of course, the first few feet were the roughest part of the trip. There was a massive collection of logs and tree roots just at a bend in the river, and we crashed right into it. We crashed so hard into it that the canoe not only tipped over, it took on water and sank like a stone. Luckily, me being in the front meant that I could grab on to one of the tree branches that was a foot or so above the water as the canoe was overturning. I think possibly my frantic kicking may have had something to do with the boat sinking like it did. Anyway, so I'm hanging on for dear life to that mossy tree branch, screaming like a small child and wondering how the hell I'm going to get out of this one. Eventually, I do notice that I'm about ten feet upstream from another put-in point, and I can use the trees to get me over there, for the most part. That was about the time when my hands finally slipped off the tree, so I'm glad I noticed that first, or "hysterical" would not have covered it. I could not actually touch the bottom for a good bit, although if the life jacket hadn't been holding me up, I could've (the water was about to my chin at that point).
Speaking of life jackets--WEAR THEM. I am honestly not making this up when I say I think I would have washed up fifty feet downstream, half-dead and with a lungful of river water without one. I can dogpaddle and swim a bit in a pool, but I wouldn't have been able to do anything about this current. Life jackets are good things. [/PSA]
Anyway, so I floated/swung from tree to tree until I got to a log which I would have had to walk around. Luckily, another kindhearted student whose canoe had also tipped over in the same place ours had was there to help me over it and onto shore. She and her boyfriend/canoe partner also managed to unsubmerge our canoe and grab the paddle I had given up for lost (I was a bit more concerned about not sending myself downstream at that point). Ariel and her boyfriend are wonderful people. She also gave Kate a thirty-second explanation of how to steer, which meant we didn't capsize again. Useful, that. Could've used it at the beginning.
As I said, I lost my camera in the dumping. I figured it was gone for good, but apparently Brian and Peter saw it floating past, remembered it was mine, and grabbed it. I got it back from them at the landing point. Amazing, really.
We did manage to get stuck again a bit further down. We ran aground (or rather alog) on an island in the middle of the stream, and the current held us quite firmly against the bank of logs. Luckily, some guys came along after a few minutes and gave us a push so we could get going again, because my pushing against the logs was doing nothing. Bah.
After our capsize, it was another hour until the end of the seven-mile trip. There was a little sun here and there, but mostly it was all about the cold, wet clothes. Had the river been moving slower, it would have been two hours, so I suppose I should be grateful for small mercies. Of course, had it been slower, we probably wouldn't have tipped over, so, you know. Anyway. The bus ride back was long and cold, and by the time I had to walk back to my apartment, I couldn't feel my feet. I had kind of given up on ever being warm again. I'm still cold right now, even after a very long, very hot shower. Argh.
And now I'm going to collapse in bed for half an hour until I have to get dressed for the student/faculty dinner. I think every part of my body hurts at this point, even with the Advil. Oh, tomorrow's gonna hurt.
Speaking of tomorrow, I...apparently get initiated into Phi Beta Kappa tomorrow. Or perhaps that's Friday. From what I understand, it's the super secret smart people society. Dad says it'll look good on my resume, particularlyif when I apply to grad school. Sounds good to me.
I say "I'll have" rather than "I took" because it was actually Brian and Peter who took the pictures.
Because they found the camera floating downstream and fished it out.
Because my canoe flipped over less than twenty-five feet from the put-in point.
First of all, let me just say that the place we were at gets a completely crap safety rating from me. There was no instruction on how to chose a paddle or lifejacket, absolutely no instruction on HOW TO STEER (and I was definitely not the only one who'd never done this before), no safety instructions, nothing. They led us through a house with paddles and life jackets, then stuck in boats and pushed us into the river. The river which, I might add, was unusually high and swift because of all the rain we've been getting.
laserhead and I shared a canoe. Kate was steering, and I was in the front providing the forward momentum. Neither of us knew much about steering (no thanks to the canoe company, grrrrrr), though Kate was doing the best she could, and of course, the first few feet were the roughest part of the trip. There was a massive collection of logs and tree roots just at a bend in the river, and we crashed right into it. We crashed so hard into it that the canoe not only tipped over, it took on water and sank like a stone. Luckily, me being in the front meant that I could grab on to one of the tree branches that was a foot or so above the water as the canoe was overturning. I think possibly my frantic kicking may have had something to do with the boat sinking like it did. Anyway, so I'm hanging on for dear life to that mossy tree branch, screaming like a small child and wondering how the hell I'm going to get out of this one. Eventually, I do notice that I'm about ten feet upstream from another put-in point, and I can use the trees to get me over there, for the most part. That was about the time when my hands finally slipped off the tree, so I'm glad I noticed that first, or "hysterical" would not have covered it. I could not actually touch the bottom for a good bit, although if the life jacket hadn't been holding me up, I could've (the water was about to my chin at that point).Speaking of life jackets--WEAR THEM. I am honestly not making this up when I say I think I would have washed up fifty feet downstream, half-dead and with a lungful of river water without one. I can dogpaddle and swim a bit in a pool, but I wouldn't have been able to do anything about this current. Life jackets are good things. [/PSA]
Anyway, so I floated/swung from tree to tree until I got to a log which I would have had to walk around. Luckily, another kindhearted student whose canoe had also tipped over in the same place ours had was there to help me over it and onto shore. She and her boyfriend/canoe partner also managed to unsubmerge our canoe and grab the paddle I had given up for lost (I was a bit more concerned about not sending myself downstream at that point). Ariel and her boyfriend are wonderful people. She also gave Kate a thirty-second explanation of how to steer, which meant we didn't capsize again. Useful, that. Could've used it at the beginning.
As I said, I lost my camera in the dumping. I figured it was gone for good, but apparently Brian and Peter saw it floating past, remembered it was mine, and grabbed it. I got it back from them at the landing point. Amazing, really.
We did manage to get stuck again a bit further down. We ran aground (or rather alog) on an island in the middle of the stream, and the current held us quite firmly against the bank of logs. Luckily, some guys came along after a few minutes and gave us a push so we could get going again, because my pushing against the logs was doing nothing. Bah.
After our capsize, it was another hour until the end of the seven-mile trip. There was a little sun here and there, but mostly it was all about the cold, wet clothes. Had the river been moving slower, it would have been two hours, so I suppose I should be grateful for small mercies. Of course, had it been slower, we probably wouldn't have tipped over, so, you know. Anyway. The bus ride back was long and cold, and by the time I had to walk back to my apartment, I couldn't feel my feet. I had kind of given up on ever being warm again. I'm still cold right now, even after a very long, very hot shower. Argh.
And now I'm going to collapse in bed for half an hour until I have to get dressed for the student/faculty dinner. I think every part of my body hurts at this point, even with the Advil. Oh, tomorrow's gonna hurt.
Speaking of tomorrow, I...apparently get initiated into Phi Beta Kappa tomorrow. Or perhaps that's Friday. From what I understand, it's the super secret smart people society. Dad says it'll look good on my resume, particularly
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no subject
Date: 2006-05-17 11:58 pm (UTC)I mean, if you hadn't been otherwise occupied with the whole keeping-yourself-from-drowning bit, you would have seen us pick up the camera. I think it spent less than thirty seconds in the water.
We waited for you around the next bend, actually, thinking to return the camera, but after you didn't show for a few minutes we figured you'd gone back to the canoe shack to dry off and get new paddles, so we just kept going.
*
I completely agree with you about the sketchiness of the canoe place. They didn't tell us how to pick our paddles, they didn't tell us what the take-out point would be, and they didn't give any instructions about how to canoe. It was a bad setup all around.
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Date: 2006-05-19 12:11 am (UTC)And, congrats on joining PBK! I am also a member (though I skipped my initiation b/c those are stupid & I had other plans).
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Date: 2006-05-22 04:41 am (UTC)But...hanging on for dear life, screaming, and wondering how you're gonna get out of this one?
You totally had a Doctor Who moment! *g*
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