Respect the ocean and weather

[momo fish]

Been debating sharing this and after a few days of shaking it off and some time to recoup figured it's worth sharing even as I have heard similar things happened to others in then past and recent. I am both embarrassed but grateful to have come out of it alive frankly.

Last Friday met up with buddy Matt (Flyak13) to fish Malibu. Matt was already on water so I joined him after dropping kids at school. I checked conditions the night before and had also drove by the day before to scoop it out. Only concern was heavy 15 to 20 winds predicted at 5:00pm. Launched pretty easy and joined Matt a few minutes later. We end up going some distance out to fish deep and things were a little windy and small swell but pretty normal. Wind died down and conditions were great by noon.

Enjoying the day and having fun catching fish for a couple of hours with no one else in sight. Soon it's about 4ish and wind starts to pick up so we start heading closer to shore and stop after finding fish and start pulling non-stop drop after drop. Almost forgetting that conditions were getting worst and worst. Before I know it there is white caps all around me and swell were easily 3 to 4 and fast. At this point I'm still not thinking much as I have been in these conditions in the past (but on a bigger kayak) and never worried. Matt says we should head back closer to launch and I agree. I decided to try for one more fish and bring it in quickly and look up as Matt is already about a block length away. I pack up rods and start to pedal in.

As I am trying to catch up to Matt the swells at this point are at solid 4 feet as I would completely disappear in-between swells. The wind was blowing hard and there are white caps all around me. My first panic moment was looking ahead and seeing kite/wind surfers near the beach. Second panic moment was when I realized I didn't have much control of rudder as swell, wind would just turn my kayak in any direction.

I struggle to turn the kayak so I'm not sideways and soon I am somewhat back in control. A few minutes later I'm a bit lax and just happy for the great fishing we had and being careless as I pedal to Matt. (Regardless of all the whitecaps around me and the wind ). All of a sudden I turn to my left and see WHITE water coming over my shoulder and all I can think is "ohh shit!" Soon I'm in the water trying to get my head above water but kept hitting head on kayak and somehow could not move my left leg. I struggled to get my head above water and swim for that matter as turns out my leg got wrapped around rod leash. Tried to stay calm and grabbed on the kayak and after a few minutes managed to free my leg. All the while I'm screaming for Matt to come help but as far as I could see he was to far to hear.

At this point I'm struggling to just keep my head above water and hold on to kayak as waves kept hitting. Fear starts to set in and I think about family/friends and not making it back to see them. I take deep breaths and start to calm myself down and soon I'm composed again. I see almost all my fish, some gear, radio, paddle and other items float away but I recall reading you ALWAYS stay with your kayak so I did. Soon I hear Matt and I am getting cold and trying not to panic so not to make Matt panic as well. I had never flipped a kayak before and tried quickly without help and there was no way I could off given the conditions. Matt grabbed the kayak and I managed to get up over to flip it. Once I got back on it was completely filled with water and could not stay balance with holding on to Matt's kayak. Didn't bring my pump and proceeded to empty it with a water bottle. Took about 20 minutes and soon we were heading back to beach very careful. I landed the kayak with just the
Mirage drive and I cannot tell you how happy I was to be on land safe.

My lessons were this and I only blame myself as I know better;

1- Always leash your paddle
2- Alwaya keep your radio in your vest or attached to kayak. Mine was floating glow in dark but all that didn't matter at that moment.
3- When weather picks up stow everything or at least throw inside kayak quickly.
4- Stay close to others for safety and stop fishing !!
5- bring your pump and don't leave in car! Have a plan to reflip your kayak if alone.

6- Trust the weather forecast. For real.

I want to give a huge thank you to Matt!! I honestly don't know what would of happened if you were not there. I can't even think about what could of happened as it scares me to be honest and if that makes me a wussy so be it. I gained enormous respect for the ocean that day. On my way home saw this beautiful sunset and want to see many more.

[ceruleandrms]

Same thing happened to me at Topanga State Beach last month. Not as dramatic as your situation but scary just the same. I launched fairly easy (by myself) and paddled over in front of Wiley's bait shop to fish the kelp in about 40 ft of water. My buddy was shore fishing and I figured I'll catch some fish and maybe encourage him to invest in a kayak. I've only been kayak fishing for a few months and was completely over confident to a point of being reckless. The swells were amazingly stupid and between them was the only time I could see him and the beach but I figured it wasnt a problem. Caught a nice calico and hooked it to my clip. Wind picked up big-time and I never really noticed cuz I was too busy fishing. Got done fishing and like an idiot I went to hold up my fish and try to show it to my buddy who was onshore, knowing he couldnt see it cuz I was too far out but to "cherish" my feel-good moment. The timing was perfect. Right when I grabbed my clip and unhooked it the wind and the swell had great timing and all I knew was I went head first over the side. I remember my leash around my leg and the panic that sped thru me. So many things went thru my mind so fast I honestly dont know how I managed to get the leash off, flip my yak over and get back in it. I was about a half mile from the launch point so I b-lined it to the beach where my friend was and didnt care how I made it out of the water as long as I did. My buddy called me an idiot and said the swells were so big, he saw me on it between one, lost sight and between the next one all he could see was the bottom of my Tarpon. My gear loss was minimum and my kayak took a beating from hitting the rocks on shore but that situation I was in made me realize that (1) I'm pretty insignificant in the ocean and (2) mother nature will have her way with you if you dont respect her. That fear is always with me now and it helps me to put my safety before anything while I'm out there. Lesson learned the hard way.

[William Novotny]

Thank you for sharing. I don't think it would be a bad idea to make a sticky for stories like this. Then when new guys join this site it would make it allot easier to explain why we take the precautions we do. We could just be like "welcome to the addiction, read the Oh Sh*t sticky".

[jorluivil]

Speaking from experience I will have to agree with you, NEVER, EVER PANIC.

[addicted2sp33d]

Thanks for sharing - you came out of it, so lesson learned and party-on. Good job keeping your wits about you.

I would add one more thing to your list: to keep a knife clipped to your PFD at all times, so that you can reach for it even if you can't see it.

That way you can cut lines if you're wrapped up in them and underwater, like in your situation.

[ful-rac]

Glad you survived so you could learn your lesson. Malibu is just one of those places that can be VERY dangerous if the weather picks up. To any newbee that has read this thread, take it seriously, don't let this be you. You might not be so lucky.....

[WildernessWanker]

Originally Posted by addicted2sp33d

Thanks for sharing - you came out of it, so lesson learned and party-on. Good job keeping your wits about you.

I would add one more thing to your list: to keep a knife clipped to your PFD at all times, so that you can reach for it even if you can't see it.

That way you can cut lines if you're wrapped up in them and underwater, like in your situation.

I used to keep my knife secured to my yak for ease of use until I had a friend wipe out in the kill zone and get tangled in his leash, his knife was on him and it still took him a few seconds to get it out and sever the leash. No harm was done but it dawned on me that if I was in the water and my yak was upside down or sideways it would take me far longer to locate and get my knife, and that is to say if I was able to grab it at all. The thought of being helpless scared me and luckily I realized it before I was put in that type of scenario.

[momo fish]

Thanks guys. Support really helps.

The thing I just can't imagine is how it's possible to flip a kayak in the conditions I was in without help from someone else. The swells and white caps seemed like it would be almost impossible. I watched the video posted of a pro angler flipping on other thread and I get back on in those conditions. But no way in what I was in.

I made a list of things to keep ON my vest including a radio, whistle and knife. Also will be strapping my mirage drive in just in case. Looking into a better way to pump water out if I'm in the water either manual pump or build in pump. Again with hill full of water there is NO way I could of stayed on the kayak and pump without flipping in a second.

Will be getting out soon but this time wiser, more prepared and with a greater respect for my surroundings.

[rhyak]

Glad your OK, thanks for sharing.

Ryan

[William Novotny]

Originally Posted by momo fish

Thanks guys. Support really helps.

The thing I just can't see how it's possible is flipping a kayak back in the conditions I was in alone. The swells seemed like it would be almost impossible. I watched the video posted of a pro angler flipping on other thread and I get back on in those conditions. But no way in what I was in.

I made a list of things to keep ON my vest including a radio, whistle and knife. Also will be strapping my mirage drive in just in case. Looking into a better way to pump water out if I'm in the water either manual pump or build in pump. Again with hill full of water there is NO way I could of stayed on the kayak and pump without flipping in a second.

Will be getting out soon but this time wiser, more prepared and with a greater respect for my surroundings.

list of things I keep in/on my vest:
diving knife
Rescue whistle
Signal mirror
vhf
Extra hooks/line/sinkers

I know it sounds like over kill for fishing inshore but I've considered the situation where all equipment is lost except for what is on/in your pfd.

Also it a good idea to make sure your hand pump either floats or has a foam float attached and fixed somewhere on the exterior of your kayak. If your kayak is flipped, half full of water and you are struggling to right it, a pump that is mounted inside your yak won't be of much use.

[blitzburgh]

DOOD. Thanks for sharing. Glad you made it.

[chxh8me]

Glad you made it out safe.
I was all packed up Sat night and ready to hit Malibu Sun morning, but didnt check the forecast until after I had everything loaded up. Looked like it was gonna be windy, so I figured I'd recheck the conditions in the AM to make my final decision. Was definitely a no go. Sucks cuz I was looking forward to getting out all week, but fishing alone with any chance of wind predicted is not on my list of favorite things to do.
Good thing you had your buddy with you.

[WildernessWanker]

Originally Posted by momo fish

Looking into a better way to pump water out if I'm in the water either manual pump or build in pump. Again with hill full of water there is NO way I could of stayed on the kayak and pump without flipping in a second.

I was thinking about a bilge pump too with all the flipping incidents taking place lately. A manual pump is great but I like the idea of an internal bilge pump, which I know a couple people have done. I think it's hard enough just sitting on a yak half-full of water without having to worry about pumping water out. Plus I know some of the pumps are set to activate in the presence of water so if you're taking water on and aren't even aware the pump kicks on and will do its thing. Can any of you with bilge pumps setup give some insightful info, I know there's not one right way to install one. Is it on it's own battery, how is it secured to the hull, capacity,...etc? I apologize in advance for not running a search for bilge pumps before posting this.

[momo fish]

Found the only picture we took on the water. Not sure what type of shark but released it. This was the calm before the storm so to speak.

[Flyak13]

Totally glad I was there to help you out mo! And my bad for getting so far ahead of you. I learned a bunch as well. And now realize The importance of always staying within earshot of your buddy and how that distance Changes dramatically with conditions. We lived to fish another day...

[CKallday71]

This reminds me of my flip last year in Dana Point. Weather was shite Easyday and I both knew it was stupid to be out on the water. It was cold, windy, raining, small craft advisory... On my way back in the harbor I got slammed by a rogue wave and it ruined my day completely. Didn't lose any gear but I learned a lot and bought the kayak re-entry tool from OEX the next day!

[Cadillyak]

Thanks for the report. It takes a man to admit his faults. Glad u made it back minus the body bag. I learned much from this report for sure!!

[Fish Taco]

Another great reminder about how easily "what could happen" happens... Thanks for having the cajones enough to share your story... and most of all... glad you made it back safe and sound.

[roadx]

it happens and it can be scarey. glad everything worked out and your safe.
it's good to have respect.

[Mahigeer]

Hi,
>>We met at Catalina, at the Mole. You were there on your birthday I think.>>
>>I am glad you are ok. Thanks for the lesson.>>
>>Most important action is not to panic. I have been taught that during the Scuba certification.>>
>>Respect of the ocean is important too.>>
>>I plan to try roll my kayak in summer, in control conditions like harbor and see if I can get back in. I must know before the lobster season opens, if I am to go hooping.

Eventually the past becomes a fund memory no matter what happens.>>