Baja - swell - Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge

lamb · 08-12-2007, 06:16 PM

In light of some recent discussions like that guy that almost got killed when his kayak sank... and given the boards have been fed with some (white and shiny) inspirational material for heading down South, it may be good idea to throw a safety reminder about one important thing - the Baja swell.

It can be real ugly down there. The coastline is exposed so it's nothing like the Shores. 2 or 3 ft ground swell can pump up some pretty serious surf. The sets get thick and the worst of all, they break good 100+ yards away from the shore. Some serious adrenalin gets pumped up for 30-40 or so seconds launching into what seemed like a lull, paddling towards the wall of water forming in the distance trying to ride over it before it breaks.

I hated that, scared the crap out of me...

Don't forget it's an unknown territory. At least where we fished, there are some submerged reefs scattered in the area. Rolling over one of those could be pretty ugly.

With Baja, you can't be tuned into swell conditions so good as here in the US. Wetsand's Baja Norte swell watch gives you some general idea, but you never know till you get there:

http://www.wetsand.com/swellwatch/sw...7&SubCatID=857

Don't make the 5 or 6 hours of driving make you feel obligated to launch. If it seems too big, put it off for tomorrow. It may lay down.

The trips we've done so far, we made a final decision to go only a day before. If the conditions didn't look right, we had no problem postponing it for another week or so.

Have all your safety gear. It's Baja - there's no CG to come to your rescue. Wear a PFD, especially when launching and landing.

Make sure you have the company.

I'm not writing this to discourage people from going. This is just a voice of reason for folks that are heading South to keep in mind. The swell is just one of the things to be prepared for, and it shouldn't be taken too casually.

Here's a picture that Trev took of one of the tougher landings the group had on one of the previous trips. I wasn't there, their story, but you get pretty good idea by looking at it.

Stay Safe Always!!!

08-12-2007, 06:16 PM	#1
lamb Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 2,568	Baja - swell In light of some recent discussions like that guy that almost got killed when his kayak sank... and given the boards have been fed with some (white and shiny) inspirational material for heading down South, it may be good idea to throw a safety reminder about one important thing - the Baja swell. It can be real ugly down there. The coastline is exposed so it's nothing like the Shores. 2 or 3 ft ground swell can pump up some pretty serious surf. The sets get thick and the worst of all, they break good 100+ yards away from the shore. Some serious adrenalin gets pumped up for 30-40 or so seconds launching into what seemed like a lull, paddling towards the wall of water forming in the distance trying to ride over it before it breaks. I hated that, scared the crap out of me... Don't forget it's an unknown territory. At least where we fished, there are some submerged reefs scattered in the area. Rolling over one of those could be pretty ugly. With Baja, you can't be tuned into swell conditions so good as here in the US. Wetsand's Baja Norte swell watch gives you some general idea, but you never know till you get there: http://www.wetsand.com/swellwatch/sw...7&SubCatID=857 Don't make the 5 or 6 hours of driving make you feel obligated to launch. If it seems too big, put it off for tomorrow. It may lay down. The trips we've done so far, we made a final decision to go only a day before. If the conditions didn't look right, we had no problem postponing it for another week or so. Have all your safety gear. It's Baja - there's no CG to come to your rescue. Wear a PFD, especially when launching and landing. Make sure you have the company. I'm not writing this to discourage people from going. This is just a voice of reason for folks that are heading South to keep in mind. The swell is just one of the things to be prepared for, and it shouldn't be taken too casually. Here's a picture that Trev took of one of the tougher landings the group had on one of the previous trips. I wasn't there, their story, but you get pretty good idea by looking at it. Stay Safe Always!!! __________________ [------------------------ <)))< ....b-a-a-a-a