Flipped by a whale Tues

[Hypoxic1]

Launched early with Josh looking for a great day on the water after 2 solid months of work. Made mass squid and went offshore looking for rocky spots. The temp was much cooler 15 deg than monday. cruising around with an HDS 5 looking at bottom contour is like watching a movie, the detail is spectacular.
Caught a few fish, one Sheephead that wasnt even hooked, it was rolled up in the line probably from going the small rockfish that had actually been hooked. Took the sheephead and 1 white fish and decided the cold just wasnt matching the reward so I said adios to the Darkhorse and headed in . No way I can match that dudes stamina on the water. Shit I bet dude wouldnt even return to base if it wasnt for running out of food and water.

So Im done and headed in from like 200 feet of water. I have an evolve so I kik it up to about 40 percent power and pedal in. About a half a mile after I left Josh I get lifted out of the water and flipped on my ass. after I hit the water I look up and see my kayak upside down and its about 7 feet away from me. There are swirls on the water but no sign of what hit me, and no boat for at least 1000 yards.

This all happened in what seemed like 100th of a second.
I was wearing my waders and a splash jacket all day due to the cold Probably a minute to get the boat flipped back upright and back aboard. The blades for the mirage drive were bent to about 30 deg from straight so they were useless, but the evolve still worked and had a paddle so it wasnt all bad.
Boat flipps over and I remember that none of my gear was leashed.Lost 4 rods. Black steel, etc etc, custom rod from fisholic John, etc. 4 brand new saltists.......DIDNT lose the fish though. Critical.

Got things back together and got home. I cant begin to imagine why the animal didnt hear me, or see me. Big Ocean Theory, I guess. Same reason we have midair collisions.

Good Lessons. Stay calm in a bad situation and you will live. Close all hatches when not in use ant the boat probably wont load with water when you flip, and you will, its bound to happen once in life. lesson three for me was that these MFs are so dam big they can hit you, but Ill probably win the lotto before that happens again.
Special thanks to Darkhorse for teaching me how to find big ass bottom fish. It aint always about Yellowtail.

The New Year is coming Guys!
Lets be careful out there!
Chris :jig:

[bellcon]

:eek:
Damn
gear can be replaced...
Glad your OK and got back in the saddle quickly.
betcha wont forget that day for a long time!

[fishinkid2010]

Crap that must have been scary!!! Glad that you are ok... and that you didn't loose your fish. Sorry to hear about the lost gear though, that is a major bummer.

[roby]

What a story...glad you were able to tell it.

[old_rookie]

Wow!!! Did you have your PFD on??
That's crazy. Yeah good thing you are ok.

[Jimmyz123]

Glad to hear all is well and that you survived. A buddy and I were out and we saw either a Blue whale or a Grey whale about 200 feet away and my buddy turned his boat very quickly and went away from the path the whale was going. When I asked him why he said they have a habit of surfacing under boats and other objects like that. Not intentional, but it happens.

Again glad you're safe and all is well.

[dsafety]

Amazing story Chris. Glad you are still with us to tell it.

Now tell us how your wife reacted when you told her you lost another kayak full of gear. I bet that was a bit awkward.

If you need a loaner, I have not started using the Torium you sold me when you upgraded to those hot new Saltists. It is yours if you need it.

Bob

[GregAndrew]

What Bob said. If I have an extra of what you want and you need it, consider it yours. Hell of a fish tale you got there.

[TCS]

Glad you're okay Chris.

Did you see the whale when it was under you? Does your fishfinder still work?

[ericko]

santa cant bring you back but the gear is in his sled ready to deliver

[BigBalsa]

Glad you're okay Chris.

Did you see the whale when it was under you? Does your fishfinder still work?

You still trying to decide on a FF?

[Billy V]

I bet that was a couple of intense minutes.

Go buy a lottery ticket - if you can collide with a whale winning the lottery should be a cinch.

[roadx]

wow thats crazy!!!! glad your ok and saving the fish is a plus, sorry to hear about your gear. sh&t happens! be prepared is a good warning wake up for us all

[bigbarrels]

Wow, glad you made it out unscathed:)........gear is replaceable.....sounds like the work of a GWS, minus it tearing into you....did you actually see a whale?

[Hypoxic1]

Amazingly enough after being upside down in salt water for that amount of time I was delighted to see that the HDS 5 still worked. I tested it last night at home and it was still working.
Had to be a whale from the size of the disturbed water around me after the flip. Probably some big guy having fun chasing all those squid and I managed to get in the mix.
A shark would have shown a big ass fin and likely wouldnt have just split after Of course just my guess since this doesent happen every day. :eek:
And Bob,
Sandra has already authorized full replacement. Great wives are hard to find.

[Matt]

If it'd been a gws there'd be teeth marks somewhere on the
boat and it probably wouldve circled back into view

[bigbarrels]

maybe it was a toothless GWS.......ok , sounds like a whale:)

[Jzo]

Wow a great report, glad that you made out ok! Thx for sharing.

[j mo]

Yikes thats a crazy story!

Sorry to hear you lost all your gear! Those damned theives, hopefully your homewoners insurance will cover your loss;)

[theluckypig]

That's a fishing tale...!!! glad you're ok!

[jorluivil]

Pretty scary stuff there. Really glad we're hearing the story from the horses mouth and not reading the details based on what a witness saw.

You said you were wearing waders....how easy was it to float or maneuver in them? I ask because I've been wearing some my Carthart bibs with rubber boots while hooping. I've been meaning to go to my sisters house and jump in the pool just to see if I would float right away.

[wade]

i saw a big Whale in the reserve on Monday a 1 pm-...

also...

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/dec/14/seaworld-no-word-so-far-baby-sperm-whale/

[bigbarrels]

Yikes thats a crazy story!

Sorry to hear you lost all your gear! Those damned theives, hopefully your homewoners insurance will cover your loss;)


Also, If you rent, check your renters insurance......I lost some gear last year and everything on my kayak was covered......just not the kayak itself

[Jimmyz123]

Pretty scary stuff there. Really glad we're hearing the story from the horses mouth and not reading the details based on what a witness saw.

You said you were wearing waders....how easy was it to float or maneuver in them? I ask because I've been wearing some my Carthart bibs with rubber boots while hooping. I've been meaning to go to my sisters house and jump in the pool just to see if I would float right away.

As for the Waders thing check out this video and it will answer you questions about the waders.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYwG52p4yjs

[scoop]

Wow, brown waders time! Glad you are OK. Sorry about the gear.

[Jim Sammons LJKF]

I have had some pretty close encounters over the years out there but nothing like that. Things like this should really drive home why you should always wear a PFD. Things happen fast so always be prepared.
Glad it turned out OK.

[Hypoxic1]

I was wearing my spray jacket, with the waist tight and the wrists tight. I also wear a hobie inflatable harness incase things go real bad. if you inflate the harness right away there is no way you are getting back on the boat. it will become too bulky.

When I was tossed I was completely submerged for a second. Water did trickle into the waders , perhaps a cup or two at most. I dont wear a belt, just the tight waist of the spray jacket. the belts seem to want to keep air in the wader pants and for me its an annoyance.


Late report. Looks like my homeowners is covering most of the loss.
Merry Christmas.:sifone:

[Jim Sammons LJKF]

Ok lets look at this as a worst case scenario. You get dumped into the water and bonked on the head. As you now know first hand crazy things happen fast. I have had free jumping Threshers launch over the bow of my kayak. Inflatable PFDs won't save you if you can't inflate it. You are much safer in a normal PFD.
IF you are going to be thrashing around in the water for an extended period not having a belt could also be an issue.
Just my thoughts but I would at least reconsider your choice of PFD. I know those inflatables are comfortable but I think comfort will take a back seat to floating when it really counts.

[erinoo]

Even though it doesn't appear that Jim is wearing any PDF in his Avatar picture, he is correct about the inflatable PFD V the Standard.

[Jim Sammons LJKF]

You are totally correct about me not having one on in my Avatar. That is the exception not the rule with me though. Kind of like when I was in Panama. We shipped the kayaks down but the PFDs never arrived, I certainly was not going to just not fish because I didn't have a PFD. Kind of the same thing happened the day I got that Dorado. I do though wear a PFD 99% of the time.

[Dean Machine]

Don't they also make water activated pfd's that inflate after being submerged in the water? Of course there would be some trade-offs, but it could solve the comfort vs safety problem. Either way, a pfd is a must 100% of the time. I know, sometimes stuff happens that prevent you from wearing it, either way, Jim is right, we are not all perfect. I used to be a 99% of the time seat-belt wearer until I was thrown from the passenger seat of a pickup truck. I swear to god I will never ride in any vehicle again that I can't get a seatbelt on EVER but that's another story.

Any way........anybody ever heardof the water activated self inflating pfd?

[Jim Sammons LJKF]

Yes they do have water activated inflating PFD's the problem here is getting splashed particularly when going out through surf, they can and will inflate.

[yani]

Chris,

Glad you're safe. Thanks for sharing.

[Jimmyz123]

Don't they also make water activated pfd's that inflate after being submerged in the water? Of course there would be some trade-offs, but it could solve the comfort vs safety problem. Either way, a pfd is a must 100% of the time. I know, sometimes stuff happens that prevent you from wearing it, either way, Jim is right, we are not all perfect. I used to be a 99% of the time seat-belt wearer until I was thrown from the passenger seat of a pickup truck. I swear to god I will never ride in any vehicle again that I can't get a seatbelt on EVER but that's another story.

Any way........anybody ever heardof the water activated self inflating pfd?

I currently have a auto inflate or water activated PFD it has the Auto inflate and the pull string in the event I go over and it does not auto inflate. I'm planning on getting a new one here soon though because, like Jim stated, I don't want to leave anything to chance. Like he said if I'm knocked out and can't pull the string, and something goes wrong with the auto inflate I don't want to risk it. For what I have been doing lately it works and I'm wearing a PFD, but I want to have a normal PFD before I go out in the ocean.

[Jim Sammons LJKF]

I once had a client wearing an auto inflate down in Baja that got splashed by a big Roosterfish and inflated. Startled the hell out of him but was Funny as hell to us.

[Jimmyz123]

I once had a client wearing an auto inflate down in Baja that got splashed by a big Roosterfish and inflated. Startled the hell out of him but was Funny as hell to us.

Isn't that video on YouTube? After I watched that I started looking for a different PFD. That's what I don't want to happen while I'm fishing. Early Inflation is not good. I hear they have medications for that. :p

[bigbarrels]

pfd 100% of the time will save your ass when the shit is hitting the fan....saved my butt......as far as waders go.......my waders only took on a little water initially last Spring during my 45 minute swim. They had to be kicked off immediately though due to inability to swim with those damn booties and fear of them filling up with water......just my .02

[deepdvr]

Hey Chris why don't you chime in on your experience with the automatic inflatable life vest?

[Hypoxic1]

I had one of those onboard my kayak. I think I actually had two and had one inside the boat that day. Aparantly the trigger for the vest reacts to moisture, not barometric pressure of sinking.
The one in the boat got wet and BOOM it went off inside the boat. Scared the shit outta me. waaay scarier than this whale event. sounded like a bomb inside the hull.

That is why I dont have the auto inflate mechanism on my harness anymore. Plus if you have to replace one, CAUSE IT GOT WET its like 20 bucks for the trigger.

Jims probably right and a full on vest it the safest way to go. Maybe I should design a comfortable one. I havent found one I like.

lets be careful out there!!:biggrinjester:

[GregAndrew]

Did you have your FF on when you got hit? Just wondering if salvage might be a possibility with a GPS location.

Waders can make an excellent floatation device once removed. You "gulp" air in the top and force it down to the legs. Once both legs are full, you tie off the the top with the suspenders. Lay in the crotch area and you have essentially a pool noodle.

[lterrero]

I had one of those onboard my kayak. I think I actually had two and had one inside the boat that day. Aparantly the trigger for the vest reacts to moisture, not barometric pressure of sinking.
The one in the boat got wet and BOOM it went off inside the boat. Scared the shit outta me. waaay scarier than this whale event. sounded like a bomb inside the hull.

That is why I dont have the auto inflate mechanism on my harness anymore. Plus if you have to replace one, CAUSE IT GOT WET its like 20 bucks for the trigger.

Jims probably right and a full on vest it the safest way to go. Maybe I should design a comfortable one. I havent found one I like.

lets be careful out there!!:biggrinjester: The automatic one is good to save your Kayak from hitting the bottom of the ocean.

[Electronics Squid]

Yes they do have water activated inflating PFD's the problem here is getting splashed particularly when going out through surf, they can and will inflate.

We had these on the patrol boats I was on in Kuwait...and they would go off from spray coming over the bow...had to keep them in the cabin on nasty days...

Also had an outdrive rip off and the boat went down...we got it to the pier, tied it off and started getting gear off. When the the boat went down and I had to jump off...I started swimming to the pier and the vest inflated. I have never been so scared in my life...tons of noise, made me think it was that vacuum you hear about when a ship goes down...The guys on the pier got a kick out of that...

[Fiskadoro]

Inflatable PFDs won't save you if you can't inflate it. You are much safer in a normal PFD.


I agree with Jim. The thing people forget is if they end up in the water and they do not have a PFD on they then end up have to save themselves, rather then save their gear.

I'm not talking about rods here I'm talking about the things you need to get back in. I had a friend who lost his paddle and radio when he rolled with his PFD sitting on the bow. By the time he got to it and got it on most of his gear including his paddle had drifted away.

I almost always wear a PFD saltwater kayak fishing, usually just a standard foam extrasport, because honestly you never know what could happen out there.

Freshwater I do sometimes use a inflatable but only in my sit inside which is almost impossible to roll, and I wear it mainly to save space and be compliant with lake rules.

Jim

[driftwood]

I also agree with Jim and i should wear my PFD more often. and not so much because of whales..... its the Crazy PBR's that i'm more afraid of. most common cause of casualties and fatalities while boating remains plain old ignorance. Though the Feds are quietly working toward mandatory boater education, regulations currently exist on a state-by-state basis.

Virtually every state has some sort of boating-education requirement except for Alaska, Arizona, California (yeah, can you believe that?), Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, South Dakota, Wyoming, and the territories of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. You can see exactly what each state's requirements are by visiting americasboatingcourse.com/abc_website/state_boating_law.htm.

[Jimmyz123]

Virtually every state has some sort of boating-education requirement except for Alaska, Arizona, California (yeah, can you believe that?), Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, South Dakota, Wyoming, and the territories of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. You can see exactly what each state's requirements are by visiting americasboatingcourse.com/abc_website/state_boating_law.htm.

Now look at the money making they could be doing with that class? If you required each boater to take a class it would generate money for the state that they could use to really do some good.

[sandydiego]

Glad you are ok. I saw a small whale out in the reserve on Sunday at noon. Took my time coming in and a sharp eye out. I had a wicked experience 3 weeks ago canoeing on the Colorado River. We went with the Boy Scouts on a river/camp trip and started at the base of the Hoover dam. To make a really long story short, the pfd's provided by the canoe company were old, useless and saturated upon water entry. When our leaky canoe sank, the pfd failed and I sank. I swam the canoe and my buddy to shore and we lived to tell about it.

It made me realize that all pfd's have a limited life and check your's before you use it. I bought a new high floater pfd from Sierra Trading Post when I got back home.

http://www.sierratradingpost.com/p/3572,1917J_Extrasport-B27-PFD-Life-Jacket-For-Men-and-Women.html

Steve

[old_rookie]

I also agree with Jim and i should wear my PFD more often. and not so much because of whales..... its the Crazy PBR's that i'm more afraid of. most common cause of casualties and fatalities while boating remains plain old ignorance. Though the Feds are quietly working toward mandatory boater education, regulations currently exist on a state-by-state basis.

Virtually every state has some sort of boating-education requirement except for Alaska, Arizona, California (yeah, can you believe that?), Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, South Dakota, Wyoming, and the territories of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. You can see exactly what each state's requirements are by visiting americasboatingcourse.com/abc_website/state_boating_law.htm.


That is really eye-opening. I think I'll go out and buy a 45' Bayliner and cruise around the bay and open waters. What's the big deal, just get in it and start it up. There are no lanes in the water so why do I need a class? What is that white thing in the water with the 5mph on it? Funny, last time out I made it bounce up and down like crazy.

[Jim Sammons LJKF]

I also agree with Jim and i should wear my PFD more often. and not so much because of whales..... its the Crazy PBR's that i'm more afraid of. most common cause of casualties and fatalities while boating remains plain old ignorance.

And it will only get worse when the MLPA comes into affect, because we are all going to be crammed into a much smaller area. Tensions will be high and there will be issues I believe.

[driftwood]

Thats a good point Jim, especially up north.

Your right OLD ROOKIE!
Believe it or not, the U.S. Coast Guard does not require a boat operator to learn anything at all about boating prior to getting behind the wheel and advancing the throttle. In fact, you can drive any size vessel that you can afford to purchase (or be invited aboard) and go to town! Imagine if the same rules applied to civilian aircraft. :eek:

No wonder everyone is pissed off at each other on BLOODY DECKS. :)

[T Bone]

Glad you are OK Chris.

[Aaron&Julie]

First, Wade's having a seal trying to board his yak. Now, you get flipped by a whale. Let's hope there's no "what's next?"

Glad you're okay, sorry to hear about the rods.

[Ohana]

Thats a good point Jim, especially up north.

Your right OLD ROOKIE!
Believe it or not, the U.S. Coast Guard does not require a boat operator to learn anything at all about boating prior to getting behind the wheel and advancing the throttle. In fact, you can drive any size vessel that you can afford to purchase (or be invited aboard) and go to town! Imagine if the same rules applied to civilian aircraft. :eek:

No wonder everyone is pissed off at each other on BLOODY DECKS. :)

Having owned a couple of boats, the only group that seems to care about a persons boating experience is the insurance companies. When I went from a 22 foot pb to a 35 foot pb, they told me that the fact I had prior boat ownership and driving experience lowered my insurance rates.

Kevin

[jimbo]

glad you're ok! getting the gear paid for is really awesome too.:cheers1:
i almost collided w/ a whale 2 yrs ago while cruising on my skiff on the INSIDE of the kelp near Windansea at grey light. couldn't believe it - i was in only about 35 ft of water. saw it at last minute and able to avert by it by about 5-10 feet. looked like a juvenile, but really rattled me nonetheless. figured it must of got a little confused at the point heading south.
later in same season, i collided w/ an adult grey whale on outside ridge of Coronado canyon. was cruising at 22 knts in over 2,000 ft water. no warning at all - no spouts on horizon before-hand, just a big crunch, starboard side of boat came out water, and the ob kicked. we watched the whale for about 30 sec on the surface and then it took off. i think we just glanced it. luckily, we were all seated and there were no injuries. amazingly there was NO damage to boat - not even a scratch.
if you're out there enough hours, you will probably encounter something at some point. Jim S is giving good advice - always wear a pfd and don't mess around w/ an inflatable.
one more point about crowding and boat traffic. i really encourage everyone to use some sort of a navigation light when kayak fishing in dark. it's easy for boats to lose you in the swell. man - it's going to be a mess in that little area when MLPA is enforced.

[THE DARKHORSE]

cruising around with an HDS 5 looking at bottom contour is like watching a movie, the detail is spectacular.

Chris :jig:





Speaking of, did you try that cool scroll back function on the HDS, Chris? It's a pretty slick feature that allows you to scroll back quite a distance through your travels, viewing what was on the meter at the time.

I know what all the other fish look like on the meter, but I'm not sure I want to know what that mark looks like. I'm guessing something along the lines of a false depth 25' down, blacked out, Sardine-school looking thingamajiggy---shooting straight up!?! :D
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
..

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Seriously though, the good news is you kept your' whits about you when the sh!t hit the fan. Good on ya' not to panic! I'm guessing that living on a boat for years helped in that arena.

Honestly, I'd be more freaked out if I didn't get a 100% positive, Whale I.D.---I have my own theory, but saying Whale sounds better than Shark!

[sundog]

Good story.

[Hypoxic1]

Checked the ff after a few weeks . only getting a partial screen so its off to West marine for a replacement. Thanks Josh for the advice about getting the ff insurance.