Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Operation Paddle Smart Returns

So I am on furlough again - once again with my usual job awaiting me at the end, so not a big deal at all. In fact today I biked out to Sebago and went for a small-kine paddle. I had another mystery fever last week that had me pretty much flat on my back for a couple of days; I'd gone for COVID testing with the first mystery fever a few weeks earlier, but this time I was pretty sure it was the same thing as last time -- mysterious, but not COVID. I would guess something to do with either my cancer treatments, or maybe stress, or a combination thereof. Anyways, that whole thing left me feeling a little low on the energy, and another couch potato day was tempting, but I promised TQ I would make a roast chicken tomorrow so knowing that'll keep me home, I did manage to get myself out the door.

I'm so glad I did. It was a gorgeous day out there and there will be lots more pictures, but I wanted to start with my Coast Guard encounter!

One of my running jokes - except that it's not really a joke - about winter paddling in Jamaica Bay is that although I love having the bay to myself, as I so often do in the off season, if I do happen to see one motorboat all day, I'm always happy if it's the Coast Guard out tooling around in their RIB.

Fine seeing them in the summertime, too!

I was still right outside the Paerdegat when I saw them coming along from down towards Floyd Bennett Field today. They were cruising along in the channel and I pulled out my camera to see if I could get a nice shot - then looked up to see that they'd throttled back and were heading my way.

I waved, they waved back, general attitude was low-key, and when they got within hailing distance one of them called out, "Hello! Can we talk to you?"

I of course said "Sure!" and asked if they wanted to come to me or if I should paddle over to them. They said I could come on over, so I did.

I was actually expecting to be inspected! This is something they can ask of any recreational boater at any time, and I would've been fine with that, I always carry the regulation gear and then some when I'm paddling.


Turned out, though, that they just wanted to give me a sticker. The Coast Guard has a program called Paddle Smart. It's pretty straightforward - they provide waterproof stickers on which a paddler can write their name and contact info and then stick in somewhere in the boat where it can be seen pretty easily.

The idea is that if your boat is found empty and drifting somewhere in the NYC waterway, that sticker is going to give the CG a heckuvalot easier first step. Our little boats aren't registered, so there's no easy way to find the owner. This way, they can give the owner a call. Owner answers and says "Oh, yes, I'm fine and my boat blew off the dock in that squall we had earlier this week!" and suddenly everybody is way, way happier. 
BTW the sticker has lines for 2 contact numbers; one is for your cell and another could be your land line or a friend or family member - if you have a friend with whom you leave a float plan when you paddle, that person would probably be ideal. According to a knowledgeable friend (thanks Scott!) who commented when I shared this post on the local paddler email list, apparently what happens all too often with the cell number is the paddler gets separated from the boat and the cell phone stays in the day hatch. CG finds the boat, calls the cell #, and the boat rings. Not helpful. That's where the 2nd number is key.

I asked if I could have a few in case any of my friends I'll be paddling with on Friday want one. Funny thing was, I thought I had one of these in my cockpit, but when I got back to the club and got out, I discovered that although I'm pretty sure I did at one point, I don't now. So I'll definitely fix that!

Of course if the Coast Guard ever did call me to tell me that they'd found my boat floating around in Jamaica Bay, my answer wouldn't be reassuring at all - my boat lives in a locked shipping container at a private club, and if they find it floating in Jamaica Bay and I answer the phone, something HAS gone majorly wrong and there's quite possibly a thief who fell out of it somewhere out there.

But at least they would know that!

The Coasties explained that unfortunately they were reaching out to paddlers this way because we've had a couple of paddler fatalities in the area this year.

They liked what they saw on me and my boat, though, and complimented me on my preparedness. I was actually in solo paddle mode today so looking extra geared-up - in addition to the spare paddle, light, and compass that are always out, I had my pump and paddle float. Didn't have any actual plans to paddle anywhere I wouldn't be able to stand up and walk to shore today, but this is just a habit of mine.

They liked that I had a radio, too. It wasn't on but it was right there ready to use if I needed it, and they spotted it. And YES, they liked that I was wearing - not carrying, but wearing - my lifejacket. Almost forgot to mention that in this post because again, it's just such a habit, but yes, they noticed and appreciated.

No, I did not show the Coast Guard that I could even roll my boat, the yard sale on my deck would've gone everywhere, so that wouldn't have been much of a show. I'd just done some side sculling to get my head wet when I first got out in the bay and then took a soggy selfie. The water temperature in the bay has quite recently gone from still a little bitey to totally inviting; I don't roll when I'm out solo, but I just couldn't resist getting into the water a bit.

I wasn't surprised to hear about local fatalities - spring is a bad time for paddlecraft accidents around here because the air temperature can be flat out summery when the water is still at hypothermia levels. I usually do a post about that at the appropriate time - think I had other things on my mind this year. 


Nice talking with these guys today. And btw, as long as I'm sharing CG paddling safety stuff, of COURSE I have to share my all-time favorite - the paddlecraft-specific Vessel Safety Check (click here to view) form, which is such a good overview of the things a well-prepared paddler carries, learns, and does that I've used it as a handout for classes, and recommended it as a checklist for seasonal paddlers getting ready to get on the water in the spring. The Coast Guard Auxiliary, who does the Vessel Safety Checks, didn't always have a form for us, and checking a kayak with a motorboat checklist does get the basics (lifejackets, sound producing device, lights, visual distress signal, boat seaworthey and in good conditions) but involved an awful lot of N/A's (backfire arrestor, fire extinguisher, trash placard, etc etc etc). The form they came up with when they sat down with the American Canoe Association is really a great tool.
 And here is my sticker that will be going in my boat. 

3 comments:

Reverend Shari said...

You made me dig out this old blog post. First paragraph https://sebagocanoeclub.blogspot.com/search?q=shari+coast+guard

bonnie said...

OGM Shari, that's hysterical! Only you!

That story deserves a link!

Pua; Bakin' and Tendin' Bar said...

This is an awesome post Bonnie! I enjoyed it so much. Thank you for sharing. I always appreciate what a great waterwoman you are, but this story just goes above and beyond. Love seeing your face as well.

Hope you're feeling better and better every day. Even though I'm not out there on FB anymore, I'm still thinking about you.

Hugs from afar, Tita!