Reply With QuoteHopefully the cold water wasnt too much of a shock, it pays to have the right kit especially if you are on you're own.
I've been fishing since I was about 9 years old - and that's a very long time.
When I go Trout, Sea Trout or Salmon fishing I always, without fail, use a wading staff and wear a buoyancy aid. It's silly not to. Even when I'm floating in my multi compartment float tube, though then the wading staff is only needed to get in and out of the tube..
And in all those years I've never actually needed either!
Until yesterday that is. Fishing the River Swale for trout I caught an under surface rock and went over backwards. The 'bang' as the CO2 canister went off was extremely loud and my neck and head were immediately surrounded by a bright yellow doughnut! And even though my chest waders took on a lot of water I floated quite safely and using the wading staff quickly righted myself and waded back to the bank.
A wet, but happy day. Now I need to get a service kit before I can go trout fishing on the rivers again!
Best Regards - Peter
I'd hate to be with you when you're on your own.
Hopefully the cold water wasnt too much of a shock, it pays to have the right kit especially if you are on you're own.
Given the amount of rain and hail stones on the day, the water didn't seem so cold.Originally Posted by fierbois16
Actually, I was fishing with a friend - and he was wearing a manually operated buoyancy aid; with a rod in one hand and a wading staff in the other I'm not sure that he'd made a good choice. Having said that, he didn't fall in, I did!
Best Regards - Peter
I'd hate to be with you when you're on your own.
Glad that it worked! Regular servicing is a 'must'.
Sadly these vests aren't always the best option. Back in 2017, a Dutch yacht capsized near the Belgian coast. The keel sheared off. 3 sailors drowned, 3 were saved. One of the saved sailors is a sailing mate of my oldest son. One of the drowned sailors was his grandfather, one other his and my son's sailing mate. The three that survived the disaster were wearing -what I call- dinghy vests: non-inflatable, solid-style vests, so-called PFD: Personal Floating Devices that hug around the chest and waist. My son's mate told that he watched his grandfather and friend drown because their inflatable vest prevented them from returning to the upside-down hull: they couldn't swim with the orange bladder in front of them.
http://www.apsltd.com/aps-advisor/life-jacket-types/
Here's a good write-up when it comes to choosing a proper buoyancy aid. Personally, I've been wearing the same sort of aid as yours, but I'm planning a change to a Spinlock vest. Those are easier to put on over thick layers of sailing /fishing gear.
Indeed, they need to be serviced bi-annually at the very least, annually even better as it's quite inexpensive.
Sorry to hear of your Son's mates experience, but the only way to swim with one of these buoyancy aids is on your back/backstroke. Whilst the natural inclination is to want to swim forwards it is quite impossible with one of these aids, but backwards is very easy indeed - as I now know from experience.
Having recently returned from a cruise I can confirm that the life jackets they provide are all of the type that keep your head upwards with your back to the water, just in solid form as opposed to inflatables. Seems sensible really.
Best Regards - Peter
I'd hate to be with you when you're on your own.
We wear inflatable vest for helicopter transfers at work. Every few years we have to complete training (boiset) which is basically sitting in a mock up heli, being submerged and it rolling through 180. We're taught to wait till the roll is stopped, release the harness and swim out the window. Only then you inflate the jacket. A semi sub I worked on (borgsten dolphin) had a helicopter crash off it a few years ago where the pilot set down just off the beach in the surf. The heli turned over. Unfortunately several people didn't make it out, some off which had panicked (completely natural) and set off their jacket preventing them from escaping.
General technique is to escape first and then inflate. Swim on your back using your arms in a kind of backwards butterfly stroke. You'll really struggle on your front. Offshore jackets are serviced annually.
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The 'backward butterfly stroke' (or how shall I call it) makes sense with the inflatable vest. That said, all of the three men wearing that type of vest, weren't able (capable) to swim backwards to the safest spot in the sea: the upside-down hull of the yacht.
I must say that I'm wearing one of those inflatables myself for years. My choice when fishing would be the same as yours. And my new Spinlock will be an inflatable as well: more freedom of movement when I'm on the boat. But I'm more than convinced that a 'dinghy vest' is a good alternative.
Menno
They are awkward to use if you've not had any experience with them inflated for sure. The backward butterfly allows one to steer and to create a chain of people by hooking your feet under the armpits of the chap in front of you. Then all of you can backward butterfly together. I just hope no one has to use them in earnest.
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